One of the big debates among political protesters is what sort of protest to engage in - what is most likely to get the result they want and what is most likely to get the public on their side. Choose the wrong thing and you simply alienate everyone.
The recently formed campaign "Insulate Britain", which is seeking a much bigger government programme to remedy badly insulated homes, is attracting a lot of opposition over its recent activities.
Day after day they've been blocking major roads in southern England, causing huge disruption, and those people who have been stuck in the resulting traffic jams have been angry and upset.
Carers, nurses and other key workers have been unable to get to work. People have been unable to get to hospital appointments or get to dying relatives. Furious motorists have been physically dragging protesters off the roads.
I don't see how this bloody-minded obstruction of people's daily lives can possibly be justified, or how it's going to have any more influence on the government than some other sort of protest that is dramatic without being so disruptive.
The police have arrested dozens of protesters, and the government has threatened them with jail sentences, but the protests continue regardless.
I would also be furious if protesters had stopped me from getting to work or getting to a medical appointment. Luckily I'm retired and luckily also there's no offshoot of Insulate Britain in Northern Ireland (as yet).
So far the government is unmoved, and the protesters are just pissing off the general public.
When "Insulate Britain" blocked ambulances that was when any respect I might have had for them (if I were interested in their cause) evaporated.
ReplyDeleteHowever, in reply to the last sentence of your post, protests are meant to PISS off people. The more you piss off the general public, and by implication the government, the more notice is taken of some issue which otherwise would just be swept under the carpet. Not that ends always justify the means.
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We too are having our own protests in some parts of North India by vested interests opposing some badly needed farming reforms. At last count, violence has resulted in eight deaths. Blocking of roads and railways has pissed off other people in those areas.
ReplyDeleteRamana: I would think that after eight deaths, people would ask themselves if they're going about things the right way. Or are the deaths just "collateral damage"?
DeleteThere is more than meets the eye and we have to wait for investigations to conclude.
DeleteRamana: The conclusions could be interesting.
DeleteI know that this post is focused on protests, but insulation? I had to look up to see that it’s public housing. Does the government not pay the heating bills as well? I’m trying to find out what the real issue is. People are freezing? Seems like an easy fix.
ReplyDeleteBijoux: Out of the existing 29 million homes in the UK, at the moment only eight million homes meet the highest energy standards. That's why these guys want some urgent action to make homes more energy-efficient. And yes, they're focusing on public housing, but privately-owned homes are often just as bad.
DeleteAren’t private homeowners responsible for making their home energy efficient? It’s a cost-saver here, so most people do what they can.
DeleteBijoux: They are indeed, but the idea is to speed up domestic insulation measures by providing government grants. I presume there's no such policy in the States?
DeleteI think there have been various kinds of financial incentives in the U.S. and may still be, for all sorts of home environmental treatments — possibly varying based on individual states offerings. i don't know about other states, but Calif. is pretty much at the forefront of offering energy efficient environmental measures. Not sure if Federal govt. doing some, too, but maybe through the states. May be help for low income, too. When we’ve re-roofed insulating has been part of what we did. I would think financial incentives a better approach, but then govt. has to set that up I think. I don’t know what tactics have proven most effective with GB govt.
DeleteJoared: Our government has been offering modest grants for home insulation, but the grants aren't enough and the level of energy-efficient homes is still very low. Even brand-new homes can be poor on energy-efficiency.
DeleteGovernments are not interested in the travails of ordinary people....if you want action, hit the communications networks upon which the City of London's financial mafia depends. It worked for the IRA.
ReplyDeleteFly: Hard to say what's most likely to influence the government. The footballer Marcus Rashford seems to have the biggest clout at the moment!
DeleteThe Insulate Britain folks need more general consensus to stage disruptive protests.
ReplyDeleteJoanne: They do. And they're not getting it. Most people object strongly to the road blocks.
DeleteI can understand giving voice to a cause. But some are just table rousers who are overbearing and counterproductive. It is a good cause but holding up traffic is ridiculous. When Trump was on office we had some destructive protests. They cost a lot of money.
ReplyDeleteAnn: It's not acceptable that ambulances and other emergency vehicles get stuck in the jams. And yes, all the police action and court appearances are costing a lot of money.
DeleteIt's a difficult fence-straggle - upsetting general populace or getting much needed attention to a just cause.
ReplyDeleteI'm in that dilemma myself at the moment as decent and respectful appeals are not working, speeches on the floor of the commons, et al, et al, zero.
Disruption gets everyone's attention.
But allowances need to be made for others' safety....
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www: It's quite a dilemma. I've been to so many peaceful rallies that achieve nothing whatever, and naturally you start wondering if something a bit more violent is needed.
DeleteWe had stuff like that going on here too and people started saying they were going to run people over which I kinda understand. They shouldn't be in the street.
ReplyDeleteMary: I think there were also people here threatening to run over the protesters.
DeleteUnfortunately, most protests are infiltrated with people who have quite a different agenda mixing themselves into the crowd for the sole purpose of inciting violence. Protesters have to be very careful about mindlessly acting in crowd mentality, losing all judgment.
ReplyDeleteJoared: That's a problem here too. People who infiltrate peaceful rallies in order to take them over and incite violence.
DeleteThe Government should sort out all those draughty listed buildings - they suck energy - the rules should be relaxed so they can be insulated properly. Or they could knock them down :-)
ReplyDeleteThe protestors staged a sit down in my old home town - I'm surprised they lived!
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Ms Scarlet: That's a tricky one. All the listed buildings are what make our cities so beautiful, but as you say they suck energy like crazy. There must be ways of insulating them a bit better.
DeleteBlocking anything to do with providing health care is just unacceptable. That has been happening here, but it's yahoos who are protesting masks and vaccines.
ReplyDeleteAgent: Absolutely. The NHS is under enough strain as it is, without health workers being prevented from doing their jobs.
DeleteI would turn the hosepipes on them.
ReplyDelete