To wonder if a lot of the Just Stop Oil protesters are not very nice people on a personal level

How many people in ambulances have the Tories killed by cutting health services, and were their intentions good? This thread is just another case of little people hating on the little people. I'm not going to engage further on this thread because it won't go anywhere positive.

It's entirely possible to think both things are wrong. But knowing how long people have had to wait for ambulances due to NHS shortfalls and crisis, why would you block or delay them further?
They might have waited 6 hours for an ambulance already....and then be delayed by protesters. Both will have am impact on the outcome

Are they? How many ambulances haven't arrived in time due to JSO? Possibly one. How many ambulances are delayed by cuts to the NHS? Almost all of them.

Who is gaining from this?

They’re gaining attention but it’s certainly not bringing anything to the cause, if anything it’s turning people away. Either they’re hard of thinking and don’t see that or they don’t actually care about the cause and just want the attention.

As for peaceful protest, they might not be assaulting people but they’re causing definite harm to people and the environment with their actions so I’m not sure that it is peaceful to be honest.

I think the thread raises many questions that extend beyond its stated topic. I don't want to stray too far; there've been other threads about the length of sentences etc. but a couple of thoughts:

There is something about JSO type groups and activities - high profile, extremely disruptive - that can attract a type of protester who is only interested in that type of adrenaline-seeking and/or authoritarian 'do what we say or else!' style of protest. Those people can be 'unschooled' in the ways of democratic protest and non-violent direct action. They haven't worked their way in through a movement, they've jumped in feet first at the tasty end and can be dangerously gung-ho and thoughtless (including about consequences for fellow protesters) as a result. (Other protesters can be very rational, committed, selfless and brave, there's always a mixture).

I have a lot of respect for activists and movements that have tried everything first, the letter-writing, MP meetings, awareness-raising etc before reaching a point where the next step is non-violent resistance. Those people set the parameters of that movement for the others who join them only for the direct action part.

Movements that jump from zero to direct action are scarier, because they haven't been through those years of discussion and shared decision-making, so can more easily make mistakes.

A group like JSO could reasonably argue that we've been through decades of awareness-raising, MP lobbying etc on climate change, it hasn't worked and there's no more time to waste. But as a solely direct action group, they will attract more 'direct action only' type protesters. The leadership and culture of the organisation then becomes crucial.

There can be really effective direct-only groups. JSO doesn't look much like one, in terms of its protest choices. No idea about its internal culture.

Non-violent direct action can cause a lot of disruption and inconvenience, as other forms of protest do too; strikes, marches through central London. Deliberately choosing to block ambulances though - I think that crosses the boundary into violence. It's not unintended collateral damage, it's a deliberate act of violence against the occupant of that ambulance.

What I'd ask, of all those those saying that everything JSO does is wrong and ineffective, is what sort of protest action do you think would be good and effective, on such a huge and urgent issue?

Most emissions and pollution comes from China. Do these activists ever address that? No, they just fancy a day out here, bit of activism and rewarded with celebrities bleating about them. That girl missing her brother’s wedding? Is the mother quite mad?! (She won’t serve six months, anyway.)

I would respect them more if they blockaded all the cargo ships/jets coming in loaded with Temu etc crap - raise awareness of what 1p dresses and 10p toys are doing to the planet. How about campaigning for home-grown food instead of the imported fruit and veg and the destruction of rainforests to facilitate this for spoilt westerners?

I'm sure there there is a mix but in that mix I would guess that there is a higher than average number of communal narcissists.

They are punching down and trying to claim the moral high ground
Definitely punching down. I didnt see half as much comeback when they blocked private jets at Stansted because it's an obvious link between private jet use and excessive fuel consumption. How about doing things that affect them and their families, like demand private jet flyers have to pay air passenger duty, or demand the government puts a tax on frequent flyers? Luxury cruise blockades? Taylor Swift concerts? Apple? Temu? Demand Glastonbury goers don't use discardable plastic bottles and tents?

It infuriates me people think holding up people going to hospital, funerals, or emergency services is "ok".

It isn't. Go protest where people can make a difference. Us normal folk can't, but will happily cause death and family suffering

Keying cars, that'll do it! Why didn't we think of that before! 🙄🙄

But she isn’t thoughtful is she?

She doesn’t mind risking people’s lives. She is deciding that some lives are worth risking because she fancies it.

Their protests are changing anything so the ‘they are doing it to save millions of other people’s lives’ doesn’t hold true.

But who is she to make the decision to risk other people’s lives for this cause?

I drive an EV and I think what happened where you live is disgusting. And I would bet my years wage, that if you werent in a privileged position to get yourself an EV, you wouldn’t be admitting it and taking it in the chin.

