I lived in the French Quarter for two years because of my job. The parades were fun, but it's amazing that this hasn't happened sooner. The cops there put up barricades, but people always cross them. Always. The crowds were so insane at the big parades like that one that I preferred the smaller ones held on Royal, Decatur, and Rampart. The jazz funerals were cool too, and there were no lungers.
.
Dying over some cheap azz beads. Derp.
Stay in Drugs. Eat your School. Don't do Vegetables.
Sure - some people exercise poor judgement and do things not really wise. Some of those people might have snuck in a drink or two before heading out to the parades, trying to celebrate and enjoy the exhibition while concealing their mild state of impairment; but for the most part, the celebrants are pretty docile and the whole affair a bit sedate; which I guess is what makes this event so surprising.
No, nobody gets killed over any cheap azz beads.
They usually get killed over the doubloons.
A faulty hypothesis forming:
A German scientist using Iranian physics and French mathematics.