If only Orwell was alive to see this, he would have finally loosen up and written a comedy sequel to 1984. And who would blame him. What else can you do after seeing how ineffective all that CCTV machinery is.
When I lived in London, I almost managed to convince myself it’s the safest city in the world. After looking at the riot reports from the last 3 days, I can finally say I am rock solid certain it’s true.
You may think I am being ironic, or even sarcastic. I’m not. London is fucking safe. Just look at the targets of the supposed “riots” – the occasional car, the shop next door. You don’t see people attacking police stations or the parliament, no. Rightfully or not, these are targets reserved for frustrated and angry people who actually want a social change. Like the people in Egypt. Or the people in Eastern Europe in the last century. I still remember the siege of the Bulgarian Parliament in the winter of 1997.
The alleged protesters in London are nothing alike. Their biggest priority is obviously setting buses and buildings on fire, then using the chaos as a cover to break the windows of the nearest Tesco and steal 10 pints of milk, several cucumbers, a dozen of frozen chickens and prefabricated pizza. The more educated “indignados” seem to go for the occasional large screen TV or a laptop.
In the meantime the police is missing, which is pretty interesting. My guess is they watch all the mess on their CCTV-enabled TVs and bet on their favorite teams. Because honestly – what could probably happen. Some kids will be arrested, the prime minister will hold a speech and the whole British society, along with the news reporters, will gasp and stutter for a month. The newspapers will overflow with analyses of the ever-insecure British soul. Luckily, after a month someone from the royal family will combine a pink hat with an orange purse and everybody will return to the usual desensitized everyday routine of bitching about imaginary problems.
Until next summer when the weather will be nice enough again to start a new riot. Because honestly, who goes out for a protest when it’s raining?
