Fists of Fury

Since it everyone else has commented on it, I thought that I would add my two cents. The event of course was the brawl and subsequent melee that took place last Friday at the Detroit-Indiana game. It would be pretty hard to avoid this one, since the event has been broadcast on every media outlet and commented on by every commentator incessantly since it took place.
I agree with the harsh penalty meted out to Artest. Granted the fans were lame but you should be able to control your own reactions. You may not be able to control anything else, so only worry about what you can control...your actions. Players have been pelted with batteries, beers, and everything else since the birth of organized sports, that's just the way it's been. If you are an athlete you know and prepare for this, you tune it out.
I also feel like the fans should pay some of the penalty. They fanned the flames and acted despicably. It becomes a lot more difficult, however, to exercise justice on the 10-15 semi anonymous people who committed these acts. Maybe you can revoke beer sales at future Detroit games. Maybe you can have Detroit forfeit a few home games. Something needs to be done to nip this kind of activity early.
Like they say, Sports is a reflection of society. It doesn't take a sociologist to point out that society is becoming more violent, more self centered, and less responsible. This didn't happen in a vacuum and we can't think that it did.