to be very heartened by the student riots!

[Heathcliffscathy]

apathy be damned...I predict more riots...looks like the youth have found their teeth.

Have they fuck.
They just can't cope with the idea that if they want to do a degree in friendship bracelet making they might just have to pay for it themselves.

Fees?
£9000?
Bring 'em on!
I don't want to pay for useless qualifications.

I think the riots are disgusting.

Peaceful protest - yes.

Criminal damage, vandalism and potential bodily harm - no.

snap - whilst I don't condone violence (and I do think there were some renta-a-thugs there) it is about bloody time someone got angry in this country.

YABU

Demonstrating, yes.

Rioting?

i don't care really about the ins and outs (crucify me now)...i'm very happy to see young people out demonstrating on the streets. it's more than they did over the iraq war (where were they?)

i'm afraid it's only riots that get results vis poll tax.

I haven't had a chance to catch up on the news today but from what I have very briefly seen there is a suggestion that the protests have been hijacked by professional anarchists. Is this true, are students being used for a different agenda?

yabu
damage to property, police hurt, someone throwing a fire extinguisher of a roof at the police. and you want the tax payer to foot the bill to help these idiots people.
I think they fucked up big time

YANBU. Wish I had been there today.

It was shameful behaviour. The reality of now is that if you want something you will have to pay for it, regardless of the cost. The country can no longer bear the cost of carrying and subsidising areas of peoples lives.

I think a bit of rioting is a great British tradition, with menacing mob behaviour and a bit of argy bargy rather than people actually getting hurt of course.

The people 'in charge' should always be left with no illusions as to who runs this country, and whose servants the politicians are.

'i don't care really about the ins and outs (crucify me now)...i'm very happy to see young people out demonstrating on the streets. it's more than they did over the iraq war (where were they?)'

Dear God. That is one of the most unintelligent comments I have ever seen on MN. And from you Sophable. I'm pretty surprised.

I think it was shameful, to be honest. And the students I know who went along to protest peacefully feel the same.

AgentZigzag did you see the police that were hurt?
bloody disgusting

i saw them being boinked on the head with placards...is that what you mean?

I have to agree moondog.

The moment you stop being interested in, or caring about, the reasons for any protest... well, quite frankly what's the point? It's mob rule.

I think a lot of harm was done to the cause today. A peaceful demonstration would have made the point. Rioting, damage and destruction just means more of the money many of us are slogging our guts out earning, being spent on mopping up and compensating.

So, thanks for that, whoever you thick twats were who decided to screw it up today

so that is ok???
so throwing stuff off the top of a tall building is ok???
ffs

YANBU.

The fire extinguisher being thrown was wrong, but that was one idiot out of 50,000. Sometimes direct action is the only thing that works (Poll tax riots anyone?). The Condems are treating people with contempt. I wouldn't have got a degree if I'd had to pay anything, never mind the fees they are proposing now.

I hope its the start of a revolution personally. And if the students don't take direct action, who will?

Yabu, I am astonished no one was killed today.

Moondog - what simplistic bollocks is this? Have you thought it through at all? I admire you enormously but that is such a trite, kneejerk reaction. Yes, there are crap degrees out there - but what about the people doing degrees in social work? We're always going to need them. One rule fits all (unless it's an NHS bursary qualification) - no one is out there to differentiate between the shite and the valuable.

My DS1 has a good degree from a good university and I have no doubt he will eventually go on to do good things with it and will contribute to society. He may well contribute rather more to society by becoming a higher rate tax payer. Impossible to know - but he might. He's 23, and he owes approx £24K in tuition and maintenance loans and that's with the fees capped at the £3K rate. Fuck knows how much my youngest DS will end up owing by the time he's through the system in 12 years time or so. As it stands, I'd advise him not to bother - I won't be able to afford to subsidise him. It won't be about ambition and ability, it will be about parental wealth. And you really think that's a good thing?

I don't think the violence had anything to do with the students at all.

The anarchists et al always turn up to these types of events to kick off, they love it, and tar all demonstrations with the same bad name.

Trying to stop the rent-a-mob violent streak is like trying to stop the Trent with a sieve, but that should never stop people from demonstrating.

The police and the state hate people getting together to vent their feelings, they always have and always will, but it's an intrinsic and important part of democracy.

And if my husband was a policeman I would be really upset to think he was being attacked in ANY way whilst doing his job, even if it was just a wallop on the head with a placard.

Where is the RESPECT for anything in this country?

well I hope that the people caught on camera causing damage and hurting the police are caught and punished.
and tbh I think there will be a lot less sympathy for the "cause" now, which is sad.
but people like the op prove that being educated doesn't make you bright.

It is extremely disappointing that a small minority took the protest too far.

I was involved with some of the arrangements for taking students down to the protest. At no time was it intended to result in violence and criminal activity, and if you read between the bloody headlines, you'll see the thousands of students who marched peacefully.

It's just a few bloody minded idiots that spoilt the efforts of thousands of others.

Now I've stopped ranting - on the subject of the riots, I think they're twats. It deflects all the attention away from the actual tuition fee issue, and on to the fact they're twats. Be angry, demonstrate, shout - but don't start behaving like criminals. They haven't done themselves or the issues any favours at all.