The Title could have been "London's Bridge is Falling Down," except I believe that has been relocated to Arizona! What is really happening and could it happen here?
The Ladder to Success only works if you can see the first rung. The London Riots are not about the death of a black man being shot by he police. He is no martyr, we don't even know his name. That is not the issue at all.
I am reminded of the movie, "A Clockwork Orange". Tons of violence in a post industrial age where identity is lost. There is a problem with gated communities and block after block, row after row of apartment dwellings. It creates a "them Vs us" atmosphere. The greater this divide the more occasion for trouble.
I thought of titling this post, "I have to water my tomatoes", that simple sentence would explain all I am trying to say. It contains responsibility and ownership, something to be conservative about. Youth today are feeling left out, an isolation finding comfort in gangs and street violence, the darkness of drugs and despair. If they see the rungs of the ladder at all they see them as broken or a ladder meant for someone else.
The difference between what is happening in London and other "hot spots" in the world is a matter of degree. The London Rioters are lucky. Lucky to be in a civilized country of law with a custom and culture
admonishing violence, a country where very few of its policemen even carry guns. A country that, so far, has
never used tear gas, water cannons or rubber bullets or other efforts at crowd control.
But they want a piece of the pie too, these rioters who have lost an ability or ambition to actually earn their possessions see this an an opportunity, an "easy money" opportunity of theft and destruction of what is not theirs. They see it as a destruction of things they cannot have. Toppling a broken ladder.
A part of this problem, in an attempt at appeasement, in a type of bribery in return for non-violence, we have given them too much. Or too little? What used to be a small segment of society, the "down and outers"
the unemployed, underemployed, those struggling with minimum wage and minimal jobs is now a larger percentage of the population. "They" have become "us"!
England has a National Debt problem also and for the past two years has attempted to balance their budget on the backs of the poor with various austerity measures. Basically less for the poor and less for the police who protect us from them. This is clearly NOT working in England and why anyone would want to do this here is beyond me.
Jobs. Whether in England or Egypt or here, this is really what it comes down to. Given a chance people would rather be good. Life is easier with a solid footing on one rung of the ladder and the next rung within reach.
This is a serious issue and I don't know how to solve it. We could be next.
Art, my garden and Happy Stuff is HERE
6 comments:
We are next Jerry.! You surely must be seeing that . I hate to be pessimistic but the sky is falling..
and we are all standing there with our arms in the air waiting for it.. You and I don't agree on any politics, but I'm the gypsy here, remember? No surprise to me .. get your heads out of the sand. Damn it !
Thanks for the comment, Barbra! I really think we are closer than you might think, at least we are smart enough to compromise and maybe find a direction. In the meantime, keep your money under your mattress!
StonePost we are not far behind.
An Aboriginal Elder in the NT of Australia has changed the Welfare System for his people and it's working. No more handouts. Get a job, and a mortgage, just as we do.
Our money is no longer safe in the bank. Thanks to International News, I remember the people of Russia lining the streets, trying to get THEIR money; they failed miserably.
we have a donation box at the visitors center and it is the first thing children gravitate to..they are always trying to get the money out. It just seems like there is too much emphasis on money and not enough about the beauty of life, nature, art and music. It may sound like Pollyanna..but when we cut the arts and kids never get to see anything but their parents' mundane lives..they think there is nothing in life for them.
You are right in that we could be next. Chicago is already dealing with flash mob crime, the latest "fad" amongst teens here. There is a huge divide between the haves and have nots, much despair...People who have lived here and were born here can't qualify for monies to go to school and yet our governor has just signed off on some deal or other where illegals can be educated on the back of a state drowning in debt. People don't know where to turn, get slapped down at every effort to improve their lives, are desperate and afraid and know no other way to bring attention to the blight...er...plight. Violence rarely does much good, but then wars and rumors of wars...
I'm with Barbra Joan.
Hmm, I remember when kids were needed. They aren't today. In fact, they are in the way too often. No one wants their noise or thoughts or playing around. No basketball hoops hanging over garage doors anymore. The HOA's won't allow it. What are kids supposed to do in this world? We need to figure out how to make them feel needed and necessary again. Not by handouts of course but by giving them responsiblities when they are young and letting them know they are part of the family for the chores and the good stuff. Too often they get one or the other. They need both. It starts at home. And is it really the kids going wild all on their own? Didn't a whole bunch of parents (I think the count was 50) get into a melee over a sports decision the other day? If parents/adults can act up why not kids? We have a whole lot to get in order and it starts with how we act towards our kids, for our kids and with our kids. Reality TV shows are all about you vs. me and the winner is the what? meanest, greediest, craziest? Time to look at ourselves to see where the kids are coming from.
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