tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18775356.post1990572438892431405..comments2024-03-14T13:06:38.883+00:00Comments on cultural snow: The revolution will not be televised if they nick all the televisionsTim Fhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14681067872556519250noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18775356.post-43400667662047124622011-08-10T09:07:51.286+01:002011-08-10T09:07:51.286+01:00See next post, Charles.
Annie: The finance guys t...See next post, Charles.<br /><br />Annie: The finance guys take advantage of others' misfortune (excessive payment protection, foreclosure, asset stripping, etc), and exacerbate it; the looters just take the next logical step and cause the misfortune itself.<br /><br />BB: If the looting had taken place at around the time Fred the Shred's pay-off deal was in the news, I think the general response might have differed.<br /><br />I'm wary of the EMA argument, Ben, because you only needed to show up to claim it. Seems intended more to keep young men off the streets, and boost lower NEET figures. Administered better, it could have been great.<br /><br />Martin: they are 21st-century kids, requiring stuff (trainers, phones, etc) and fame (look at me, I'm on telly). Baudrillard, Debord, Greil Marcus, Naolin Klein... Ach, if only they had looted a few bookshops...Tim Fhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14681067872556519250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18775356.post-28243009688133368572011-08-10T08:02:20.435+01:002011-08-10T08:02:20.435+01:00I'd like to know what sort of world, in their ...I'd like to know what sort of world, in their heart of hearts, the looters and arsonists would like to live in. Do they see the burning and destruction as a means to an end, cry for attention, or way of life?Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13494219959077922220noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18775356.post-85812386464860710292011-08-10T07:25:56.185+01:002011-08-10T07:25:56.185+01:00I think "welfare dependency and consumer capi...I think "welfare dependency and consumer capitalism" is part of it, but that's been around for years. I think the new factor is the way that the government is signalling its absolute contempt for the young poor.<br /><br />They are ending the Education Maintenance Allowance, which was having a slight positive effect on grades and attendance, and replacing it with a much more restrictive grant that you can only claim if you're disabled or you live with your parents or you're a carer.<br /><br />The money that was saved by cutting EMA was cancelled out by a cut on corporation tax. The right-wing excuse is that this is to "stimulate the economy", but corporation tax rates don't actually seem to effect growth. Of course, the need to cut taxes to boost growth didn't stop them putting up VAT that the little people pay.Ben Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05668152372307800409noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18775356.post-46530980762281842632011-08-09T21:23:12.917+01:002011-08-09T21:23:12.917+01:00But will a single banker be out of pocket as a res...But will a single banker be out of pocket as a result of these events? Is it fatcats who had to run from their burning homes?<br /><br />To quote Stephen Fry from last night: "Greed and looting most hurt small shops and businesses who can least afford it.True of thugs who are bankers or thugs who aren't."<br /><br />I'm not sure anyone in government will be sitting there right now saying: "Let's make these people happier and they won't do this." Expect more and worse.broken birohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06233920262119205474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18775356.post-21456443257300535452011-08-09T10:06:09.268+01:002011-08-09T10:06:09.268+01:00Charles, right, it is all connected. The rich just...Charles, right, it is all connected. The rich just do it sneakily and legally. And go to great lengths to protect their own property. <br /><br />Some Tory twat on Newsnight summed it up, almost by accident, for me. He said "They've got nothing left to lose." <br /><br />(He then backed away from where this conclusion might lead him, to say they are just feral and criminal.)<br /><br />We should almost start asking why people don't do it more, not why they do it at all. It wasn't just about nicking new trainers. Happy contented people with a stake in the future don't feel the need to smash windows and set cars and buildings on fire.Anniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15941917503687179585noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18775356.post-18834128866017046552011-08-09T08:18:21.120+01:002011-08-09T08:18:21.120+01:00It would be a dullard who couldn't come up wit...It would be a dullard who couldn't come up with a arms distance analysis from another continent. Critical comments probably don't appreciate that but may well be ignorant of an increasingly interdependent world.<br /><br />My only criticism is why do we turn a blind eye to the banker bonuses which encouraged the wholesale looting of the economy and set the stage for recent events. It's all connected. <br /><br />But I repeat myself.Charles Edward Frithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09231685619963486690noreply@blogger.com