A guy is exiting the Gare du Nord train station yesterday afternoon around 5pm in Paris when he is stopped for a "control" (where the train station agents check to make sure you have a ticket or "titre de transport"), and he doesn't have a ticket. Then he hits the two agents, one on the shoulder and one on the face. And then from there policemen arrive and break this guy's arm for assaulting the agents. So we know this guy that didn't have a ticket is stupid, and probably the police reaction was heavy-handed as well.
But it doesn't stop there. Four hours later a bunch of punks arrive at the lower level of the station and have a stand-off with the police and it degenerates into these kids looting stores in the station, setting fire to trash cans, yelling "Nique la France!" and breaking stuff. Are these kids bored? Do they have nothing better to do than go around vandalizing stuff? Does that mean they think it's okay to bum a ride on a train without a ticket or that it was unreasonable for the agents to do their job and conduct a routine inspection? If these kids have a cause, they're not helping to promote it by doing what they've done. It seems they just want to take part in the name of anarchy, because resisting any kind of authority is cool.
Even if the police acted in a manner that was more brutal than necessary (and should have done anything to prevent this from escalating) this whole incident makes me embarrassed for France and ashamed of the people of my generation. It's pathetic and maddening. Especially when you consider that the Gare du Nord is where the Eurostar train arrives, and you have tourists maybe getting their first glimpse of Paris in the middle of this chaos. Police in heavy duty riot gear, tear gas and a bunch of delinquents running around stealing shoes from Foot Locker doesn't exactly make for the nicest welcome. France certainly has its own problems...
You can see a video from Youtube here.
Also, the BBC has more.
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