Prediction: this police action will help turn the present generation of British into the least-law abiding ever:
New police powers to combat knife crime could cause increased antagonism amongst young people, the Children’s Commissioner for England has warned. Police officers can now search people for knives and guns without reasonable suspicion they may be carrying a weapon.
The increased hatred for the police doesn’t stem from gangster rap or Hollywood, it comes from the certain knowledge that the police are the enemy. Younger people tend to be much more clear on this reality than their elders; one has only to be around a few policemen speaking frankly to know that the police regard every “civilian” as the enemy, or at least, a potential enemy. If you treat someone like an enemy, you shouldn’t be surprised when they begin to regard you as one in return.
It is, of course, predictably ironic that the total gun bans enacted in the last decade haven’t exactly reduced the amount of lethal violence being committed in Britain. Perhaps importing a few more folks from the Third World will help the situation….