As I sit down to think and write about Saturday night's events, the familiar lines of the Creedence Clearwater Revival song "Who'll Stop the Rain?" keep replaying in my mind.
Frontman John Fogerty's line, "Clouds of mystery pourin'/Confusion on the ground," typify the experiences of soldiers who went to war in Vietnam and faced enemies they couldn't find and gases they didn't understand. The images of helicopters, riot gear and tear gas rising over building tops, somehow connects Saturday night's "civil disturbances," following the MSU men's basketball team's loss to the University of North Carolina, to those lines.
But the street fight that ensued between aggravated students and antagonizing police officers was fought with beer bottles, tear gas and hard words - not bullets. And the cops who represent a hypothetical-Charlie, the nickname given to Viet Cong soldiers, are supposed to be our defenders - not the enemy.
Perhaps, a more relatable historical account to focus on is the Kent State University shooting from the same time period. For four days, students protested an American invasion of Cambodia.
It became a crucial point in the history of collegiate political activism when four students were killed after the National Guard failed to detain the protests with tear gas. Ironically, the event promoted another political singer, Neil Young, to pen his popular song's phrase, "Four dead in Ohio."
The point to be remembered from all three of these events is that our leaders made severe mistakes. Those who are meant to make wise decisions for our troops and students, blundered.
I was certain a mistake in East Lansing was made as I ran with students from the first wave of tear gas that appeared after only 20 minutes of peaceful celebration in Cedar Village. There was no doubt in my mind while watching the horrific masses of people vomiting in unison.
As a fellow reporter and I ran around East Village, dodging the poison and trying to report the story, the same cries were uttered in every apartment hallway full of red-eyed, crying Spartans fans.
"Why are they doing this? We weren't doing anything wrong."
Some asked us this question as if we would have the answers, but we didn't. For the last couple of weeks I had praised the police's handling of students in prior instances. Saturday's use of horses, helicopters and gas completely contradicted the strategies that were implemented after the basketball team's Sweet 16 and Elite Eight victory celebrations - gatherings that were successes for both students and law enforcement.
On Sunday, I tried to give the police another chance and consider the value of what they called a preemptive measure. But, when I read The Herald-Sun's - a paper in Durham, N.C., I worked for last summer - account of celebrations in nearby Chapel Hill, I knew the police had gone too far.
Having lived in Chapel Hill, I can tell you it's a college town much like our own. It has a long strip of businesses on Franklin Street, which is akin to Grand River Avenue.
When an estimated 7,000 students - thousands more than the amount estimated in East Lansing - celebrated the Tar Heels' win, no tear gas was needed. Although four fires were set, all in all, celebrations were regarded as peaceful. The Chapel Hill Police Department reported only two arrests compared to the 43 made in East Lansing.
If you've been reading The State News, hopefully you've read between the politically correct double speak and noticed that law enforcement officials and university administrators are trying to pawn blame for the attack on students.
Please, make no mistake about it, local officers have shamed themselves severely. They are the ones who have shown a mob mentality and inability to act without personal ethics. We now know they posses the ability to become tyrannically drunk from their own power.
After the main action of the celebrations ended, I personally witnessed police needlessly launch gas on small groups who were committing no crime. This is how the tear-gas discharge rate climbed by hundreds, up to a possible 1,000 canisters. There is no amount of reality bending that can cover up such maliciousness.
As citizens in a democracy, it's important we keep pressure on police to acknowledge and answer for their actions. If you have any stories of injustice to share, please submit them via e-mail to me with your name, year, major and a phone number I can contact you at. I'll be dedicating next week's column as a space to share these stories if enough decent accounts are submitted.
This is a crucial political event in our lives, and we need to make sure our voices aren't lost in a haze of public relations.
Joseph Montes is the State News opinion writer. Reach him at montesjo@msu.edu.
