Some words being banded around regarding the recent London
Cuts unemployment disaffected criminality looting parents blame youth feral lawless riot thievery police brutality BB
If you’re anything like me you lapped up as much information around what was going on (and where) from the television, newspapers, twitter, facebook, blogs and all the other social outlets of information to the point of brain saturation; where by it became just too much; or there I say it too depressing watching young people (our future?) looting the local shops for electrical goods, clothes and basmati rice.
Seemingly without a care; without regard for the consequences of their actions; not only for their own community but even for themselves (how else can you explain youth walking around so casually throwing missiles at the police and girls standing around chatting on mobile phones whilst watching Debenhams’s being looted).
The riots a result of the killing of a man by police… (It would be a different post if we were to get into the reasons why the riots started a symptom of wider social economical inequality or just pockets of opportunist criminality?)
Originally when I started writing the post I was going to write this:
“…I was speaking with someone about it the other day and they said to me; even the people starving in Somalia had to walk to the rescue camps to be ‘rescued’, i.e., no matter how s*it your life is, no matter the parent’s you were born to, no matter the abuse/miscarriage you have suffered in your life, no matter the fact that nobody cared about you enough to let you know you are worth something or took the time to try and inspire you to be better than your circumstances the fact remains that in life nobody owes you anything; in fact there are people out there who have gone through the same things as you; maybe even worse than you but they don’t go on to loot; rob and steal; nope rather they choose to be better than their circumstances.
A lot of talk around unemployment in these communities, lack of opportunity and social inequality (children who probably have not had a job talking about taxes?) this saying sprang to mind.
Success Equals Opportunity Plus Preparedness.
I would ask the rioters who have talked about inequality to comment what are you doing to prepare yourself for success (when I say success please note it is subjective) you are moaning about your circumstances but what are you doing to change it to make your circumstances better?
So you have looted, robbed and stolen over the last few days but what has that achieved? so you have new flat screen TV your circumstances are still the same. You are still unemployed and still 'unequal' to the employed people (My take 1 attempt at adding something to the riot debate).
After reading the information regarding those who were actually taking part in the looting and discovering it was a wide cross section of society (not just the down and outs):
The Olympic ambassador for instance who on paper would appear to have a lot going for her; turned in by her mother and who has been splashed all over the newspapers.
The school teacher
The millionaire’s daughter
See here: Non down and out rioters
For my take 2 attempt at writing this post to be honest I got nothing other than to say SM(damn)H!
It’s a good thing Sel might have something better to say in a later coming post… (Watch this space).
Ok BDSS’er so I have nothing at the moment; but what do you make of all the rioting? and the reason's why?
Sorry this is LONG sorry but I had much to say
ReplyDeleteAs I watched the news, live feeds and twitter I just thought this is too much, to go out my house, break, take, damage, beat and throw stuff around. It is also very sad to see young people literally through opportunity away. To blame the government yes they take some of the blame but a very small amount, for me charity begins at home, its from your home you left to go and loot and from parliament. Parents have lost all control of there children, its been said its not new, having a baby is a prize “how well you can I dress it” “I want a counsel house” and some just having sex with no concept of what if I get pregnant or the “it can’t happen to me” that why your young you don’t bloody know the ramifications to your childish actions. They forget to bring the baby up with boundaries and a structure not just fit for the house but for work, for friends for LIFE.
The labour government did a lot of things to take away accountability, giving us asbos, lesser sentences, and community service, paying folks to go to school REALLY and then giving far too much power to children, if my mum slaps me I can call child service, the heck you will. Teachers can’t discipline, mothers can’t discipline and fathers are nowhere in sight. The generation of children with no desire to improve and not be a statistic, there the large majority who don’t want to improve because “I can just go on the doll”, get some kind of assistance that won’t force me to look for work, get better education and look for a job. You are right in saying no one owes you anything and in life things don’t fall on your lap, you have to go out there and make it happen, work hard to get ahead but that concept again foreign to these kids.
