Riots aren't Reasonable but is there a Reason for the Riot!

"Savagery is a possibility within us all. Some of us have been lucky enough not to have to call upon it for survival; others, exhausted from failure, can justify resorting to it."

The piece on the London riots 'Caring costs - but so do riots' at: The Independent by Camila Batmanghelidjh is a heart wrenching read and it's definitely food for thought.

As for me, I've heard so many perspectives on the cause and reasons for the London riots and the escalation but I can't wrap my head around the whole event. Even as I type, there is apparently still talk of yet more disturbances being planned by youths. It's a real shame because the key aspect of this topic is youths. If the children are our tomorrow, there's a problem when they have no sense of today.

There have been newsnight discussions on whether it's a political stance and a rebellion against spending cuts or whether it's just pure yobbery. I have to say at first I felt it was just pure greed on the part of opportunists who used a demonstration as a cover up for a more defiant agenda but after so many discussions, I'm almost feeling that yes although greed was a component, it was mainly a by-product of the anger and hatred built up over the years by these youths towards authority and the law especially the police, which alot of them feel have been against them rather than for.

Riots are no excuse and violence and looting will never be justified but these lawless young minds are beyond feeling accountable. Darcus Howe's spoke on BBC last night that the amount of times his grandson had been stopped and search is countless and just last week I was coming out of a chemist when I (and the gathered crowd) watched as a young  man protested as to why he and his passengers were pulled over for no reason. I'm not saying the police didn't have a justified reason for this action but to the many youths who have come across this numerous times, there isn't one.

As much as I still believe there are opportunists amongst those taking a stance against the law and policies they feel have wronged them, the worrying factor is that violence and looting are the only weapons they feel they have to fight with. Once there is calm after the storm, these youths will find that their communities are the ones gathering the rubble, a higher price than they're paying already.

Twynkle. Xx