Camille Cacnio: Dear Vancouver, I am sorry.

I know a lot of you don't believe me, but the truth is that I take full responsibility for my actions and m sincerely apologetic for what I did. What I did was completely out of character for me, but I did it because I was influenced by mob mentality. I want to shed light onto the thought process that was in my head so that maybe you can all get a little bit of an understanding and sympathize for people like me, who made wrong decisions but have now become victims of this social media form of mob mentality. Why don't I think I deserve all this treatment? ...

It is true, I am having difficulty accepting Ms. Cacnio's apology at face value. In one breath Cacnio apologizes but in the very next pleads for understanding while simultaneously distancing herself from culpability and responsibility.

Given a few days to construct a narrative, Cacnio now says it was the mob, not her, that is responsible for her behaviour. She'd never have done it otherwise. While that may be true, most citizens would do the right thing and leave the area, not join in on the "excitement". Ms. Cacnio's apology letter quickly dissolves into a thin and self serving defense painting herself as another victim, not as the petty criminal she became that night.

To me Tim Kwong's much less articulate apology has a much more honest ring to it.

Tim Kwong: A Letter of Apology to Vancouver and Family and Friends

I am Truly Sorry for what i have done !!! I have no excuse for my actions during the Riot. To my Friends, Family, Coworkers, and of cou...rse all of Vancouver and BC i am SORRY for what i have done. I would like to say on my behalf that I LOVE VANCOUVER ! I've been Born n Raised here all my life !! and that This Town means everything to me !!! again i understand that my actions caused did not show any of that ! But i hope you one day see that i do care about this town and my friends n family and this is NOT like me !! I am ashamed at what i have done, I am ashamed of being a canucks fan and vancouverrite. I know i may never gain the respect of this town again. But I PROMISE that i will do whatever i can to make this up !! I know I deserve all the hate !! but please be respectful and don't hate on any of my friends or family or co workers since these actions are only caused by ME and ME only !!!! Again SORRY VANCOUVER ! SORRY BC !!

I find nothing to disagree with in the sentiment expressed by an emergency room nurse on duty at St. Pauls hospital that night.

E.R. Nurse: Thoughts on an instigator's "apology"

Just because you can string an apologetic sentence together does not mean you are sorry. Perhaps I should make you aware of the consequences of your action. To you, it's just an overturned car that you set on fire. To me, it's walking into an overflowing ER and helping treat a girl with a severe asthma attack because she was exposed to the noxious, acrid smoke of a burning vehicle. To her, it was just a chance to be a part of a group cheering for her team. Little did she know that later on, we were thinking of sticking a breathing tube down her throat if her condition did not improve.

To you (yes, I am lumping you with all the douchebag rioters in the ER that night), it's a chance to congregate in the ER waiting room, pounding on the triage window demanding to be seen for teargas exposure and cuts from looting and fighting, while posturing and bragging about how you kicked the crap out of somebody and smashed shit up. To me, it's taking my time away from the little old quiet lady having chest pain or taking time away from the person you "shit-kicked" for trying to stop the looting.

To you, it's just a fight. To me, it's the ER social worker looking for a teddybear to console a 4 year old girl because she just witnessed her dad get a broken nose as he was trying to get his daughter out of the hotzone.

More notes from those who worked to protect the city can be found at Letters from the Front Lines: Vancouver Riot.