More on the Riots

Everyone is talking about the riots so why not me?

This is the time for all reasonable politicians to unite to agree a solution. They all have an opinion and most of these opinions range from pure criminality, to the breakdown of the family, to social liberalism, to poverty and poor education. All of these no doubt are part of the mix within the problem and part of the mix in the solution. We need action this time not just platitudes to find a a resolution. The police and the justice system may find it increasingly difficult to keep order on the streets if we do not find an answer. We should consider the fact that the increasing economic downturn will make life even more difficult for all of us including those who feel that they have to turn to looting to obtain the things in life that they desire. Effective action will require the investment of money, resources and commitment to reverse the the social ills that have been a decades in the making and have been simmering to boiling point.

Another factor that should be taken into account is economic liberalism and the influence of advertising. In many respects economic liberalism has been a good thing and it has enabled our society in general to obtain the desirable things of life. A house, its furniture, a car and all sorts of electronic goods including portable 'phones and computers have been ,up until now, easily affordable for most of the people in our society. Economic liberalism has also allowed us to make fashion statements by the provision of cheap and often throw away clothing. We can also afford cheap wine and alcohol and afford foreign holidays and party time. All of the good things in life have been fuelled by an economic boom created by economic liberalism , which in turn has been encouraged by advertising. The markets had never had it so good up until about 2007.

There are four classses of people who are participating in the market:

the rich who can afford what they want and when they want,

the middle and working classes who save for what they want.

the middle and working classes who have participated in the boom by dint of credit - this forms the overwhelmingly largest part of the market,

the poor whether they are working or not who cannot afford anything more than a life of subsistence.

To really get the economic boom going the market requires advertising to persuade the middle and working classes to part with their cash - usually on credit. All sorts of mechanisms are devised and no one f is immune to parting with their cash by many types of persuasion. This includes me, one of the biggest sceptics of all- how many times have I gone into a supermarket to buy just one item but have come out with ten. Why did I have to buy a gadget that will charge my 'phone and other devices from a portable sun panel? I have never used it.

Advertising has a powerful effect; now it is everywhere on the television, on a hoarding, on the radio, in the newspaper and on the Internet and you simply cannot avoid it. Of course, adverts are useful to let you know where and when products are available. But, what if they are used to promote a glamorous or dangerous life style, which appears to be cost free especially if it is obtained on credit? What if celebrities such as footballers are promoting fashion wear in the accompaniment of gangsters? What influence does this have on young people? What happens when our media and television broadcasts promote a free and easy life style of showing off the latest fashion, electronic gadgets, HD and 3DTV etc. ? Perhaps all this consumption is OK if you can't afford it but what happens if you cannot? What happens if the good things of life are constantly being pushed in your face and tempt you. Surely it means debts for the middle classes, sometimes crippling debts, on credit cards? The enormous private debt mountain has caused as much problem for our economy as public debt. We now face a seriously damaged economy caused by excessive credit; one which will affect the middle classes and poor alike.

For the poor, all the advertising and promotion means something different; sometimes it means depriving their children of consumer goods which everyone believes are essential for the good life or resorting to the "loan shark". This is not a good position for a poor family to cope with. Most poor families succeed in bringing up their children not to rob or steal. Some do not and their children end up stealing what they cannot get by legal means. Economic poverty exacerbated by social poverty and poor education creates the problems seen on the streets. Some people cannot see through the purpose of advertising and the tricks that are played on them to obtain more and more goods.

We need something more than just punishment to get delinquent youngsters back on the straight and narrow . We need incentives, like a job, so that they can pay for the things they have been persuaded or tempted to possess. We need to allow them to get their self respect back.

Advertising is poorly regulated in the western economies perhaps the best control would be for each advertisement to be compelled to show, prominently, the real price of their products and not to pretend that it is easy to go into a shop and walk away with a product by snapping your fingers.

There have been very few experiments that have been or can be conducted to prove what effect the the media and advertising have on the community. In 1999 Bhutan became the last nation in the world to allow television to be watched. Cable television was introduced with 47 channels. Within 3 years there was a crime wave. A stable and relatively crime free nation was transformed. Serious law breaking had broken out and many elements in the community turned to excessive alcohol consumption and drug use. It was probably not the television itself but the content of the 47 channels of MTV, crime movies, lifestyle programmes, celebrity culture and adverts promoting the good life which cast their spell on a naive population - perhaps it has done the same to us.