[kj] Gatherers - a big thank you to you all

[Paula Cook]

 Gatherers,
 
Thank you very much for all your support and kind comments.
 
Some of you have made some very interesting comments on my post, I might not necessarily agree with all of them, but they're certainly intelligent comments that have given me food for thought.
 
Things are a lot better now in Ealing, most shops and businesses have re-opened, even those still boarded up, people are back on their feet, and I'm feeling safe again now. Tragically, the old man who tried to confront the looters, Richard Bowes, died Thursday night, there's been a lot of floral tributes to him where he fell and plans for a permanent memorial, which I hope comes to fruition. He died trying to protect the whole community, including me.
 
However, I do think that something fundamental has changed here in Ealing, and probably nationally too, although whether it'll be permanent I don't know. For a while to come, IMHO, political thinking will lurch to the right, there will be a lot more calls for a more authoritarian right-wing approach, and liberalism will take a real battering. Certainly there will calls for increased police powers. Also, there will be a surge in Neighbourhood Watch and maybe even vigilantism. There are certainly a lot of rumours going round here at the moment. I'm just hoping it won't be the thin end of a wedge.
 
IMHO, the riots are over for now, but there's going to be a lot more social unrest in Britain in the next few years. Life is going to get very real here. I'm bracing myself now, looking to improve security in my home for a starters.
 
Thank you all once again, Gatherers, stay safe and well.
 
Paula
aka Nuclear Girl 		 	   		  
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