To Serve and Protect (The Suburbs)

thank you sean for this.

Fuck those douches and their millionaire shirts and frosted tips and dress sneakers. Fuck them right in the ear and send them back over the bridge. Props to you, Sean.

That is So fucked up! Thanks for being aware!!

My sister did the exact same thing last year--saved an old man from being beaten to death by 3 goons.
Well done Sean and Kris. Glad you both came out ok.

My sister did the exact same thing last year--saved an old man from being beaten to death by 3 goons.
Well done Sean and Kris. Glad you both came out ok.

This was pretty great to read, but don't forget that Vancouver has a pretty high asshole ratio as well. It's not just suburbans stinking shit up.

Sorry about your busted lip that's going to stingingly remind you of this for a few days. We should get that hot oil cauldron set up outside your window before New Years hits. I've stored seven years of turkey frier oil up and the goons can gladly shower in it.

It's funny how when a suburban-raised hipster moves to the "city," s/he suddenly becomes the protector of it. Goons are goons, regardless if they're from Surrey or East Van.

escubio:

It's funny how when a suburban-raised hipster moves to the "city," s/he suddenly becomes the protector of it. Goons are goons, regardless if they're from Surrey or East Van.

Funny? Not really. I've been quite open about my past. I really think I've made some amends for my drinking. Its the guys who end up becoming investment brokers, or salesman thats worse. These goons will never repent. They are bullies and they will always exist.

I know that poor guy! Thank you so much for coming to his rescue! You two saved a life that night, and changed the lives of the attackers for the better. Names? I'm the nosy type.

My father once told me that "there is no need for an excuse to do good". Thank you Sean and thanks to Kris Krug (whom I have now even MORE reason to admire) for saving this man. It irks me that things like this happen, but you both are role models for doing this.

Good job, my friend.

ugh I am actually speechless, except that my brain wants me to find a novel way of saying "told you so". thanks to you two handsome super-bloggers for putting this story in the internet so that everyone can know for sure that assholes REALLY DO come downtown and piss on poor people for fun.

hey I have a great idea!!! Let's build a soccer stadium!!!!!!!

thats an honourable thing you did sean. I think I've met that harmonica man a week or so ago in Gastown after I got off work. He's one of the most nicest/kindest man ever... kinda talkative but still quite endearing. But what those douchebags did was heartless.. You deserve a medal.

Nobel-keeping-the-peace prize or something

Props to you two; more Sean & Kris; less thugs & goons! Well written!

escubio:

Its the guys who end up becoming investment brokers, or salesman thats worse. These goons will never repent. They are bullies and they will always exist.

You couldn't be more right Sean. In my line of work I come across too many back-street-bullies-turned-brokers to deny this.

I don't want to come off as cynical, but punks like this (which seem to be over-represented in Vancouver as opposed to other cities) have a really fucked up way of thinking. They'll actually BRAG about beating up homeless, and if they ever seriously hurt someone, their first thought is not 'oh my God, I've hurt someone', its 'how do I get away with this'.

I don't know what makes Vancouver such a breeding ground for douche-bags, but hat's off to you Sean.

“Laws control the lesser man. . . Right conducts the greater one” - Mark Twain

You and KK are real heroes. Good for you, standing up to the thugs.

It's all part of the cops and Van city planning to have all the bars in Vancouver, specifically on Granville. They seem to think it'll all be more easily managable to have them condensed together. Stupid planning indeed, it should all be spread out through all the different neighborhoods so that they all retain some of their own characters and communities.

And thanks goodness you guys were there to be heroes. My heart breaks to think how needlessly cruel some people are towards other vulnerable human beings. Fuck!

Thanks for walking the talk (and more!), both of you.
This raises a couple questions for me:
1. I wonder if the club/bar owners of the neighbourhood have any sense of corporate responsibility in this, or if they simply would effeminately brush it off with some kind of "we can't really regulate what people do after they've gotten drunk in our premises" and
2. Genesis is hired during the day to move along the homeless and panhandlers (sometimes doing so illegally). I wonder if Genesis is available for hire by the clubs at night to protect the homeless and residents from their drunk patrons?

