[karezza]

What is at the root of the riots?

[Iceman]

Stupidity mainly. Cause I dont see it as 'A man was shot dead by police, lets go loot these shops and burn these buildings.'

[Crimson Dynamo]

Poor parenting (lack of father), lack of intelligence, poor diet, being young, greed, living in cities.

[Iceman]

Originally Posted by LeatherTrumpet

Poor parenting (lack of father), lack of intelligence, poor diet, being young, greed, living in cities.

I dont agree with them so much.

Poor Parenting - Unless you know them personally you could never know.
Lack Of Intelligence - Nurses and Teachers were caught looting.
Poor Diet -

Im not dismissing them I just think they're harder to say 'this was the reason'

[Crimson Dynamo]

Originally Posted by Eoin

I dont agree with them so much.

Poor Parenting - Unless you know them personally you could never know.
Lack Of Intelligence - Nurses and Teachers were caught looting.
Poor Diet -

Im not dismissing them I just think they're harder to say 'this was the reason'

The reasons are main reasons for the majority, you list exceptions, although you need not be that intelligent to be a teacher or a nurse.

Poor diet leads to poor development of the brain, lethargy, poor attitude at school, less life chances, increased propensity for aggression.

Black inner city children have a 20% chance of having 2 parents at home, for example.

[Marc]

Government cuts and poverty.

If people lose their job after 30 yrs + then it's well worth protesting. But not rioting.

[Marc]

Government cuts and poverty.

If people lose their job after 30 yrs + then it's well worth protesting. But not rioting.

[Zippy]

all the above and more.

Truth is we've lost moral guidance. Families are broken down and children now get their main guidance from TV, music and the internet. Most of which is a dreadful influence that encourages selfishness, greed, disrespect and materialism. We live in a very entitled society where kids now grow up thinking they have a right to "stuff" for nothing. Thats what the looting was all about; pure naked greed. They weren't stealing things they needed..just things they wanted and pathetically thought they had some right to take. Again, no morals.

All behaviour starts with upbringing so parent/s most certainly play a huge part in these problems. If you instill good values into your child then they will not go far wrong. Sure they may have occasionally blips of bad behaviour at certain points but generally they have a line they would never cross. Those scumbags we saw running riot last week clearly do not have a line. Just destroying peoples lives and demolishing whole areas. It was like every mindless criminal thug came out to play. And the police just let them instead of hitting them with truncheons and rubber bullets like they would do in most other countries. Limp policing and a pathetic judicial system that doesn't know how to deal with hardcore, relentless criminals is another big part of the problem.

I see the problem getting even worse as kids become more and more immersed in the internet instead of real social interaction. They are bombarded with media that glorifies crime, drugs, violence and anti-social behaviour. Negativity is much cooler than positivity. Very depressing.

But the absolute roots lay with upbringing. You have to have good moral guidance, know right from wrong, and then apply it to your own behaviour. Instinctively.

[Vicky.]

I think a lot did it just because the opportunity was there tbh :/

Some may have had their reasons, but its really the wrong way to go about changing things.

[Crimson Dynamo]

Around 0.00025% under 20s were involved in the "riots"

[Mystic Mock]

Im fed up of people saying Television and Video Games are the causes for why some pricks turn evil,its not but it seems like every male activity has to be classed as turning people psycho.

Anyway the reason for the riots IMO are gangs,stupidity and rotten parents.

[keithafc]

Materialistic society. It is all rather simple when you think about it. Some one goes into a shop and loots something during a riot, some one sees it and says i want something too.

[lostalex]

Parents. People learn how to be people from their parents.

[joeysteele]

Materialistic society, plus greed and opportunity.

Children and teenagers of very rich,well to do parents get into bother as well,not just the easier to bash lower classes for want of a better description.

NO Govt, Conservative or Labour has helped the problem at all either though in the last 30+ years or so.

[lostalex]

Originally Posted by joeysteele

Materialistic society, plus greed and opportunity.

I'm sorry, but that's just wrong. These weren't just shopping sprees. Blaming materialism just doesn't wash. These people did not just bash into nike stores to steel new trainers, they were on a rampage of violence, they were about causing havoc and mayhem and asserting power and terror onto the city, not just about really wanting a new pair of trainers.

[lostalex]

Blaming materialism is like blaming a rape victim for wearing a short skirt. Or blaming pornography for inciting rape.

Looting is not about materialism anymore than rape is about sex. This kind of violence is about power and feeling powerful and thinking it's your right to control and overpower other people. They got the thrill by intimidating and using violence to scare other people. The actual items they stole was not the thrill.

[Doogle]

Chavs want free stuff.

[joeysteele]

The UK is a materialistic society in the main now,it was a main part of this from these rioters/criminals/looters whatever you want to call them, as I said in my post above they also saw an opportunity to grab those things out of mainly greed.

They could have just smashed windows and wrecked buildings without looting, they wanted the 'materialistic' goods that they could get too though.

Even if they didn't need or want the things themselves they could have satisfied their greed further by selling some of these things they stole on to people who also wanted cheap materialistic goods.

Three elements.materialistic gain and greed and opportunity.

[GypsyGoth]

Parents, they are to blame. Breeders should get lessons on how to raise their children.

[karezza]

1. Multiculturalism
2. Materialism
3. Stupidity

[MTVN]

Problem is with blaming parents is that it doesn't actually get to the core of the problem, if they are to blame then who is to blame for the parents themselves? Their parents? I think it's more complex than that

I'd say the three main ones are materialistic society, poverty and then the police because the killing of Mark Duggan is the spark that set this all off and because people still dont feel they can trust them

Edit - Id say stupidity as well but that ones a given

[Sunny_01]

I dont totally blame the parents, I am a parent and I know how hard it was to steer my children in the right direction to make wise choices as they were growing up. That said when my girls were 13, 14 I dam well knew where they were and who they were with (control freak of a mother). So I think an element of blame lies with parents.

Stupidity, poverty, materialism all hit my radar as well, I dont think there is any one fact but a lot of factors that created the riots, I agree mob handed police played the biggest part as well.

[Shaun]

edit: oh, was lolling at a deleted elproximo post

[MTVN]

Deleted that absurd racist rant from El Proximo

[Sticks]

They were propagated by malevolent memes causing people to act out of character, (see discussion elsewhere)