Reply to comment

I have little sympathy for Glenda in this debate. She's a seasoned (some would say very) campaigner so should know better than to come out with such reactive and controversial comments.

I've only two points to make. Firstly, I applaud the the first poster on comments re the army. Whilst we can't be certain, the presence of armed (one would presume) forces may have further inflamed and escalated the riots. Churchill sent the army in to try and calm down riots in Wales in 1910, a move which some historians say prevented the strikes from ending early, and generated huge discontent and negative attitude towards the English government.

Secondly, having a blackberry, or not, is no indicator of deprivation. Deprivation isn't just about money, it's about jobs, it's about hope, it's about respect for the community and respect for yourselves. It's no easy thing to pin down the causes for these riots - but we have high unemployment, we have kids not being able to go to university as it's getting too expensive, and we have cuts in social services.

So where do we go from here?

It's too easy to point the finger at these kids and say it's their fault. They're just looting, rioting, they're just stupid and have no respect. It's also too easy to point the finger and say accountability comes from the top.

I would point the finger at all of us. We all contribute to a society, we voted these people into power. In the same way that we've seen small groups of communities stand up and prevent their properties being looted, and much bigger groups of people clearing up after the riots, I would say it's about time we all stopped apportioning blame and work out what we can do to make a difference.

Some of these things are big, and some small. I'm no expert and there's probably thousands of things we can do to make a difference, but here's some examples - being less selfish, better parenting, voting in people who can make a difference, voluntary community service, picking up litter, having respect for your elders, and kids as well, talking to your neighbours, making yourself heard on local forums.

I can't see where on this form to put my name, but I'm happy to stand by and discuss these views. You can catch me on twitter, I'm @KilburnLondon.

Finally, a big thanks for all the policemen, and other officers that are still working around the clock to try and make us all safe.