Saturday 13 August 2011

I Predict a Riot


Petrol is non-existent and there has been no food on the supermarket shelves for weeks. People are hawking produce in the streets and goods are traded as British coin is currently worthless. People want food, alcohol, tobacco and medicine. Pharmacies and hospitals have been emptied of stocks. Supplies, supposed to be on their way, just aren’t getting through to their destinations. Electricity, phones, gas and water are functioning, but only intermittently and people are hoarding bottled water.

We’re lucky to be in a small village and not a big town or city where there are riots and looting. It’s a surreal time where a person can be stabbed to death for a pack of cigarettes.

I know the London riots have been bad, but we haven’t reached this stage yet. My new novel Outside explores what could happen if things really did escalate out of control.

What are your views on the riots? Why do you think they happened and could the government have done anything to stop them sooner?


2 comments:

  1. I don't think anyone wins in this situation. Mob mentality can be a very scary thing as we saw. I was so saddened to watch from afar all of the devastation and how quickly it spread. But then the US has had our fair share as well.

    One thing I realized is that I am not ready. If this happened tomorrow, I am not prepared. And that is a very scary thing and something I need to fix. My thoughts were along the same line as your Shalini...all of the "what if's" They even had riot police in Cardiff. My husband is there even though he can take care of himself. It was scary. But in Cardiff?? I guess the term "Peaceful protest" is not longer valid....from both sides protesters and Police. This is just so sad..

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  2. I know, Rayven. There were riots in Gloucester too, which is a small city near where I grew up in the countryside. I'm glad your husband is okay. My mum was in London at the time, but luckily nowhere near the trouble.

    It's amazing how quickly things spread and I don't think the media helped at all - it gave ideas to opportunists and bored kids by talking about how 'the police are doing nothing while people walk off with electrical goods', which is basically like saying, 'go and help yourselves'.

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