What makes you want to riot?

What is it that makes you want to riot?

Could it be this?

The bizarre case of the pregnant woman sentenced to three years in prison for reporting a violent rape certainly hit a button when I read about it this morning. Police treated her as guilty despite her injuries: gashed knee and back of head, black eye, bleeding vagina. Vital evidence either not collected or destroyed, such as the male public hair lost in the lab. I mean, THREE YEARS?! Sure, that'll encourage us to report sex crime. Stick us in a burqa and tell us to shut up, why don'tcha.

Or could it be the woman about to be evicted from her Conservative-led Wandsworth council flat because her son was charged — and not convicted — in the riots? I've heard of soldiers wiping out a whole village because some of them were insurgents, or all the men of a town being shot because a soldier had been killed, but since when did that warped justice take hold here, a world bastion of decency and democracy? Punishing the innocent due to a mere association with the accused is the mark of an authoritarian regime serving the few, not the many.

I've read that David Cameron is consulting the Chinese government about shutting down the internet social networks. Now that is a riot.

We're going back to a time when children were hanged for stealing a loaf of bread. Remember the opening scene in Pirates Of The Caribbean III where the pirates are being hanged en masse? Including the little boy? We didn't cheer the hangings: they were disturbing. The knowledge that this disproportionate mass punishment was barbaric, from our enlightened modern western perspective, is under attack. People in power now, as then, have as little sense of themselves as the rioters do — how else would you fail to see the damaged humanity in these lost youths? If you can't feel yourself as human, you can't see others as such, and the only thing dividing you from the "scum" is that you have social power and they don't.

Not all these rioters are hardened criminals who killed and torched. Five months prison for accepting a pair of nicked knickers is not setting a good example.

Brecht asked: Who is the bigger criminal? The person who robs a bank? Or the person who founds one. We can now ask who has done the most damage: the RBS, Lehman Brothers, Goldman Sachs bankers who started the recession and are continuing to damage society? Or the spiritually and materially impoverished rioters?

Madam Miaow on Looting & the UK riots: as above, so below.

Madam Miaow's mash-up video to The Bermondsey Joyriders' "Society Is Rapidly Changing".

Rap responds to the riots.

London riots need Officer Krupke

Boy arrested for possession of pen on royal wedding day: video

A boy is arrested on the day of the royal wedding for possession of a pen. William and Catherine, this is what's being done in your name.

Thanks heavens we're not in China.

Another video showing democracy in action.



All in all, a great weekend for burying bad news and getting away with murder. More videos here

Defending Free Speech from the Zombie Flash Mob: royal wedding blues

7PM. My mate Roz Kaveney, poet extraordinaire, has joined my sedate birthday celebrations and reports that the Queer Resistance Zombie Flash Mob was put under heavy manners on royal wedding day since Chris Knight and his guillotine mates (both of them) were arrested last night.

Despite sitting quietly in Soho Square, Queer Resistance and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence were approached by huffy plod and told to leave or face arrest (see video below). When asked why, they said, 'Some people aren't happy you are here.' Roz says it was breach of the peace by 'harshing someone's buzz.' At least they weren't the poor sods in Starbucks who were arrested for drinking tea while made up like zombies.

Ms Kaveney sees it both ways. She says, 'If they didn't do this, we'd end up like China.'

It's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it.

From Grassy Knoll to The Mall: Royal Wedding Expectations Shot

Americans have the best take on this monarchy stuff. Thanks to Rigorous Intuition for the above inspiration.

On the day that a Bahrain torturer attended the royal wedding while protesters in his homeland are being slaughtered, but Tony Blair and his power-worshipping wife did not (so it's not all negative, then), bad news is buried and another nail is hammered into the coffin of democracy.

Republicans (in the British sense) everywhere are being arrested, reminiscent of baptism scene in the last reel of The Godfather where members of the opposition are wiped out with every glorious crescendo of tiny boys' voices. Telepathic Heights raided. The Zombie Flash crew and anarchists in Soho: arrested and intimidated. The Brockley Guillotiners (aged 45 to 68): arrested. The NHS is told to institute further cuts as the BBC tweets: 'The regulator of NHS foundation trusts in England has warned hospitals they must make even bigger efficiency savings than previously thought'. And thousands of the very people who'll be hit the hardest when the boot in the face kicks-in for real string up bunting instead of royal purple parasites, and hold street parties instead of shooting the guilty parties.

