77 Police Officers Hurt in Paris Riots - New York Times

Would this be an impolite time to broaden that long-denied discussion of the demographic catastrophe looming over "Old Europe"? Or should we just vaguely observe the cops shot at and the libraries burned?

The weird thing is that this time (unlike the riots in the same area in 2005) the newspapers are calling the area (to use Reuters' words) "poor, often ethnically diverse, housing estates.." The NYTimes calls it a "mix of Arab, black and white residents." CNN danced around the idea of identifying who was involved, saying it should be left for the "investigation."

Two years ago the emphasis in all of the reporting was the Arab rage in these quarters. Why is the press mincing words this time around? Or has the population there really shifted that much in two years?

77 Police Officers Hurt in Paris Riots - New York Times

Rampaging youths rioted overnight in Paris' suburbs, hurling Molotov cocktails and setting fire to dozens of cars. At least 77 officers were injured and officers were fired at, a senior police union official said Tuesday.

The violence was more intense than during three weeks of rioting in 2005, said the official, Patrice Ribeiro. Police were shot at and are facing ''genuine urban guerillas with conventional weapons and hunting weapons,'' Ribeiro said.