Two die, 83 arrested at Ozzfest

[MadDog2020]

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/18/arts/mus...amp;oref=slogin

Let me say this: I am a HUGE Ozzy fan, and have been to a number of Ozzfests. They are crazy enough and attract a siginifcant number of lunatics when you charge people to get in. But when you allow FREE ADMISSION to a concert that attracts the element that Ozzfest attracts, you aren't asking for trouble- you're flat-out BEGGING for it. I'm actually surprised it wasn't worse. It surprisingly doesn't site the free admission in the article, but I know for a fact it was free, as it was posted on the official website when tour dates were announced. What a disaster.

Edited August 20, 2007 by MadDog2020

[langsgirl]

Ya it was free... and now alcohol is banned in the lots....such a shame. I mean i know i used to drink underage in lots... but both the deaths were connected to cocaine so they should ban cocaine I didnt read the posted article... I read one on Saturday about it, so if both deaths were not related to cocaine then I am sorry for my innaccurateness, that is what Sat's article said.

I have no prob with them cracking down on underage drinking.. but tailgating is so fun at concerts

[Weekes Head]

I wouldn't be so quick to blame free admission or anything of the sort. Underage drinking has gotten ridiculous at the parking lots at PNC lately. Hell, when I went there for a 311 concert a few weeks ago I saw a bunch of kids being arrested for underage drinking, a few more for drugs too.

Even inside, they don't have the most foolproof method of making sure kids don't get alcohol -- they give you wristbands if you show ID, but you have a three drink limit. Anyone who is 21 can get a wristband and buy a drink for someone underage, it gets marked on their wristband by the vendor but beyond that, there seems to be no actual policing within the concert area, especially the lawn.

The two kids apparently were drinking, doing cocaine, and smoked pot. Idiots.

[langsgirl]

Ya i wouldnt blame it on the free aspect.. the incubus show had like 40 arrests of underage drinking as well I had heard last week. I guess I cant say much since I drank underage... but I wasnt doing drugs and I wasnt getting drunk for the most part.. if I was it was mild drunkeness. So its a shame kids are so out of control that our pregaming fun will get ruined

[Satans Hockey]

When I first read your post I thought it was a shooting or something of the sort. This has nothing to do with the show being free. This isn't violence related. This stuff would have probably happened anyway cause it has at the a lot of other shows. Plus people did buy tickets as well cause certain people like me got tickets just to sell them.

[MadDog2020]

I wouldn't be so quick to blame free admission or anything of the sort. Underage drinking has gotten ridiculous at the parking lots at PNC lately. Hell, when I went there for a 311 concert a few weeks ago I saw a bunch of kids being arrested for underage drinking, a few more for drugs too.

Even inside, they don't have the most foolproof method of making sure kids don't get alcohol -- they give you wristbands if you show ID, but you have a three drink limit. Anyone who is 21 can get a wristband and buy a drink for someone underage, it gets marked on their wristband by the vendor but beyond that, there seems to be no actual policing within the concert area, especially the lawn.

The two kids apparently were drinking, doing cocaine, and smoked pot. Idiots.

Agreed, on the underage drinking scenario RD- it has gotten out of control at PNC the last few years. I saw Disturbed and Godsmack there last September and it was a free for all. But I still attribute the free admission as a major part of the problem. I've never heard of two people dying and 83 being arrested at an Ozzfest because of just underage drinking. There were a lot of drunk, high off their ass low-lifes there that wouldn't normally be there if they had to pay. The arrest number and two deaths confirm that to me. It sounded like a fvcking circus.

[Satans Hockey]

Agreed, on the underage drinking scenario RD- it has gotten out of control at PNC the last few years. I saw Disturbed and Godsmack there last September and it was a free for all. But I still attribute the free admission as a major part of the problem. I've never heard of two people dying and 83 being arrested at an Ozzfest because of just underage drinking. There were a lot of drunk, high off their ass low-lifes there that wouldn't normally be there if they had to pay. The arrest number and two deaths confirm that to me. It sounded like a fvcking circus.

I doubt it, lawn tickets were always pretty cheap. I'm sure those people would have probably gone anyway. I have been to a few Ozzfests and I had seen people get kicked out for underage drinking and I have seen tonsssss of people get kicked out for fighting and getting out of control in the pit. Ozzfest has always been a circus lol

[Weekes Head]

You know what, MD, kids nowadays are friggen nuts. When I was a teenager, yeah, I had my moments, but I never found the need to get absolutely bombed or high just to enjoy a concert for crying out loud.

Hell, I look at the high school I graduated from -- used to be one of the top ranked schools in the state, now it's completely fallen off the map for its academics. It's now looked at as a school filled with out of control kids who have major substance abuse problems.

[MadDog2020]

When I first read your post I thought it was a shooting or something of the sort. This has nothing to do with the show being free. This isn't violence related. This stuff would have probably happened anyway cause it has at the a lot of other shows. Plus people did buy tickets as well cause certain people like me got tickets just to sell them.

