Comments on: Mount Panorama prepares to get on the turps http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/10/09/mount-panorama-prepares-to-get-on-the-turps/ now with extra source Sun, 12 Feb 2012 03:29:14 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Tom McLoughlin http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/10/09/mount-panorama-prepares-to-get-on-the-turps/#comment-23953 Tom McLoughlin Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-23953 Just to say I heard the Minister Mr Kelly warning off the bad boys and girls on abc radio this morning. But we were taught this just sets a pre-emptive tone both to those looking for bad sport, and for the families and mild ones to stay away. (The presence of children being the subliminal message to behave.) It's good for police overtime but other wise escalates things. <br /><br />In fact the Bondi Safety Committee after the riot in summer 95-96 got the researchers, police, local council, security industry etc all together and were instructed it takes 12 months of planning of structured entertainment to ward of the effect of boredom and booze. Where families and kids are welcome and there is plenty to see or do rather than make strife. Bathurst Races was the exemplar of what NOT to do. Any crowd is a danger if bored. And it's not the police job to provide that.<br /><br />One guy suggested the tub thumping by pollies and police was probably the worst PR prelude to any big event. But it does take time, money up front for entertainers and lots of organising. A riot is a sure sign of festival planning not done. The security guy was interesting too saying his job was nearly all bluff and symbolism in a context of gated events and giving the crowd a real satisfaction - at Byron it was burning an effigy of Old Father Time on New Year. Or the proverbial midnight fireworks. After that people get tired, happy to get some shuteye. <br /><br />And the prescription worked - Bondi has never had that riot behaviour again since then. Just to say I heard the Minister Mr Kelly warning off the bad boys and girls on abc radio this morning. But we were taught this just sets a pre-emptive tone both to those looking for bad sport, and for the families and mild ones to stay away. (The presence of children being the subliminal message to behave.) It’s good for police overtime but other wise escalates things.

In fact the Bondi Safety Committee after the riot in summer 95-96 got the researchers, police, local council, security industry etc all together and were instructed it takes 12 months of planning of structured entertainment to ward of the effect of boredom and booze. Where families and kids are welcome and there is plenty to see or do rather than make strife. Bathurst Races was the exemplar of what NOT to do. Any crowd is a danger if bored. And it’s not the police job to provide that.

One guy suggested the tub thumping by pollies and police was probably the worst PR prelude to any big event. But it does take time, money up front for entertainers and lots of organising. A riot is a sure sign of festival planning not done. The security guy was interesting too saying his job was nearly all bluff and symbolism in a context of gated events and giving the crowd a real satisfaction - at Byron it was burning an effigy of Old Father Time on New Year. Or the proverbial midnight fireworks. After that people get tired, happy to get some shuteye.

And the prescription worked - Bondi has never had that riot behaviour again since then.

]]> By: Dave Liberts http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/10/09/mount-panorama-prepares-to-get-on-the-turps/#comment-23954 Dave Liberts Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-23954 Lee Rhianon's comments are classic Greens politics - identify the bleeding obvious but ignore the reasons behind the problem (and thus miss the mark entirely in identifying a workable solution). The sponsorship by alcohol manufacturers is because of the culture, not the cause of it. The alcohol limits referred to are similar to those which existed for cricket fans in the 1970's and reflect that fans want to get at least quite pissed while enjoying their sport. While cricket has continued to reduce fans' access to alcohol to reflect the increasing reality that cricket crowds are nowdays often family affairs, Bathurst is and always has been a blokes' day out. Reducing access to alcohol will be bad for crowd numbers, bad for sponsors and thus bad for the event, which is run on entirely commercial grounds.<br /><br />Lee ought to have used this opportunity to promote another Greens policy - legal access to cannabis - as this has been shown to massively reduce crowd aggression (soccer hooligans never riot in Amsterdam). Lee Rhianon’s comments are classic Greens politics - identify the bleeding obvious but ignore the reasons behind the problem (and thus miss the mark entirely in identifying a workable solution). The sponsorship by alcohol manufacturers is because of the culture, not the cause of it. The alcohol limits referred to are similar to those which existed for cricket fans in the 1970’s and reflect that fans want to get at least quite pissed while enjoying their sport. While cricket has continued to reduce fans’ access to alcohol to reflect the increasing reality that cricket crowds are nowdays often family affairs, Bathurst is and always has been a blokes’ day out. Reducing access to alcohol will be bad for crowd numbers, bad for sponsors and thus bad for the event, which is run on entirely commercial grounds.

Lee ought to have used this opportunity to promote another Greens policy - legal access to cannabis - as this has been shown to massively reduce crowd aggression (soccer hooligans never riot in Amsterdam).

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