London's Burning

[moses]

Any one anywhere near the action?

[emilystrange]

birmingham tensions rising near the Pallisades

[Doktor Gott]

Any one anywhere near the action?

Was walking round Hackney earlier...

Was mental to say the least..

Am now at home about a mile away and praying it don't come near here...

[bearskin]

Not to be glib, but sometimes it's a good thing that NZ is the end of the (middle) earth.

[Bartek]

I underestimated mental fat people. People that have enough to not starving. I thought that all rebel they can afford is to not sorting the waste. I was wrong and it looks that J.G. Ballard writing "Kingdom come" was right.

[czuczu]

Apparently kicking off both sides of the river and out in the regions.
Where are our glorious leaders?
Oh yeah, they're all on holiday...

[sultan2075]

What's exactly the cause of this? Is this because of that (thought it was a kid but it's a) 29 year-old coke dealer who got shot by the police, or is this something else entirely?

[czuczu]

Honestly?
10 years ago i might have said they were making a point. About something unfair.
But now i think most of them are just taking the p*ss because they can.
Just heard the little fuckers are trying to burn down the Electric Ballroom

[Sita]

Not the Ballroom

Sultan, I think with the riots in France noone could ever say what it was about either.

[Holly_DelRey]

Updated map of reports of what is going on Sat. all the way up to around now:

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?msid=2 ... 5,0.298691

Unbelievable.

[Dan]

It's mad. London, Birmingham, and now Toxteth, Liverpool where gunshots have been heard.
There was a drive-by shooting in Leeds earlier today, presumably drug-related, which thankfully didn't develop into a riot.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-14449656

The worlds gone mad.

[czuczu]

Ballroom apparently ok, twitter not at its most reliable at mo :/

[Izzy HaveMercy]

We will drive underneath all of that in a few days' time, with the wife and the wee Noor. Just hoping the 'peace returns'

IZ.

[Bartek]

Wut 'bout Bristol? Earlier this morninig I've heard that bored twats are also doing party there. I'm asking 'cause my mum is in Swansea and will need to go to Bristol to get to airport, it's next Wednesday so hope everything will calm down but you know.

[splintered thing]

I remember seeing news broadcasts with Mrs Thatcher in them similar to these, spooky how history repeats. Take care all.

[moses]

I remember seeing news broadcasts with Mrs Thatcher in them similar to these, spooky how history repeats. Take care all.

Makes me wonder who is fanning the flames.

[Bartek]

Waiting for conspiracy theories.

[Quiff Boy]

this is not an organised protest. it's not a political uprising. there is no coherent point behind this trouble.

it's disenfranchised youths with nothing to do, no prospects & nothing to hope for, left to fester for long enough until they lack any compassion for other people or association with "community" or "society".

over the last 20 years a certain aspect of youth culture (and not just inner-city) has evolved to become selfish, violent, ill-mannered and poorly educated.

they have, by definition, become "anti-social".

we like to think of ourselves as "right thinking individuals" and are rightly shocked that these trouble-makers seem completely ok with the idea of trashing their own community, when in truth they don't feel a part of that community, or of any community. the only association they feel is with their immediate peers who are in a similar situation to themselves.

i personally feel (and being a sandel-wearing, beard-growing, vegetarian, liberal lefty this shocks me to admit) the authorities need to kick the living sh*t out of them.

they do not respect their neighbours' property, human rights, or even their lives... they are selfish, violent thugs. get the water cannons in. get the f*cking army in. rubber bullets all the way.

short sharp shock, innit.

never thought i'd hear myself say anything like that, but this has just gone too far.

[emilystrange]

i'm with quiffy on this one.

[Bartek]

What sturucked me when i was watchin CNN morninig was fact that they're looting corner/local shops- so they're stealing they're own neighbour, those who are not having 2 Bentleys, and 3 houses, but a regular man who are trying to make some money to life. It isn't looks like act of desperations but indeed like act of boredom.
I,with strange feeling, can sing up under Quiff idea, even when it's not my country.

[DeWinter]

What's exactly the cause of this? Is this because of that (thought it was a kid but it's a) 29 year-old coke dealer who got shot by the police, or is this something else entirely?

Well, I'd be very wary of any description given out by the Met Police. It may be true, but don't take it as gospel, they have past history of releasing false information when someone dies.
I thought it might have been related to the anarchist groups who hijacked the student protests, it came a few days after a clash between protesters and police in Spain, where lot of people got hurt. Judging by the areas of the rioting though, North London and Toxteth for example, it's likely to be disaffected young black men.

[Silver_Owl]

this is not an organised protest. it's not a political uprising. there is no coherent point behind this trouble.

it's disenfranchised youths with nothing to do, no prospects & nothing to hope for, left to fester for long enough until they lack any compassion for other people or association with "community" or "society".

over the last 20 years a certain aspect of youth culture (and not just inner-city) has evolved to become selfish, violent, ill-mannered and poorly educated.

they have, by definition, become "anti-social".

we like to think of ourselves as "right thinking individuals" and are rightly shocked that these trouble-makers seem completely ok with the idea of trashing their own community, when in truth they don't feel a part of that community, or of any community. the only association they feel is with their immediate peers who are in a similar situation to themselves.

i personally feel (and being a sandel-wearing, beard-growing, vegetarian, liberal lefty this shocks me to admit) the authorities need to kick the living sh*t out of them.

they do not respect their neighbours' property, human rights, or even their lives... they are selfish, violent thugs. get the water cannons in. get the f*cking army in. rubber bullets all the way.

short sharp shock, innit.

never thought i'd hear myself say anything like that, but this has just gone too far.

After watching this I cannot disagree with your sentiments.

I feel sad more than anything.

[abridged]

Recreational rioting has finally reached the 'mainland' as they say. We've had it for quite a few years since the Troubles ended. Teenage boys ( and an increasing amount of girls he said sadly and somewhat sexistly probably) who think it's a bit of craic.

[markfiend]

Sorry QB but I completely disagree.

Put yourself in the rioters' shoes. University was probably already out of your sights given the massive fees, the government have now cut EMA so you can't go to FE colleges, austerity measures are starting to bite so you've even less chance of getting a job, and the police have shot dead a young man, seemingly just for the crime of being black without care and attention.

I'd be pretty angry too. And mobilising the army against the current rioters will only make things worse. For a start, it will galvanise any "disaffected youth" out there who hasn't already started rioting, and secondly, riots and troops don't mix well. We don't want another Bloody Sunday.

[Quiff Boy]

but they come from a culture that doesn't value HE, FE or even working for a living

f*cking about, harassing others is their way of life