Who'll stop the rain?

After weeks of really hot sunshine it rained this weekend aand there was hail in June. In fact, just along the road the hail had accumulated and looked exactly like some snow that might have been there since January. Clearly, that spot must have its own minute climate as it was many hours later when I had ventured out after the storm had subsided.

With a bit of luck this might have put off some of the people planning to join a protest march in whatever town or city the marxist agitators had arranged as the place to chuck things at police, knock out some windows and generally frighten residents nearby. Whilst there are, of course, many people who genuinely wish to make a point, hold up a placard, get some attention for whatever it is they think needs to be fixed this week, or still hasn't been fixed to their liking since last week, month, year or, in most cases ever, there are forces at work within society that aim to maximise the impact of these events. Violence erupts and property gets damaged. Often just a small group of organisers can be most effective. They start by working on social media to get people worked up and usually succeed in concentrating marches or gatherings in a particular place for maximum effect. There they excite those who can be excited and swell their own numbers so that when the nasty stuff starts later there are many more getting involved who had no intention at the outset of doing much more than moaning for a while. 

The object of the exercise is seldom of any relevance to the cause declared on the placards. 

In a matter of a week or so we have seen journalists shouting and pushing and shoving as they try to interview a government adviser who they had been told had broken the lockdown rules. Oddly, it was perfectly OK, it seems, for them to do so as well. But they were hardly likely to dob each other in, were they? And anyway, it was all on TV and whatever the cries of foul that viewers might utter at home, they wouldn't be heard. Then we see thousands of people gathering and definitely not keeping either to groups of 6 or even anywhere near a safe distance from each other as they did their demonstrations and moaning in various cities this weekend.

Yes, indeed, one rule for us, one rule for them.