Queens Is Burning: The Malba Melee Video You Need to See

“The essence of government is force, and most often that force is used to accomplish evil ends.”

— Walter E. Williams

This is what happens when the social contract dissolves into tire smoke.

Malba is supposed to be the quiet part of Queens. It is where you move to avoid the noise. But at 12:30 a.m. on Sunday the noise came to South Drive and 141st Street. It arrived in a fleet of forty cars. They were there to do donuts. They were there to speed across the manicured lawns.

The residents did what you expect people in Malba to do. They came out to complain.

Blake Ferrer stepped onto his property. He saw the mob. He told them to leave. His exact words were instructive. He said: "Bro, you gotta get the f–k off my property."

That was the signal.

The video below displays the response. It was not a debate. It was a swarm. About a dozen people descended on Ferrer. They kicked him. They stomped him. They broke his nose. They broke his ribs. They even took a swing at his wife.

Then it escalated.

Larry Rusch owns a security company. He thought he could impose order. He drove a company vehicle into the intersection. He parked it there to block the joyriders. It was a rational move in an irrational situation.

The mob did not leave. Two individuals approached Rusch's car. They threw a firework inside. The car did not just smoke. It went up like a torch. The crowd cheered. Rusch called it a "complete melee" and he is not exaggerating.

We now have a burning vehicle in the middle of a residential intersection while a speeding car circles the flames. It is cinematic. It is also terrifying.

Councilwoman Vickie Paladino represents the district. She is horrified. She says Ferrer is lucky to be alive. But she said something else that should make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. She noted that several residents were armed. They showed restraint. This time.

Paladino warned that if the city refuses to act then the people might. That is not a threat. It is a forecast.

The police say another resident had objects thrown into his car. The locals say this has happened before but never to this extent.

The city is fraying. The police are overwhelmed. The residents are armed. The cars are burning. And we are watching it all on high definition video.

Do you know the drivers? Were you there? Do you have more footage of the Malba fire?