This government.... who right now should be listening to our Police, showing them respect and actually talking about other ways to fund the cuts instead of via our Police service.... this government has today appointed an 'advisor' to give them tips on how to handle the riots on our streets and how to take a zero tolerance approach.
So, you're thinking - "what's wrong with that?" Nothing except that he's appointed a 63 yr old American called Bill Bratton to tell him how to sort out this mess.
We HAVE people here that can tell Cameron how to sort out this bloody mess, but it comes at a price......
- We need our Police service to be left alone financially and cancel the 20% cut backs,
- We need our Police to be issued with proper riot gear,
- We need our Police service to be fully supported by this government not ignored and bypassed.
- We need our Police to know that if they need to 'robustly' deal with someone we will not be asking on the news the next day 'Were the Police too heavy handed last night' ....they need to know that they will not face disciplinary action for robustly dealing with rioters - or even idle spectators who really shouldn't be there in the first place anyway.
- We don't need Robocop from the US to deal with our kids - we just need OUR Police to be given the resources and back up to take action with full support, from both superior officers and the government.
After all the plans to slash their pensions, freeze their salaries and put a stop to overtime payments they are now ignoring people who have worked our streets for years and bringing in someone from outside the UK.
I'm seriously shocked by this decision - mind you, it's not the first crap decision that Cameron has made (just think 'News of the World ex editor')...
Bill Bratton has already made a short statement so far he's commented that we need 'more minority officers' and we must 'focus on calming racial tensions'........Piss off mate, this isn't about racial tensions, it's not a race war...and anyway, with the current 20% cuts in place we don't have the MONEY for MORE Police officers, black, white or flippin purple ones.
Police high up in the service are understood to be really really insulted by this decision and I totally understand why.
Their officers stood there for hours over recent days whilst youths threw bottles, stones, fences, metal bars and hours of insults at them....they've retained their dignity whilst the government threw a different type of crap at them and made changes to their salaries, overtime and pensions....and now they are being ignored and sidelined when we should be saying to them 'What do you actually need to ensure the streets are kept safe, how do we regain proper control in the long term?'...
How much more can we really expect them to take before we see mass resignations.....
Sigh...
I read with interest, this explanation of the London riots. I was there 6 months ago and felt very safe. I'm not so sure if I would return any time soon.
ReplyDeleteI am wondering how much money 'Robocop' received for his advice.....more than the police should have received in overtime, I'd wager.
I wish you well Carole.
Hi Carole
ReplyDeleteAgree with your comments about funding.
Just watched the Sunday morning BBC News programme dedicated to the riots. Lots of different angles being discussed. They did discuss the Bill Bratton appointment, and it was pointed out that he's not new to working with the UK police. Seems he has been around in some capacity for many years and has a CBE for his work with the police to boot (not sure if thats worth anything, just that it suggests he is au-fait with UK policing and has been for a while)
Hi Fiona,
ReplyDeleteI know he's been 'advising' here in a different capacity on occasions. However, considering what the Police went through in the past few days, I think it's pretty rich for MP's to now bring in someone to 'advise' them of how to run our streets..when all they need to actually do is support them in the first place.
He turned NY and LA around because their problems are/were different to ours, he also did it by employing a further 10k plus officers - that is not on the table here...therefore I say leave OUR Police to sort out our streets...try listening to them for a change.
That's how I feel about it all :)
Hi Cheryl,
ReplyDeletePlease do come again at some point, it IS safe 99% of the time.. & things have calmed down again now :)
Am sure Robocop will receive some of what should be going to our guys - and again, that's a big issue for me. Either we have money or we don't - which is it Cameron/May?
Plus I can think of many better ways to save cash instead of cutting the budget of our Police service.
We are currently spending plenty in Libya!
Morning hon! Couldn't agree with you more. Exactly what I thought/felt on hearing the news. So damn insulting to the men and women that have risked their lives over the past ten days. It's not about race (although clearly that does have some role to play). The way I see it, it's about a lack of discipline and respect. It's the price we've paid for a genral all-round lack of discipline and for allowing our society to be hijacked by the F list wannabe 'celebrity' culture that fills kids heads with the notion that 5 minutes on the X Factor will bring all the rewards they could ever ask for, rather than working hard and living a decent life. They seem to think they have a 'right' to have what they want, when they want it, without them having to take any responsibility at all.
ReplyDeleteI could go on. And on, and on . . .
Hi Lou,
ReplyDeleteI'd stick my neck on the line and say this is more about 'culture' than race. White kids looted too along with Black kids therefore it's a different scenario to the 80's when the reasons behind those riots were very different.
The culture of the young is all about 'respec' and belonging - if we as a society do not ensure they feel included in general society they will (and have) made their own type of society... Their own society where the tough survive, where you 'earn' respect in a totally different way to what 'we' expect, where you remain loyal to your boys because they will always have your back...similar to the bankers and old boys network really but just a 'street network' instead...
We need to look at why it happened *without* saying it's okay that it did.....what we can't do is just pretend that a few government people chatting over the next few days/weeks will solve *anything* in the bigger picture.
Hi Carole, great to see you 'blogging again' it's all so sickening isn't it? I honestly think if the punishments were much harder there wouldn't be as much crime, this country's far too soft, a slap on the wrist is about all you get, do it in another country and you'd get your bloody hands chopped off!!! and thats not exagerating, i'm not saying we should be as harsh as that, but we certainly need to stiffen the sentances, On a brighter note, hope you are keeping well, and i've just ordered my jigsaw from that website, thanks for that, take care Lynn x
ReplyDeleteHI Lynn,
ReplyDeleteYep we do sometimes need stiffer sentences regardless of class issues. When the rich rob us they should *also* get more than a slap on the wrist and an increased bonus next round...
