During the riots after the April 2 men's basketball game, I was out on the streets. I passed many cops, and I got teargassed twice, but never did I see any actions that deserved the current whining that many students have brought down upon the police forces involved.

I have been reading the paper's opinion pages, and I have noticed one main phrase repeated over and over again: "The police provoked the students."

My response to this is, "What kind of animals are the students who were 'provoked?'" Do these students lack the ability to recognize the size of the gathering, the liquor-fueled volatility and the actions taken against the police who were simply trying to keep the peace?

To be provoked implies some sort of animal nature, and I hoped the students could show some self-restraint and not retaliate childishly. This is the same logic that leads to unjust wars, the "he hit me/she bit me" continuous retaliation junk. What are we, a nation of whining children? I am ashamed.

Joseph Wells
Lansing Community College student