The news has been awash recently with the events in London surrounding the G2O summit. The anarchists, environmentalists, radicals, and those who merely want to voice an opinion, stormed the financial sector in the City of London, wreaking havoc. Windows have been smashed, banks vandalized, police officers assaulted, and a protester has died during this chaotic period. These scenes are reminiscent of other protests gone astray, namely in Seattle during the WTO summit in 1999. A movie was even made of those events.
I completely understand the right to voice an opinion, and a right to free speech, but when does all of this cross the line? We often view environmentalists as trying to do the right thing in order to protect our planet. But there are those radicals who use the platform of democracy as a means to act violently. What good do these people do? I would imagine these scenes that are viewed across the world damage the cause for which they are fighting for. Violence, whether in the form of protests gone wrong or acts of terrorism, do carry a message of some sort. Often this message has legitimacy, but the fabric of violence on which the message is carried tarnishes the very reason why they are doing it. The actions of a few infect the objective of many.
Even with these protests going on, the leaders of the countries in attendance at this summit persevere with their discussions. President Obama is in attendance, and experiences his first appearance on the international scene. By all accounts he is handling himself very well. We all hope that progress can be made on both security matters and the global economy. We plead that we have seen the worst pass us by. More jobs will be lost, but hopefully these losses will be for reasons of restructuring rather than panic. The stock market is bouncing back, and the housing market is strengthening on the back of low interest rates, stabilization in the banking sector, and increased confidence amongst buyers. Long may it continue…..
