Climate protests in London

[whole diary]

[grahame]

From Christian Wolmar

There has been much debate about the rights and wrongs of the Extinction Rebellion demonstrations but Londoners seem united on one aspect: life without cars has made central London a far more pleasant place. As anyone who has been in Oxford Street or Whitehall over Easter has seen, the takeover of the streets has created a joyful atmosphere. Suggestions that this has meant lost business for local stores are not borne out by anecdotal evidence.

[TaplowGreen]

From Christian Wolmar

There has been much debate about the rights and wrongs of the Extinction Rebellion demonstrations but Londoners seem united on one aspect: life without cars has made central London a far more pleasant place. As anyone who has been in Oxford Street or Whitehall over Easter has seen, the takeover of the streets has created a joyful atmosphere. Suggestions that this has meant lost business for local stores are not borne out by anecdotal evidence.

"Borne out by anecdotal evidence" 😂😂😂😂😂

[Red Squirrel]

From Christian Wolmar

There has been much debate about the rights and wrongs of the Extinction Rebellion demonstrations but Londoners seem united on one aspect: life without cars has made central London a far more pleasant place. As anyone who has been in Oxford Street or Whitehall over Easter has seen, the takeover of the streets has created a joyful atmosphere. Suggestions that this has meant lost business for local stores are not borne out by anecdotal evidence.

"Borne out by anecdotal evidence" 😂😂😂😂😂

Perhaps XR^▸ (Crossrail) missed a trick by failing to commission a properly-conducted scientific study into the commercial impact of their protest?

Although this doesn't quite apply to Oxford Street, where diesel buses and taxis manage to make it a grim place without the benefit of other motor vehicles, real evidence suggests that owners of retail businesses over-estimate, by up to 100%, the number of customers coming to them by car: See https://www.citylab.com/solutions/2015/03/the-complete-business-case-for-converting-street-parking-into-bike-lanes/387595/

I'm old enough to remember the uproar when Broadmead, Bristol was pedestianised... it'll be the end for all of us! howled the shopkeepers.

[Lee]

Six charged with obstructing the railway at Canary Wharf - http://media.btp.police.uk/r/16440/six_charged_with_obstructing_the_railway___canary

[Red Squirrel]

Interesting to note that the mean age of those charged is 55, with the eldest being 83 years old.

[TaplowGreen]

Interesting to note that the mean age of those charged is 55, with the eldest being 83 years old.

SAGA louts! 😂

[SandTEngineer]

Interesting to note that the mean age of those charged is 55, with the eldest being 83 years old.

SAGA louts! 😂

Please stop making posts like that when I'm having my tea.......

[eightonedee]

A retired British Transport Police Inspector I know expressed her admiration for their smart paperwork in picking the serious indictable offence to charge this group. After a career of having to deal with the aftermath of foolish people getting into places on the railway they should not have been in, resulting in some terrible tragic results I can understand why

[Bmblbzzz]

Two from Bristol, I note. And one from "Hamshire". <Insert pork joke here>

[Trowres]

Following all the outrage here on personal safety and disruption to daily life, I would welcome suggestions of how to achieve rather more change in direction than has been achieved in the last thirty years, without the disruption/danger.

The following is a useful reference for international / historical comparison of GHG^▸ (Greenhouse gas) emissions. (There is also loads of other interesting stuff on the same site).


https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-other-greenhouse-gas-emissions

[Red Squirrel]

Following all the outrage here on personal safety and disruption to daily life, I would welcome suggestions of how to achieve rather more change in direction than has been achieved in the last thirty years, without the disruption/danger.

The following is a useful reference for international / historical comparison of GHG^▸ (Greenhouse gas) emissions. (There is also loads of other interesting stuff on the same site).


https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-other-greenhouse-gas-emissions

There is a good argument that XR^▸ (Crossrail) should pick their targets with more care, and that their celebrity supporters should realise that they damage their cause by jetting around the world to 'star' in protests. Greta Thunberg, notably, came by train.

As my fellow Bristolian says in his latest piece at Marble Arch:

From this moment despair ends and tactics begin.

[johnneyw]

Following all the outrage here on personal safety and disruption to daily life, I would welcome suggestions of how to achieve rather more change in direction than has been achieved in the last thirty years, without the disruption/danger.

The following is a useful reference for international / historical comparison of GHG^▸ (Greenhouse gas) emissions. (There is also loads of other interesting stuff on the same site).


https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-other-greenhouse-gas-emissions

There is a good argument that XR^▸ (Crossrail) should pick their targets with more care, and that their celebrity supporters should realise that they damage their casue by jetting around the world to 'star' in protests. Greta Thunberg, notably, came by train.

As my fellow Bristolian says in his latest piece at Marble Arch:

From this moment despair ends and tactics begin.

The same line quoted, I think by another Bristol entity a few decades back on the cover of an L.P. by "The Pop Group".

[broadgage]

Following all the outrage here on personal safety and disruption to daily life, I would welcome suggestions of how to achieve rather more change in direction than has been achieved in the last thirty years, without the disruption/danger.

The following is a useful reference for international / historical comparison of GHG^▸ (Greenhouse gas) emissions. (There is also loads of other interesting stuff on the same site).


https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-other-greenhouse-gas-emissions

Here are a few peaceful suggestions.
Lobby, petition, and march in favour of more and larger wind farms.
Ditto in favour of changes to the building regulations to require new homes to be zero carbon.
Protest against any more oil and gas exploration.
Argue against any and all new construction of gas burning power plants.
Argue against all new road building.
And of course set a good example by not driving or flying, and by minimising use of fuel in the home.

And a few less peaceful but probably more effective actions.
Disrupt air travel by blocking roads to airports, leaving fake bombs in airports, drone flying.
Try to close down coal burning power stations by disrupting rail access thereto.
Publicly shame NIMBYs who argue against renewable energy infrastructure.
Publicly shame and blockade or disrupt energy wasting organisations.

[SandTEngineer]

You missed a bit...

Lobby, petition, and march in favour of more and larger wind farms (especially in the home counties)

[broadgage]

You missed a bit...

Lobby, petition, and march in favour of more and larger wind farms (especially in the home counties)

Anywhere with enough wind.