Thursday, August 11, 2011

riots (letter to local press)

Looking at TV film of riots in cities around England, we need to ask ourselves what sort of society has led to this sorry state of affairs. No one can condone the violence, looting and arson, but we do need to ask ourselves questions such as: Does our society value and promote peace and cooperation or does it value and promote war and acquisition of goods and status for the few? If the answer is the latter, then we should not be surprised at the violent and acquisitive behaviour of (a tiny minority of) young people.

The gulf between rich and poor in the UK is deeper than ever. Is this what we want? Inequality leads to unhappiness for all, both rich and poor. I have called on our local MP, Mr Stuart, to take a message to the emergency recall of Parliament that we need a real and careful review of what sort of society we want . What values does our society promote? If it promotes war (trade in arms etc), and a focus on consumer goods (‘growth’- on an exhausted planet) it will get just that, so we can only expect increasingly anti-social and fearful behaviour from everyone, particularly our young people.

Another world IS possible – but we will have to decide to make it happen. We need to really consider what we really want for ourselves and for our children.

sincerely,

Shan Oakes

Green Party

1 comment:

Depressed beyond tablets, gone beyond pills said...

Well done.

Yet another blogger ascribing their own political bugbears to the motivations of the rioters.

I haven't heard the arms trade one before though so well done.

How come the arms trade and our current values of the promotion of war and acquisition of goods has not induced a multitude of poor people in the north not to riot? Or people in oter parts of London. Why not the Turks, the Chinese, the Indians and the Muslims? Why were so many of them actually in reasonable jobs?

Give it some serious thought and throw away your peace campaigner baggage, admirable as it is.

BTW do you consider yourself to be part of the problem, being horribly middle class?