Anyone want to name an example of a protest march that a) acheived its aim...

[SpringchickenGoldBrass]

within living memory and b) achieved its aim better and quicker because some fuckwits people actually took their very small DC along?

It's interesting how saying that you think it's a bad idea to take small children on a demo is immediately interpreted by some people as 'Waaaah! You must be an Evil Tory!' I made no comment on the subject and aims of the demo at all. But it does rather reinforce the impression that going on a demo is, for a lot of people, a way of going 'Look how good I am! Look how much I care about stuff. Never mind that I'm not capable of coming up with an alternative way of getting the desired result, questioning me in any way makes you The Enemy.'

Ok SGB, what would you say would be a better way of expressing mass discontent with the cuts then?

Hmmmm care about stuff... more than care... when your family is dependent on some elements directly affected by cuts then it's a damn sight more than caring.

You asked 2 questions, and I think they have been comprehensively answered.

Someone earlier said it's a bit 'I'm alright Jack' and your sarky comment about 'caring about stuff' makes you look a bit like you aren't affected by the cuts and think if you're ok, that everyone is.

Egypt
Tunisia
The March on Washington (led to the civil rights Act in the USA)
Suffragettes
Gandhi's Salt march
Eastern Europe in late 80s- fall of Berlin Wall, Solidarity in Poland etc etc
Tiananmen Square (indirectly)

the cuts affect me personally because:
all our local children's services (drop ins, stay and play, health visitor clinic etc etc) are being scrapped or have already been scrapped.
My sister has lost her job (public sector worker)

Well, people have either got babysitters or they don't. If they don't and they feel strongly about something, then they take their children along. Yesterday's London march would have been peaceful if it had not been for the complete fuckwits who hijacked it, causing millions of pounds worth of damage to public property, banks and buikldings and behaving in a criminal manner. Tossers.

And the govt cuts HAVE to be made. Labour spent so much money that they didn't have that we are now in this situation, and the Tories/Lib Dems are left to sort it out and take the flak from everyone. If cuts aren't made now there won't be a country for our children to inherit.

But if there were no protest marches, then the government would presume we are all happy with what they are doing.

I felt it was important to go.
In Lewisham, libraries and childrens centres are closing, and council nursery fees going up 43%
I went with dp and my two dds, my friend and her family and we marched with countless thousands of teachers and it was a great atmosphere, peaceful, friendly and determined.
Then I came home and saw the news, I blame the media for hyping the violence and giving it the limelight. It was seperate from the march and rally.
The real news is that 400,000 from all over the UK, from all walks of life were pissed off enough to make the effort to do it, and have their voices heard.

I consider myself lucky to live in a country where my right to protest is honored.

Phooey: Well, er, no. No one has been able to name a protest march that acheived its aim as an isolated event. And no one's come up with an example of a protest that was made more effective by bringing toddlers and babies along.
I have been on quite a few demos in the past, in support of/opposition to various things. Never with DC, though.

My mum used to take us on anti-nuclear demos. We used to pretend to die . As I recall, it was great fun

I did! See my post at 11:19:36.

And I don't think anyone's claiming that taking toddlers makes a protest more effective, only that sometimes needs must.

Are you really saying your opinion hasn't changed after reading everyone's posts on this thread?

My mum and dad took me on demonstrations as a kid, I learnt about things they cared about, I respect them for that. It made a strong impression on me, in a good way.

What demos have you been on OP, did they all fail miserably?

I think I would come back to my original point that this govt does not have the mandate t omake these swathing cuts. And this gap in the 'mandate from the people' allows anarchists to fill that gap. The question about whether it was ok to bring children on the march has been answered massively by people on this thread who actually were there.
Not the likes of SGB and UD who would rather sit aside and make snidey comment. So yes, SGB, you are the enemy in this regard, no matter how liberated you wish to feel. And no UD, no need to try harder to meet your modest standards of resistance. According to your standard the only avenue of complaint is a well-worded letter of complaint to a murdoch newsaper. Grow up m'lad.

I think people took their children to the recent protests because this is just as much if not wholly about their children in a majority of the cases. Many young teens I have met who have been to the recent demo's have been there because they were as upset as their parents over issues like EMA and now not feeling able to go to uni in the next few years. Some bunked school or came straight after school of their own accord.

Besides, why shouldn't they, children are not in any immediate danger just because it is a protest.

SGB - you therefore have noo idea what political activism means. It isn't an event - it's a building of resitance based in principle.

Oh and I would have gone on Saturday if my pregnancy wasn't making it difficult for me to walk so much. If my LO was already here and at an age where I felt comfortable, I would have taken him/ her to the recent one as I have been on the previous one's and actually know what it is about.

The fact is that this government is trying to make people docile but actually it is making more young people and children into a new generation of politicised people. It will backlash on them when the time comes as this younger generation will remember the Conservatives in a very negative light.

And SGB, I think you need to read up on some Sociological theories on deviance to understand the function of these demo's and the environment they help cultivate for change. No one demo may cause immediate change, but it does something else that facilitates the change that people want.

History has taught us that and there are plenty examples to prove it. So these demo's are very important.

good point LDN. But a warning is that Thatcher survived with a popular mandate for years. Pure anger isn't enough.

Also, I doubt if people are recognising to what degree this mandate-less regime is trying to change the nature of our society. They have been chomping at the bit for years and the Libdems are facilitating it. We will be reduced to have and have nots fairly quickly with little chance of recovery.

Oh FFS we are going to be in for another decade of Tory government if the 'resistance' is going to be full of self-pitying, self-righteous 'How dare ANYONE challenge me' whinyarsing.

Springchickens historically the self-pitying, self-righteous 'How dare ANYONE challenge me' whinyarsing seemed to come mainly from the Lib Dems. Now they are the government so so much for any opposition of that sort! ....

Well the Lib Dems and maybe Coldplay

self pitying?? jeysus

And if any Libdem voters are on this thread and wonder why they are now perceived as 'ill-liberal' then you have your glourious leader and 'team' to blame. Principles and history went out the nearest window when the prospect of being a front-bench toyboy came onto the agenda.