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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Miltary + Olympics will make London an unfit place for kids to live?

99 replies

bochead · 22/12/2011 15:45

I want to remove my household from London during the olympics as I have no desire to see my child live under seige for a month.

Am I being unreasonable to think that so many troops on the streets, a warship, ground to air missiles etc + all the congestion of the event will make parts of London unfit for ordinary family life. The announceement of a warship and military patrols on the Thames was the last straw for me.

I think it'll be a threatening environment for children in those parts of London closest to the Olympic venues, and am looking for alternative accomodation for the event elsewhere in the country. This is based in part on my experience of this summer's riots. We went camping rurally at the time & as a result my own child did not experience the worry and upset that many of his peers did.

Are others thinking of escaping the Olympic mayhem for the sake of their child's wellbeing?

OP posts:

TalkinPeace2 · 22/12/2011 21:01

the Greeks spent billions that they did not have on staging the Olympics
so is London
Seb Coe gets paid £200,000 a year every year for 8 years around it no matter how crap it turns out
London taxpayers will pay higher rates for years and years to come
and counties that have no "events" will pay higher taxes
so a bunch of backhander IOC members can swan about not paying tax on their earnings
(the Olympics, like all FIFA events are tax exempt for the organisers - so we pay for them not to)

IndianOcean · 22/12/2011 21:02

I live in London, I love it, and can't wait for the Olympics! It won't go on forever, it's a short period of time, and I'm already grateful for the long term road and public transport improvements.

Don't forget, people chose to queue from dawn to be packed like a sardine into the new Westfield.

Meow75isknittinglikemad · 22/12/2011 21:04

"and their soldiers go to the supermarket in uniform on the way home from their base."

My husband does that too sometimes, but our house is between camp and the supermarket so he prefers to stop off at home and get into civvies. Also, they can get into quite a bit of trouble if a senior rank sees them and their dress isn't correct - remembering to put your beret on just to get a pint of milk and a loaf of bread is "a proper pain in the arse" apparently.

If people were to live near a military base, they would see that personnel are just like everyone else. There are some nutters, but the VAST majority of service men and women are just ordinary people.

wherearemysocks · 22/12/2011 21:07

It's really, really unlikely that you will see guns in open view OP - why? I live in central and see armed police and troops nearly everyday. Although I've never for one minute thought I should shield my children from them.

I live near to where the beach volleyball is going to be and will also have cycle races and maraton etc going by us. I know I'm going to get pissed off with the road closures particularly for the school run, although we walk it, but also for deliveries to my business. I don't really understand why the roads all have to be closed for so long in advance.

Sidge · 22/12/2011 21:09

I imagine it will be very different to how it was after 7/7.

Known terrorist attack and post-event management will be different to potential terrorist event and threat aversion.

I don't think the military have enough weapons to arm all personnel anyway so most of them will be ticket-handlers and traffic controllers.

MissBetsyTrotwood · 22/12/2011 21:09

Are you the Queen wherearemysocks?

wherearemysocks · 22/12/2011 21:15

I've been found out!

No but I do live quite close to her

MissBetsyTrotwood · 22/12/2011 21:27

I was going to tell you to stop mnetting and start work on that speech you'll have to give in a couple of days.

TalkinPeace2 · 22/12/2011 21:31

"My fellow Mumsnetters and I"

bakingaddict · 23/12/2011 12:32

I'm not saying that the Olympics and 7/7 bombings are of the same ilk, i'm not that naive to think they are in the same catergory.

The point I was trying to get across was as with any huge police or military presence you do stop and your brain does register that something out of the ordinary is happening and 10,000 extra military personnel, like after 7/7 armed police at tube stations, does give you an increased feeling of potential danger in a city that doesn't normally have this level of security.

