Insulate Britain and Extinction Rebellion, domestic terrorists?

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It's unrealistic because it ignores how these protests work. They don't ask for themselves to the road, they have plenty of other people around, and more who can easily get to the scene. All they have to do is run in and block the cleared area.
Great. Keep clearing one lane and leaving the rest glued.
 
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Preventing disruption is effectively impossible in a free, fair and democratic society. The aim is to minimise it.

Managing the interaction of rights between different people is a duty of the state even in a free society.

Repeatedly allowing a small minority to set out to deliberately disrupt the rights of wider society through misusing their own rights is a failure on the part of the state.
 
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Yeah, but why pick something that's going to make the disruption much, much worse? That doesn't make any sense.
The current approach isn't working. Short term disruption might be worth it in the long run. We either get very tough on them (immediate SWAT team to rip them off the road) or we make it unpleasant for them so they are deterred.

Then what is your suggestion?
 
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I don't know why the police are not using dog handlers to keep them from regrouping, still the weather is turning and they won't be so keen sitting in freezing rain as they are sitting down in the dry during this very mild weather

.Plus cyano acrylate adhesives and wet surfaces are not good cojoiners.
 
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The current approach isn't working.

The Police are removing protestors, the justice system will eventually process them - although that's going to take a really, really long time because the Tories have left it in such a dreadful state. That's how free, fair, and democratic societies deal with civil disobedience.

We either get very tough on them or we make it unpleasant for them so they are deterred.

Giving them more of what they want is a really odd way to try and achieve that. It just seems to be entirely motivated by an ugly desire to physically punish people.

Then what is your suggestion?

A government that was better at living up to its environmental promises would probably help and the Police could probably get better at monitoring and rapidly diffusing these protests but, otherwise: nothing. There isn't a need to do anything drastic.
 
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The Police are removing protestors, the justice system will eventually process them - although that's going to take a really, really long time because the Tories have left it in such a dreadful state. That's how free, fair, and democratic societies deal with civil disobedience.
Ah OK. It's the Tories fault again. Got it.

Giving them more of what they want is a really odd way to try and achieve that. It just seems to be entirely motivated by an ugly desire to physically punish people.
They want someone to remove them. Removing them all is giving them exactly what they want.

A government that was better at living up to its environmental promises would probably help and the Police could probably get better at monitoring and rapidly diffusing these protests but, otherwise: nothing
These protests are doing nothing to further their cause. The government won't change anything as a result. It certainly won't increase climate awareness as almost everyone agrees we need to improve the way we live already. The protests are achieving nothing except making people angry and causing extra pollution.

There isn't a need to do anything drastic.
Many people disagree with this position, including the woman who suffered a stroke while trying to get to hospital. Had she not been stuck in a traffic jam for six hours, caused by these idiots, then she may not now be paralysed. But it's OK because apparently the protestors offered their sympathies. That's just one example off the top of my head.


Genuine question... do you think these protests will actually cause anyone to change anything?
 
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Ah OK. It's the Tories fault again. Got it.

The fact that the justice system is taking years to process cases, and is basically on the point of collapse, absolutely is. As is the understaffed Police, and the lack of backroom staff to support them. Who else do you think could be to blame but the dire government of the last decade?

They want someone to remove them. Removing them all is giving them exactly what they want.

No, they don't. They want to cause disruption. Gluing themselves is a way of making removing them more difficult.

These protests are doing nothing to further their cause. The government won't change anything as a result. It certainly won't increase climate awareness as almost everyone agrees we need to improve the way we live already. The protests are achieving nothing except making people angry and causing extra pollution.

I agree. I wish they'd stop; they're not helping.

Many people disagree with this position, including the woman who suffered a stroke while trying to get to hospital. Had she not been stuck in a traffic jam for six hours, caused by these idiots, then she may not now be paralysed. But it's OK because apparently the protestors offered their sympathies. That's just one example off the top of my head.

And it's exactly this kind of thing that is really harming their cause. Completely counter-productive and selfish. None-the-less, the UK isn't a Police state nor a totalitarian one: they should not, and cannot, be employing disproportionate violence to deal with these protestors.
 