Sigh!

Peter Hain complained that Ed Miliband was cut out of BBC TV coverage while there was plenty of David Cameron and Ramsay MacClegg, but this is surely a narrow escape as no-one with good taste and vestigial republican beliefs would want to be seen dead in this company.

OK, on to my birthday celebrations.

Laurie Penny's Royal Wedding of Mass Distraction

No police charged in Ian Tomlinson demo death

Yet again a policeman caught on camera abusing the public is let off. Today the CPS ruled that, despite video of the policeman pushing news vendor Ian Tomlinson to the ground and beating him with a truncheon at last year's G20 demonstration in the City (London), there will be no prosecution. Not manslaughter, not assault, nothing.

C4 News quoted Tomlinson's son as saying, "We were fighting a losing battle they were on the policeman's side from the beginning. This guy will be back on the beat."

It's as if, with a string of similar cases of killings and assaults by the police, the government has declared war on the public. They know that the present Tory scorched earth policy of savage cuts in services — where we are being made to pay for the bankers' mess while the rich remain untouched, and where no reputable economist will say that this is justified — will result in protest. We now know what police action to expect.

The Tomlinson case serves as a further warning to us that challenges to the government (this one not even elected by the majority of the electorate) will not be tolerated.

One excuse for today's shock decision is the contradictory conclusions from two pathologists. The first, Dr Freddy Patel, said that Tomlinson's death was caused by a heart attack. It was only when the family called in their own expert that the real cause — abdominal haemorrhage — was revealed.

This is not the first time one of Patel's verdicts has been discredited after he has provided results which have turned out to be favourable to certain parties. In 2004, my friend Valerie Chang lost her brother Richard in what was termed a "suicide" at the Abbey National headquarters following an interrogation by his bosses.

The Chang family state:

Richard Chang, 47, senior risk analyst died tragically at work after a fall of over 80 feet, 13 July 2004 in a suspicious suicide at Abbey National plc headquarters, Euston, London following an interrogation organised by senior directors and conducted by Kroll Associates. The incident happened shortly before Abbey National was taken over by Banco Santander.

The pathologist, Dr Freddy Patel who conducted the post-mortem for Richard Chang is under investigation by the General Medical Council. The Fitness to Practise Panel will inquire into allegations that, whilst working as a Consultant Forensic Pathologist Dr Mohmed Patel’s conduct in carrying our four post mortems was irresponsible and not of the standard expected of a competent Home Office registered forensic pathologist and that in one case his conduct was liable to bring the profession into disrepute.  He is accused of giving "questionable" verdicts on the causes of deaths, several of which later turned out to be suspicious.

The CPS must have known that Patel is under investigation by the GMC and yet they dragged their heels all this time. Will we be told why?

UPDATE: Harpy Marx reminds me that today is the fifth anniversary of Jean de Menezes's killing by police. The Labour Representation Committee has issued this reaction to the Tomlinson decision. And Harpy carries a press release from INQUEST.

UPDATE 2: Friday 23rd July 2010. Pressure is on Coroner Professor Paul Matthews to stand down from the inquest as it has emerged that, not only did he appoint Dr Freddy Patel at the request of the Metropolitan Police (a not disinterested party at the time), who was already discredited but a safe pair of hands, he also banned the IPPC from attending the post mortem. On top of which, he failed to advise Ian Tomlinson's family of their right to attend or send a representative, or inform them of the date and time of the procedure. See also Advice to charge police officer over Ian Tomlinson death ignored. And Are the Police above the law?

No police charged in Ian Tomlinson demo death

Yet again a policeman caught on camera abusing the public is let off. Today the CPS ruled that, despite video of the policeman pushing news vendor Ian Tomlinson to the ground and beating him with a truncheon at last year's G20 demonstration in the City (London), there will be no prosecution. Not manslaughter, not assault, nothing.

C4 News quoted Tomlinson's son as saying, "We were fighting a losing battle they were on the policeman's side from the beginning. This guy will be back on the beat."

It's as if, with a string of similar cases of killings and assaults by the police, the government has declared war on the public. They know that the present Tory scorched earth policy of savage cuts in services — where we are being made to pay for the bankers' mess while the rich remain untouched, and where no reputable economist will say that this is justified — will result in protest. We now know what police action to expect.