Yes, but out of the 83 arrests, I wonder how many WERE violence related (I'm sure there were more than a few fists being thrown- that's par for the course at Ozzfest in a normal year). Also, I wonder how many other undocumented incidents took place directly attributable to the free admission. And btw- you must be one hell of a salesman if you were able to con people into paying for a show that was free.

[Satans Hockey]

Yes, but out of the 83 arrests, I wonder how many WERE violence related (I'm sure there were more than a few fists being thrown- that's par for the course at Ozzfest in a normal year). Also, I wonder how many other undocumented incidents took place directly attributable to the free admission. And btw- you must be one hell of a salesman if you were able to con people into paying for a show that was free.

I sold a few tickets for around 75 bucks a pop on ebay. They were good seats, a few rows from the stage. All the free tickets had been picked up pretty quickly so there was a demand for tickets.

[MadDog2020]

You know what, MD, kids nowadays are friggen nuts. When I was a teenager, yeah, I had my moments, but I never found the need to get absolutely bombed or high just to enjoy a concert for crying out loud.

Hell, I look at the high school I graduated from -- used to be one of the top ranked schools in the state, now it's completely fallen off the map for its academics. It's now looked at as a school filled with out of control kids who have major substance abuse problems.

Yeah I hear ya RD. That line right there confirms we're getting old. It really is out of control nowadays though- it just gets worse with each age group. I mean I love to get hammered and blaze a little weed as much as the next guy, but it seems all these moron kids are really into the hard sh!t now- they start smoking pot in their pre-pubescent years and graduate to coke by the time they're 14. I fear for our country's future.

[MadDog2020]

I doubt it, lawn tickets were always pretty cheap. I'm sure those people would have probably gone anyway. I have been to a few Ozzfests and I had seen people get kicked out for underage drinking and I have seen tonsssss of people get kicked out for fighting and getting out of control in the pit. Ozzfest has always been a circus lol

True dat. One of my friends got kicked out 6 years ago for engaging in a huge mud fight. He then climbed a fence covered in mud and snuck back in about 20 minutes later.

[Satans Hockey]

True dat. One of my friends got kicked out 6 years ago for engaging in a huge mud fight. He then climbed a fence covered in mud and snuck back in about 20 minutes later.

I remember that, if you look up at the tv screens above the lawn you can still see the mud stains on them

[Weekes Head]

Yeah I hear ya RD. That line right there confirms we're getting old. It really is out of control nowadays though- it just gets worse with each age group. I mean I love to get hammered and blaze a little weed as much as the next guy, but it seems all these moron kids are really into the hard sh!t now- they start smoking pot in their pre-pubescent years and graduate to coke by the time they're 14. I fear for our country's future.

Worse than anything is the pill abuse. Seems like kids are nuts with using any prescription medication under the sun to get high.

I'm still of the mindset that there should be stricter regulations of prescribing medications, there are SO many doctors who are more than willing to write a prescription just as long as you merely ask for it. It's especially bad with painkillers. I know, doctors need to treat a patient as if their pain is real, so it can be really tough on a doctor, but something needs to be done.

It's sad when there are websites that give tips on how to "legally" obtain prescription medication. I saw one where one of the tips was to "get a willing old person to go to the doctor for you, doctors will prescribe anything to old people because they will die soon anyway."

That being said, around here at least, there also seems to be a sharp spike in heroin use. Three kids have OD'ed on heroin in less than a year here, and people are still doing it like crazy. I think a lot of them think it's trendy to do it -- until they get hooked. Then they're flat out screwed.

[MadDog2020]

Worse than anything is the pill abuse. Seems like kids are nuts with using any prescription medication under the sun to get high.

I'm still of the mindset that there should be stricter regulations of prescribing medications, there are SO many doctors who are more than willing to write a prescription just as long as you merely ask for it. It's especially bad with painkillers. I know, doctors need to treat a patient as if their pain is real, so it can be really tough on a doctor, but something needs to be done.

It's sad when there are websites that give tips on how to "legally" obtain prescription medication. I saw one where one of the tips was to "get a willing old person to go to the doctor for you, doctors will prescribe anything to old people because they will die soon anyway."

That being said, around here at least, there also seems to be a sharp spike in heroin use. Three kids have OD'ed on heroin in less than a year here, and people are still doing it like crazy. I think a lot of them think it's trendy to do it -- until they get hooked. Then they're flat out screwed.

Heroin seems to be popular everywhere. I know of one kid from my town that died from OD'ing on heroin, and a couple more who had to go to rehab. I'm sure there's a ton that I don't know about too. It's ridiculous.

[RowdyFan42]

Not to disrupt this excellent discussion (and I mean that sincerely), but what does the Turnpike Authority have to do with the parking lot? Are they in charge of it?

[thelastonealive]

Not to sound niave, but yeah, I didn't seen it coming.

And to be fair, more people were arrested at OAR than Ozzfest.

I was at this show, it was kind of a surreal experience. I saw the first guy getting wheeled out. They revived him at the show and supposedly a couple times afterwards, but he died at the hospital. Not so sound cold but if you're doing pot, alcohol, cocaine (supposedly), PLUS drinking caffienated drinks, and thrashing around in the crowd when it's 90 degrees and humid (when he was being carted out it was about the hottest point of the day)...well...then you're just not very smart, and while I'm not going to say you deserved it...

