If you have seen the news, you have seen the latest bout of mass insanity and social suicide coming out of the UK.
Rioting and looting all across London, and in several northern cities too. Homes and businesses totally destroyed, people thrown out of work since their workplace simply doesn't exist anymore, transportation shut down or diverted in one of the biggest and busiest cities on the planet.
For what?
The death of a guy who reportedly shot at the police? I don't think so. Not one in a thousand of the rioters even know who he is - Mark Duggan, in case you were wondering. A peaceful protest organised by Mr. Duggan's family, the right of every citizen to highlight the case and apply pressure for a full inquiry, got hijacked by low life scum. Call em what you will - trailer trash, bogans, chavs - they are worthless leeches on society in my book.
Hijacked is a bit harsh, MM, some of you mutter. Take a look at this. Spontaneous rioters don't tend to carry leaflets telling them how to evade being identified by the police from CCTV and video footage. Nor do flashmobs spread out that fast. When all hell breaks loose, as we know too well from previous riots, it tends to be in a small space. Not all over the country. Not without organisation.
Blame is being handed around fast - it's anarchists, the old favorite. Organised crime using the riots as cover, possible thinking for anyone who doesn't know the maxim "You can steal more with a briefcase than with a gun." Social networking is getting it's fair share of the blame yet again, as the old media fears it even as they use it.
The biggest recipient of blame so far? The government.
The UK, like the US, has an economy that is about as healthy as a week dead corpse. There are too many people with no money, no jobs, no prospects and no education. They see free stuff, there for the taking in all the confusion - well, they are gonna take it and screw it if some rich b*stard gets hurt. The fact that they are destroying the homes and livelihoods of hundreds of people just like them doesn't work it's way through to the single brain cell they have. After all, their welfare cheques come in week after week, and they don't pay taxes anyway. They don't suffer for the mess they caused.
People will always find excuses for the actions of the rioters and looters. We all know that, having seen far too many talking heads on TV, pushing their own agenda and opinion as fact (yes, I know I am doing exactly that, sue me)
What about personal responsibility?
Each and every one of these people has abdicated all responsibility for their own lives. No job? Go get one - they exist.
Oh, no education stops you getting a job? In a country with mandatory schooling to age 16? You must either be incredibly stupid, or have wasted your time and opportunities. Get your GED and join the police - I hear they are recruiting hard now.
It'll never happen here, at least. Comfortably far away from us.
Look around. Underclass of unemployed and unemployable? Check.
Frustrated base of honest, hardworking people who are desperately short of money? Check.
A government that makes big business a priority over the people? Check
All it needs is a single spark.
Sleep well.
Rioting and looting all across London, and in several northern cities too. Homes and businesses totally destroyed, people thrown out of work since their workplace simply doesn't exist anymore, transportation shut down or diverted in one of the biggest and busiest cities on the planet.
For what?
The death of a guy who reportedly shot at the police? I don't think so. Not one in a thousand of the rioters even know who he is - Mark Duggan, in case you were wondering. A peaceful protest organised by Mr. Duggan's family, the right of every citizen to highlight the case and apply pressure for a full inquiry, got hijacked by low life scum. Call em what you will - trailer trash, bogans, chavs - they are worthless leeches on society in my book.
Hijacked is a bit harsh, MM, some of you mutter. Take a look at this. Spontaneous rioters don't tend to carry leaflets telling them how to evade being identified by the police from CCTV and video footage. Nor do flashmobs spread out that fast. When all hell breaks loose, as we know too well from previous riots, it tends to be in a small space. Not all over the country. Not without organisation.
Blame is being handed around fast - it's anarchists, the old favorite. Organised crime using the riots as cover, possible thinking for anyone who doesn't know the maxim "You can steal more with a briefcase than with a gun." Social networking is getting it's fair share of the blame yet again, as the old media fears it even as they use it.
The biggest recipient of blame so far? The government.
The UK, like the US, has an economy that is about as healthy as a week dead corpse. There are too many people with no money, no jobs, no prospects and no education. They see free stuff, there for the taking in all the confusion - well, they are gonna take it and screw it if some rich b*stard gets hurt. The fact that they are destroying the homes and livelihoods of hundreds of people just like them doesn't work it's way through to the single brain cell they have. After all, their welfare cheques come in week after week, and they don't pay taxes anyway. They don't suffer for the mess they caused.
People will always find excuses for the actions of the rioters and looters. We all know that, having seen far too many talking heads on TV, pushing their own agenda and opinion as fact (yes, I know I am doing exactly that, sue me)
What about personal responsibility?
Each and every one of these people has abdicated all responsibility for their own lives. No job? Go get one - they exist.
Oh, no education stops you getting a job? In a country with mandatory schooling to age 16? You must either be incredibly stupid, or have wasted your time and opportunities. Get your GED and join the police - I hear they are recruiting hard now.
