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Misfortune and the Blame Game
It seems to be a peculiar past-time in this country to moan and find fault with everything and blame anyone but ourselves for our mishaps and misfortune.
I was watching a television programme last night about Britain’s bizarre weather conditions in 2020 and what struck me, actually you could have slapped me round the face with a wet kipper, was the behaviour of people in the heatwave of April 2020. An extraordinary heatwave saw people flocking to parks and to the beach. Some scenes looked more akin to those pictures we see of seals or penguins on a remote island where there isn’t an inch to move without stumbling over the next incumbent, all staking their claim to a little parcel of land on which they can sunbathe or nest. ‘Weren’t we supposed to be social distancing and in lockdown’? Of course, we blame the government for lockdown 2 and the tier system. How unfair it is that we can’t see our loved ones, oh the mental anguish when we miss school, or have to learn online or get made redundant or our business goes belly up. But flock to the seaside we must, go to the park and mingle is a necessity, rush to the pub and drink and make merry, have parties and raves and forget about social distancing and that awful thing that the government keeps wittering on about. Let’s blame the police for dishing out fines, its so unfair and let’s even blame the hospitals, that’s where my loved one caught Corona virus. Yes, the government were to blame for suggesting that we should ‘eat out to help out’, but did we really think it was suddenly fine to plunder food from every outlet that provided a cut-price meal? Like lemmings, people rushed to pack out restaurants and pubs in search of a culinary bargain and many got more than they bargained for. ‘Two for the price of one’ had a new meaning.
None of this of course is a new phenomenon; the virus might be, the behaviour is not. We speed along the road and when caught by the police ask them if they haven’t got anything better to do than stop us. We complain about the NHS but carry on drinking lots, eating rubbish and failing to exercise. Our illness in the morning is due to the bad kebab, not the large amount of alcohol we consumed. We moan about our rubbish grades, somehow expecting that the parties, the staying in bed all day, the failure to attend, the work commitments and all the other hubris will get us an A grade or at least a B. It’s the way the lecturers teach, not our lack of commitment, that’s the problem here, ‘oh and I’m paying for this rubbish’. In football, we blame the referee for not giving a foul or for giving a foul when we are convinced it wasn’t one and yet watch players carry on diving all over the place rolling around as if they’ve been scythed down by the grim reaper and then chewed up by Jaws before being magically revived by the miraculous sponge. More at home with an Equity Card, players constantly seek to bamboozle the referee, it’s no wonder they sometimes get it wrong. We moan about the stampede at the start of the shop sales, not that that’s been a problem this year, well not yet anyway, but we are part of the stampede, shoving and trampling over others to get to the much reduced bargain. We lament the demise of the high street, watching the tumbleweed blow past as we scuttle away to our laptops, pads and phones to do a bit more online shopping only rushing out in droves (social distancing ignored) to take advantage of the demise of yet another retail outlet.
Whilst ministers are trying to hammer out a Brexit deal, posturing and moaning about the intransigence of the other side, they probably secretly hope that there will be no deal. That way we can blame the Europeans and the Europeans can blame us. But are we not to blame for this monstrosity; we voted for it? We live in a democracy and are rightly proud of it and yet Trump like we are quick to point out that we personally didn’t vote for that bit that we don’t like, and the vote was probably rigged anyway. Having realised our error, we still voted in the government that said it would get it done and we didn’t care about the price. Let’s hope that a return to the troubles in Ireland doesn’t become a reality, but if it does, it’ll no doubt be the fault of the Irish. Our sense of history only stretches back to when we saved the world from the Nazis.
We need to look to ourselves and our own action and behaviour before we start blaming everyone and everything around us. Yes, misfortune does fall on some of us and sometimes it isn’t our fault but like it or not, many of the problems are caused by us and we compound the problems by blaming others. If we fail to grip the notion that we have responsibility, then history will judge us as a nation that moaned about everything and did nothing but cause calamitous problems for ourselves and the rest of the world.
