We are becoming increasingly aware of the extent to which the UK Press is keen to reinforce the notion that all protestors are somehow evil, unwashed and anti-societal. That of course, would be our view of those who seek to desecrate the landscape, bribe politicians and poison the water but hey, ho.
Compare if you will, two recent images from 'respectable' daily newspapers..............
No sign of the hundreds of respectable, middle class citizens living right in Balcombe and surrounding villages there then?
Ah, here they are......................
But then that photo appeared only a couple of times before the continuing deluge of hippy/traveller/Swampy type shots. Could it be that the British are now so used to imagining that ' there's nothing you can do about 'it'' or is it just that Middle England has become so intimidated by heavy handed police tactics ( and what is their presence costing the taxpayer we hear you cry! ) and notions of 'respectability' that they are frozen in the headlights?
Compare and contrast if you will the situation en France where legitimate protest ( albeit policed but in an entirely different way ) is seen entirely differently - cross party, cross class (!), all-age. Here we see Maires in the Ardeche pictured when 20,000 marched against the (then) very real threat of fracking, proudly wearing their sashes of office.........................
Two cultures indeed.
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