Halos For Hooligans

Hooliganism is generally defined as disruptive or unlawful behavior such as rioting, bullying, and vandalism. It also is increasingly an everyday, naturally occurring phenomenon in our society which we seem to accept as normal.

But is it really normal to loot stores to make a political point? Is it normal to riot rather than protest? Is it normal to call for the death of police officers because you don’t agree with the current state of the system? No, no and no! Too often, the excuse seems to outweigh the action in today’s world. “I’ve been dissed so it’s okay for me to (fill in the blank – rob you, kill you, beat you, etc.)” Surely we have approached the line of irrational behavior and have crossed it without even noticing.

What has been our response to uncivil behavior? Halos for hooligans in too many cases. We all know too well the ongoing saga of Mr. Rice and the handsome reward he garnered for beating up a woman in an elevator. The excuse? He’s a star football player, of course. What of rioters in Ferguson? They were dissed and frustrated so it’s okay to steal and intimidate the general public. This type of thinking pervades our entire world. Why does Johnny weigh 250 pounds when he’s only thirteen years old? He’s sure to have glandular issues or at very least he’s a victim of low self-esteem. It’s certainly not because he won’t shut his pie hole, so let’s give him a halo too.

The international scene has its hooligans too. What was the world response to the leaders in Syria, North Korea and Russia? Halos of course! After all, these folks aren’t as bad as, let say Goering…. or are they? Bullying seems to be the new diplomatic mode these days. But why do we reward these bags of crap with pretending that they are not who they are and rewarding them by caving in to their ludicrous demands? Speaking of halos, even the Pope complained that the cartoon world was being too harsh on Muslims. Really? How did the church react to the piece of so-called artwork that featured a crucifix in a bottle of urine? Crickets! In any event, he felt justified bestowing a halo to our Muslim brothers.

Hooligans are in our midst everywhere and yet, instead of stopping them in their tracks and treating them like the criminals they are, we cowardly offer kudos and halos. Rather than reacting with rationality, we offer instead halos for hooligans. Does this really make sense?

Read author Allen E. Rizzi’s latest books available at Amazon.com