We now have three maybe four generations of famillies that have only experienced being jobless and and in poverty. Criminality is rife in these areas, it's all they know. They haven't been brought up they have been left to survive on the streets. When I have been filming through the night in town I have seen groups of kids as young a 5 and 6 out at 3 and 4 in the morning. Being a criminal is their job. They don't mind getting sent down because it gives them a break from their everyday lives. Look at the pictures of the looters they are wearing £300 North Face jackets and the best trainers. Listening to one lad on the radio he was saying that the stuff they took from the shops was just dumped around the corner. He was saying that this was a test the next they will converge en masse on a bank or a bookies or a race course. Don't like strong arm police tactics as I used to go to the festivals before Mrs Thatcher broke the very peacefull convoy but they need to smash these groups and in the mean time the government needs to realise that there is a major problem with the inner city estates were people have no way to make anything of themselves and can only survive by being in a criminal gang.

Sod the rubber bullets get the army in there with real bullets that would soon stop them.

The audio of 2 girls being interviewed on beeb website where they are bragging about what was going on while they was drinking stolen bottles of wine, laughing about taking on the police and the rich businesses and how much fun it was.

Then you had a guy sat in his van outside his completely looted shop in tears as his business he had built over the years and worked hard for was gone and he didn't know what he would do.

Also the big building/business in Croydon that survived 2 world wars and depressions of 30's and 80's, and it was burned to the ground.

I do think more should be focused on making these kids parents to take responsibility for where their kids are. I will not accept that being poor and having no job is any excuse to give these kids for what they do.

100% agree, most of these scumbags are kids, it has nothing to do with being poor/budget cuts/lack of oppurtunities, they are doing it becuase they want to and will get away with it!

They interviewed one person in MAnchester on the Radio, he was 16 and was basically saying why shouldn't he do it, the prisons are full, it's his first offence if he gets caught so will get a caution and at worst an ASBO which he would be happy with!

The country needs to change it's laws and get tough on these idiots!

He wouldn't, ASBO's are not 'issued' for offences of Theft and Riot, the laws are tough it's the people who sit in judgement and the system that are the problem.

Fair enough but we need to get rid of people playing the system, they know the police won't touch them! the police should be told to go in and do what is needed to stop them, whether that be simply arresting or for the ones thorwing bricks etc heavier tactics.

these kids will love being just chased by the police, people have done that for years (without the looting side of it granted)! they need to know they will face the consequences

Send them to boot camps run like an army camp.

The police will touch them but unfortunately it's seen as a 'street crime' to 'grass' someone up and therein lies the problem, no one can tell me that with the pictures about of some of the people who have committed these crimes no one knows who they are, until people realise that these people are committing crime against us all - for we all pay one way or the other then they get away with it laughing.
In this country we have a civilian police service/force in other countries they have a paramilitary one in that they dont live at home but in barracks and are easy to call out of their beds in largeish numbers, whereas here they all live in their own homes and especially in the large city type forces are someway from their place of duty thus it takes time to get together officers in numbers, so what would people have what we have now or a paramilitary force, bearing in mind as to how those paramilitary forces like in France are seen as by the french.

Whilst I am as disgusted as anyone about this idiotic behaviour I feel it has a lot do do with a lack of employment opportunities for these young no hopers. The sad fact is once they get a criminal record they will never be employable and so their lives will become miserable and pointless. It is like being in a loop you cannot escape from.

Now as to catching the perpatrators' on my way home from the supermarket yesterday I walked past my local in Salford. The barman had nipped out for a smoke and said to me that the deputy editor of the Manc Evng News (a regular) had warned them that trouble was kicking off Tuesday Evening at Salford Precinct. Well being thick I said is that just a guess and he said no they have been following reports on Twitter and monitoring mobile phone traffic



Well if they can do it so can the police so the organisers will be traceable.

Now regarding my point about work in my first paragraph. I am lucky my 3 are working as are those of my grandkids who are old enough. When I look round though I see very few job opportunities coming up for those around 16ish.

Course you will see young unemployed wearing designer gear but a lot of that is paid for through petty and sometimes more serious criminal activity imo.

Scenrio

"Hi son whats that you got there lad" Dad to son whos just returned home at 12. o clock.
Lad "its a LCD tv , dad for front room"
Dad" well done lad, nice one, could you not get a 42 inch though"

Or like when they come home in new gear , you know they hadnt got the money to buy these things. What would you do? I know what Id do.

Just to clarify it was Miss Selfridge that was on fire, not Selfridges which was untouched.

Phew!!