 Re: Knife crime
the media attention mirrors that given to the suicides in the brigend county borough - it simply reflected the "ooooh" factor within society rather than the severity of what is really happening.
as for the sentencing, lets be fair here - its not just a knife that can cause injury. Again, I'll draw a similarity with the previous emphasis placed on phoning and driving. Yes its dangerous, but rather than focussing on safer driving practices, they singled out a solitary meida-driven factor and pushed legislation forward to (attempt to) gain positive media attention. Knives kill. So do guns. So do a million other things including fists. Will we remove fists once fighting breaks out? Perhaps this argument is a little petty but surely those who actually use a knife to harm or attempt to harm another individual should be heavily punished*?
* knife carrying is generally borne out of the need to protect oneself - this can be applied to people with violent partners, those being stalked etc etc - whilst the media image is that of gangs, its not the whole picture. Whether its growing in gang culture, we'll have to rely on individual opinions from the police as the media and the politicians certainly are not going to give an answer that you can trust. |