Notes of a riot

Last night (8/8/11) the riots, which began in London following the shooting of a suspected gang member, spread out across the country and reached Birmingham City Centre around 7pm. Mindless violence, arson, looting and muggings continued right into the early hours of this morning leaving many areas in and around the city centre destroyed. This post compiles a selection of the news coverage surrounding the Birmingham riots.

Birmingham Riots 2011 Tumblr

At 7.44pm a live update of the events happening in Birmingham City Centre began, which went on to detail the senseless violence and destruction over a 7 hour period; with a blogger known as @CaseyRain posting pictures, videos and comments from the public showing the progress of the riots throughout the city centre and out into areas such as Kings Heath, Hansworth and Walsall. Below are some of the comments left by vigilant members of the blogosphere on the live Tumblr:

• 8:38 pm - kidsxheroes said: "Friends of mine in the city (who are now trying to get out) have said The Square Peg pub on Corporation St has been smashed up too."
• 9:04 pm - Reports of riots spreading to Chelmsley Wood, Perry Barr, Aston, Erdington, Handsworth…
• 10:26 pm - thepoetmagi said: "The Childrens hospital has been hit. Rioters were smashing windows and attempted to bomb steelhouse lane police station. My friends mum was there and was escorted out of the hospital by police. I assume other people were too!!"
• 12:55 am - Police station fire in Handsworth confirmed. Also reports of looting at Cash & Carry on Nineveh Road and elsewhere around Handsworth. Reports of trouble in Northfield and Selly Oak as well as the gay quarter in city centre where a man was apparently attacked by a gang of people and stomped on before being pulled to safety by a
  passing car, outside of the Missing Bar.
• 1:38 am - doodus said: "Something kicked off about 20 mins ago on Portland Rd, Edgbaston, by the Rainbow Casino. Heavy police presence, lots of shouting, a couple of shifty looking guys hanging out in driveways & behind bins, road was partly blocked and a few heavies turned up in cars.

To see the full scope of last night's events visit: http://birminghamriots2011.tumblr.com/

The Mirror

Headline: "Birmingham riots: 100 arrests as youths bring chaos to Bullring area"

Police in Birmingham have arrested around 100 people after rioters and looters rampaged across the city centre, mirroring the chaotic scenes in London.

Scores of shop windows and doors – including sportswear and mobile phones stores – were smashed by gangs as frightened shoppers and city workers looked on.

Assistant Chief Constable Sharon Rowe said: “We will not tolerate mindless violence anywhere in the West Midlands and are working hard to ensure that the offenders are identified and caught as soon as possible.”

For the full story visit: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/08/09/birmingham-riots-100-arrests-as-youths-bring-chaos-to-bullring-area-115875-23330961/

Youtube

Vast numbers of videos of the rioting and looting have gone up on Youtube over the last 12 hours. This BBC video seems to perfectly display the mindless vandalism which occurred yesterday:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZY-kaVSCw3Y&NR=1

The Telegraph

Headline: "Birmingham hit by riots as internet campaign encourages violence"

As an estimated 200 youths, many of them hooded or masked, congregated, West Midlands police put up a half-mile exclusion zone around the Bullring shopping centre, which shut early at 6.40pm.

Onlookers described thugs running with knives through New Street and one photographer was set upon by a group who beat him and stole his camera.

Police were prepared for trouble after a campaign on Facebook, BlackBerry Messenger and Twitter warned of violence and encouraged others to get involved.

For the full story visit: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8690273/Birmingham-hit-by-riots-as-internet-campaign-encourages-violence.html

My thoughts

The reports go on and on, with many conflicting views as to what was really behind the rioting and looting. There have been some suggestions that it was related to an increase in taxes, whilst other reports claim that it is because of the recession. Personally I fail to see either of these as being a valid excuse. Most of the looting was caused by opportunists, who jumped on the back of the rioting in order to bag themselves some free stuff from places such as Primark, Addidas and Footlocker. And this was only further proven when a spate of muggings occurred on buses in areas such as Walsall and Hansworth towards the later part of the night.

