Rioting

OK, I admit it's been a while. But, as I am largely talking to myself here, I'll forgive myself.

An extraordinary turn of events has gripped this nation is the past few days and we have to look at it without dismissing it as one thing or another. It is not just mindless violence. There is more to this than that. Sure, a lot of those taking part are in it for the ride: the adrenaline, a bit of looting. Some are angry and this restores a sense of empowerment and some of it is simply herd mentality in that they identify with the groups they've seen rioting on TV so they go out and do the same.

But, for something like this to start erupting in various major cities across the country is quite out of the norm. Rioting on this level is usually focused around a strong political issue. Is this because the shooting of Mark Duggan was the last straw? Is it because the role of police has been becoming increasingly aggressive for some time (and black communities are more acutely aware of this than anyone else)? I am white and I have never been stopped and searched in my life. If I were black, it would be a routine part of going out of the house. True, the 'Gangsta' culture is predominantly a West Indian community culture but chickens and eggs spring to mind. Did the Gangsta culture give birth to the police default suspicion of all black people or did being routinely treated like a criminal give rise to the drift into criminal activity?

Whether you are a criminal or not, if you are black, the police largely view you as the enemy. That assumption did not originate with criminal activity in the black communities. It originated with a nationwide prejudice and suspicion of immigrants from the West Indies. In the 50s, no one need be out of work. There were more jobs than could be filled without shipping in a labour force from elsewhere. Those who chose to exploit the relatively new (and chaotically administered) unemployment benefit system instead of working would use the easily identifiable West Indians as the excuse for being out of work. It didn't hold water in reality, of course because there were plenty of jobs but, in the pubs, people are only too ready to find justifications for their suspicion of this influx of people who look so different. "They're stealing our jobs!" became the cry. The prejudice was endemic throughout British society. Much of the institutionalised prejudice within the police is based more in a dislike of black people than in any objection to the criminality they encounter. The riots could be seen as a powder keg that has been exposed to a naked flame for too long and something had to give.

But is there more to this? These riots come at a time when Cameron certainly needs something to distract the public from the Murdoch scandal. It is only a matter of time before the truth emerges about Cameron's discussions with Murdoch over the B Sky B bid. It is clear that he did discuss the takeover with Murdoch by his evasive answer to a direct question about this ("I did not have any inappropriate discussions").... not exactly "Yes" but, tellingly, not "No".

There is a darker possibility here too. Much of the public are already calling for Cameron to call in the army and some are calling for a State of Emergency. A large section of the public are actually calling for a situation in which Machiavellian laws will be introduced, suppressing civil liberties and outlawing public gatherings. Under a State of Emergency, even lawful protest would no longer be lawful. We would, in effect, be living in a police state and this would no longer be even the thin representation of democracy it is at the moment.

The Internet has informed people to the extent that governments can no longer get away with hoodwinking the public and committing atrocities behind closed doors. It is all but impossible to keep anything secret now. A massive change in tactic is necessary to maintain control of the status quo but to suddenly say "Right! No more of this public protesting! Anyone who disagrees with the government will go to jail!" would simply enrage a public that has lived too long in a democratic state to accept having this foisted upon them. The only way to get a police state in place is to have the public demand it.

Problem... Reaction... Solution. Is that the name of the game?

Could it be that these riots are actually part of an overall plan?

Conspiracty theorist! my friends exclaim. It would involve too many people to pull this off! Somebody would be bound to leak the truth eventually!

True. But then we would be living in a police state in which any whistle-blowers could be swiftly dealt with. And then... OK. So you now know the truth. What are you going to do about it? Under "Emergency Law", anyone attempting to address corruption within the government would become a criminal.

Problem... Reaction... Solution.

Think about it. Think about what it would mean if the government actually took the steps that many of you are now demanding.