There is much to learn about the practice of policing from the example of the French authorities’ “management” of the Champions League final (“Uefa, the police, French ministers... all peddled gross lies. Only fans prevented disaster”, Comment.) There is more to learn from watching The Monopoly of Violence (Un pays qui se tient sage), an award-winning film by David Dufresne that makes extensive use of amateur footage taken during anti-government yellow vest protests highlighting the role of citizen journalists in documenting events while inviting us to reflect on policing in modern democracies.
The rise of the yellow vest movement and the regular protests was a turning point, says Dufresne, when “suddenly we realised that police violence was systemic”, not just “a series of unfortunate blunders”. Add to this the image of a young woman forced to the ground by Metropolitan police officers, on her stomach, hands pinned behind her back, a policeman’s boot inches from her face – arrested for participating in a peaceful vigil for a young woman murdered by a Met officer. So we know we are not being policed by consent, not in France or the UK.
Judy Seymour
London NE2
Ronan Evain rightly says that “the events that unfolded in the hours before the game and late into Saturday night in the surroundings of the Stade de France originate in the twisted relationship that France as a country has with football fans”, (Sport). However, the chaos came less than a year after the more terrifying outbreak of anarchy at last season’s Wembley Euro 2020 final. I’m a huge football fan but would think twice before going to a major final; I certainly would be wary of bringing children. How much longer can Uefa hope to convince the public that these expensive finals are even well-organised and safe enough for ordinary adult fans to attend, never mind bring their families?
Joe McCarthy
Dublin
Stop appeasing Putin
Simon Tisdall’s analysis of the west’s response to Russia hits the nail on the head (“Timid Biden condemns Ukrainians to an agonising war without end”, Foreign affairs commentary). If Putin is not driven out of Ukraine entirely then it will give the signal to aspiring tyrants around the world that they can act with impunity. We know the consequences of appeasement in the 1930s. Have we learned nothing?
Chris Waller
Bristol
I’m rich. But am I deserving?
I’ve just read the article on wealth and guilt (‘Would you give away your fortune”, Magazine). I empathised with the “Stephen” who is quoted. I too am a millennial who grew up with considerable inherited wealth, and spent years wracked with guilt and self-loathing over the fact that I hadn’t done anything to “deserve” it. It took me far too long to accept that having unearned money didn’t make me evil. Even so, I didn’t feel a sense of self-esteem until after university, when I got my first job and earned my first pay cheque. I’ve never needed to work, but long felt my life lacked worth or meaning without it.
The real problem is not just economic inequality but with a system that tells people their moral worth is linked to the work they do and the money they earn; when in reality the distribution of most of the world’s money is entirely random and arbitrary. Nobody, whether rich or poor, “deserves” their position in life; we all just got lucky or unlucky. Once we’ve accepted that about the world, we can start trying to change it.
Name and address supplied
Substance before style
Defining a problem, and Will Hutton and Hillary Clinton between them do that well, is only the first step towards finding a solution (“Hillary Clinton is right: the age of the showman leader has damaged politics”, Comment). “Performative politics” has always been with us. That we want to be entertained while also being well governed is nothing new. What has changed, as Clinton points out, is the degree of our vulnerability to manipulation.
We have to come to terms with the fact that entertainment and effective government do not make good bedfellows. We need to remind ourselves that our past indulgences with “entertaining” politicians have usually ended badly. Of course we want our leaders to display charisma, but we should ask ourselves whether there is substance behind the facade. We could do no better than to start the process by giving Sir Keir Starmer a chance.
Roderick Reynolds
Livernon, France
Diacritical difficulties
Turkey’s name change to Türkiye (Editorial) is surely destined to go the same way as the Czech Republic’s to Czechia. One does not need to be a professional translator like myself to know that every language has its own names for geographical entities: Londres, anyone? In the case of Türkiye, the diacritic on the “u” is likely to prove a particular obstacle to getting it right in a language such as English in which such marks are virtually unknown.
Will Erdoğan break off diplomatic relations with countries that continue to call his nation Turquie, Türkei, Turquía or Turchia? And, as Brexit Britain seeks to return to imperial measurements, will we summon to the Foreign Office the ambassadors of countries that persist in calling us le Royaume-Uni or das Vereinigte Königreich?
Philip Slotkin
London NW3
Every cloud…
Cardiff’s problem with dog poo (“Another fine mess”, Magazine) reduced dramatically some years ago when the council issued every household with a food waste caddy. The council was not pleased that the small biodegradable liners were being “misused” by dog owners, but it’s left most of the streets and parks much cleaner.
Liz Haigh
Cardiff
Give Charles a break
I am by no means a fanatical monarchist but I found Nick Cohen’s article on Prince Charles distasteful (“Unlike the Queen, King Charles will have no sense of caution, only of entitlement”, Comment).
In view of the fact that we are stuck with Charles as the next monarch, perhaps Cohen should take heart from the example of Edward VII. He too had a long wait to succeed his mother and had got into serious trouble with a number of scandals and attracted adverse press, parental and popular criticism. His private life could best be described as colourful.
When he came to the throne, expectations were low and the start of his reign was interrupted by life threatening illness. Nevertheless, he rapidly became popular and successful, quickly escaping from the very long shadow of his mother and putting his own mark on the first decade of the 20th century.
John Hurdley
Birmingham
To be, or not to be?
There are three Antony Gormley rooftop sculptures in Peterborough collectively entitled Places To Be. Given Gormley’s decision to apply for a German passport (“‘Tragedy’ of Brexit drives Gormley to apply for a German passport”, News), perhaps Places Not To Be would now be more appropriate.
Toby Wood
Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
