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I wouldn't feel for those having justice dealt to them, not one bit. They not only participated in the riots - but made an effort to promote them. As for the w

I wouldn't feel for those having justice dealt to them, not one bit. They not only participated in the riots - but made an effort to promote them. As for the woman who accepted stolen goods from her flatmate - she deserved it. The right course of action would've been to advise her flatmate to turn herself in and return the goods, or actually call the police herself. She decides to go through the stolen goods, picking what she wants and wearing it. As far as community work / fines - there's been a few articles on various newspapers by community workers and enforcers who plainly state that it has little to no impact. Dig a little deeper, and you'll find prisons in the UK happen to be quite nice; offering lot better facilities than many hostels. Plus, having spoken to a lot of officers, many state that if you don't clamp down on people when they break minor laws / rules - soon the boundaries shift and before they know it; they've become criminals. Having witnessed first hand the devastation and destruction in Hackney - most small business owners who lost pretty much their whole lively hoods would state that the sentences being handed out aren't enough - and I whole heartedly agree. What still irks me is that nearly two-thirds of my hard earned money is being taken by the government in taxes, and is feeding these people in a prison cell; likely where they have access to a TV with Sky, a PlayStation, 3 good meals a day, clean bedsheets and clothes etc etc.

leon_ 15y ago
> Having witnessed first hand the devastation and destruction in Hackney - most small business owners who lost pretty much their whole lively hoods would state that the sentences being handed out aren't enough - and I whole heartedly agree That's why a neutral judge does the judging in a trial and not the biased victims.
abstractbill 15y ago
Harsh sentences like these will only serve to convince a large segment of the population that the system is unjust (and perhaps even that the riots were therefore a "good thing" (fight the system, etc, etc)).
- PhilRae 15y ago
  These people weren't fighting any 'system' or for any cause. They plainly saw an opportunity to steal, vandalise and ruin the lives of many hard-working, law-abiding citizens, under the so called 'protection' of the mob. Hopefully this hard justice will serve as a warning that this simply will not be tolerated in our civil society. If anything, it actually emphasises how lenient the court system normally is, and I firmly believe that sentencing should always be this strict.
  - Daniel_Newby 15y ago
    Hopefully this hard justice will serve as a warning that this simply will not be tolerated in our civil society. That warning is better served by preceding a potential riot with a few decades of prompt, strict, and small punishments for failures of civility. A person who knows that there will be consequences does not participate in a riot. Or at least it would be a polite English riot with the mob leaders passing out cucumber sandwiches. ... I firmly believe that sentencing should always be this strict. Alas, punishing an impromptu mob for the arson of its most destructive member does not un-burn-down a buildingful of shops, and the thrill of seeing the mob railroaded might even encourage a career-criminal arsonist who knew to take precautions against being identified.
Daniel_Newby 15y ago
Having witnessed first hand the devastation and destruction in Hackney - most small business owners who lost pretty much their whole lively hoods would state that the sentences being handed out aren't enough - and I whole heartedly agree. How many of those small businessmen shook their heads but did nothing over happy slappers and countless other creeping failures of the rule of law? Civilizations don't fall because the barbarians get strong but because the middle class stops defending civility. If the yeomanry do not guard their liberty, they abdicate it. I'll stop writing here. If I go on I will start quoting The Boondock Saints and lose all credibility.
- shazamjad 15y ago
  Couldn't agree more - in fact a group actually did stand up to them: http://hackneycitizen.co.uk/2011/08/09/turkish-shopkeepers-stand-firm-rioters-dalston-hackney/ http://hackneycitizen.co.uk/2011/08/09/turkish-shopkeepers-s... It's only recently in the UK that the law now favours the right to defend yourself and your property; before there was a perception of criminals having more rights having broken into your home than you ever did.
  - Gupie 15y ago
    Has there been a change to the law? Can you give a reference please. I thought UK law has always allowed reasonable force to be used in defending your property..
bugsy 15y ago
We also should arrest all the people in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya who rioted in their countries this year as well. Disorder must not be tolerated! Government power above all else! Bow before your gods, peasants!
- shazamjad 15y ago
  There's rioting for the sake of a rebellion, hopefully leading to a revolution. Then there's rioting for the sake of looting and causing damage, nothing more.
  - abstractbill 15y ago
    Of course I agree that the UK riots were not the former, but I hope you see the problem with trusting the government to decide which one is which, and giving them special powers to punish people who riot (over and above the criminal acts of destruction that can already be punished under existing laws).
    - bugsy 15y ago
      Tunisian riots started with people upset because of the way the police had abused some guy. Same as the UK. EXACT SAME THING. Not different at all. Police abuse provokes rioting that leads to the justified overthrow of the government. Only the ending turned out different. This was not a dumb pointless soccer riot. It was provoked by the government violating the rights of the people. The people pushed back. Sometimes that turns violent. Sometimes it gets completely out of control. Sometimes it gets so out of control, that in the end the old regime is cast out and a new form of government instituted. The French Revolution was no different. A bunch of hooligans mindlessly rioting and destroying things over some minor matter they should have just let go. But in the end, the king was dead, him and his wife's heads were cut off and spat upon. This round the government got the upper hand. The people in the UK are not happy with how things are going. The revolution is not going to be this month, but it has started this month. The nation is already dead, having abused the people too long. Hard to say how much time they have before the final revolt, but it's obvious to this impartial outside observer that revolution is coming and the momentum is strong enough that throwing dissidents and fools in prison will only hasten its inevitable fall.
jacquesm 15y ago
Right, because everybody knows that taking a mother away from her children for five months to punish her for accepting a pair of pants that she didn't steal is justice. </sarcasm> Really, I hope you have receipts for every item you've ever received from someone else. Sure, these riots are wrong on many levels but this is totally disproportionate.
- shazamjad 15y ago
  Definitely a harsh ruling against her - but considering the legal system I doubt she'll spend any time in a prison cell. Then there's a very touchy matter of wether you really want kids being brought up by a mother who clearly turns a blind eye to rioting / looting, and indirectly even partakes in criminal activity (knowingly handling stolen goods).
megablast 15y ago
Hyperbole much? Where was the general population when this was going on? Sitting at home watching TV. This is a big problem with society.

