Insulate Britain protests

Billy the Fish · Sep 20, 2021

Was just reading about these wallies blocking the M25 again and was surprised there hasn't been a thread after 2 weeks of their antics, I'm guessing mostly apathy and eye rolling than any strong feelings either way.

Does anyone actually support their tactic of inconveniencing normal people going about their daily lives?

Badger Boy · Sep 20, 2021

Their behaviour is absolutely ridiculous and they should be ashamed.

Hamilton · Sep 20, 2021

I fully support their behaviour. Direct action is the only thing that will work now. As it is, it may be too late.

Badger Boy · Sep 20, 2021

Hamilton said:
I fully support their behaviour. Direct action is the only thing that will work now. As it is, it may be too late.

Direct action about insulating homes? What gives them the right to block the M25 and disrupt people going about their day?

strings · Sep 20, 2021

I am not saying I condone their approach, but I certainly understand it.

The fact is, without a prominent celebrity (such as leader of the opposition, Marcus Rashford) or a multi-million pound company to fund effective lobbying work, there is little way for groups to get decision makers to sit up and notice.

A1X · Sep 20, 2021

Their actions are incredibly annoying.

You know what else is incredibly annoying? That beeping noise you get in smoke alarms when the battery is dying. Do you know why it is annoying? Because it makes you do something about it.

Same principle applies.

LamieRobertson · Sep 20, 2021

Billy the Fish said:
Was just reading about these wallies blocking the M25 again and was surprised there hasn't been a thread after 2 weeks of their antics, I'm guessing mostly apathy and eye rolling than any strong feelings either way.

Does anyone actually support their tactic of inconveniencing normal people going about their daily lives?

I did refer to them on another thread …after some protesters blocked the a27 outside Lewes on Friday….then we have a new set of cycle lane protesters in Brighton …it’s becoming quite fashionable

stss30 · Sep 20, 2021

I saw a video circulating last week where the police were treating them with kid gloves, presumably because of their social class. I think they should be forcibly removed from the roads and chucked in a cell for a few days, doing stuff like this will not get the general public onside, despite the underlying message being a good one.

Stat Brother · Sep 20, 2021

Hamilton said:
I fully support their behaviour. Direct action is the only thing that will work now. As it is, it may be too late.

Yes and no.

Direct action against their 'enemy' - crack on.
Direct action against 'normal' people trying to go about their day with no direct connection to their enemy - not for me Clive.

Go after the King and Queen don't try and take out all the pawns - did these people not watch Queen's Gambit?

JJ McClure · Sep 20, 2021

I just don't understand why their chosen tactic is to create a great big polluting traffic jam. It seem some what counter productive to what they say they are concerned about.

ConfusedGloryHunter · Sep 20, 2021

If they are annoying people then their plan is working. No one gives a monkey's banana if there is a march of 100,000 people through London of a weekend or some entertaining billboard adverts put up so if you want attention you have to boil lots of people's urine.

Of course, if I was stuck on the M25 due to their antics then I would be less sanguine about it all though!

Bry Nylon · Sep 20, 2021

Hamilton said:
I fully support their behaviour. Direct action is the only thing that will work now. As it is, it may be too late.

There will be people trying to make job interviews for their first shot at a job in ages; people trying to get their kids to hospital appointments for vital treatment; surgeons waiting for organ transplants or blood supplies to arrive - not to mention all of the other ordinary and extraordinary delays. When the M25 is screwed, the knock-on effects reach right into the home counties and outer London, impacting ambulance, police and fire response times - plus nurses, doctors and teachers etc trying to get to work. Yes, I realise that we are facing a climate emergency, but people in trying to get to hospital for an appointment or relying on a 999 response shouldn't be regarded as collateral damage.

Badger Boy · Sep 20, 2021

They're concerned about getting press. They're getting plenty, they're going to crack on.

Is it the same ones being arrested every day? Surely there are stronger charges which can be levied against them to stop them repeating the cycle?

Biscuit Barrel · Sep 20, 2021

Don't send the police, just let the motorists who have been stuck in the traffic jam they created sort things out. The protests will soon stop.

A1X · Sep 20, 2021

The suffragettes also annoyed loads of people with their protests back in the early years of the 20th century. They were on the right side of history too.

Billy the Fish · Sep 20, 2021

Hamilton said:
I fully support their behaviour. Direct action is the only thing that will work now. As it is, it may be too late.

This is the crux of the matter, they're taking direct action against the man in the street who has no power to influence policy.

I don't think you can just get away with saying you support direct action in any form. Caroline Lucas did it on BBC this morning, she was claiming that she'll support action as long as it's non-violent. I wonder if she'd change her tune if protestors non-violently blocked her from getting out of her house every day.

A1X · Sep 20, 2021

Bry Nylon said:
There will be people trying to make job interviews for their first shot at a job in ages; people trying to get their kids to hospital appointments for vital treatment; surgeons waiting for organ transplants or blood supplies to arrive - not to mention all of the other ordinary and extraordinary delays. When the M25 is screwed, the knock-on effects reach right into the home counties and outer London, impacting ambulance, police and fire response times - plus nurses, doctors and teachers etc trying to get to work. Yes, I realise that we are facing a climate emergency, but people in trying to get to hospital for an appointment or relying on a 999 response shouldn't be regarded as collateral damage.

So protests should only be allowed when nobody is inconvenienced by them?

Weststander · Sep 20, 2021

Last Friday on a long uni dropoff run with a packed car, I was caught up in this on the M25.

Sorry, but train or bicycle was a non starter for us going up north, with suitcases, bed linen, kitchenware.

It added 1.5 hours to the inital part of journey, a few hours after leaving Brighton ..... we made the Chilterns. In addition, SatNav worked out a huge detour for us and 10,000's of other vehicles because the protestors had targeted M1/M25 junction.

Taking us via M40, Oxford, Silverstone, Towester, Northampton. A sea of vehicles everywhere.

On the M25 looking at the anti clockwise, there was a stationery 5 mile traffic jam of contractors, delivery vehicles, you name it. Felt incredibly sorry for these folk just trying to do their jobs, hit three times in a week.

I've cared about the planet for 40 years, well aware of climate change and pollution, the hit to fauna and flora. I support a load of related causes, I ride a bike where I can, I've insulated our 80 year old home to the umpth degree, everthing I do in the garden is for ecosytems.

Imho all these particular protestors do is make an awful load of opponents.

blockhseagull · Sep 20, 2021

Direct action my arse.

This is nothing more than an attempt to gain as much publicity as they can to make themselves look like ‘world changing activists’

If they wanted to actually enforce some change they would do something which might actually influence policy makers and get the public on side.

Right now they just annoy people which automatically means most will switch off and consider them more of an issue than the actual problem that they are protesting about.

Bry Nylon · Sep 20, 2021

A1X said:
So protests should only be allowed when nobody is inconvenienced by them?

There is a difference between being inconvenienced and critically injured or trapped people needlessly waiting for an ambulance or fire appliance that is stuck in gridlocked traffic traffic in Waltham Abbey and can't even get out of the station.

The moment motorways are blocked now, modern sat navs merrily divert people off into the surrounding areas no matter how unsuitable they are for high volume traffic and they become completely gridlocked in no time. I imagine this is the intention of the protesters but for me there is a line to be drawn between inconveniencing people and putting others at direct risk through your actions.

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Insulate Britain protests

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