Xinomorph

After a series of black-on-black shootings in South London over the past couple of weeks, a large discussion has raised about how to tackle the situation, and of course good ol' Tony has jumped up with his not-at-all-reactionary announcement that the current 21 age lower-limit on mandatory 5-year sentences for carrying a gun will now be lowered to 17. But the man is an utter fool if he honestly thinks that it will make a blind bit of difference. For a start, most of these recent murder victims were under 17!

But that really doesn't touch on the truth. The simple fact is that these people do not fear arrest. They don't care if they get put in prison. Quite the opposite in fact. They live on shitty council estates, barely being able to afford to feed themselves in some cases I would bet, with nothing to do but go out and get involved in this kind of behaviour. But what do they get in prison? Sky TV. Hot, regular, nutritious meals. Training programmes. Access to gyms and sports equipment. Health services. And let's face it - it's not hard to get drugs in.

THAT is the real problem. These people have no respect for society, authority, or the police, and rather than being deterred by the thought of a prison sentence, life is so much easier inside that they aren't at all discouraged. And even if anyone doesn't "buy" that, it's not seen as something to be ashamed of or regret. It's an honour to them.

And that, my friends, is the real problem.