It's a good thing those douches didn't have guns or knives like so many of them do. You guys did good, but be careful!

big ups sean and kk. too many people in this city would have turned a blind eye and a deaf ear to the whole thing, too afraid to get involved. much love to you both.

Everyone's commented on your post, and good on you with the rest of them. A comment on your post style, and intention...
I love the sense of the aftermath in this post, and the picture that accompanies it. I love the sense of the visceral stream that adrenaline leaves when it goes. I love the simmering anger throbbing in your split lip spilling out onto the keyboard.
I love the fact that you and KK+ (who was just watching Dark Knight, for fook's sake) were close enough to intersect at a real moment in quantum time where the decisions made led to action, driven by a desire to counteract injustice, and that in doing so, you then both did what came naturally, and spread that positive intention/action via electronic stream of consciousness. The world needs a lot more of that.
Much love to both of you from somewhere near the bottom of the continent.

Thanks for teaching those aholes a lesson. Take care of that lip.

vancityguy:

escubio:

Its the guys who end up becoming investment brokers, or salesman thats worse. These goons will never repent. They are bullies and they will always exist.

I don't want to come off as cynical, but punks like this (which seem to be over-represented in Vancouver as opposed to other cities) have a really fucked up way of thinking. They'll actually BRAG about beating up homeless, and if they ever seriously hurt someone, their first thought is not 'oh my God, I've hurt someone', its 'how do I get away with this'.

________

I'm not sure how you can connect the actions of these goons to certain professions and place of residence. Do the goons wear shirts with "I'm a salesman from Surrey" printed on them?

Sean, you should be lauded for your actions. We could use more people like you.

Deal with the people who commit these crimes. I see it unreasonable and useless to drag the names of professions and communities through the mud with unproven (at least to me as per your blog entry) allegations.

Also, Vancouver is NOT the only city that has this kind of activity. Being from Vancouver and living in Toronto, this thing happens everywhere by people of all socio-economic levels.

escubio

There are certain character traits that gravitate to certain professions and pastimes. I played football at a high enough level for long enough, and have worked in finance long enough, to know that certain attitudes find themselves quite at home in these professions as well as ample opportunity to advance in such professions because of their dispositions.

Am I ridiculing or demonizing these fields? Of course not, if I were than I'd be accusing myself of being such a goon. Do they exist in other professions as well, of course, that's obvious. Is football full of meatheads like these, far from it. But the fact remains, these types of characters DO have an affinity for certain lines of work over others. I've seen too many short-sellers, penny brokers and day traders with attitudes like these for you say any different. The point is that goons like these shouldn't end up in such positions, but they habitually do.

If you still don't buy it, read a few articles from David Baines of the Vancouver Sun and you'll start to paint a clearer picture for yourself.

escubio:

Deal with the people who commit these crimes. I see it unreasonable and useless to drag the names of professions and communities through the mud with unproven (at least to me as per your blog entry) allegations.

Also, Vancouver is NOT the only city that has this kind of activity. Being from Vancouver and living in Toronto, this thing happens everywhere by people of all socio-economic levels.

Two great points actually. Keep in mind, as ChrisJ pointed out above, there is a lot of anger at work on my part. I am generally quite reactionary, I know this, it is my shortcoming and it is the reason I haven't managed to stay sober, despite not having a drink for over a year. Anybody who knows Dr. Bill will know what I'm on about. Indeed despite a troll from facebook I'm surprised some of my enemies didn't jump at the chance to flame me.

But then along comes a new one; Escubio. Way to investigate aka google. So what if I was a teenage alcoholic from Whalley? My point was that I've been very honest with you about my past, and I've tried to turn some of my shame and guilt into a positive thing with blogging, and you come along and try and use it against me. Thats some small-time shit. I didn't mean to generalize any certain professions, but rather show that most of the people who I once looked up to when I was in highschool, the jocks, the goons, the cool kids; they are the ones who excel in the cut-throat world of Alpha Male capitalism. So now that I took that back...

No good deed goes unnoticed - especially when you blog about it.

Hats off to you Sean! But remember even kids from Van wear Armani Exchange. Anyways just be careful as suburban douchebags are known to carry weapons because they can't fight man to man, fucking pussies.