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Despite allegedly overburdened courts and allegedly understaffed police some instant justice of a minor nature has just occurred and it pleases me greatly that at least one member of the British public has chosen to make a stand against these seemingly mainly senile nuisances :)

Insulate Britain protesters have ink thrown on them as they block roads near Dartford Crossing and the A40 in North Acton

https://news.sky.com/story/insulate...ck-roads-in-dartford-and-west-london-12445743

ink.jpg
 
Soldato
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And it's exactly this kind of thing that is really harming their cause. Completely counter-productive and selfish. None-the-less, the UK isn't a Police state nor a totalitarian one: they should not, and cannot, be employing disproportionate violence to deal with these protestors.

I've not seen anyone suggest disproportionate or indeed any violence. Most people (And I include myself here) is that they simply want the police to do their job. It's illegal to block highways and therefore there should be no question that they are simply removed and fined. Every repeat offense should increase the fine. Three strikes and you potentially face a prison sentence.

That's entirely reasonable and doesn't require any state violence.
 
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I expect we'll be seeing more of this kind of retaliation by the public:


I've not seen anyone suggest disproportionate or indeed any violence. Most people (And I include myself here) is that they simply want the police to do their job. It's illegal to block highways and therefore there should be no question that they are simply removed and fined.

There's plenty of people cheering violence and disproportionate responses in this thread, and worse elsewhere. The Police are currently doing their job; what exactly do you want them to do?

Every repeat offense should increase the fine. Three strikes and you potentially face a prison sentence.

This would require legal change, but the bigger problem here is the one I alluded to above: they're not reaching the court to be dealt with in any way because there are massive backlogs in the system. Most of them are likely to be processed sometime in 2023 or 2024. Far too late to have any impact.
 
Soldato
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I expect we'll be seeing more of this kind of retaliation by the public:




There's plenty of people cheering violence and disproportionate responses in this thread, and worse elsewhere. The Police are currently doing their job; what exactly do you want them to do?



This would require legal change, but the bigger problem here is the one I alluded to above: they're not reaching the court to be dealt with in any way because there are massive backlogs in the system. Most of them are likely to be processed sometime in 2023 or 2024. Far too late to have any impact.

The public anger as far as I see it, is that the police are not doing their job. They are standing around and doing very little for the most part which is inevitably leading to the public taking matters into their own hands. This is a direct result of police inaction.

The law needs to be changed then and the whole process revised. It's ridiculous to take years to process a clear violation of the law.
 
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The public anger as far as I see it, is that the police are not doing their job. They are standing around and doing very little for the most part which is inevitably leading into the public taking matters into their own hands. This is a direct result of police inaction.

The law needs to be changed then and the whole process revised. It's ridiculous to take years to process a clear violation of the law.

Or the protestors are remanded in custody until trial due to the substantial likelihood of committing further crimes while on bail.
 
Caporegime
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The public anger as far as I see it, is that the police are not doing their job. They are standing around and doing very little for the most part which is inevitably leading to the public taking matters into their own hands. This is a direct result of police inaction.

The Police are removing people, but they need manpower to do that, and it takes time to respond and get the necessary people and equipment there to act. Anything else requires disproportionate force. Again, what exactly do you want them to do that they're not doing?

The law needs to be changed then and the whole process revised. It's ridiculous to take years to process a clear violation of the law.

You're seriously suggesting that we waive the legal process for these people!? It is ridiculous, I agree, but it's not just these people; it's the entire legal system. Everything from petty theft to rape is taking years to get dealt with.
 
Soldato
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The Police are removing people, but they need manpower to do that, and it takes time to respond and get the necessary people and equipment there to act. Anything else requires disproportionate force. Again, what exactly do you want them to do that they're not doing?



You're seriously suggesting that we waive the legal process for these people!? It is ridiculous, I agree, but it's not just these people; it's the entire legal system. Everything from petty theft to rape is taking years to get dealt with.
They are not being dissuaded from repeat offences which tells anyone with any sense that the punishment is not harsh enough hence increasingly large fines being suggested. This cannot continue. More man power wouldn't be needed if people were dealt with correctly in the first place.

No I'm not suggesting the legal process is waived. It needs to be changed so simple matters of clear violation are dealt with swiftly. Clearly the current process is not fit for purpose.
 
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