A shameful state of affairs for London and the UK as what started off as protesting at the shooting of a local, turned into mass rioting throughout the country.
The first day of rioting seemed to have almost a just cause, though the particulars of the case are still being analysed. It appears that Mark Duggan, a 29-year old local, was shot with a single bullet by police after the minicab he was travelling was stopped by armed officers. The second day saw the riots spread and kids as young as 11 were smashing shops and looting.
I had largely ignored it until day 3 hit and there were growing reports everywhere that more and more teenagers were out on the streets terrorising local people, the elderly and helping themselves to gadgets and gizmos as others smashed in shops to get in.
In these economic times, I can almost see and understand why the looting happens especially by those who have the opportunity to do so, but when you hear reports of a woman being stopped in her car, dragged out by the hair before her car was torched, that is harder to swallow. Add to that the 3 kids killed in Birmingham, 2 pensioners in hospital and countless others injured in the blitz and I can almost hear my blood boiling.
Late on day 3, I was even tempted to jump in the car and head down to Ealing to knock a few heads together. It was the unbelievable shortage of police on the streets that led to this. Just 1600 police I think I heard reported on the BBC. And that was to protect Croydon, Tottenham, Clapham and Ealing as well as other areas.
On top of all that, most of the cabinet was on holiday as was the Mayor of London. Fair enough, Parliament is in recess so take your breaks, but when riots break out on day 2, surely these ‘leaders’ should have been on their way back or at least setting up face-to-face meetings via video conferencing links – we have the tech in Government to do this right? Why then, would David Cameron, our PM, call for a Cobra meeting at 9am on Tuesday morning (after day 3 of riots)? Isn’t Cobra an emergency committee? On top of that, at 6pm on day 3, the deputy PM, Nick Clegg is on LBC radio taking part in a public Q&A session somewhere in central London – couldn’t he have chaired Cobra as the deputy that same evening?
After Cobra, the PM triples the police numbers on the streets of London in anticipation of more riots. Guess what? London stays quiet. I read a tweet saying this was probably because the looters are at home watching telly on their new 40-inch plasmas! Another reason for a tamer night in London was that Londoners were out on the streets to protect their shops, businesses, homes as well as each other. The authorities would welcome this wouldn’t they? Nope. Instead the Assistant Commissioner of the Met says they are hampering police efforts and labels them all as vigilantes. Hardly helpful. What would you have us do, Mr ‘I’m-only-in-charge-cos-my-bosses-cosied-up-to-Murdoch’? We waited for 3 days for the Police to show up, they never did. Insurance won’t cover these riots and I’d rather not end up visiting friends and family in hospital thanks. I will defend my property. I will defend my friends and family. Period. And against all comers.
Don’t get me wrong. EDL marchers on the streets / boozers actively taunting looters is not helping anyone, but to put the Sikhs of Southall and the Turks who fought off looters on Day 3 in the same camp is not just wrong, but irresponsible.
The Police have done an excellent job in these tense times, but they were stretched to breaking point. The PM is to blame for not authorising a larger Police presence early enough and hence forcing the hands of locals to defend their stuff and loved ones themselves. That is not vigilantism, that is heroic.
Some of the more popular videos from the riots:
Brave Hackney Woman Against London Rioters
London Riots. The BBC will never replay this
London Riots: Scum steal from injured boy
