Quote:
Originally Posted by pepper24
Regarding the G8/G20, Canada is a democracy that allows peaceful protest. If it turns ugly, the RCMP will do what's necessary without excess force such as riot police, tear gas etc. Not open fire on civialians.
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I disagree. I guess it depends on what constitutes turning ugly. If there is 100 protesters and one RCMP officer (with 1 backup and a couple more in a helicopter), and it turns ugly to the point where bats and crowbars are directed at said officer, there is no hope of controlling that situation with anything but deadly force. You don't even know that it was going to turn ugly until the first guy got beaten, and at that point, tear gas/flashbangs and such become less useful because of friendly fire, not to mention as with any non-lethal weapons, there is still a chance of death. (hello tasers!)
When you have similar numbers as the protestors, then strategies like riot police and shields have an effect. You can't form a riot control line with one guy rappelling onto a ship. Also, it's clear that Israel allowed peaceful protests as the other 5 ships were boarded without any issue. Only when it turned into a 100 vs 1 melee was force even used.