I don't think it "offsets" anything; however, I do believe it quells the shitstorm that was going to be the Iron Bowl of 2011.
Hopefully this puts priorities in order. Football is simply football. It's entertainment. It's light hearted smack talk.
It's not worthy of terrorism, and it's not worthy of genuine despicable behavior.
Hopefully both sides of the aisle has learned this through the recent events - especially the western side of the aisle.
The situations are not in the same realm.
I love sport but it doesn't include intense hatred for any person, place or thing. Sport does not render me powerless to my weakest faculties. We have our entertainment but the competition on the field is where the fight belongs. I have Bammer family and friends and we give each other hell jokingly and then it's on with our mundane lives. And granted I do get pretty animated during games, and I once booed a player while sitting next to my Dad. Big mistake! I learned it was perfectly acceptable to applaud good play. And from that point on we whispered or spoke later about the negative stuff. So the old man didn't raise no hooligan. So IMO, beyond some cheering and good natured jeering among rivals, all else is unacceptable.
Question: Are water cannons an acceptable option to deter mutts ?
I keed!