It's Not Okay

I'm sure people know: London is burning. Fires, riots, looting; it's a scene from dystopian novels, and there are no police around to stop any of this going on. I'm hearing on the news that it's not just the people living in the areas: people are coming in from different areas of London and acting up. Buildings are burning, both homes and businesses.

One of the people I follow on Twitter retweeted something important: Europe is just coming out of a recession. Money is still tight. And no one can afford to pay for all of this damage. These places will remain burned for a while. That's an unfortunate truth London may have to face.

And here's the thing: it's not okay.

It's not okay for people to loot and steal and take everything of value in buildings.

It's not okay for people to burn down these buildings.

It's not okay to do it in the name of a man who was shot by the police.

It's not okay to put people's lives in danger in the name of false justice.

It's not okay for London to suffer.

It's not okay to blame all of London's youth.

This is a strange situation. There's no denying that. People are acting out and I don't see how they can excuse themselves of it when they're caught. Rioting is not cool, no matter what these people think. Bored? Angry? Annoyed at the government? None of those are reasons to endanger lives and damage the financial futures of so many people. Can't get a job? Don't steal from shops. Not in school? Don't make it so people can't afford to go.

Don't just talk about the events going on, contributing to the mass of information filling the Internet: spread the word that it's not okay. And whatever you do, remember that it's not every teenager and young adult in London that's doing this. There are limited groups of people doing this damage.

Hopefully the people of London can get through this. The next great fire that city should see if the Olympic flame coming in. How the guilty youth can forget that their city has so much to offer in the next year is beyond me. Good luck, London.

Today's News

Okay, strange day so far... I woke up unnaturally early, not upset, but not happy, just very, very tired. Last night was a bit like hell, but I got through it. A not-too-brief phone call set me straight. As a result of falling into a state of half-sleep, though, I 'woke' after ten. Just in time for a fry, I might add. I came down as it was about to be dished up, hungry (very hungry) and gasping for a cuppa.

If the waking up early wasn't odd enough... I walked nearly ten kilometres today. Without staying anywhere too long. It wasn't like going to college, where I spend a couple of hours sitting down. I was on my feet the whole time, listening to The Doors and Glee, in that order, once the former had run out of songs on my iPod. This is a rare occurence for me; not only was I out of the house, I was actually walking somewhere. I had to get birthday presents, and lodge a cheque. Party tonight. I may be dead tomorrow. But in the good way.

Now, onto the news! First and foremost - very sad story about Mandela's great-grandaughter. May she rest in peace. What's worse is that it coincides with the start of the World Cup in South Africa; I didn't see the opening ceremony (or the match that's being played as I write) - can someone tell me whether or not there was a minute's silence for her at some stage?

Moving on, Galway City have discovered the age-old invention of fire. The city hall was in a blaze this morning, before the workers arrived. Thankfully, no one was injured. However, the people of Galway have now been educated in the very tentative ways of release of energy. They are currently blaming the fire on water.

There is evidence to suggest that the bankers and every successful business-person was, and probably is still, a liar as a child. This discovery explains how the world is so troubled; the once successful Greeks lied for so long that everyone believed them. Now they owe a lot of money. Well done Greece on your continued success in drama. We only hope next time you won't use the world as your stage. However, if you wish to follow the example of Greece, just don't mess everything up. Play it cool - lie and cheat your way to the top, but don't get caught without any money.

Lisa Sills, celebrated blogger for the Literary Den, today revealed how the media have distorted our images of the people we call celebrities. Miley Cyrus is now considered something of a whore and a poor role model for six year old children - I would imagine that the eleven year age gap has something to do with that, too. Earlier, too, Britney Spears's mental issues were newsworthy enough to exploit. Sure, it'd be rude not to. And throughout Lisa's life, as one of Ireland's quadruplets, she's been in the news, only because she was born. With the release of pictures from her eighteenth birthday, one can only assume that the Irish media is hiding a few morons amongst its midst who insist on invading the privacy of someone who didn't ask for fame, and never even actively persued it. Well done Ireland; I forgot there was nothing more important happening in the world that we should focus on, rather than pestering a family for all of their lives.

In the world of Twitter, the World Cup is now trending, and eating up the servers. As a result, uninterested parties like myself are suffering decreased usage of the site. Thank you, Internet, for becoming less of a safe haven from football, and more of a nuisance. I really like to be treated like a second-hand citizen because I don't like football.

On a more personal note, I am a "shit stirrer". That is to say, I am intentionally winding someone up. Someone who'll remain nameless, simply because I don't want to start a witch hunt, has a habit of posting pictures of celebrities who he believes look like him. In response to questions as to why there are so many men and so few women, I explained "These are the ones on his list. The only celebs he's allowed to ever cheat on his partner with at any stage in his life." This story is still in development. Anyone who sees the funny side of my comment, noting that the person in question likes women, let me know.

This has been Paul Carroll, telling you the news that isn't all that important to everyone.