Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
The Hell that is Wood Green
Yesterday, I had the misfortune to find myself in the shopping mall. Walking out the big automatic doors and into the crowd of Star Wars pub extras who were smoking, spitting and squabbling on the footpath I witnessed what for me sums up the whole carbuncle on the arse of Haringey that is Wood Green High Road. One of the characters stormed through the crowd with his status dog in tow. I was reflecting on the fact that ‘status’ dogs don't seem to work (as the people who have them only ever seem to be what everyone else in society would consider low status). Everything suddenly went quiet except the ever present sirens. The status dog had stopped and released its copious bowels all over the footpath. It was like turning on the light in an HMO; the cockroaches screamed and scattered. The dog owner laughed and walked on. It was probably one of the most disgusting things I have seen or smelt in London. Eventually the crowd returned and watched the next horde trample the mess up and down the road. There was no-one to turn to, no-one to clean up and more importantly no-one with the authority to challenge and/or shoot the dog owner. Things just returned to normal.
The whole experience made me think how the council, local police and traders believe that we're all animals if they are happy for us to have to deal with this every time we go to the High Road. It's easy enough for me to hop on a bus and head off to Crouch End or Islington or even Enfield to shop but if you're older or disabled and have trouble getting around or not enough money for the bus it must be pretty grim to face it every day. Imagine how the standard little old lady dreads heading out into the crowds, litter, phlegm, smoke and anti-social behaviour of Wood Green every morning to get the milk.
Short of manning water cannons at each end of the High Road and employing some mercenaries with batons to control the crowds, I don’t know what can be done. Are there any clever ‘nudges’ or interventions that could improve Wood Green? Is it a matter of tarting the place up and hoping that the crowds respect their new surroundings? Is it signage to remind, and in many instances educate, people that spitting, littering and barging into other people is just not the done thing? Or do we just give up, bulldoze the lot and install a waterhole in the middle and let the law of the jungle and the status dog owners prevail?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by doug on
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Yes, those same two boys with their sponsor forms were outside Waitrose in Crouch End yesterday. Your point is????
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Permalink Reply by L F T Snowflake on
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Simple, why is it that one of the busiest High Streets in north London cannot justify a two or three coppers or PSCO's on permanent patrol up and down?
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Oh, I see! What would you hope the police would do about Holy Joe and his angels...?
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Cart em off to St Annes and don't just throw the key away, but melt it down.
If anyone else were to stand up there and come out with the stuff he does, they would be arrested. But there he is spouting stuff that would make Nick Griffin blush, but because its done in the name of religion, they can get away with it.
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Good point. Free speech is very, very wrong. Surely burning at the stake would be a far more appropriate measure?
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OK, then, shall I email Nick Griffin and ask him to bring his soap box along next week? What about a recruiting stall for Combat 88? We could also perhaps get a team to film an X rated movie in the street too, because some would argue that's a form of free speech.
I don't know if you have read On Liberty by Mill, probably one of my favourite books of all time. The liberty principle espoused by him is that the only valid reason for interfering in the life of a person is to prevent harm to others.
Now, Holy Joe and his Angels regularly spout stuff that if you followed it, would lead to great harm to gays, women and people of other religions and none. Therefore, it is not 'free' speech. It is hate speech. Hate speech is illegal in this country.
It is also utter rubbish - and I might add, rubbish that when you challenge them - which I have done several times - they cannot justify their belief in.
Now if someone wants to believe the moon is made of green cheese - thats fine. But I don't see why they should be allowed to disturb the peace of WG HS every week.
If their opinions are that good - and religious belief is only that - they don't need to shout about it, because it will be so self evidently true that every one will believe it. But of course, they lack confidence, which is why WG HS has to put up with them week in and week out.
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If Holy Joe, as you refer to him, is the same elderly guy that I regularly see shouting outside the library, then it is clear that he has ' issues', which maybe, as you suggest St Anne's can help with. Throw away the key and melt it down?? Is that really any less offensive than what Holy Joe comes up with???
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I have no sympathy for a man who ultimately, wants to kill me.
When he stops wanting to kill me, then I will change my mind.
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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Passing the church at the end of my road always gives me the heebie jeebies as they want to kill me too. And they don't pay Council Tax.
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Calm down, Pamish, no need for heebie jeebies when passing your neighbours. They only want "to share the unspeakable love of salvation" - so clearly they're not going to spout or even whisper as they kill you quietly. All unutterably ineffable, don't you see? (though some might say the opposite.)
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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Yep. And in Oxford Street you can usually find a small crowd watching someone "play" i.e. betting on "Find the Lady" ("Three Card Monte"); or the "Shell Game" or some variant. Do they know it's a con? Do they realise there are shills and maybe a pickpocket or two? Or that there are references to such card games going back to the 14th and 15th centuries after playing cards became widely popular.
So let's demand the demolition of Oxford Street and move on all those awful people who walk up and down and hang around there.
And while we're at it, why not dig up and ceremonially demolish the 14th and 15th Centuries? As we know from TV history programmes they were terrible shit-holes. Even inside Royal Palaces.
As for "Giving it large in the Name of the Lord" in the street !#*@*! Truly shocking eh? And yet another reason to demolish Oxford Street - 14 seconds of video in 2008.
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I've never said demolish it - but it needs to be sorted. According to The Manifesto Club, there is suppose to be a leafleting ban along the entire length of Haringey's bit of Green Lanes, but of course, religious groups are exempt.
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