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“My Favourite Things”: anfieldbhoy
By way of introduction I always find the identification of any favourite things really challenging. However, I’m up for the challenge so here goes. My favourite TV show - I love great TV drama series especially the Saturday night BBC4 offerings. The Bridge, The Killing, Spiral etc. However, they really are not a patch on The Wire which was absolutely the best thing on TV ever! Last year I thoroughly enjoyed Chernobyl. My regular weekly watch includes University Challenge (we all test ourselves don’t we ?) and Newsnight My favourite place to go - Anfield, the home of Liverpool FC. Every time I visit it feels as exciting as the first time. The red set against the vivid green of the pitch, that moment when you ascend the steps and get that first glimpse of the pitch and the smell which is unique and so difficult to describe. It’s magical every time I experience it. No other football stadium compares My favourite city - Whilst Liverpool is very dear to me this would have to be Edinburgh. A great city with its old and new town. Great architecture, great museums and galleries. Cheapest taxis in any city in the UK, within striking distance of the coast, great countryside and it has some smashing hotels and bars. No visit these days would not be complete without a visit to the Oxford Bar My favourite thing to do in my free time - This largely relates to sport. In my youth I played football and cricket to a reasonable standard. Those days are past and so I play golf now with a great bunch of mates at Rutland Water Golf Club. I try to enter as many competitions as possible. It’s a great setting with stunning views across the water. It’s a real test and even if you play badly you are in good company and the walk is good for you. I do walk a lot these days and try to get out for an hour each day. Outside of sport I am very happy spending time with family. We are very close and I get enormous pleasure from my children and grandchildren My favourite athlete/sports personality - Whilst I have supported Liverpool FC all my days and it would easy to say Kenny Dalglish my all time favourite player, in terms of pure sports personality it has to be the genius that was Seve Ballesteros the Spanish golfer who played with his heart on his sleeve, continues to be an inspiration to modern day golfers and watching old footage of his antics on the course is simply magical. This iconic image on the 18th at St Andrews when he won the Open Championship will endure forever.My favourite actor - This one has challenged me the most but in the end, I’m going for Sir Ian McKellen who never lets you down whatever role he takes on. He was born to play “Gandalf” in The Lord of the Rings. The scene on the bridge where he shouts “fly you fools” is a great cinematic moment. His voice is superb, instantly recognised and from what I’ve seen on chat shows seems to be a really nice person My favourite author - Whilst I am reasonably well read and enjoy a range of genres my favourite author is the late Umberto Eco author of The Name of the Rose, Foucault’s Pendulum and my favourite book The Prague Cemetery. Umberto was an Italian novelist, literary critic, philosopher, semiotician, and university professor who worked at several universities across the world although at the time of his death he was professor emeritus at The University of Bologna ……..Never an easy read but really thought provoking with lots of historical references. The recent TV adaptation of The Name of the Rose shown on the BBC was excellent, and I would recommend this book as a way into his work. During the lockdown I have been listening to audiobooks on my daily walk and just listened to Sign of the Four by Arthur Conan Doyle. BBC Sounds is an excellent resource for books and drama My favourite drink - Coffee first thing and tea in the afternoon is my daily routine but when it comes to proper drinks then I love a good Argentinian Malbec, but if pushed it would certainly be Real Ale. We are now blessed with many ales to choose from. More recently I have really been enjoying the wide range of Craft IPAs and other “new world beers”. To sample some of the best locally I recommend a trip to “The Maule Collective” in Northampton or the “Tap and Kitchen” (Nene Valley Brewery) in Oundle. NVB’s “Release the Chimps” is a personal favourite. Whilst many Wetherspoons have a great selection of ales at very affordable prices their owner Tim Martin’s views on Brexit and his response to the lockdown in response to Covid-19 has led me to seriously consider a boycott post lockdown. Finally how could I not mention single malt whisky, especially those from Islay. If I had to choose one it would be have to be Lagavulin. Lagavulin distillery is a malt whisky distillery in the village of Lagavulin on the south of the island of Islay, Scotland My favourite food - Anyone who knows me can tell I love most foods. I have an ample girth as evidence! Very difficult to narrow this down but I do love seafood especially the way the Italians do it. Having lived in Scotland and near the coast we were spoilt with good seafood restaurants. When on holiday abroad fish tends to be my staple diet. Squid, Scallops and Langoustines would be top of the list My favourite place to eat - Again so many on the shortlist, but if I’m honest on a nice summer's day we (the family) love to go for Sunday lunch to Rutland Water Golf club. The food is always special, and