The destructing and widespread damage caused by these uneducated and violent thugs is nothing short of idiotic. If any of this was for a real purpose or cause, that has once again been lost in the senseless acts of violence, theft and vandalism that you caused in your own city - just as it was with the peaceful student protests that spiraled out of control in January of this year. Whatever point some of you felt you had to make you went about it completely the wrong way. Violence solves nothing, it only fuels the resilience of the authorities against your cause. You will not be heroes for your actions, you will only be seen as the scum which tarrs our city's name. Rebels without a cause, and no right-minded person will ever take you seriously.

I was truly proud to see the support for the police that has sprung up overnight. They handled the situation as best they could, with somewhat limited resources I might add. Facebook this morning is full of campaign pages supporting the amazing work of the police force and riot teams who worked through the night to protect our city, despite being massively outnumbered on all accounts.

This morning Twitter is brimming with unity and a sense of local togetherness with http://www.riotcleanup.com/ forming to help the nation join together to correct the mistakes of last night. Hundreds of people have headed to the Bull at 10am this morning to help put our city centre back together, and nothing makes me more proud to be a Brummie than to see how our sense of community stands tall in the face of all this mindless destruction.

What happened in Birmingham last night was worthless, pointless and disgusting. When it boils down to it, our city has been attacked by our own...and for what? I hope the stolen gear and senseless rage you showed last night were worth it, because today our local economy will be suffering as our businesses try to put themselves back together, and the residents and workers of the city - who's property and jobs you have put in jeopardy - will be trying to make sense of why they had to be caught up in the destruction you inflicted for your completely lost cause.

It is poignant to note, however, that amongst the broken glass and burnt out stores one thing remains solid as a rock - and that is Birmingham's sense of what is good and right, along with the knowledge that we are at our strongest when we are united. Be proud to be a part of the Birmingham community and support that in whatever way you can.

The Negative Consequences of a Drunken Fool

I know I have been a bad blogger as of late, but the last few months of Uni have stretched me to my limits and finding the time to sit and write for leisure's sake rather than for the needs of my course was an impossibility unfortunately. However, Uni is now over and I am now off out into the world of work (I shall keep you posted on the job hunt over the following weeks) - but until the eagerly awaited day comes when a great company decides they simply cannot function without me and snaps me up as their latest recruit, I have the time to dedicate to my writing here on Twenty-one and Invincible.

So...I'm back and boy have I got a story for you! Having been invisibly tied to my computer for the last two months on an almost permanent basis I decided that my first week as an official ex-student should be spent catching up with my friends, who I have to admit I had neglected whilst in my darkest hours of facing many looming deadlines. So first stop was a drink in my local with the lads.

As it was a Sunday, I was hardly expecting it to be a mad one, but certain people had other ideas! On arrival I found one of my friends to be suffering the pitfalls of that old chestnut "one too many" - he was loud, lairy and somewhat out of control, so his car keys were confiscated and he was sent up to one of the B&B rooms to sleep it off. So that was one of us down and out already, and it had barely gone 9 o'clock!

As the night progressed, the drinks flowed and frivolity took over. The pub had the jukebox blaring and myself and some other pub-goers got up for a dance. There was lots of silliness and a fair bit of banter - even some impromptu pole dancing lessons of behalf of myself and a very fit and healthy 60 year-old - but it was all in good fun, and everyone was having a good time.

Little did we know that the devil "one too many" was about to rear it's ugly head again so soon. What follows next is still a little bit of blur, as it happened too fast for me to register, so you will have to bare with me. I was propped up on the bar, rooting around in my bag for my phone or lipgloss or something of the like, when I felt this heavy weight press down on my left shoulder. It was so heavy in fact that my knees gave way and I struggled not to fall off my 6-inch heels! I looked over my shoulder to tell whoever it was leaning on me to remove themselves, when I heard this almighty smash and was immediately showered with bits of broken glass and china.

At this point I think I was momentarily in shock as I tried to register what had happened. The pub had gone completely silent and all eyes were on me and the destruction that now surrounded me. I turned around to find a drunken fool grinning like a Cheshire cat at the antique lamp hanging above my head which he had just smashed into a million pieces. I did not see how this had happened of course, but was informed later that this gentleman had been attempting some Jackie Chan moves and had round-house kicked the lamp over my head, whilst using me as a prop to help propel himself off the floor!