leon_ 15y ago

> Having witnessed first hand the devastation and destruction in Hackney - most small business owners who lost pretty much their whole lively hoods would state that the sentences being handed out aren't enough - and I whole heartedly agree That's why a neutral judge does the judging in a trial and not the biased victims.

abstractbill 15y ago

Harsh sentences like these will only serve to convince a large segment of the population that the system is unjust (and perhaps even that the riots were therefore a "good thing" (fight the system, etc, etc)).

PhilRae 15y ago
These people weren't fighting any 'system' or for any cause. They plainly saw an opportunity to steal, vandalise and ruin the lives of many hard-working, law-abiding citizens, under the so called 'protection' of the mob. Hopefully this hard justice will serve as a warning that this simply will not be tolerated in our civil society. If anything, it actually emphasises how lenient the court system normally is, and I firmly believe that sentencing should always be this strict.
- Daniel_Newby 15y ago
  Hopefully this hard justice will serve as a warning that this simply will not be tolerated in our civil society. That warning is better served by preceding a potential riot with a few decades of prompt, strict, and small punishments for failures of civility. A person who knows that there will be consequences does not participate in a riot. Or at least it would be a polite English riot with the mob leaders passing out cucumber sandwiches. ... I firmly believe that sentencing should always be this strict. Alas, punishing an impromptu mob for the arson of its most destructive member does not un-burn-down a buildingful of shops, and the thrill of seeing the mob railroaded might even encourage a career-criminal arsonist who knew to take precautions against being identified.

Daniel_Newby 15y ago

Having witnessed first hand the devastation and destruction in Hackney - most small business owners who lost pretty much their whole lively hoods would state that the sentences being handed out aren't enough - and I whole heartedly agree. How many of those small businessmen shook their heads but did nothing over happy slappers and countless other creeping failures of the rule of law? Civilizations don't fall because the barbarians get strong but because the middle class stops defending civility. If the yeomanry do not guard their liberty, they abdicate it. I'll stop writing here. If I go on I will start quoting The Boondock Saints and lose all credibility.

shazamjad 15y ago
Couldn't agree more - in fact a group actually did stand up to them: http://hackneycitizen.co.uk/2011/08/09/turkish-shopkeepers-stand-firm-rioters-dalston-hackney/ http://hackneycitizen.co.uk/2011/08/09/turkish-shopkeepers-s... It's only recently in the UK that the law now favours the right to defend yourself and your property; before there was a perception of criminals having more rights having broken into your home than you ever did.
- Gupie 15y ago
  Has there been a change to the law? Can you give a reference please. I thought UK law has always allowed reasonable force to be used in defending your property..

bugsy 15y ago

We also should arrest all the people in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya who rioted in their countries this year as well. Disorder must not be tolerated! Government power above all else! Bow before your gods, peasants!

shazamjad 15y ago
There's rioting for the sake of a rebellion, hopefully leading to a revolution. Then there's rioting for the sake of looting and causing damage, nothing more.
- abstractbill 15y ago
  Of course I agree that the UK riots were not the former, but I hope you see the problem with trusting the government to decide which one is which, and giving them special powers to punish people who riot (over and above the criminal acts of destruction that can already be punished under existing laws).
  - bugsy 15y ago
    Tunisian riots started with people upset because of the way the police had abused some guy. Same as the UK. EXACT SAME THING. Not different at all. Police abuse provokes rioting that leads to the justified overthrow of the government. Only the ending turned out different. This was not a dumb pointless soccer riot. It was provoked by the government violating the rights of the people. The people pushed back. Sometimes that turns violent. Sometimes it gets completely out of control. Sometimes it gets so out of control, that in the end the old regime is cast out and a new form of government instituted. The French Revolution was no different. A bunch of hooligans mindlessly rioting and destroying things over some minor matter they should have just let go. But in the end, the king was dead, him and his wife's heads were cut off and spat upon. This round the government got the upper hand. The people in the UK are not happy with how things are going. The revolution is not going to be this month, but it has started this month. The nation is already dead, having abused the people too long. Hard to say how much time they have before the final revolt, but it's obvious to this impartial outside observer that revolution is coming and the momentum is strong enough that throwing dissidents and fools in prison will only hasten its inevitable fall.

jacquesm 15y ago

Right, because everybody knows that taking a mother away from her children for five months to punish her for accepting a pair of pants that she didn't steal is justice. </sarcasm> Really, I hope you have receipts for every item you've ever received from someone else. Sure, these riots are wrong on many levels but this is totally disproportionate.

shazamjad 15y ago
Definitely a harsh ruling against her - but considering the legal system I doubt she'll spend any time in a prison cell. Then there's a very touchy matter of wether you really want kids being brought up by a mother who clearly turns a blind eye to rioting / looting, and indirectly even partakes in criminal activity (knowingly handling stolen goods).

megablast 15y ago

Hyperbole much? Where was the general population when this was going on? Sitting at home watching TV. This is a big problem with society.