Nice bit of sky one daily mail action today.  *lightning flashes* HOODIES!!!! *thunder crashes*

Piers Morgan, a man who I took it upon myself to loathe, has taken his latest foray into television; confronting the young monsters that strike terror into the hearts of middle class Britons everywhere.  They convalesce in gangs, they smoke, they mark their territory with spraycans or more often by the collection of dried spit that denotes the bus stops and street corners that belong to their territory.

Watching this show is hard work, it is actually trying to even out the arguments, but the lazy-viewer-terror exploitation is still there, the kids in ‘hoodies’ were just related to the ringwraiths from Lord of the Rings, and we have a number of minor celebrities commenting about them who couldn’t be more detatched from the ‘street’ (well known hipster Vanessa Felps)

Another choice moment involved a fourteen year old offender that exemplified the problem.  As they arrived to interview him and his single mother, a farmer with his van was just leaving.  He informed Piers that he was collecting the quad bike and dog that the lad had just stolen. 

When the interview began Piers brought it up to the quiet young criminal.

“why did you take the quad?"

“don’t know”

In fact he answered with that teenage clarion call a number of times.  When piers came upon the fact he’s not the most cheerful of lads he mentions the family problem that can’t be gone into in detail for personal reasons, after that, all defiance leaves him and he tries to hide his face – sadly he’s not allowed to hide his tears with a hoodie, its rule number seven on his ASBO.

I’m not pouring out pity for the little shit, he just stole a quad and a f#cking puppy, but it highlights the upbringing problem.  Broken homes, single parent families’ blah blah.  But then, discounting it simply because you’re sick of hearing about it, in turn makes you much like the parents of such ‘trouble teens’, who will often state their own mantra “*sigh* I’ve given up on him now”. I’m not going to feel sorry for your plight luv, you’re selfish and a pitiful parent if you’re willing to give up on your child.

The whole thing is almost ridiculous.  I say almost because some of the arguments are valid – they do hide their faces to commit crimes – but to use it in terms of seeing a gang of youths in hoodies is intimidating is blinkered, any group of youths behaving in the right manner are intimidating.  To use the hoodie as a focal point is a pointless distraction.  Kids have always dressed alike in their desperate attempt to obtain some identity and be accepted, mods to rockers to teddy boys to Goths and on and on.

Related to the fuss created when the police chief said that a large majority of crimes commited were commited by black men.  The anti-racism supporters were furious – but the statistics they run on were fact.  The problem is, the anti-racism campaigners point was valid because the statement was like saying that the crime is down to the colour rather than the person.  Keeping that in mind the reason I say it is ridiculous is because the government’s drive to ban the hoodie is much like trying to ban black men.  It’s the person not the clothing, same as it’s the person not the skin.

The government’s drive also shows up its own laziness, highlighting this middle-class terror-fuelled tabloid fodder, simply to hide behind it without actually doing anything about the problem of crime by the young.  A potential mugger stripped of a hoodie is one less likely to ‘mug’ due to not being able to use his hood to cover his face – but what about what is driving him to the crime, if he needs the money that much will not having a hood really stop him?  That point is one of validity, it is of some use to the aspiring criminal to be able to cover youre face from cameras, but with more money going into CCTV therell be more angles to catch faces on. Or instead of funding ASBO’s perhaps increase police, or at least – and more importantly – halt the decline of their powers to deal with a knife wielding thief simply because if s/he lays a hand on him/her said policeman will be sued and ruined.  One old woman who has been ‘terrorized’ by hoodies mentioned that “… they have nothing better to do.”  Shes quite right, more facilities are needed.  Of course thered still be problems, down to parents to peer groups to media to role models to the actual person – there’s no real direct answer, but of all the things to highlight on, one item of clothing is one of the weakest possible subjects to raise. Well done government.

One of these ‘terrifying’ young men stated my conclusion in its most concise form.

“its just a sweater”