GLOBAL RIOTS - not just in the UK
staxwax
1,474 Posts
I havent read the entire Uk thread but thought this was a point worth making on its own. Consider the recent list of countries that have seen 'disenfranchised' mobs (there is obviously a lot of plain opportunism happening) taking to the streets, all employing social media to self organize and run amok. This is obviously going beyond the UK. What are the broader implications?
Greece, The Middle East, Israel, Spain, Portugal, Phillipines, China, Syria, and in the US Chicago, Philadelphia and Milwaukee have all recently seen similar outbursts of looting and violence - 'unrest' for want of a better word.. The Uk is just the latest and most heated instance of what is obviously a planet wide wildfire.
Cnbc - unrest is gobal
US flash mob looters in Chicago, Philly, Milwaukee
These developments have been predicted months ago by certain analysts - Forbes: 'Global Riots: Opportunity Or Danger?' - it should be noted that as the US and the Eurozone become financially more unstable, global social unrest is increasing.
It seems globally a broad 'underclass' is reacting strongly against a worsening economic situation, and I see very little connecting the dots in the press. Is this a case of self censorship out of fear of fanning the -global- fire?
Greece, The Middle East, Israel, Spain, Portugal, Phillipines, China, Syria, and in the US Chicago, Philadelphia and Milwaukee have all recently seen similar outbursts of looting and violence - 'unrest' for want of a better word.. The Uk is just the latest and most heated instance of what is obviously a planet wide wildfire.
Cnbc - unrest is gobal
US flash mob looters in Chicago, Philly, Milwaukee
These developments have been predicted months ago by certain analysts - Forbes: 'Global Riots: Opportunity Or Danger?' - it should be noted that as the US and the Eurozone become financially more unstable, global social unrest is increasing.
It seems globally a broad 'underclass' is reacting strongly against a worsening economic situation, and I see very little connecting the dots in the press. Is this a case of self censorship out of fear of fanning the -global- fire?
Comments
This is the most troubling part for me. Nobody is talking about the bigger picture. These riots are not going to stop.
I will not be surprised when I hear about a similar riot in the US. People have lost faith in a system that is no longer supporting them. The press/media are directly under corporate control, with vested interests in maintaining the status quo. All facets of modern culture are complicit in the global system that is crumbling around us, and we can't expect them to ever have real discussions about change or solutions.
I sound like some fucking nut conspiracy theorist with tin foil on my head. But damn. The world feels a lot like it's falling apart around us and nobody is throwing up any red flags. It's crazy.
Its already happening in the US : Philly Riots - the exact same thing, only it is not being reported as such.
Mayor Goes Off On Violent Teen Mob Attacks: MyFoxPHILLY.com
Another interesting point is the apparent domino effect that is taking place, most notably in the UK:
Failure of financial and banking institutions.
Exposure of corruption and criminal activity within the press.
Implication of major political figures in said corruption and lawlessness.
Implication and resignation of top police functionaries in said corruption.
Breakdown of policing abilities and widespread rioting.
Surely these succesive events should be seen as having some relation to each other? And seem quite similar to what happened in the middle east recently, if on a completely different scale?
I subsequently expect the announcement of more monitoring and control of social media, as well of more policing and curfews to come out of all this. Eventhough London already has the most cctv of any city in the world, which has provided no apparent safety to victims of rioting nor any way for the cops to adequately react to the mobbing.
Yes, sure, the riots in England are Quite Similar to those in the Middle East.
b/w Some UK 15 year old kid on tv exclaimed he rioted because of the high taxes.
b/w
The riots continue!
It seems the internet has so much to do with modern rioting
Monitoring will allow for faster response.
False postings will allow for roundups of potential troublemakers.
I think the broader implications of this one phenom is that law enforcement is behind the times, but will soon be caught up. Which will bring up a whole host of electronic privacy issues.
I think the media is self-censoring. And reporting from a lofty perch.
Another example of self censorship I have been thinking about is gang crime. My paper (and most likely your paper) often reports a crime and mentions that the Gang Unit responded or that authorities believe it is gang related. But never, ever, does the paper say what gang, who they are, what their organization is, where their turf is... Nothing.
When the authorities decide that criminal financiers deserve a bailout and a pat on the back, and the people who they robbed deserve to be spit on...
Are you livin the life or not?
Selective reporting with an eye towards not encouraging crime is as old as media itself. A small example here in NYC is that they never report crimes that happen on bridge walkways, because they don't want to give criminals the idea that this is an easy opportunity to mug somebody.
17 million people / 34 million guns
HAHAHAHAHA!
Absolutely. 'Anonymous' will have their work cut out for them.
And this is something else we have been seeing in the last few months, which is also intrinsically connected to this global unrest - an inability by authorities to 'maintian order' in the digital realm. Think of all the hacking that has been occurring - loosely organised mobs of computer users ganging up on and succesfully attacking large government and corporate entities, and mob rule powered by social networking.
This is also an interesting point. Im sure many store and property owners in the UK would like to have the right to arm themselves now. These riots, if they continue, will likely lead to calls to change gun laws in places where this was previously pretty much unheard of (ie western europe). Another reaction is the forming of civil militia - right wing groups like the English Defense Leaugue in the UK have already announced they are patrolling the streets. The three men who were killed in Birmingham by being run over seem to have been part of a militia group.
Visit msnbc.com for #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;" href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com">breaking news, #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">world news, and #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">news about the economy
I don't know how people watch this junk. I hate tv panels of people shouting at each other.
5 minutes of yelling and what did he say?
Congress is bought.
Banks are corrupt.
We should invest in our country.
Can I turn it off now?
also this ^
@reynaldo: you think that is a good thing?
I see your point, but I am not sure I agree.
Are the rioters really looking for coverage?
If yes, Is the reason the riots got out of hand the lack of coverage they so desired.
Will coverage really inspire more people to riot? Perhaps, but I doubt it.
Does not reporting on bridge walkway muggings prevent bridge walkway muggings?
Do we really believe that the bad guys are reading the NYT looking for new places to do crime? (Business section excepted.)
Perhaps if the good people of NYC knew that muggings were common on bridges they would do something to make the bridges safer.
Ultimately, in an ideal world, the free press would freely report the news and hope that an informed citizenry would use the information to make the world better.
Perhaps if we asked the mean robber people to please stop being mean and robbing people on bridges they would stop.
And when that works we could ask all the rest of the criminals to please stop committing crimes.
Then we can all hold hands, drink a coke and sing Kumbayah.
So what happens if you shoot a kid in the back because he was looting, and then discover it was your own son you've killed?
Will you still trot out this macho BS?
Seems a stupidly simplistic answer to a problem.
You've probably already watched the clip, but for your edification I give you a real man:
It was mistakenly being reported they may have been part of a militia group of sorts. They arrested the driver, apparently.