Once the immediate shock of being showered in broken glass had worn off and I had checked I was not cut or bleeding, I suddenly realised how incredibly lucky I was not to have been seriously injured. If I had turned to look over my other shoulder at the exact moment that this fool had kicked the lamp this story might be a very different one, as my face would have been towards the barrage of broken china and glass and I could have been scarred for life or even blinded. Upon realising this I think it is fair to say I lost my temper quite a bit, and though I shall not detail the ins and outs of my torrent here, the gentleman it was aimed at got the very clear impression that I was not best pleased with his actions. He was, of course, escorted from the pub by several friends of mine, who were not too pleased with his sudden out burst of material arts either.

As silly as it may sound in hindsight, I could not get over how lucky I had been. If the glass had hit my face instead of the back of my head who knows the lasting damage it could of caused. For simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time I could be suffering from a serious injury now, and that really is just unthinkable.

Thankfully I wasn't seriously hurt, just a little shaken up by how reckless some people can be when they've been drinking. This man was well into his forties and may possibly have had children not far from my age, yet he had little to no concern for my well-being at all. He knew full well that I was right underneath the lamp he was about to smash to pieces and even held on to me whilst he did it, so there was never any chance that I wouldn't have ended up covered in broken glass. We all do stupid things under the influence of alcohol; many of us will have woken up and remembered sending an embarrassing text to an ex, mixing up your words as you try to talk or even falling over due to your inebriation - but the only person that is really affecting is yourself. I have never caused harm to another person because of what I have had to drink, and I would like to think I never will.

It is these little incidents that make you realise that "one too many" is not always just the cause of some rather outrageous banter; sometimes it can be the reason why someone ends up seriously hurt, and as a forty-something he should really have known better. I did receive a lovely big bunch of flowers the following day by way of an apology, but I still think that the gentleman in question needs to consider the fact that his drunken tom-foolery could have resulted in a very nasty situation, and it was not just himself that he could have ended up hurting. So much for a quiet drink in the pub ay!

The curse of the birthday bash

Sunday was an eventful night in my humble home-town, to say the very least. One of my good friends was turning 24, and had arranged to have a few drinks in a couple of pubs here in Coleshill. Nothing big, just a nice, cheerful evening out to celebrate his birthday. Well, that was the plan any way, and couldn't have been further from what we actually experienced that night!

I caught up with the Birthday Boy and our other friends about 9pm, by which time he was already on the Sambuca's and any chance of a quiet drink had long flown out the window! Although little did we realise that our slightly-too-merry with the drink mate was going to be the least of our worries, as less than five minutes later there was screams, shouts, shots and a whole heap of smashed glasses.

What started as a silly scrap between a teenage Blues fan and a teenage Arsenal fan, turned into a whole pub brawl, with men hitting women and women throwing glasses. It was like the mosh pit at a Slipknot gig all of a sudden, and people who didn't even know what was happening were just getting involved for the hell of it apparently! Your's truly was excluded from that of course, as I'd grabbed my bag and my drink and taken cover in the corner. Getting a smack in the face was certainly not on my list of to-do's for the night. Tables full of drinks were knocked over, there was smashed glass every where and more black eyes than I could count. The police were called in the end, and it all diffused, but not before the Birthday Boy's cousin was given a nice shiner for his troubles!

And so, when the dust had finally settled, myself and the other sensible fellows in the group hijacked the Birthday Boy and moved him on to another pub. It was a much nicer atmosphere over the road and I'd just settled down with an ice-cold beer to enjoy the rest of the night, when the next big drama occurred. Whilst outside smoking, one of the lads from our group had spotted a rather drunk regular from the pub trying to walk home. He had stopped him and asked if he was alright, but he insisted he was fine and headed off into a dark alleyway between two buildings. Seconds later, our friend watched opened mouthed as the drunk regular tripped and fell face-first into the pavement - before lying there, unconscious in a muddy puddle.

Naturally our friend went to check on him, and when he couldn't rouse him, he rushed back inside the pub to call for help. And so it was that myself and the Birthday Boy had to help carry our poor drunk regular back inside the pub, and up into the B&B to lie down. It was only then I noticed he had split his eye open and was bleeding quite badly. Obviously this meant one thing only: Nurse Louise to the rescue. So there I sat, on a night out, mopping up the forehead of one highly inebriated fellow, whilst he muttered drunken apologies for being an inconvenience. Shameful as this is to admit, although I was very worried for his safety, I couldn't help but think: "Don't you dare get blood on my nice top!". I mean, how would I have explained that to my parents?

