Project- Influences of Roman military on modern day riot control

[Michael J. Taylor]

I would reiterate the psychological factors: note the youtube videos of the Paris riots, where both sides are abiding by certain norms: the police are not massacring rioters, and the rioters aren't trying to murder police. If violence did take place (a fear I have now more than ever in modern riots), it would escalate to firearms quickly.  While some of the dynamics are the same, the basic fact that neither side is interesting in escalating things to the point of maximum violence is important, as this would have been the starting point of an ancient battle.