the service is exceptional. For a quick lunch we love a pub in Stamford called the “Tobie Norris” where Matthew the landlord (who used to work at RWGC) always provides a warm welcome, good wine, excellent ales based on the season and the food is spot on I like people who - are honest, hardworking and are prepared to put their hand up when they make a mistake. I value those who have a sense of society and are prepared to work for the better of all. I would count myself as a socialist and have always migrated to the left in terms of my politics. I love the following quote from Bill Shankly the legendary manager of Liverpool FC. He stated; “The socialism I believe in isn’t really politics. It is a way of living. It is humanity. I believe the only way to live and to be truly successful is by collective effort, with everyone working for each other, everyone helping each other, and everyone having a share of the rewards at the end of the day. That might be asking a lot, but it’s the way I see football and the way I see life” (cited in Weber 2006, You'll Never Talk Alone, Liverpool: 21) I don’t like it when people - hide behind “window dressing” and therefore lack substance and too easily try to blind us with falsehoods and to use a modern parlance “fake news”. I detest it when people do not take responsibility for their words and actions. In recent times this has been best demonstrated with false slogans on red Buses, bluster about making America great again and social media posts with no regard for the feelings of those under attack. Manners, honesty and kindness are not weaknesses but essential strengths. My favourite book - already addressed above Umberto Eco’s The Prague Cemetery see The Guardian review here to get a sense of the novel My favourite book character - On the basis that would really love to walk in this persons shoes I am going to choose “Rebus” from the novels by Ian Rankin. Who wouldn’t want to live in Edinburgh, work for the police but be a complete maverick, rub shoulders with the underworld and drink in The Oxford Bar. Ok there are some downsides; he supports Hibs but better than supporting Hearts! My favourite film - I’m not a massive film enthusiast, preferring TV and theatre, so this choice is particularly difficult. I did however go to the cinema to watch the Oscar winning Parasite which was excellent and thoroughly deserving of the best picture Oscar. From a bit further back I loved Field of Dreams starring Kevin Costner, where an Iowa corn farmer, hearing voices, interprets them as a command to build a baseball diamond in his fields; he does, and the 1919 Chicago White Sox come. It’s a film that makes me cry every time I watch it mainly as a father son thing. My favourite poem - I really found it difficult to choose between “Easter 1916” by W.B Yeats with it’s famous final lines of; “Now and in time to be, Wherever green is worn, Are changed, changed utterly: A terrible beauty is born.” or “Digging” by Seamus Heaney and I finally chose the latter. Mainly because of the line; “By God, the old man could handle a spade.” My old man certainly could, god rest his soul. I recall him saying to me as a child that he didn’t want me, or my brothers for that matter, making a living with a pick and shovel as he had done all his days. He was the typical Irish navvy, who relocated from Northern Ireland in the 1950s for work and to distance himself and his future family from what was to come. The poem has a particular poignancy for me given my use of the pen in my academic career My favourite artist/band - When younger I migrated from an early love of Tamla Motown and soul music to Heavy rock (Uriah Heep, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple ). However as I have grown older I have sort of turned into my parents. Brought up on classic Country and Western I now adore anything broadly classed as “Americana” or Alt Country. Richmond Fontaine, The National, Ryan Adams. Those of you who follow me on Twitter know that in 2020 I have been trying to expand my listening and so far I have definitely discovered the genius that is Stormzy and Dave. I do think I have a very broad taste in music and never thought I could appreciate “Hip Hop” but some of it is very good. My favourite song - La Cienga Just Smiled by Ryan Adams from his album “Gold” no contest.Lyrics mean a lot to me in songs especially when they paint pictures and stories. Extract from lyrics: And I hold you close in the back of my mind Feels so good but damn it makes me hurt And I'm too scared to know how I feel about you now La Cienega just smiled, "see you around" My favourite art - I Love the Surrealists, especially Salvador Dali and my absolute favourite is the Christ of Saint John of the Cross made in 1951 which is in the collection of the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow.
It depicts Jesus Christ on the cross in a darkened sky floating over a body of water complete with a boat and fishermen. Although it is a depiction of the crucifixion, it is devoid of nails, blood, and a crown of thorns, because, according to Dalí, he was convinced by a dream that these features would mar his depiction of Christ. It is genius. I had planned to visit to Kelvingrove art gallery the other week as part of a weekend in Glasgow to watch the famous “hoops” but Covid-19 put paid to that
My favourite person from history - Not necessarily a favourite but If I could go back in time I would want to sit down and have a conversation with this man.
