Mock muggings should be staged across the UK to test the public's willingness to aid victims and report crimes, a charity has said.Well, this seems like a pretty stupid idea. One that could only be suggested by a group angling for publicity, surely?
Well, what do you know?
Witness Confident, which is launching on Wednesday…It seems they aren’t a fakecharity either (comments here), which came as a bit of a surprise, but are instead a newly-set-up part of the Nuffield Foundation.
Or, as CF accurately pegs it, 'another nannying group of cretins'...
So, what’s their goal?
The group Witness Confident says it wants to challenge a "walk-on-by" culture to street crime.Hmm, they want to encourage crimefighting by civilians and run blogs and forums?
It says the disengagement of the criminal justice systems makes it harder for communities to fight crime.
The group also wants to run an online social network so people can map crimes to help witnesses come forward.
Sounds like they aren’t sure if they need a sewer-system hideout or a glossy 10th floor office HQ…
Guy Dehn, head of the charity, said it had come up with a dozen ways that people could quickly make a difference.So, the police are supporting this, are they? They plan to be on standby when Guy’s Performance Artistes are re-enacting the worst parts of ‘Clockwork Orange’ on the streets of Tooting to see how the public react?
These include faking incidents in broad daylight to see how people react.
"Mock muggings can be a way of working with the police to test public reaction," said Mr Dehn.
Just to make sure nothing goes wrong, and no-one gets their inner Paul Kersey on with unfortunate consequences…?
"Don't be a have-a-go-hero unless you really know what you are doing. But if you are there and can take a photo safely, then that can make the difference."How many people ‘really know what they are doing’ anyway?
It seems the goal of this strange new charity is to increase the crime rate by increasing the reported offences, which won’t go down well with the authorities, you’d think:
Mr Dehn criticised changes in the way police can be contacted, including a move away from using boards on streets calling on witnesses to specific crimes to come forward.And it’ll all be sunshine and kittens?
"It's a time consuming and laborious process to report a crime. We need to take all the hassle out of it for the public.
"And by doing that, we make it more likely that people will engage and that means that there will be less crime because people will get caught."
Sorry, Guy, but unless there’s some realistic chances of getting sent down and staying there, catching criminals is only part of the story…
6 comments:
This isn't Guy Dehn's first charity outing. By all accounts he was involved in the set up of Public Concern at Work (1025557) - a charity that encouraged whistleblowers - so at least he's consistent in his message even if you disagree with his methods (and, quite frankly, mocking muggings is dubious).
I think it's laudable that someone used DP's kit so quickly and to such effect .. .. ..
"if you are there and can take a photo safely"
Oh, brilliant.
Let's hope those photographs don't happen to have the standby secret plods in the background, otherwise guess what? Yes, you're nicked.
And if you do "have a go", expect the same thing to happen.
Don't they realise the reason people "walk on by" is that if you try to be a good citizen all you get is "leave it to the professionals" and possibly a charge of assault?
Joined-up propaganda, is it?
We really need to strangle this "only government funded charities are fake charities" meme in the bud. Government funding is only part of the progressivist web. Most of the funding comes from foundations etc- as with Nuffield, the infamous Rowntree Foundation and so on.
It's "fake" when it's lobbying rather than handing soup to tramps, which is virtually every charity in the anglosphere. It's "fake" when it does "advocacy", rather than, er, charity work. Regardless of the funding.
Rowntree for instance proudly boast on their website how they acted as a pressure group incubator in the crucial 1970s.
The error in the "fake charities" narrative as it is developing is an entirely mistaken belief that the state are creating charities, NGOs etc to do their bidding. This is a cart/horse inversion error. The charities/NGOs are the horse, not the government. The government is their bitch. Or, er, cart. Kind of thing.
Boycott fruit pastilles.
Anyway, it's ridiculous to blame people for not getting involved when the state has deliberately disarmed us and told us not to try to even defend ourselves, let alone anyone else, but to leave it to the "professionals".
Nowadays, people know damned well that if they get involved and dare to harm some mugger or rapist, they'll be the ones to suffer the full force of the law against them.
"..a charity that encouraged whistleblowers - so at least he's consistent in his message.."
That seems an even odder raison d'etre for a charity, actually...
"I think it's laudable that someone used DP's kit so quickly and to such effect..."
Heh! Indeed...
"Let's hope those photographs don't happen to have the standby secret plods in the background, otherwise guess what? Yes, you're nicked."
Good point.
And fat chance of a picture if it's me. By the time I've found the camera app, figured out how to use the camera app, and saved a photo, all I'll have in the frame is a bleeding victim.
"It's "fake" when it does "advocacy", rather than, er, charity work. Regardless of the funding."
Yes, agreed. None of the most recent new charities would be recognised as such by the Victorians, who were very big on philanthropy.
"Nowadays, people know damned well that if they get involved and dare to harm some mugger or rapist, they'll be the ones to suffer the full force of the law against them."
And sadly, I think there's no putting that genie back in the bottle...
"Sounds like they aren’t sure if they need a sewer-system hideout or a glossy 10th floor office HQ…"
To quote a friend, 'heh.'
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