Hats off to you Sean! But remember even kids from Van wear Armani Exchange. Anyways just be careful as suburban douchebags are known to carry weapons because they can't fight man to man, fucking pussies.

Dear Readers: It was ever thus---when he was in Central City Mission?, Sean came to the rescue of a fellow patient (who was out on a pass) from being badly beaten up by 3 very nasty former nasty acquaintances ----the fact that he is very slight in build does not seem to deter Sean -but he comes by this kind of behavior honestly--the rest of the family have intervened at some point or another to save some poor soul from being hurt ---although I use my very loud bright yellow safety whistle to deter the baddies ---I think I will buy one for Sean too.
I think the people of the DTES and Gastown are collectively sick of larger- louts who go down there and pick on some poor sod for some kind of sick reason and then go home--wherever that may be and boast about their dirty deeds.
LMO

kudos to both of you.

sean Orr:

Its the guys who end up becoming investment brokers, or salesman thats worse. These goons will never repent. They are bullies and they will always exist.

escubio:

I'm not sure how you can connect the actions of these goons to certain professions and place of residence. Do the goons wear shirts with "I'm a salesman from Surrey" printed on them?
...

Also, Vancouver is NOT the only city that has this kind of activity. Being from Vancouver and living in Toronto, this thing happens everywhere by people of all socio-economic levels.

maybe this is a tiny bit of a stretch ... but this quote from the Georgia Straight's 10 Reasons why Vision Vancouver should worry about the NPA made me think of this odd little conversation:

"8. The magnitude of the NPA loss in 2008 eliminated a lot of deadwood, creating room for smart, young, media-savvy candidates to step forward into the limelight. The old NPA was boring. The marketing types who are attracted to the NPA have a great opportunity to rebrand the party."

Uh-oh! More unfair labelling of "marketing types"! anyone want to take up the worthy cause of defending innocent salesmen from defamation?

That's great work man, good job !!!

Big engine. I want in next time. I can't find any other Irish exercise routine apart from wine glass lifting. Nicole and I bought painkillers for him once when he had an abcessed tooth. He's a lovely man and he deserves your protection. Plus you were totally faded right ?

Tiocfaidh ár Lá.

Lynda Maeve Orr:

Dear Readers: It was ever thus---when he was in Central City Mission?, Sean came to the rescue of a fellow patient (who was out on a pass) from being badly beaten up by 3 very nasty former nasty acquaintances ----the fact that he is very slight in build does not seem to deter Sean -but he comes by this kind of behavior honestly--the rest of the family have intervened at some point or another to save some poor soul from being hurt ---although I use my very loud bright yellow safety whistle to deter the baddies ---I think I will buy one for Sean too.
I think the people of the DTES and Gastown are collectively sick of larger- louts who go down there and pick on some poor sod for some kind of sick reason and then go home--wherever that may be and boast about their dirty deeds.
LMO

Slight of build ? He's a pit bull in Cheap Mondays. Just because he smells like a puppy doesn't mean he punches like one. I used the ham in pasta sauce with fresh oregano and vine tomatoes.

I have had a little seasonal cheer, so perhaps this has already been suggested, but what about something like a Guardian Angels patrol type thing. Maybe just on Friday, Saturday, nights. Biking around in the warmer months like a semi sober mobile street party. Just an idea

James:

I have had a little seasonal cheer, so perhaps this has already been suggested, but what about something like a Guardian Angels patrol type thing. Maybe just on Friday, Saturday, nights. Biking around in the warmer months like a semi sober mobile street party. Just an idea

I'm in but only if we wear antlers.

sean wrote: But then along comes a new one; Escubio. Way to investigate aka google. So what if I was a teenage alcoholic from Whalley? My point was that I've been very honest with you about my past, and I've tried to turn some of my shame and guilt into a positive thing with blogging.

======

With blogging publicly on the net, you have to be open to any comments. I do not know your personal history, but it's not required. In this posting, you wrote some points that deserve, at the very least, clarification, as well as criticism.

