I think trying to judge this shit morally is pretty dumb. People don't riot for no reason and if it were a simple case of people finding rioting fun and/or just following the herd then, well, it'd be happening all the time. Regardless of whether it's an appropriate response I think it's fair to say that if you have rioting then there's an underlying problem which needs sorting out.

I also don't remember the Poll Tax rioters in 1990 getting anything like such prejudiced coverage from the media and reaction from the public. Presumably because when it's the middle classes getting fucked over they have some sympathy from people like you.

http://catchalooter.tumblr.com/

What xen said, reaally.

 

I don't think there's much use in excusing or condemning it, it needs to be understood and explained so that it can be dealt with and the root causes 'fixed'

 

(i still.favour revolution, though)

So you can become American?

Exactly, when people are talking about the root cause the response is always, "That's no excuse!" It's not about an excuse or legitimising what happened. It's about what are the steps that have caused this to happen and what can we change to stop it happening again

 

Oh, and these guys are dicks.
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?desktop_uri=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D6Gex_ya4-Oo%26feature%3Dyoutu.be&feature=youtu.be&v=6Gex_ya4-Oo&gl=GB

This seems to have all started from an yet-unresolved killing in Tottenham (incidentally, just up the road from a friend of mine..). I don't know what the participants to the disturbances (I don't mean the initial protesters concerned with the killing and the associated investigations) are actually acting on as far as reasons go, but they don't seem to be actually rioting about anything in particular hence my lack of sympathy.

 

I don't mean to say that they're doing it purely because "it's fun", what I mean is that even though there might be a root cause (perceived poverty, isolation and social injustice, etc) that doesn't justify what they're actually doing - ie mindless smashing, looting, and starting to get violent with ordinary citizens now too.

Post hoc ergo propter hoc. Except it's not, is it.

The killing was the flashpoint but it is not the reason.



This is based on your extensive interviews with rioters and knowledge/research regarding their living conditions, culture and history, yeah? On what basis do you expect to have an understanding if you don't attempt to understand?

It's not about judging, as you are still continuing to do:





I mean come on, you're looking at this from the luxury of massive privilege and not even accepting that other people might have such a different experience of life that their value system might be both alien to yours and, in context, valid. Either attempt to understand causes (not to excuse or blame, that comes after understanding) or stop pretending that you're doing anything other than offering a more right wing parody of some Daily Mail editorial.

No I haven't interviewed anyone, and I do agree that someone should at least try to figure out what they're after.

 

The point of "perceived" was that this is what they think - their relative point of view might be entirely valid as far as they're concerned and their situations preceding these 'riots' might well be because of bad government or what/ever/ else.

 

What I'm trying to say (albeit in a possibly nutcase kind of way) is that their reaction seems to be out of proportion to what's happening to them. I didn't say "send them to Africa to learn how lucky they are!" or "shoot them all!" or anything like that. Despite this happening quite close to me last night (and therefore feeling slightly unsafe), I'm not prone to going for extreme solutions like that because they simply almost never work.

 

Then again, the government went to war in Iraq with very little proof. Lead by example my a$$. (yeah ok completely different situation, I know)

I've not read this thread because it seems quite long now and I was BANNED :@

 

But yeah....

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-14458424

 

Really?!

"it's the government's fault, yeah, dunno"

 

FFS!

Class war!

They wanna riot, a riot of their own.

(but they didn't seem to be too sure as to what the govt. was...must've been overcome with the alcohol emotion)

A mob has gathered in Bournemouth and Mcdonalds has been closed! :O

I'm at a friend's house this evening, I shall drive through town on the way home to make sure it's not on fire before I park up and walk to my flat! >.<

I'm still living in hope that the people of Manchester will have at least some sense.

At least this old woman has got the right idea:

^ that... Yeah of course that might not be all the participants' point of view, but still, it doesn't show them in a relatively good light, does it?

I was going into town anyway for coffee with my friend, she worked opposite Mcdonalds and nothing at all.

Massive atmosphere in town though: a metal bin fell off a lorry and the entire street 'jumped' and went silent. Everybody is talking about it. I can kind of see how the social media rumours can be massively unhelpful, there was no riot in town (nothing major, just kids gathering and shouting and a few police getting them away) but Twitter and Facebook are both full of 'Bournemouth riots!' now which can't help the situation.

Same with Manchester now, seems there's a #ManchesterRiots hashtag doing the rounds, not helpful at all. Though GMPolice are on twitter giving the facts it seems.

Yeah, been trying to sift through stuff and it's a pain. Some people say stuff, then others say "no I've just been there it's fine".


There's been rumours of stuff happening near enough me to be worried, but only thing confirmed is a bike store and Richer Sounds store both being looted last night - everything today is just a rumour.

I'll be perfectly safe if I stay where I am - residential area not on the main road nor too near shops - but at some point I need to go out for food. :/
Except for rumours that shops are all shut, so it probably makes sense to just go visit my family a few days earlier than I was already planning to.

Except that requires going through Purley, and Twitter is saying:




I don't want to go sit in traffic if things are going to kick off down there. :/

But it probably is just precautions and rumours, and normal afternoon traffic (it's always busy there).

Two riot vans outside my flat (I'm right on the highstreet above shops, joy). I can't see anything happening in Bournemouth tonight but there's police all over the place and everybody is very tense.

I'm supposed to be out tonight, I'm debating staying in to avoid the possible awfulness of getting through town on foot (you can't park on the highstreet so have to find back roads and walk) if things are bad. If I stay in - I'll be worried, if I go to my friend's house as planned - I'll be worried for my ratties!