London Falling?

[Modbert]

What do the tuition riots mean for Britain's coalition government? - By Alistair Burnett | Foreign Policy

Were last week's tuition riots a flash in the pan or a sign of things to come for Britain's fragile coalition government?

But now it seems that English students are, perhaps, the first group of people in Britain who have realized the personal cost of their government's economic policies.

Then there's the stress to the government itself. The Liberal Democrat Party, the junior partner in the coalition with the Conservative Party, which had gone into last May's general election promising to abolish all university tuition fees, split down the middle in the vote in parliament as more than half its MPs voted against the measure, while some abstained -- which in a political system that puts great store in party loyalty is no small matter.

The main questions facing British politics are whether there will be more violent protests against the government's austerity measures, and whether the Liberal Democrats hold together and keep the coalition in power until its mandate runs out in 2015.

In other words, was this a spasm of protest or the shape of things to come for the coalition?

While this was the third recent protest against tuition increases, the level of anger and the fact it is students in the vanguard of protest against public spending cuts has surprised most commentators here. For many years, the conventional wisdom has been that today's British students had abandoned the political activism of their parents' generation, and were focused on getting good grades so they could get high paying jobs; some even dubbed them 'Thatcher's children'.

But that stereotype has now taken a severe knock.

The government's plan to allow universities from 2012 on to charge up to £9,000 (about $14,000) a year for tuition, which is three times the current amount, means that all but the wealthiest students will now have to borrow much more to fund their degrees. The prospect of amassing much higher debt combined with the prospect of fewer well-paid jobs in a struggling economy has brought students back to the streets, evoking memories of student protests from the late 1960s.

Clegg will point to the fact the coalition survived its first big test because the education legislation was passed. He also argues the new fees will be fairer than they would have been had either the Conservatives or Labour been governing alone, since the Liberal Democrats had insisted on special measures to help students from poorer families.

The problem for Clegg is that his critics in the party have not accepted the vote as the end of the matter. Senior figures are now arguing that the left of the party should reach out to the opposition Labour party to join forces on specific issues to oppose government legislation they disagree with. The polls don't help Nick Clegg either, as they suggest support for the party has fallen by more than a third since the May election.

Interesting article about not only the current tuition protests going on in London but the different parties in the government reaction to this problem.

 

[random3434]

If they raised our tuition here 3 X what we pay now I'd be rioting too.

 

[Modbert]

If they raised our tuition here 3 X what we pay now I'd be rioting too.

I'll say. I can't imagine how bad the dropout rate would be if they suddenly raised the tuition rates by 3X. They're lucky enough over there at the very least that it was a smaller amount beforehand.

 

[Ozmar]

They say civilization is only one meal away from anarchy...

 

[Revere]

Dependence is not civilization.

 

[Ozmar]

Dependence is not civilization.

Shut the fuck up. Civilization takes a backburner to basic needs being met.

Go put that cock-shaped pacifier in your mouth and let the adults debate.