I've just read the Guardian's account of the court proceedings now. So it was a series of incompetent decisions - or lack of decisive action that allowed the crush which was then dealt with very badly for several reasons. How cowardly and cynical to take advantage of the bad reputation of fans to perpetuate the disgusting lies that ensued. The police and The Sun were cowardly bully boys.
The survivors and relatives have done so incredibly well to battle for justice all these years. I can't begin to imagine what it must be like for them to finally hear a judge describe it as the greatest large-scale injustice in Britain.
I hope it makes anyone else in authority tempted to put their ego above the safety of the people they are paid to look after think very hard.
divided country - yes, that's so clear to me now. My family were thoughtful, kind people, slow to jump to conclusions, always seeking to understand why an individual would behave badly and looking to put themselves in other people's shoes and be slow to ever condemn. Peaceful people. Eg, once my mum - who lived on a very small income and worked very hard - had money stolen from the house by my friend. She didn't tell me about it until years later and was very nice to my friend's mum, even blaming herself for leaving cash lying around in sight of my friend and therefore putting temptation in his way. But, she was not in favour of trade unions or rocking the status quo in any way. I got the impression from her that she thought the striking miners were probably unjustified in their actions. I suppose she had quite Victorian values. She left school aged 15 btw. I think she thought it wasn't 'nice' to even be assertive.
Until this week I hadn't made the connection with the miners' strikes and the SY police! Although my family had only a tiny income I had a sheltered upbringing in a thoughtful, but politically unaware home and the rural(ish) area afforded us a much better quality of life than someone on the same income living in a town or city. We just had no idea. I honestly felt if we could manage on a really tiny income everyone else ought to be able to. I'm ashamed to say that my perception of 'working-class' people from industrial areas was of rough, aggressive people who shouted and were greedy. Therefore the disgusting lies told by the sun and the senior police about Hillsborough seemed believable - not that it diminished the tragedy. It goes to show how otherwise 'good' people like us can be manipulated by the media. And how even someone as principled and kind on a personal level can be blinded by an over-emphasis on respect for and trust in authority. The sun and co know that... It's disgusting.