Local security expert comparing UK riots to US situation
Calls high unemployment and angry, idle young people a volatile mix
Tamara Slobogean Aug 11, 2011 06:47:13 AM
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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - While Britain continues to come to grips with four nights of rioting, a local expert says the next powderkeg is south of the border.
SFU's Andre Gerolymatos is a history prof who specializes in security studies. He believes there are some striking similarities between the UK and the US. He tells us the focus in the States has been on the debt ceiling and the conflict within Congress, but argues there's a fundamental problem:
"Too many idle people, desperate people, in the streets. Put enough desperation in that pressure... something's going to explode."
"The reason these kids are in the street is because they're idle," he continues. "They're not working, they're not in school... they have nothing to do, and they're facing a very grim future."
Gerolymatos believes what's going on in the UK is the kind of snapshot of what's going on south of our border. He explains the American people share Britain's frustrations; promised jobs have moved to a more competitive market in Asia.
He says if unemployment continues to rise, young people who grew up with the promise of good jobs will react and, he warns, it will get violent |
發表於 2011-8-11 07:15
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