It'll never happen here, at least. Comfortably far away from us.
Look around. Underclass of unemployed and unemployable? Check.
Frustrated base of honest, hardworking people who are desperately short of money? Check.
A government that makes big business a priority over the people? Check
All it needs is a single spark.
Sleep well.
This is a reductive, fairly meaningless entry. Your lack of cross cultural understanding and sympathy also comes across clearly.
A few corrections: as far as northern cities are concerned, there have only been riots in one (so far) - Liverpool. The GED comment is just silly as no such thing exists in England, a country with vastly different education system than the US.
No doubt the rioting and looting is despicable but the underlying causes are serious and must be addressed. Less needed is your pointless dismissal of the rioters from across an ocean with the hackneyed command 'get a job'.
OK, I don't often get into personal stuff. I went to university in London. Lived there for three years. Loved the place and the people.
Liverpool, Bristol, Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham are all north of London and all have had riots reported.
I have close family who live in Woolwich. Good friends in Clapham. People I have been talking to all night, who have been telling me what is going on.
The GED comment is to make it understandable to the readers, to whom 4 GCSE's including English and Maths at grade C or above would be completely meaningless.
OK, if you lived in London for three years you're obviously an expert on the country. In that case you should know what "Northern" means in the context. Bristol and Birmingham are not "Northern" cities, though Birmingham is north of London itself. Bristol's not even actually north of London.
As of your posting there were no riots in Leeds or Manchester. There is a difference between riots and usual, everyday urban disturbances.
Obviously though you're writing with a specific audience in mind, not an international one.
http://mancunianmatters.co.uk/content/breaking-news-windows-smashed-and-police-clash-rioters-streets-manchester
Not true. http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=207192798388318292131.0004aa01af6748773e8f7
I am disgusted by these people. They complain about not having the same opportunities so then they go out and "protest" an excuse to commit arson and theft! Who will give them an opportunity now?!! Makes no sense! Poor business owners who have worked their lives to put bread on the table to afford the things they own for some self entitled thug who thinks he deserves the same without putting in the work to loot it and burn it to the ground - it sickens me! Where are the parents? Why dont they apply the same measures as they do when fighting riots in northern Ireland? They say that water cannoning, tear gas, and troops are extreme measures! Isn't this an extreme case? I am lying in my bed at night listening to the sirens and thinking how out of control this is spiralling! It seems like there are no consequences for these hooligans! Where is the community? Those who reinforce what's right and wrong? In northern Ireland sure there are riots but there are such strong reinforcements in the local community who curb any sort of crime such as this! Not enough action is being taken!!! This shouldn't be allowed to happen in this country it is a joke it is unacceptable!!
As soon as it started being homes and businesses, it became senseless. There's lots that they COULD be revolting against, but they aren't. If they had a true cause, they would be burning down political buildings, places that mean something morally, not family businesses and people's homes. It's a sign of shitty shitty times in Britain, but anyone tearing up someone else's home or livelihood, for whatever reason, is a bastard and deserves whatever the police throw at them.
I have family and friends in London, Birmingham, and Cardiff, and I live myself in one of those places. I'm terrified for them, for myself, and that is not the way to get your message across if you claim to be fighting and speaking for the people.
It's less about it being "allowed" in this country, (as we all know it isn't; it's very much against the law) and more to do with personal responsibility. If you are angry with your own life, fucking someone else's up isn't going to make yours better. We need less prison (which is, in many cases, a considerable improvement on someone's life) and more education about what rights an individual does actually have, and how they go about using them.
We have free education, free health care, free legal advice, clean drinking water, affordable housing, cheap food, a variety of benefits that, while they might not be huge sums, still actually exist, which is more than I can say for most countries. This rioting and looting isn't about making a statement about that dead guy and the abused power of the police, not any more. It's selfish and pathetic. When you're destroying someone else's life to help your own cause, it becomes selfish and pathetic.
Although this is absolutely inspiring, and I urge anyone who can to help: http://twitter.com/#!/@riotcleanup
I am afraid you are right, MM. Am watching the riots on TV and thinking we better be preparing ourselves over here. We being our government, local police, home and storefront owners. I hope England is able to identify and find some of the looters to give the others pause.
I live in Chicago. I'm waiting for the spark. I'll be camping out in my basement.
Your post made perfect sense. (Am from UK)
One element which is very worrying is that it's just kids - hte vast majority under 20 years old. Going for mobile (cell!) phones and sporting goods. The riots/looters are moving into many more cities in the country.
I'm watching this happen live on TV.
This violence needs to stop - I doubt that the when this happens that the correct questions will be asked. It's a problem (disaffected youth) that I see reflected, in general terms, in an awful lot of western countries. Hope this is a warning to others
I’m sad over the whole situation….