James Connolly was a Scottish-born Irish republican and socialist leader. Connolly was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, to Irish parents. He was a member of the Industrial Workers of the World and founder of the Irish Socialist Republican Party. He was centrally involved in the Dublin lock-out of 1913, as a result of he helped form the Irish Citizen Army that year. He opposed British rule in Ireland and was one of the leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916. He was executed by firing squad following the Rising. My Irish heritage is very important to me in terms of my identity and to be able to explore and understand what made men like Connolly rebels would be fascinating. What is it that makes men like him willing to die for his cause? Steadfast to the end the following quote sums it up; “I said to him, "Will you pray for the men who are about to shoot you" and he said: "I will say a prayer for all brave men who do their duty.". His prayer was "Forgive them for they know not what they do" and then they shot him.” Dr Stephen O’Brien Visiting Professor: Faculty of Health, Education and Society The University of Northampton
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“Back to the future”: 2019 A Year of Violence?
When I was young, 2020 seemed like the stuff of science fiction. Programmes like Tomorrow’s World held the promise of a future full of leisure, with technology taking the strain in all aspects of human life. Now we’re in 2020 it appears we have plenty of technology, but whether it adds or subtracts from the lived human experience, is still very much up for discussion. Certainly, it is increasingly difficult to separate work from leisure with the liquidity technology brings.
As is traditional for this time of year, the mind turns to reflection on the year gone by. This year is no different, after all it, like many others, has been packed with both good and bad experiences. Personally, 2019 was challenging in a number of different arenas, my patience, temerity and resilience have been tested in many novel ways. Events have caused me to reflect upon my own values and philosophies and my moral and ethical compass has been and continues to be tested. I don’t intend to go into lots of detail here, but it feels to me as if violence is increasingly impinging on all aspects of life. The first few days of 2020 suggests this perception is likely to continue with Trump’s decision to assassinate ‘Iran’s top general and second most powerful official, Qassem Suleimani’.
In December, 2019 we saw yet another general election. Whatever your particular persuasion, it is difficult to view British politics as anything other than increasingly personalised and aggressive. Individuals such as David Lammy MP, Diane Abbott MP, Caroline Dinenage MP, as well as campaigners such as Gina Miller and Greta Thunberg are regularly attacked on twitter and through other media. However, it is not all one sided, as Drillminster showed us in 2018 with his artistic triumph Political Drillin. It is clear that these verbal attacks are beginning to become part and parcel of political life. Such behaviour is dangerous, on many levels, political discourse is a necessity in a mature democracy and shutting up discordant voices cannot lead to unity in the UK.
In November, we were shocked and horrified by the terrorist attack at Fishmonger’s Hall. This attack on colleagues involved in prison education, raised questions around individual and collective decisions to engage with criminology with convicted criminals. Nevertheless, despite such horrific violence, the principles and practice of prison higher education remain undaunted and potentially, strengthened.
October, saw the publication of Grenfell Phase 1. This document identifies some of the issues central to the horrific fire at Grenfell Tower in 2017. Whether this and later publications can ever really make sense of such complexity, offer the victims and survivors comfort and go some way to ensuring justice for all those involved, remains to be seen. Those who have studied CRI3003 Violence with me are likely to be cynical but it is early days.
For much of September, the focus was on the prorogation of parliament and the subsequent court case. As with December, there were many complaints about the violence of language used both inside and outside parliament. Particularly, notable was the attack on MP Jess Phillips’ constituency office and arguments around the inflammatory language used by PM Boris Johnson.
In August, the media published video footage of Prince Andrew with his friend, the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. This story rumbles to the end of the year, with more allegations made toward the prince, culminating in an infamous interview which threatens to continue unabated.
July saw the end of a trial into modern slavery, leading to prison sentences for 8 of those involved. The judge concluded that slavery was still thriving in the UK, often ‘hiding in plain sight’. What support is available to those subjected to this violence, is not clear, but prison sentences are unlikely to make any material benefit to their lives.
In June, shocking footage emerged of MP Mark Field forcibly removing a female protester. Strikingly his colleague, MP Johnny Mercer tweeted ‘if you think this is “serious violence” you may need to recalibrate your sensitivities’. After some years teaching around violence, I have no idea what Mr Mercer feels qualifies as violence, but putting your hands on another’s throat would seem to a reasonable starting point.
May saw attention drawn to the media, with the racism of Danny Baker and inherent cruelty of the Jeremy Kyle Show. Arguments which followed suggest that, for many, neither were seen as problematic and could be dismissed as so-called “entertainment”.