The Tomlinson case serves as a further warning to us that challenges to the government (this one not even elected by the majority of the electorate) will not be tolerated.

One excuse for today's shock decision is the contradictory conclusions from two pathologists. The first, Dr Freddy Patel, said that Tomlinson's death was caused by a heart attack. It was only when the family called in their own expert that the real cause — abdominal haemorrhage — was revealed.

This is not the first time one of Patel's verdicts has been discredited after he has provided results which have turned out to be favourable to certain parties. In 2004, my friend Valerie Chang lost her brother Richard in what was termed a "suicide" at the Abbey National headquarters following an interrogation by his bosses.

The Chang family state:

Richard Chang, 47, senior risk analyst died tragically at work after a fall of over 80 feet, 13 July 2004 in a suspicious suicide at Abbey National plc headquarters, Euston, London following an interrogation organised by senior directors and conducted by Kroll Associates. The incident happened shortly before Abbey National was taken over by Banco Santander.

The pathologist, Dr Freddy Patel who conducted the post-mortem for Richard Chang is under investigation by the General Medical Council. The Fitness to Practise Panel will inquire into allegations that, whilst working as a Consultant Forensic Pathologist Dr Mohmed Patel’s conduct in carrying our four post mortems was irresponsible and not of the standard expected of a competent Home Office registered forensic pathologist and that in one case his conduct was liable to bring the profession into disrepute.  He is accused of giving "questionable" verdicts on the causes of deaths, several of which later turned out to be suspicious.

The CPS must have known that Patel is under investigation by the GMC and yet they dragged their heels all this time. Will we be told why?

UPDATE: Harpy Marx reminds me that today is the fifth anniversary of Jean de Menezes's killing by police. The Labour Representation Committee has issued this reaction to the Tomlinson decision. And Harpy carries a press release from INQUEST.

UPDATE 2: Friday 23rd July 2010. Pressure is on Coroner Professor Paul Matthews to stand down from the inquest as it has emerged that, not only did he appoint Dr Freddy Patel at the request of the Metropolitan Police (a not disinterested party at the time), who was already discredited but a safe pair of hands, he also banned the IPPC from attending the post mortem. On top of which, he failed to advise Ian Tomlinson's family of their right to attend or send a representative, or inform them of the date and time of the procedure. See also Advice to charge police officer over Ian Tomlinson death ignored. And Are the Police above the law?

War On Tourism: police destroy holiday snaps of London buses.

Paranoid poster at my local bus stop

Did you know it was illegal to photograph British transport? When did that happen?

Two tourists were caught out by the police’s new Fantasy Laws, under which bored Plods can compel you to wipe your camera should you take pictures of London’s iconic landmarks, such as our famous red buses (bring back the Routemaster!), the Tube, and those friendly bobbies on the beat we know and love from Dixon of Dock Green.

Klaus Matzka and his teenage son Loris were lucky they weren’t given a full-cavity search, as happened to Julian Cope at Liverpool Street where he was meeting friends for the G20 protests.

Unsurprisingly, they say it’ll be a cold day in hell before they come back.

Well done, New Labour. Not only do our Amurkin friends laugh at us for having more CCTVs than any other country, our security laws are among the most draconian in the world with one in four government databases being illegal and the European Commission launching an investigation into Britain's surveillance society. And now we declare War on Tourism. Smart.

War On Tourism: police destroy holiday snaps of London buses.

Paranoid poster at my local bus stop

Did you know it was illegal to photograph British transport? When did that happen?

Two tourists were caught out by the police’s new Fantasy Laws, under which bored Plods can compel you to wipe your camera should you take pictures of London’s iconic landmarks, such as our famous red buses (bring back the Routemaster!), the Tube, and those friendly bobbies on the beat we know and love from Dixon of Dock Green.

Klaus Matzka and his teenage son Loris were lucky they weren’t given a full-cavity search, as happened to Julian Cope at Liverpool Street where he was meeting friends for the G20 protests.

Unsurprisingly, they say it’ll be a cold day in hell before they come back.

Well done, New Labour. Not only do our Amurkin friends laugh at us for having more CCTVs than any other country, our security laws are among the most draconian in the world with one in four government databases being illegal and the European Commission launching an investigation into Britain's surveillance society. And now we declare War on Tourism. Smart.