cont/ I'm not going to lie my post was long couldn't fit it in here but felt i had to say everything i felt so here is a link to the rest of what i have said... ITS LONG hopefully good
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?created&¬e_id=10150251891676750
oh snap... please copy past the link and have a read, if you in the reading mood cause its LONG, I'm telling you now its is LONG top part if just a snippet
ReplyDeletesmiles :0)
thought this would be a hot topic and folk would climb over themselves to post there thoughts dang, it rushed over, even wrote my post in word lol
ReplyDeleteits not a simple matter but it can be summed up like this. the lunatics took over the asylum for a week. this world is a mad house and britain aint no different. hypocracy. apathy. obnoxious ignorance. mindless ignorance. war. greed. materialism. pomposity. alienation. inequality.... and the empty gestures that come with it. red tape and ceilings. exclusions. prejudice. the r word that still exists in some minds even though its taboo to speak of. lack of discipline morals and respect. hatred and lack of love. selfishness. lack of discipline. muppets and wicked people as role models. brain rot all over the place. miseducation. itll take to long to go on. none of the attitudes we witnessed over the last week are new at all. a discerning eye could have predicted this as indeed many did..but they were branded as crazy, or pessimists. the world has fallen prey to all these destructive cultures. cant blame one particular group or type or so. its just an age old battle. unfortunately good is loosing its grip on earth. thats how i see it in simplistic terms. to break it down is very, very complex indeed and every single soul plays a part in this affray we call life. only a balanced view will see a solution
ReplyDeletelife owes nobody anything i strongly agree...who is to say the looters didnt agree.. which is why they took it upon themselves, to help themselves...just like the men of old
ReplyDeleteAll I can say about this rioting is how can you complain for a lack of opportunities in a country which will educate you free of charge (including transport) until the age of 16 then will pay you bothering to continue to 'educate' yourself till you are nineteen. When you consider over 900 million under 16's around the world have access to only ONE meal a day and no formal education, yet you can stand there with a blackberry in your hand refusing to work, slurring comments against your government.
ReplyDelete"A Man's greatest mountain is his own ignorance"
That is all
Thanks for commenting MFMU and CMF!
ReplyDeleteMFMU - I did actually take the time to read your fb commentary on the situation and you talk a lot of sense with regards to disciplining children and keeping them on the straight and narrow. I did feel however that you tended to focus much of the blame on the single parents and young mothered families and I think its quite clear from the array of different people currently being paraded in front of the media whilst being arrested and taken to court, that there are a wide variety of people who took part in the looting, rioting ect.
I think the reasonings behind the initial swell of anger and feeling needs to be examined in order for the same thing to be prevented from happening again (or again anytime soon anyways has history has a tendancy to repeat itself).
No matter how our politicians try to spin it, it did not happen for no reason. However do not get me wrong, the criminal activites committed should not be overlooked, individuals should be tried and if convicted punished as befits the crime. We have choice's in life, and if you make ones that have negative impacts upon your own life and others, then you have to deal with the consequences.
The thing that really saddens me about the incidences of the past week, is that innocent people have lost their lives, their homes, and their businesses. My thoughts and prayers go out to these individuals and their families first and foremost.
The thing that worries me going forward is that these riots are going to be used as a reason to instigate certain ridiculous and draconion measures and laws, which the prime minister seems to already be sanctioning such as the use of rubber bullets and water cannons to police simililar situations (when clearly it has been shown that a very large police presence arresting people is all that was needed), and evictions of non convicted individuals and their families from their council houses.... umm why? All knee jerk reactions however, I guess the government has something to prove as the whole lot of them never bothered to come off their summer holidays when the rioting started.
And now listen to David starkey on newsnight:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14513517?utm_source=BBC+News+UK&utm_medium=twitter
Hi all
ReplyDeleteI'm not going to comment on everything to do with this post that's on my mind coz that would take too long.
One of the first things to get off my chest is this:
Whatever point someone has to make in protest of police, government or any other establishment, or your lack of opportunities or resources to help you, or the people you care about, progress in life, I fail to see how stealing stuff with your face covered is going to help you make that point.
If people had directed the energy at government buildings (I'm not condoning that) it would have made more sense and had a more positive impact. How many people wearing new stolen trainers and eating stolen basmati rice while watching stolen DVDs on stolen TVs are making any positive difference in the lives of anyone today. "Looting" is a term that doesn't mean much at the moment. It's just an almost comical term for stealing. I have no sympathy for relatively well off people when they get arrested for stealing during what began as an enquiry into the death of an individual which they've used as an excuse to go out and get "free stuff". These people don't care about lives of those affected by the initial incident or the actions of the "rioters". I put in quotes because to me rioting can be justified if the masses have had enough and they decide to "storm the gates of parliament" or something similar, what these thieves have done is nothing like that. Don't get me wrong I'm sure there are people out there with valid reasons for taking part in lobbing a brick or three, but I'll bet their main focus wasn't trying to steal video games, mobile phones and jewellery.
I'll probably come back with other input later