Stopping ambulance that leads a death of a person should be at least manslaughter,if not murder.

So why does Hallam have half a dozen gas guzzling vehicles on his farm?

Why is Cressida's Mummy complaining about the fact that her daughter will miss her brother's wedding when Cressida prevented other people from getting to their relatives' funerals, receiving life-saving treatment, children getting to essential appointments, people getting to work?

Why antagonise the people you are trying to persuade need to change the way they live if you do not set an example yourself?

How you can have sympathy for the absolute twunts here, look at all that wasted resources. Bring out the water cannons.

Some got followed home by a reporter. All live in big houses on countryside. Very affluent people, with time to do this. Nonsense
I'd love to have that much free time!

Anyone who blocks emergency services such as ambulances getting to emergencies such as heart attacks and strokes is abhorrent. If it was their mum, dad or gran would be up in arms if an ambulance couldn't get through. Or what of a house or apartment block burning that can't get to because of these wallies.

little people? Really? What makes someone ‘little people’.

Most of people don’t have to care about being arrested and losing their jobs because they have financial fall backs. They don’t need to rely on employment. But happily causing immediate damage to people who do need to be employed, can’t afford to lose a days wages, needs an ambulance, wants to attend a funeral of a loved one and so on

They are punching down and trying to claim the moral high ground.

The state of ambulances are a disgrace.

That doesn’t mean I can go round the streets blocking ambulance access cause ‘well tories’.

Do you really believe I should have the right to block any ambulance, I come across and not allow them to help people, because the Tories fucked up the ambulance service? Really

Why are you so angry about just stop oil?

It's you people are angry with now because you are unable to form a proper argument. Saying

"You think the law came through just fine when rapists and child abusers get lower sentences than an idealistic young women who stood on a road. Ok then!"

is like something a ten year old would come up with.

Why do you keep putting forward such a weak point?

Worse things happen at sea and all that.

.A 20 year old as she was then was so worried about the future of our planet, she put it above her personal goals.
Has she? Or does she have the cushion of money and support from her parents to know that it doesn't really matter if she can't get to work on time or her pay is cut because she hasn't made a food delivery on time or she cant afford the food/gas/electricity bill because of rocketing fuel prices or it doesn't really matter if she doesn't get as good a degree because daddy knows someone etc etc etc. She may be idealistic but she also doesn't care about the disruption caused to any of the little people around her.

About people blocking an ambulance? Yes it's bad, but the jail sentences and the amount of absolute ire demonstrated on this thread is disproportionate. Personal attacks on the protesters, denegrating everything from their backgrounds, their jobs, their integrity, their families. Attempting to humiliate and ridicule ordinary people with good intentions.

How many people in ambulances have the Tories killed by cutting health services, and were their intentions good? This thread is just another case of little people hating on the little people. I'm not going to engage further on this thread because it won't go anywhere positive.

I admire them. They will prove to be on the right side of history like the suffragettes who most “normal” people also sneered at at the time.

The one I know is lovely quite hippyish yoga teacher type but very gentle and thoughtful.

Someone just keyed all the gas guzzler cars in our cul de sac. Our EV was the only one spared - conclusions are being drawn think this is will become more common.

Just Stop Oil, Extinction Rebellion, Third Runway, Reclaim the Streets and all the other groups going back to the Newbury Bypass and M11 bypass campaigns seem to attract the same full time protesters who drift from cause to cause. The only people who can afford that kind of lifestyle are time rich middle class types. This seems to be affirmed every time they are interviewed where they come across more often then not as stereotypical public school plummy voiced types who can indulge in this kind of hobby protest stuff. Rarely it is Dave the plumber taking some time out from fitting a new boiler to protest.

There have also been a number of instances where various protesters have been found to be not exactly shy of a bit of jet travel themselves which kind of gives a whiff of 'do as we say not as we do'. You would think they would at least purge their social media accounts before being interviewed on TV because most folk I would imagine would not like being lectured into drastically changing their lifestyle choices by someone they see as way more privileged then them who does not practice what they preach and can afford not to have a day job.

The optics are not great which is why most people could not give a shit about the long prison sentences handed out to repeat offenders who have shown zero contrition and have vowed to carry on what they are doing.

Read the thread.

Why are you so angry about just stop oil?

White collar crime has always had higher sentencing than rape. Have you expressed outrage about that? Campaign to change sentencing guidelines.

Another idiotic comparison and quite a stretch to imply what I think. I think rapists and child abusers should get higher sentences than these goons. That doesn’t mean I disagree with the sentences handed out to JSO.

They didn’t just ‘stand on a road’. No one is sentenced to five years for standing on a road. Don’t try and martyr them.