Battleangel

One could of course argue that things have never been quite alright with Britain, being tainted by its imperialistic, violent past, Puritan-Victorian values and whatnot. But they still manage to surprise, and together with the U.S. and a select few unsavory nations, they continue to cheerlead the erosion of civil liberties — and indeed reason itself. Effectively selling all of us short.

Beer fingerprints to go UK-wide - Apparently, the fingerprint scheme that was tested is now ready for a nation-wide implementation. Apparently, drinking yobs and anti-social behavior remain the chief sources of crime in the UK today. The test case remains more than a little shaky …

Bradburn could not say if fingerprint security in Yeovil had displaced crime to neighbouring towns, but she noted that domestic violence had risen in Yeovil. She could not give more details until the publication of national crime statistics to coincide with the anniversary of lax pub licensing laws on 24 November.

She was, however, able to say that alcohol-related crime had reduced by 48 per cent Yeovil between February and September 2006.

Oh, and they are also coerced into taking the fingerprint system. New licences stipulate that a landlord who doesn’t install fingerprint security and fails to show a “considerable” reduction in alcohol-related violence, will be put on report by the police and have their licences revoked.

Offenders can be banned from one pub or all of them for a specified time - usually a period of months - by a committee of landlords and police called Pub Watch. Their offences are recorded against their names in the fingerprint system. Bradburn noted the system had a “psychological effect” on offenders.

School expels five-year-old girl - Another yob nipped in the bud, or so the UK system would have us believe. With the care and consideration displayed in this example, it’s no wonder that kids grow up feeling detached from society.

A five-year-old girl has been expelled from a school in Greater Manchester for allegedly attacking staff and a pupil.

Tamara Howard, who only started school in January, is believed to be the youngest child to be permanently excluded from classes in the city.

It does take much effort to consider the possibility that this disruptive behavior is cultivated as a relatively safe way to maintain the stranglehold of the system. Some would argue, as with actual crime, that we have in our power to minimize the problem but that the “getting tough on crime” stance is a miracle drug for politicians and the state itself and hence unlikely to receive genuine attention.