Good on the both of you. Too much of this stuff goes on across the City, and particularly on the Downtown Eastside. Nothing will change unless each one of steps up to do what is right.

escubio:

sean wrote: But then along comes a new one; Escubio. Way to investigate aka google. So what if I was a teenage alcoholic from Whalley? My point was that I've been very honest with you about my past, and I've tried to turn some of my shame and guilt into a positive thing with blogging.

======

With blogging publicly on the net, you have to be open to any comments. I do not know your personal history, but it's not required. In this posting, you wrote some points that deserve, at the very least, clarification, as well as criticism.

yes.Lets all critisize sean and cris for not turning a blind eye.clarify that douche bags who wear the uniform of a suburban asshole almost killed a man.or how about we over analize every thing on the net.call me on my bad spelling and grammer. please.
everybody i hang out with in vancouver is from a different place.small town or suburb.but sean moved here and made and vancouver better for it who cares about his past.
theres assholes every where but working at bars here for years i can say the horror storys i tell my friends when were hanging out is almost always because of some bridge kid
who couldnt get laid and picked a fight.
taxes is a gang and sean orr is ponyboy,
al is jonny, rick is soda pop,steve is dallas,and one day ill be two-bit.
ben k

Someone mentioned the Guardian Angels - Vancouver actually had a chapter of the Guardian Angels back in the 1980s. Not sure where it's at now. Civic authorities tend to be ambivalent or totally adverse to that kind of citizen policing. I remember something like it being tried in the West End back in the mid-nineties in response to a spate of bashings. It wasn't very effective...probably because the most intimidating member was a 5'1" baby-dyke with an oversized baret and a spunky attitude who looked about fourteen (the initiative also didn't have police support nor widespread support within the community).

Much as I love the place, Vancouver is without a doubt the meanest city in Confederation. Mean City.

Good on you & your friend, Sean.

Chronicled KK's knuckles for the permanent record:
http://flickr.com/photos/uncleweed/3153905853/

Hey me again guardian angel suggesting guy again...man I am good with antlers, or large florescent pulsating jelly fish costumes... So another thought... (Yes I know I am ripping off Celine with the dots but I am drunk and can't help it)...The torch is coming right?...Rather than mess with it or the people that are carrying it ( If people love stuff, or believe in stuff let them, there is so little positivity in life) ...we should just parallel it... We ( well not me I am kinda fat and old) should just have a bigger brighter more extravagant flame... one that suggests tolerance, benevolence, kindness, peace... Yep, mushy, drunk, sad, yet hopeful and pacifistic.

James:

Hey me again guardian angel suggesting guy again...man I am good with antlers, or large florescent pulsating jelly fish costumes... So another thought... (Yes I know I am ripping off Celine with the dots but I am drunk and can't help it)...The torch is coming right?...Rather than mess with it or the people that are carrying it ( If people love stuff, or believe in stuff let them, there is so little positivity in life) ...we should just parallel it... We ( well not me I am kinda fat and old) should just have a bigger brighter more extravagant flame... one that suggests tolerance, benevolence, kindness, peace... Yep, mushy, drunk, sad, yet hopeful and pacifistic.

CCAP is having another Poverty Olympics event next month ... I think they are planning on one next year as well. Really fun event! Bedbug-infested mattress longjumps, you get the picture.

Atta' boy. That's it man, atta' boy.

Yes, we did have the Guardian Angels for a short while. We sent them packing, because they expressed the belief that the homeless were the enemy against whom they were here to act. NOT exactly the attitude we are looking for.

The wiki entry on the Guardian Angels states the Vancouver chapter resumed activities in 2006, not sure if that's correct: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guardian_Angels#Canada

(insert obligatory self-effacing comment for quoting Wikipedia as a source in an on-line forum)

Great article, I live @ Beatty and Pender and I'm subjected every week to these losers who piss in our entrance way and feel the need to announce their arrival. I have no fear of them but then again i'm a big guy, but i see them hunt in packs for the weak and usually when pissed up head over to the westend to pick on some gay guys. These idiots have helped me come to hate this city beacuse it is the norm here and no one seems to care. If anyone is out there and would like to join me in teaching these boneheads some manners and they are not welcome here..let me know