I'm not hysterical, my brain is capable of distinguishing between levels of danger, and I do know that the military personnel are humanbeings too, I haven't got an IQ of 20, thanks.

itsbrandybutterandtinseltime · 23/12/2011 12:39

Seriously OP; we don't want to be there either. We don't want to work through summer leave, and have to pay for extra nursery/child care fees to boot. We don't get any extra aid for that; it's the needs of the service. Thanks for your appreciation

Why do SO many people on MN hate the forces?! What have we done that's SO wrong, in your eyes? Shall I quit my job, and live off state benefits then? I'm not a skilled person, really so that's what'd happen. Would that be better?

yellowraincoat · 23/12/2011 12:39

People are such killjoys, honestly. It's for a few weeks, it'll be fun and exciting. Why do people see the bad in everything?

yellowraincoat · 23/12/2011 12:40

tethers, it was in the estate behind Bethnal Green park. You know where you go under the arches and there's an estate with a basketball court in the middle.

lisianthus · 23/12/2011 14:30

It's not "just a few weeks" though. The road closures are gong to be in place from 8 weeks up to five months, according to the transport people. As someone above said, they are completely closing off access from some residential streets, and closing an entire lane of one of the only two roads that go from central to east London. These two roads are only two lanes each as it is, and are usually jammed solid twice a day for hours even without this!

And the closed off lane is just for the use of VIPs, which I think is ridiculous - they should at least be letting taxis use it. I was talking to a cabbie not long ago who was turning the air blue at what this was gong to do to his livelihood.

This wouldn't even be necessary if they put the VIPs up in east London near the athletes. And what they are doing to Greenwich Park is just criminal. Those trees have stood for several hundred years and are now being vandalised for the sake of equestrian events?!

I am generally in favour of the Olympics, but some of the things they are doing are giving businesses and residents serious problems.

TalkinPeace2 · 23/12/2011 14:50

In Weymouth they are closing public parks and beaches so that only paying people can see the sailing
even though it is happening within sight of the main Weymouth promenade

In Greenwich they are selling 65,000 tickets for an event in a space with a fire limit of 16,000
And if you are a horse rider, do you like the look of this fence?
www.nogoe2012.com/nogoe-comment.html

Whatmeworry · 23/12/2011 14:53

Bollocks to the kids - it will be really crap for commuting adults (whose taxes are paying for the whole shebang) to get around.

MissBetsyTrotwood · 23/12/2011 17:41

yellowraincoat I'm shocked and sad to hear that about your OH. For many years I taught at a school that served Globetown estate and know the area well. What depressing, intimidating behaviour from those young men. I hope your OH is alright.

Kewcumber · 23/12/2011 17:46

"and guns are intimidating in open view" I'm guessing that you don't have a 6 year boy then. Mine would be beside himself with excitement if he saw one.

mrsjay · 23/12/2011 17:48

I would hate to be an ordinary londener when the olympics are on especially if security is so high OP if you were caught up in 7/7 perhaps all the upheavel scares you still , i dont want to sound patronisng but maybe thats why you feel like you do ? Maybe try and go away for a few weeks but i spose if you cant you will just have to work round it all YANBU imo ,

TalkinPeace2 · 23/12/2011 17:51

Kewcumber
I agree - and some 16, 26, 36 and 46 year olds will be excited too!
The security forces side is not the problem
its the effing traffic for the "dignitaries" that is going to cause riots

mrsjay
what about the shops in London if all of their customers decamp for a couple of weeks
the economic effect is going to be disastrous

yellowraincoat · 23/12/2011 17:54

Betsy, he's fine, but he was a bit shaken I think. We tend not to walk down that way any more (which is a pain as it's much quicker).

Thank you for asking, you're too sweet! It makes me sad too, it was the middle of the day on a Sunday and it just seems ridiculous to me. This area seems to have become a lot scarier recently, which is crap as it has so much potential to be an amazing place.

Acekicker · 23/12/2011 18:54

guns are intimidating in open view have you ever been out of the UK? Plenty of very lovely countries have armed police...

TalkinPeace2 · 23/12/2011 22:42

I like the Mail men at La Guardia with their pistols

as I say, guns are not a PITA, closed roads, wrecked businesses and backhanders to fat cats are

Whatmeworry · 23/12/2011 22:44

its the effing traffic for the "dignitaries" that is going to cause riots

I predict a bit of civil disobedience there :)

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