Over the weekend there were more reports of a knife crime death in Sidcup, Kent and a fight between two gangs with knives outside a nightclub in Nottingham.
Furthermore, on BBC Radio Five Live last night, amidst a talk show phone-in someone called to say there were a gang of teenagers, at least one with a knife, threatening people in Ramsgate, Kent. The caller had notified the police but had been told they were too busy to send someone to the incident. The caller was asked to keep in touch with the show, which they did. No police were sent to the scene. Maybe they were waiting for someone to be stabbed!
So, is knife crime more common these days or is it just reported more?
Growing up in the 1970’s and 1980’s it was common knowledge that some local troublemakers carried knives. These were the kind of people I chose not to have anything to do with, and if they walked into a pub or a party, I would make my excuse and quietly leave.
So knive culture isn’t new. But it is quite apparent that knife crime to the extent at which it has now engulfed UK society, is!
So what should be done to tackle knife crime in th UK?
We need tougher sentences. Make it very clear: five years if caught in posession of a knife, ten years for ‘using’ a knife, and a life sentence (meaning life) for anyone convicted of murder or man-slaughter.
But equally important is to stop all this outrageous defence of dissipated youth and violent crimes with pathetic calls of human rights and how we should look at the causes, not the crime itself. We need to send out a clear message to anyone who wants to get involved in knife crime, gangs and violence. Everyone has a choice whether to get involved in this barbaric lifestyle or not.
If someone were unprovoked and stabbed or killed someone close to me, I wouldn’t be interested in their childhood, whether they had one or two parents, whether they were black or white, or whether it was their first or tenth assault. All I would be bothered about is that they received the correct punishment for the crime they had committed.
Furthermore, I don’t believe sending these offenders to ordinary prisons is the answer. We need army-style boot camps where these offenders can be given some discipline and some social skills.
Most importantly we need to stop the erosion of UK society and get this worthless scum of our streets and out of our lives.
1 comment so far
1 Gary Dawson // May 27, 2008 at 9:00 pm
Well Mr Lane, I agree 100% with every word you say. In fact, the vast majority of the public would be with you all the way, but sadly the sort of “democracy” in which we live dictates that our wishes will be ignored.
The government are are not clueless, they are simply not interested. The vast majority of ministers (maybe all of them) live well away from the crime-ridden urban streets on which so much crime is committed. It is simply not their problem.