General Chat

On 'Newsnight' today, they had a list of those charged.
They had, amongst others, a designer and youth worker - in fact the list included few under the age of 25.

Hardly 'disenfranchised' youths - just plain moronic greedy chancers, who, like many others, jumped on the bandwaggon of destruction.
Not just of buildings and cars, but people's lives.

Sorry but I won't sign the petition either because (a) This has spread beyond London (b) for all the sensible reasons given by Rambling Rose and (c) this is a knee jerk reaction to a very serious situation.

P.S. The heading should read "Lose" and not "Loose".

You're dead right Roy...it's still 10.

My 8 yr old knows right from wrong......it should stay as it is imho x

Ice ~ Ice ~ Baby ,

You say as the law stands they can not be charged under the age of 18

that is incorrect the age of criminal responsibility is still 10 years old but the libdems are trying to get it lifted to children age 14 and as far as i can see it has not changed todate?

Roy

I'm afraid this has been brewing for several years now and we are paying the price for living in a free country where some people just want the freedom to do as they please without any responsibility or consequence for their actions.

There are already laws to stop drinking on the streets or causing public disorder in town centres for example but without enforcement the message goes out that "you can get away with it".

It is only natural for young people to want to push the boundaries a bit but when there are no boundaries at all, the result is feral children running riot.

Irrespective of colour or creed, there are two types of people: good or bad and society should be asking itself why so many of our young people seem to think that bad behaviour is preferable. I suggest the answer is because they can get away with it and have been allowed to get away with it for years.

There are a lot of good youngsters who have found a way to enjoy themselves without harming others in the process and we do them a dis-service if we tar everyone with the same brush. However, there are very young children who are being brought up with no moral compass to guide them and unless we turn this around, it will become self perpetuating.

If you nip bad behaviour in the bud, it can be stopped but if society allows petty criminals to get away with it, they set their sights on higher things and become the thugs that we see at the moment on our city streets.

When interviewed by the news reporters tonight, some of them arrogantly admitted to being out on the streets wearing masks in order to get whatever they could. The reason why they can openly say this is simple they are "n o t b o v v e r e d".

I am torn between anger and despair and I could weep.

JiminyCricket, I don't intend to be controversial but i probable am being, we are already suffering the consequences of pussy footing around with the criminals in our country it's about time we got the politicians to stop talking tough and then letting them off with 3 month and your out in a month in the nearest prison/hotel or 150 hours of community (or is that standing around and doing nothing service)

I for one will make a stand and not worry about what the people its directed at would resort to

or shall we all roll over and play dead

Roy

I won't sign it... it hasn't been thought through, many ( if not most) of the age group responsible for the crimes won't get benefits directly anyway!

for an example...

As a parent you have a teenager aged 15 involved in this, but he/she is under age to get benefits himself... you get child benefit, and income support ...so what happens if they remove his/ her 'share'....do you take it from your younger children's 'share'?

Does it come off your working tax credits if you as the parent are working?...

If you can't afford the kid then, do you sling him out and leave him on the streets for the social services to sort out?

Okay there may be some who are 'adults' on JSA... stop that and what do you get? Honestly? you get someone who will have no money and where will they get it then? a job? with a criminal record? ... from their family? or maybe from doing exactly what you DON'T want them to be doing!

just switched to the news channel and see manchester is now in the thick of it. what next. a police station in nottingham has also been fireballed. finding it hard to get my head around it all. there is no need for this whatsoever. these neds are opportunists just looking to make trouble and steal whatever they can.

its a sad week for britain and all the decent human beings that live here.
florence
in the hebrides :-0

I have signed the this e-petition

It will never happen but its a way of letting the powers that be how we feel


Roy

Anyone who does sign will have to confirm via their email addy for their vote to count.

Sue

Thank you Sue, done that.

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/7337

Sue

I rather like what Karen said about Egypt. Not only a good long curfew but a 10 day shut down of mobile phones and internet. Sorry folk it would hit all of us but it would stop it spreading.

yes its very sad that the poor man has died,but why?for the fun of it?what a horrible waste of life, what the hell is this world going to be like for my two yr old grandson and my beautiful 11month old granddaughter,the thought of it is frightening me,how will my children keep their children safe?x

Sadly, a young man that was shot in Croydon last night has died.

Its reminise of the Brixton Riots,,,,,,,,,thats caused hard war2 vetran folk to flee the smoke and never return,

were are these youths parents?do they not have any control over them.
the family unit,parental control has gone out of the window,does no one teach their children respect anymore? i have two sons 27 and 22 i cant imagine them acting the way that ive seen youths acting on the tv ,looting,vandalism,throwing stones at the police ,my sonsare not angels they have just been brought up to respect people and there property.
do these morons realise that they are costing our country billions.x

Time and time again today I've heard experts say that it didn't matter how many police they had..the fact that these groups were msg'ing on their Blackberries and mobilising on social networking sites completely flummoxed them as it's a new way of doing things..flitting from place to place and it caught them on the hop.

No one likes the cuts.. NO ONE ......no one likes the fact that the cost of living has soared but you know what? Unless we want to end up like Greece it has to be done...we need to take our medicine and deal with it....

Tonight shows we DO have the manpower if needed...they just need to read the signs a bit better next time and mobilise a bit faster.

x

Hope none of these protesters families get hurt or worse in this mindless destruction,perhaps then a hard lesson would be learned.

it won't matter whether you call it the riot act or something else...if there are not enough police to implement it you're stuffed.

The police have been outnumbered 10 to 1 ( minimum) and haven't known where the next outbreak will be,