Dead G20 man beaten by police: video contradicts official story

You know the man who died at the recent G20 protests in London? The 47 year old newsagent who wasn’t even part of the demo but was passing by on his way from work? The guy who police said simply collapsed and died of a heart attack as if the excitement dun ‘im in, and whose rescuers were supposed to have been pelted with bottles by the mob?

Well, it turns out the police have been caught lying. Again. Apart from the testimony from several witnesses, there's now video footage acquired by The Guardian of bystander Ian Tomlinson being batoned on the legs and falling to the ground in front of a bunch of cops. He is assisted by another civilian, walks away and then drops dead. There are no missiles being thrown in this location in these moments: the violence is all one-way.

I wonder, as with Harry Stanley, the Hackney man gunned down by the police for carrying a 12-bore coffee-table leg, and with Jean Charles de Menezes, the Brazilian electrician who received no warning before he was shot in the head several times with dum-dum bullets just in case he survived the first shot and the six that followed, if anyone will be held accountable. If they are running true to form, the authorities will do everything they can to blame the protesters and the dead man himself.

"Serious questions have been raised after the watchdog [IPCC] allowed City of London police to launch an inquiry into the death, despite its own officers being involved in the death. ... when a video revealed that Mr Tomlinson had been violently thrown to the ground before suffering a heart attack, a commission investigator asked the newspaper which first broke the story to remove the footage from its website." Read further



So much for democracy and the right to peaceful protest.

Meanwhile, talking about peace, former Prime Minister Tony Blair takes another payoff from interested parties in the Iraq war. First it was millions from JP Morgan, the bank which made more than any other in its capacity as co-ordinator of all the western (mostly US) banks pillaging the country. So much for conflict of interest. Then an Israeli institution — a university — pays him a million dollars. Now the Kuwaitis, old enemies of Iraq, have paid him a seven-figure sum for services rendered.

The ruling class know the game’s up and are looting the western economies with a vigour that is breathtaking to watch. Of course the press remain largely supine, chucking prolefeed at the rest of us in an attempt to distract us from the criminals dismantling our society at the very top.

More at Organised Rage, Harpy Marx, Channel 4 News, Channel 4 News videos, The Guardian

UPDATE: Petition to indict Tony Blair for war crimes

Dead G20 man beaten by police: video contradicts official story

You know the man who died at the recent G20 protests in London? The 47 year old newsagent who wasn’t even part of the demo but was passing by on his way from work? The guy who police said simply collapsed and died of a heart attack as if the excitement dun ‘im in, and whose rescuers were supposed to have been pelted with bottles by the mob?

Well, it turns out the police have been caught lying. Again. Apart from the testimony from several witnesses, there's now video footage acquired by The Guardian of bystander Ian Tomlinson being batoned on the legs and falling to the ground in front of a bunch of cops. He is assisted by another civilian, walks away and then drops dead. There are no missiles being thrown in this location in these moments: the violence is all one-way.

I wonder, as with Harry Stanley, the Hackney man gunned down by the police for carrying a 12-bore coffee-table leg, and with Jean Charles de Menezes, the Brazilian electrician who received no warning before he was shot in the head several times with dum-dum bullets just in case he survived the first shot and the six that followed, if anyone will be held accountable. If they are running true to form, the authorities will do everything they can to blame the protesters and the dead man himself.

"Serious questions have been raised after the watchdog [IPCC] allowed City of London police to launch an inquiry into the death, despite its own officers being involved in the death. ... when a video revealed that Mr Tomlinson had been violently thrown to the ground before suffering a heart attack, a commission investigator asked the newspaper which first broke the story to remove the footage from its website." Read further



So much for democracy and the right to peaceful protest.

Meanwhile, talking about peace, former Prime Minister Tony Blair takes another payoff from interested parties in the Iraq war. First it was millions from JP Morgan, the bank which made more than any other in its capacity as co-ordinator of all the western (mostly US) banks pillaging the country. So much for conflict of interest. Then an Israeli institution — a university — pays him a million dollars. Now the Kuwaitis, old enemies of Iraq, have paid him a seven-figure sum for services rendered.

The ruling class know the game’s up and are looting the western economies with a vigour that is breathtaking to watch. Of course the press remain largely supine, chucking prolefeed at the rest of us in an attempt to distract us from the criminals dismantling our society at the very top.

More at Organised Rage, Harpy Marx, Channel 4 News, Channel 4 News videos, The Guardian

UPDATE: Petition to indict Tony Blair for war crimes