April saw the collapse of the first trial of David Duckenfield, police commander at the 1989 Hillsborough disaster. Although put on trial again, later in the year, he was found not guilty on the 28 November, 2019. The chair of the Hillsborough Family Support Group, Margaret Aspinall perhaps spoke for everyone involved when she asked ‘When 96 people – they say 95, we say 96 – are unlawfully killed and yet not one person is accountable. The question I’d like to ask all of you and people within the system is: who put 96 people in their graves? Who is accountable?’ After 30 years, it seems justice is still a long way away for the victims, survivors and their families.
After years of growth in life expectancy, in March the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries published data suggested that this was no longer the case in the UK. Although they offered no conclusions as to why this was the case, evidence indicating that the ideology of austerity costs lives, cannot be discounted.
In February, the Office for National Statistics announced homicidal knife crime was at the highest level for over 70 years. Despite harsher sentences for those carrying knifes, evidence from the College of Policing indicates that such penalties exacerbate rather than improve the situation.
The new year began with squabbling about Brexit and the expected impact on Northern Ireland. On the 20 January 2019 a bomb detonated in Londonderry, fortunately with no injuries. For those of us old enough to remember “The Troubles”, footage of the incident brings back many horrific memories. Nevertheless, discussions around Northern Ireland and Brexit continue throughout 2019 and into 2020, with little regard for the violence which has ensued in the past.
Many events have happened in 2019, as with every other year and what stays in the mind is an individual matter. I feel that my world has become more violent, or maybe I have just become more attuned to the violence around me. I make no apology for my adherence to pacifist ideology, but this perspective has been and no doubt, will continue to be challenged. I must consider whether there comes a time when ideology, values, philosophy, temerity and resilience, are little more than good old-fashioned stubbornness. Until that point of no return comes, I will stand my ground and for every violent action that occurs, I will try my best to work toward a better world, once in which equality, peace and social justice reign supreme.
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What Price Peace? The Belfast Agreement 20 years on
Image from January 2019: red white and blue curb stones demark this as a loyalist area in Belfast
Dr Helen Poole is Deputy Dean in the Faculty of Health and Society and Lead for University of Northampton’s Research Centre for the Reduction of Gun Crime, Trafficking and Terrorism
I recently had the privilege to join a Law Masters field trip to Northern Ireland. I had few pre-conceptions when I left, but I had come to understand the 1998 Belfast Agreement, often deemed to be under threat from BREXIT arrangements, was tenuous at best, regardless of the any deal or no deal situation with Europe. Indeed, our trip to Derry had to be cancelled due to a car bomb explosion a few days before, reported in some press to be motivated by BREXIT, but more likely designed to mark 100 years since the start of the Irish War of Independence.
What became clear after long discussions with representatives from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), an ex-political prisoner, and a member of the suspended Legislative Assembly at Stormont, is that Northern Ireland has been far from peaceful in the last 20 years, but the nature of the threat has changed. Furthermore, the risks of returning to the days of political conflict are dependent not only on whatever BREXIT brings, but also on the fact that there has been no effective Assembly in Northern Ireland for over 2 years, increasing the chances of a return to direct rule from Westminster. Furthermore, the complexity of the situation is considerable, with multiple groups active within discreet areas of Belfast and elsewhere in Northern Ireland.
There is much being discussed at the moment regarding the crime-terror nexus, the idea that criminals and terrorists cooperate, co-exist or perhaps adopt one another’s tactics in order to further their respective causes: financial gain and ideology respectively. However, it is perhaps more accurate to say that terrorists in Northern Ireland moved from organised criminal activity to support their ideological plight, a sort of necessary evil, to becoming predominately organised criminals using ideology to legitimise their activities, which include drug dealing, prostitution, money laundering, extortion, and the trafficking of fuel, tobacco, alcohol, drugs, people and firearms.
This loose alignment of organised criminals to distinct groups who were active in the conflict provides them with a legitimacy in communities, which enables them to continue with their activities largely unchallenged. Coupled with this, years of distrust of the Royal Ulster Constabulary, now replaced with the PSNI, means that those masquerading as para-militaries, are often the communities first port of call when they are experiencing difficulties. These groups provide not only protection through a form of policing largely comprised of violence and intimidation, but also act as a pseudo-Citizen’s Advice Bureau, coaching individuals on maximising their benefit awards for example. It is well-known that these groups exert their own form of justice, such as pre-arranged shootings, which has led the Government to release a media campaign in an attempt to tackle this. We have thus reached a situation where organised criminal groups are running some communities by a form of consent as a result of a perceived lack of any other legitimate authority to represent them.
Thoughts from the criminology team 