"A Very Serious Incident"

[Franz]

Cathy, you are spot on with your comment,"Everyone respects everyone and the kids never cause problems."

I've spent time in Italy and Spain and the same can be said of these countries too. It's true to say people are more respectful, and dare I say, intelligent?

My theory about the children being no bother is that they are not fed on a diet of processed food containing, well, who knows what? And their sense of family is very strong.

I think it's more to do with the fact that in Britain we've had the dogma of individualism rammed down our throats for almost 3 decades now - Thatcher's "look after number 1" ethic.

We also have our declining education system to thank, with politicians only interested in statistics and not in educating anyone. So the exams get easier, the grades go up, and yet people come out of school unable to tie their shoelaces or apply themselves to anything that takes longer than 5 minutes.

I lived in Germany for a year in 1990-91 and even back then I was struck by how much more co-operative and thoughtful people were than in Britain. All this stuff about teenage misbehaviour being due to hormones (subtext: "We don't have to do anything about it") makes me annoyed because I worked in a school with German teenagers and they were very mature, on the whole. As well as being thoughtful and well-informed about things outside their own country.

If I didn't have to stay in Britain to look after my parents, I'd seriously consider moving to Germany. People in Britain are so /nasty/.

Sorry, rant over. Hope things are OK for you.

[gary_2.0]

@Franz:
I was tempted to touch upon the post-Thatcherite shift myself, plus our apparent willingness to ape American consumerism and culture at the expense of our own, but didn't want to push the topic down that route.

I agree with you by and large but don't forget the silent majority - we're not all nasty. Inafectual and powerless we may be, but we're not all nasty.

[honeybee3939]

Gosh Garry

Just read the BBC news bulletin you posted ! It seems everytime we put the news on lately there as been a stabbing , what is this country coming to!!

Hope things have calmed down a little for you today hun .

Ps..lol about the police lady I like men in uniform too but we wont go into that, hubby is sat next to me !

love

Andrea
xxxxxx

[gary_2.0]

Gosh Garry

Just read the BBC news bulletin you posted ! It seems everytime we put the news on lately there as been a stabbing , what is this country coming to!!

Hope things have calmed down a little for you today hun .

Ps..lol about the police lady I like men in uniform too but we wont go into that, hubby is sat next to me !

love

Andrea
xxxxxx

There have been three different female officers here today. I hadn't realised quite how much I fancied a woman in uniform. Of coure this lot provide their own cuffs too

The weather is really sunny here today. It's quite and everyone would seem to be inside. It's a deceptively pleasant day despite, the press, a police dog team, more patrol vehicles and another round of house calls from CID.

And I'm fine thank you Andrea, really.

p.s. It's Gary with one R

EDIT: 14:32 Cordon lifted - everything back to 'normal'.

[kazzie]

Hi Gary

Sorry I was asleep when you text earlier

But Ive text you since, so no point in this post really

Just thought Id say hi

Luv Kaz x

[Cathy V]

Whatever 'normal' might be for you kiddo...didnt you manage to send one of those paper aircraft thingies with your email address on or something before the girls in blue went away? shame...

Ah well, enuff excitment for one agoraphobic i reckon. Were you serious about the early hours walking then or were you being ironic...bionic even?

[Franz]

@Franz:
I was tempted to touch upon the post-Thatcherite shift myself, plus our apparent willingness to ape American consumerism and culture at the expense of our own, but didn't want to push the topic down that route.

I agree with you by and large but don't forget the silent majority - we're not all nasty. Inafectual and powerless we may be, but we're not all nasty.

Sorry, I went off on one again :\ I know I shouldn't respond so negatively all the time. But since we're on the subject, I've found that consumerism hasn't stopped America being a friendlier and more civil society than ours. Which isn't to say there's not a lot wrong with it.

[gary_2.0]

Whatever 'normal' might be for you kiddo...didn't you manage to send one of those paper aircraft thingies with your email address on or something before the girls in blue went away? shame...

Ah well, enuff excitement for one agoraphobic i reckon. Were you serious about the early hours walking then or were you being ironic...bionic even?

The women in uniform are now gone and all I managed was a furtive letch through the net curtains. How terribly sad

Yes I was serious about the nigh time alfresco manoeuvres. I could create my own neighbourhood night watch. You see I suffer with anticipation anxiety so essentially I worry about nothing one might say. However in an actual emergency I remain calm and in control. I find it easy to take charge and organise others in an extremely efficient and decisive manner. I don't wont that to sound like bragging but it highlights just how crazy this illness is. But then I am crazy

[gary_2.0]

Sorry, I went off on one again :\ I know I shouldn't respond so negatively all the time. But since we're on the subject, I've found that consumerism hasn't stopped America being a friendlier and more civil society than ours. Which isn't to say there's not a lot wrong with it.

No problem, I'm as cynical as they come but if I start, I don't stop. I've always found Americans to be friendly to a fault, though this is only judged through online experiences however they are friendships that have lasted years.

I must stress that people, or more accurately, Human Nature, is the same the world over, it's only the societies we inhabit that dictate which aspects receive the greater encouragement.

[Cathy V]

Gary i can totally relate to what you describe as 'anticipatory' anxiety (well i guess thats the way it works for most of us really...what if) and that i know if i came across a situation that needed my help i would forget about feeling anxious and get on with it...might collapse once it was over tho! But then i doubt if my 'what ifs' would get me out of the door to wander at night, though this is probably more to do with female conditioning. Once again i can compare that no-go area in most parts of uk to being able to wander at night over here without fear.

I hope you enjoy your wander, let me know how it goes...xxxx