I wonder if making these kids - *coz lots of them were kids* - repair the damage, work on restoring their communities that THEY broke would maybe help them to realise it's not a victimless crime..
We won't be sending children to prison for sure (and I'm not sorry about that to be honest) but I think we need to let them see that their actions did have consequences for others, others who are not 'rich' people but hardworking people...
I don't know what the answers are any more than anyone else, but I know there is an unfairness in our society and I wouldn't want to be a teenager leaving school or uni in the next few years..
Adults made this financial mess and our children, next generation are going to have to find a way to sort it all out.
No wonder they feel hopeless at times :(
Glad the puzzle website helped :) xx
Sorry, I missed a bit out of my earlier post. I meant to say that the guy from the States being brought in to 'advise' our police was successful in doing so in LA and New York but (as you already know) the problems there were racially based, and his solution was to drastically increase numbers. To put it simplistically. Things are very different here. I agree that it seems to be a 'culture' thing more than an overtly racially issue, but it strikes me as having an underlying foundation of deprivation and disenfranchisement, and that, more often than not in our inner city areas, has a racial bias. That's not to say I think it's a 'race' issue per se. The looters covered a wide range of ages and backgrounds and, frankly, I think many of them were 'carried away by the moment' and got involved because they a) think the world owes them something, b) it was fun, and c) know damn well the consequences, if any, will be a minor inconvenience to most of them. The prisons are near to bursting and community service or other orders mean nothing to them - particularly not when set against several hundred quids worth of new trainers, phones and electrical goods.
ReplyDeleteI'm dead set against bringing back hanging (excuse the pun in there!) but I can't help but think things would be a whole lot different if some measure of capital punishment was still available in schools etc. and that parents felt they could discipline their children without fear of the liberal classes screaming Human Rights abuse for a smack. I'm not advocating pummelling children to pieces, but the simple threat of a smack used to be enough to bring me into line pretty quickly as a kid. Many of these kids looting and smashing up shops were clearly out of control and lacking in the one thing they seem so concerned about: respect.
I went on and on there, didn't I? lol xx
My thoughts too that those who caused the damage should be back out there repairing it.
ReplyDeleteSon commented at one point that if the police had used paintball guns the looters would have been 'marked' and easy to spot!
When things like this happen the news reporters generally interview a local social or community worker who reminds us that the *kidz* have nothing to do. Then there is a meaningful pause which one assumes is meant to be filled with promises of government or grant cash to spend on *things* for the bored kids to do. Much as with being proactive within the NHS, the time has come for communities to go back to organising things for themselves, no longer is it going to be provided for us by wads of external funding.
In our small community we've plenty of things for kids to do in the way of sports and clubs, including a youth club. Problem with the youth club is finding the adults who are willing to tolerate the swearing, lack of discipline, apathy and generaly lack of respect among some of the kids that use it. Quite often the club closes again, because no adult wants to run it.
And however many activities are laid on there will always be a small group who dont want to be *organised* in any way, yet still complain there is 'nothing for them to do'.
Again you are spot on Carole about the culture. Gangs have become the 'family' for the youth who have no stuctured or strong family of their own.
Lou,
ReplyDeleteSome of these 'kids' would smack their mother's back if they even dared to raise their hand to them....and if a teacher did it, no doubt they'd be waited for after school and probably stabbed in revenge.
I don't think parents don't slap their kids because of a fear of being brought before the courts themselves for 'abuse' - I believe it's because some of them realise their already very angry kids *would* actually retaliate...
I have no idea how we get some of our kids back in line, but I know they're not afraid of punishments either physical or custodial.
I strongly believe that we need good role models to reshape the way they think and act....all the success stories out there have been sorted out by older mentors who've helped them find their way.
Maybe we need intervention at a much younger age?
Hi Fiona,
ReplyDeleteYes community schemes run by the community for the community can only be a good thing - but as you rightly say we need people willing to do this, on a regular basis and willing to put up with all sorts in return.
I'd have to say for kids 11+ around here there really ISN'T anything to do or anywhere to go. There is one local club which is dominated by kids that are plain scary and no decent kids would want to attend...everything else costs way more money than any of them have. So they hang on the streets looking for company and older kids then involve them in all sorts - and so the cycle continues.
There are so many kids out there that really don't know what the word 'family' even means and yes, their gang then becomes their family...that is actually very sad :(
Yeah, I know that some of them - an all too large minority - are more than willing to retaliate against anyone who dared to try any form of punishment.
ReplyDeleteMy Uncle started teaching just before corporal punishment was banned in schools. He said you never really needed to do anything more than 'clip' one of the mouthy lads on the back of the head with your elbow as you walked round the class and it tended to nip things in the bud. The boys got the message that you were the one in control and would take things further if needed. The girls then fell into line behing the boys. He went off to the States for a few years and was amazed at how much things had changed on his return, once the idea that the teachers had no recourse to any physical discipline had taken hold.
Same way as, back when we were young, some of the bravest kids might get a bit lippy with a copper but generally it went no further than that 'cos if a policeman gave you a clip round the ear most parents generally took the view that you must have done something to deserve it!
I do think we've gone too far in respect of liberalism (and that from a liberal!) and I found myself agreeing with a lot of what David Cameron had to say earlier today. I don't know what the answer is but I do know that it doesn't lie in MPs continuing to try to score political points off one another (Ed Milliband). The ills of our society run too deep and have their roots in the policies and actions of members of *all* political parties.
I'm getting off my soapbox now. Take care. Love ya xx