Sydney's shame: Race riots down under

Coverage of the French riots was all the rage, at least until the riots died down and the story became, well, a non-story. But now there's a new and similar story coming out of Australia, where riots are engulfing parts of Sydney and other areas of New South Wales:

Violence triggered by race tensions has hit Sydney for a second night, with youths damaging cars and shops.

A reporter in the suburb of Cronulla, where dozens were arrested after riots on Sunday, described scenes of "chaos".

Police said carloads of people had come into the area from other parts of Sydney and committed violent acts. Australian Prime Minister John Howard condemned the weekend's attacks by thousands of young white men on people of Arabic and Mediterranean background.

How lovely. Isn't nationalism great?

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From Australia:

Melbourne's The Age is reporting that Prime Minister Howard has claimed that the riots won't harm Australia's reputation, that rioters are stockpiling weapons, and that nationalists (i.e., racist thugs) may be preparing to riot in Melbourne.

The Australian is reporting that Sydney is a city divided by rival gangs and that eye-for-an-eye revenge attacks will ensue.

The Sydney Morning Herald is reporting that 450 police officers will be patrolling Sydney's streets tonight and has more on Howard's reaction.

All three newspapers have good coverage, but check out the SMH for regular updates under the heading "Sydney's Shame" here.