After that the night finally calmed down a bit, with nothing more than a few tears and drunken ramblings on the behalf of the Birthday Boy, but it got me thinking about a few things. Firstly, to those who started the fight, I would just like to make one thing clear - football is only a game, and is certainly not a reason to start kicking seven shades out of each other. Secondly, for all those who joined in with the ridiculous fight, have you no shame? You were throwing punches at people you didn't even know, for a reason you didn't even understand. Are you cavemen and women, because I thought the rest of us had evolved beyond the need for senseless violence? Thirdly, for all those who like a bit too much of a drink, learn your limits. Our drunk regular could have woken up face down in a puddle, having been mugged or beaten or worse. He could've ended up in a hospital bed, being treated for concussion and alcohol poisoning. Sort it out!

It also got me thinking about the curse of the birthday bash, as Sunday - like many others I can remember - was the result of another overly-dramatic birthday night. It seems that every party I've been to in years has ended in tears for one reason or another. Either there's been an argument, or a fight, or a falling out. Or someone's been sick, or gone missing. My 20th was a nightmare, and my 21st nearly ended up heading down the same road. A fair few of the Women Folk's birthday's have fallen foul of the birthday bash curse, and I'm sure Ray would agree some of her's have been far from perfect. It just seems that any night out where you label it a Birthday Party is doomed to end in disaster - and it's all drama, drama, drama. And so, with a month of solid birthday parties heading my way this April, I'm asking for a little gift of my own - just one, great drama-free night. Fingers-crossed for me on that one ay!

Old head, young body

At the young age of twenty-one, I have begun to realise how much I enjoy the company of the older generations in this world, especially considering that I could be classed as a somewhat frivolous and and naive young woman. Interested in reality television, shopping, gossiping, partying and often guilty of listening to trashy modern-day pop music, I most certainly don't sound, on paper, like I would have anything worth saying to anyone over the age of 25. Somehow, though, that doesn't seem to be the case.

My mam and nan had a discussion yesterday in which they commented on what an "old head" I have on my shoulders...something my mother believes I get from her. And the more I think about it, the more I'm inclined to agree.

I only have a handful of friends who are actually my own age - my best friends Addy and Ray, and The Women Folk. The rest of the people I find myself socialising with on a regular basis are often old enough to have raised me as their own!

Last night (4/12/10), like many I have had since I turned the grand age of 18, was spent in my gaff - The Pepper Mill public house in Coleshill - where I spent the evening talking and laughing with all manner of different characters, from all different walks of life - most of which were 40+ and a few could even have been grandparents to me.

The reason I'm presenting you with all this, is because it dawned on me last night just how much I love having older friends, and how much I thoroughly enjoy spending my time in the company of people who have lived a real life and who have something worthwhile to say for themselves.

I meet people around my age and often find I can't quite click with them. Many seem to believe they have done it all already - they think they know everything there is to know, but when you talk to them you find out they know very little worth knowing.

Worse still is the mentality some young ones have when they're out and about, on the town, where their only focus seems to be getting blind drunk, getting it on with whatever is standing closest to them and getting themselves into enough trouble to make the night worth mentioning the next day.

You don't get any of that with the people I spend my Saturday night's with. They are all up for a laugh and can most certainly put the beer away, but most just go out with a different mindset. They are looking for laughs and good times, just without all the hassle and silliness.

Don't get me wrong, I don't believe that all people my own age are like that, but I can say with confidence that many of you will have come across young adults like this on your travels many a time. So I guess my point in all this is that I'm glad not to be one of them.

For me, personally, it's so refreshing to meet someone who I can have a really good, in-depth and interesting conversation with - someone who has life stories that will put my meager offerings to shame and someone who has actually lived their life to the fullest. And I think many of my older friends would second this - it must be so nice for the older generations to meet an interesting, educated and well-spoken twenty-something, as I honestly believe it could restore their faith in the "youth of today".

So I'm starting a little campaign. I'd like all who read this to go and have a proper conversation with someone they know who is years ahead of them (in age and experience), and just listen to what they have to say. Seek their advice, enjoy their company, and you might just find that you in turn will have a bit more to say for yourself. It's just a thought, but one that I think is worthwhile considering.