I understand the need to crack down on the underage drinking, but I don't see why they can't just designate one of the parking lots a tailgating lot, and make that the only one booze is permitted. Card those trying to get in, anyone with a minor is not allowed to park in that lot. Hell, don't even make it a lot close to the center, it'd be easier to monitor those who are drunk when they're walking or shuttle-busing back to their cars.

I read an article about the Velvet Revolver show (the first one post-booze ban) in which the reporter went to the rest stop before the Arts Center and interviewed a bunch of kids drinking THERE before the show. THAT is just plain stupid and dangerous, because they have to get back in their car and drive another five miles to get to the venue itself.

Edited August 20, 2007 by thelastonealive

[thelastonealive]

Not to disrupt this excellent discussion (and I mean that sincerely), but what does the Turnpike Authority have to do with the parking lot? Are they in charge of it?

They own the land the arts center is on.

[TrentonDevils]

I wouldn't be so quick to blame free admission or anything of the sort. Underage drinking has gotten ridiculous at the parking lots at PNC lately. Hell, when I went there for a 311 concert a few weeks ago I saw a bunch of kids being arrested for underage drinking, a few more for drugs too.

Even inside, they don't have the most foolproof method of making sure kids don't get alcohol -- they give you wristbands if you show ID, but you have a three drink limit. Anyone who is 21 can get a wristband and buy a drink for someone underage, it gets marked on their wristband by the vendor but beyond that, there seems to be no actual policing within the concert area, especially the lawn.

The two kids apparently were drinking, doing cocaine, and smoked pot. Idiots.

Since when have rock n' roll concerts (or similar genres) NOT gone hand in hand with drug use and drinking??

[stevestevens]

Anyone else remeber the 12 underaged kids 11-14 that got drunk at a gwen stefani concert at PNC. I was at incubus the other week at PNC and a girl 2 rows infront of my snorted coke right off her arm and started spazzing. When i went to John Mayer around 32 teenagers were arrested for drinking.

[Weekes Head]

Since when have rock n' roll concerts (or similar genres) NOT gone hand in hand with drug use and drinking??

Ah, okay. So then this is all okay -- kids are SUPPOSED to do ridiculous amounts of alcohol and drugs then.

Of course kids are going to do crap. But there, uh, seems to be a line between massive amounts and just enhancing the experience. I suppose that line could be deemed "life and death."

[thelastonealive]

Anyone else remeber the 12 underaged kids 11-14 that got drunk at a gwen stefani concert at PNC. I was at incubus the other week at PNC and a girl 2 rows infront of my snorted coke right off her arm and started spazzing. When i went to John Mayer around 32 teenagers were arrested for drinking.

The article I read said that few if any where arrested at John Mayer. I was at Incubus to, 53ish people I believe were arrested there. Honestly Incubus didn't seem that bad to me, I usually see alot worse at PNC shows when modern rock bands like Incubus are playing. Maybe I just didn't walk around as much then.

But yeah, all this started at Gwen friggin Stefani. Yes, the morons at Ozzfest would have died regardless of the Gwen Stefani concert, but the kids (and I do mean kids) getting drunk in the lot before the Stefani show really escalated the underage drinking crackdown and now ban on alcohol altogether.

[TrentonDevils]

Ah, okay. So then this is all okay -- kids are SUPPOSED to do ridiculous amounts of alcohol and drugs then.

Of course kids are going to do crap. But there, uh, seems to be a line between massive amounts and just enhancing the experience. I suppose that line could be deemed "life and death."

I agree that shooting heroin in your pickup truck or blowing an 8 ball before a concert is uncalled for, and obviously those people have some issues....

But drinking a bunch of beer and smoking some weed (doing a little blow, if your into that , im not)

at a concert is pretty much an american pastime at this point, so I dont see why someone should be classified as an idiot for doing so.....

[Weekes Head]

I agree that shooting heroin in your pickup truck or blowing an 8 ball before a concert is uncalled for, and obviously those people have some issues....

But drinking a bunch of beer and smoking some weed (doing a little blow, if your into that , im not)

at a concert is pretty much an american pastime at this point, so I dont see why someone should be classified as an idiot for doing so.....

I'd rather take part in another American pastime - oh, I don't know, maybe baseball, than go and drink a ton of beer, snort some cocaine, and smoke pot at a concert.

Regardless, I don't need to be comatose to enjoy a concert. These kids were obviously doing massive amounts of these substances to go into cardiac arrest.

Sure, drugs are a part of life, and I'm no saint myself. But yeah, these kids are being idiotic by combining such large quantities of drugs and alcohol and expecting to merely have a good time.

[stevestevens]

These kids are just stupid flat out, no way getting around it. I dont care what people do behind closed doors but i dont want to see someone snorting coke and bugging out infront of me.

It just seems like all these kids getting drunk at concerts arent doing it to just have a good time, its just about getting drunk just for the point of getting drunk and being "cool."