[TAG] Work In Progress

[Jimmy O'Regan]

Mike Orr wrote:

> He's kind of arrogant in the book but it's still a good read.  He grew
> up in Sunderland which I guess is a rough place.  He said they had bar
> fights every night, with people coming just fight the bouncers.  I
> found it hard to believe but he writes, "I know you don't believe it
> but it's true, I swear.  It was much rougher in the 80s."  I couldn't
> understand how the police could visit a bar several times a week (or
> even once a month) and not have its liquor license pulled.  Maybe  the
> laws are more strict here.  The bouncers in England seem to be much

I'm not sure if it was the same in England, but over here in the 80s 
there were extremely high levels of unemployment, and most of the time 
it looked like people were starting fights because they lacked any other 
form of entertainment.

> bigger on average than the ones here, but maybe the problems are
> bigger.  (All those football fans.)  I saw so many bars with two huge
> bodybuilders outside the door.  My thoughts were, (1) where do they
> find so many of those guys? (2) does it really take two to deter

Big guys are easy to find: rugby players and the like.

> people at the door? (3) Why isn't one of them inside watching the

Yes. If nothing else, you need one guy to stand in front of the security 
camera. In general, though, the bouncers (at least in Ireland) tend to 
be very pleasant: big is not the same as strong, or able to fight, and 
you never know how many brothers/cousins/etc. a guy has.

> joint since that's where most of the problems will be?  Our bars just

No, most of the trouble will be at the door, because they're to stop 
known trouble makers from getting in in the first place.

> have one average-looking guy out front, and the only reason he's there
> is because the state insists he check the ages on IDs.  Unless the bar
> is large, he's also the security guy.

In most of the pubs in Ireland, the regulars double as security -- they 
don't want their favourite pub messed up. In any place that has a 
nightclub licence (some pubs get them, to stay open later), you'll have 
at least 4 bouncers at the weekend: 2 at the door, 2 inside.