9 Dead In Waco Biker Fight; Armed Society Not Quite So Polite

Nine bikers were killed in a fight at a restaurant in Waco, Texas, Sunday, as rival motorcycle gangs fought each other over not much of anything. The violence has left observers wondering what it is about Texan people that leads them to such wanton violence; we're waiting in vain for so-called "moderate Texans" to condemn the actions of the thugs within their midst.

The fight broke out at a "Twin Peaks" restaurant, a chain we were surprised to learn is more an imitation of Hooters than a tribute to David Lynch's innovative 1990 ABC TV series. The local restaurant had been criticized by police for its regular "biker nights," and based on a tip that trouble might break out, police were reportedly already surrounding the restaurant when the fight started, according to Waco police spokesman Patrick Swanton:

Police and troopers were in the parking lot trying to secure the area and protect citizens when a fight broke out inside the restaurant and spilled into the parking lot.

Swanton said the fight quickly escalated from fists and feet to chains, clubs and knives, then to gunfire.

Gang members were shooting at each other and officers at the scene fired their weapons, as well, Swanton said [...]

"It is one of the most violent scene I've seen in my 34 years as a police officer in Waco," Swanton said.

Swanton said officers recovered more than 100 weapons from the scene and there were several vehicles that had bullet holes in them.

The fact that most of the bikers were armed didn't seem to make them any more polite; the NRA did not respond to queries about whether their Dumb Gun Slogans department would be revisiting any of the group's favorite clichés in response to the melee. It is also not known whether the 100+ guns will be given to good foster homes; expect someone to start a GoFundMe to make sure that the orphaned weapons are properly cared for.

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 The New York Times   reports that Twin Peaks had not exactly established itself as a good corporate citizen:

The authorities made little effort on Sunday to conceal their frustration with the restaurant’s managers, who they said had previously been uncooperative in dealing with the Police Department’s security concerns about biker gatherings there.

“We have attempted to work with the local management of Twin Peaks to no avail,” Sergeant Swanton said. “They have continued to allow these bikers to gather here, and this is the culmination of what has occurred.” He added: “What happened here today could have been avoided if we had had management at a local establishment listen to their police department and assist us. They failed to do that.”

An award for outstanding achievement in ass-covering should go Rick Van Warner, spokesman for the national Twin Peaks chain, who took pains to note that the violence took place in the Waco restaurant's parking lot, adding that the corporation was "thankful no employees, guests or police were injured in this senseless violence outside the restaurant, and our sympathies are with the families of those killed.” And also, of course that there were no unfortunate photos of bullet-riddled corpses inside the restaurant, especially not next to the company logo. Talk about a lucky break!

Van Warner also told the Times in a later phone interview that the parent company was "seriously considering revoking the franchise based on this situation,” because "If any of those allegations are true that there was ample warning to potentially prevent something of this nature, then there is no way we would allow someone to continue operating under our own brand." Or, translated from corporatese, "A higher level of ass coverage may be in order."

As of yet, there have been no calls for the white community in Texas to be treated as a suspect class; New York Times columnist Charles Blow and others have been asking some questions about the police response in Waco:

As has The Atlantic's Ta-Nehisi Coates:

It's almost as if there's a violent undercurrent in white culture that nobody's willing to talk about.

As of press time, we have not yet heard from Alex Jones on the matter, so we aren't certain whether the bikers were all crisis actors pretending to have a shootout so the feds can seize all the guns, or if the incident is part of Operation Jade Helm 15, and hence a slightly different flavor of false flag incident staged so the feds can seize all the guns. The one thing it couldn't possibly be was a bunch of armed thugs blowing each other away because guns are always the solution.

The Log Lady could not be reached for comment on the incident.

[ NYT / KWTX ]