War or Peace ?

We're all coming up with questions and answers.

So am I.

Please help me with mine.

We could ask ourselves:

Which direction are we moving in?

We have two large opposing groups the haves and the have nots. The Government  with the ones that are in work and struggling to deal with the bank crisis brought about by too much borrowing of all kinds and the havenots who feel they have no direction to go in - no jobs, little money and as they see it  - no future with little to loose. Watching the bankers living of millions of pounds does not help.

At present we are moving in the direction of civil war.

I'm all for a clear message being sent that the rioting behaviour is totally unacceptable.

This is war talk.

At the same time we need to map out an exit strategy.

What this appears to be at the moment is :

If you don't like it - leave !

But then there is no practical place to leave to.

So if we are to have 'peace'.

How do we get there?

By the time honoured method of talking and understanding the opposite point of view.

A strategy where both sides are offered carrots.

If it's a future the rioters want, then surely we need to offer them one:

If you do this this and that then you can get somewhere that you want.

The government has got an option which it seems to ignore.

Raise taxes and use the money to provide jobs with strict guidelines. I'd favour jobs with a fair bit of exercise requiring hard labour and cooperation.

For instance

Building parks in their own neighbourhoods

Enabling people to self build as was done in Lewisham with timber frame houses. (See also)

The people to consult for ideas are those that work at the interface between the two groups of haves and havenots : social workers, youth leaders, people that run hostels, teachers, the police. People with daily contact with the problem groups. Add to these those organisations with a track record of success in getting the havenots involved with society.

Isn't it worth reflecting on what was being said immediately before the riots - on facilities that were being closed watch a video with the views of what seem to be sensible young people - One that ends "There will be Riots, there will be riots, riots" - they were right.

"You can't raise taxes you argue - we're being overtaxed already: this could mean that we have to abandon the concept of achieving 'growth'. "

It is obvious that there are people even here in Ulverston with a lot of money who could be taxed.


If Booths are able to sell at this very moment, cherries at £10 per kilogram, and cheese at £27 per kilogram, surely this proves the point.

Some have amounts of money to spend that many in society cannot comprehend.

Let's make moves towards bringing the two opposing sides together and seek out and support those that are actually working hard to do just this as part of their daily job. Remote politicians making snap judgements are the last people that should be making decisions and we should be making this clear to them if we don't like what we hear.

This is not a soft option.  What is needed is a hard tough one but we do need an alternative to prison if this means locking people up to do nothing other than cost the rest of us money and train to show lip service to the system and sadly make better more skilled criminals with a common axe to grind.