Day-X: Ignorance is Bliss

As well as a second demonstration in London against tuition fees and “savage cuts”, we at Southampton have the pleasure of a demonstration on our own campus.


Tommorow is Day X, RUN FOR YOUR LIVES.

As well as a second demonstration in London against tuition fees and “savage cuts”, we at Southampton have the pleasure of a demonstration on our own campus.

Now I believe in freedom of speech and I am proud to see that the union did not meddle with the protest, furthermore to see students being politically active. However, we must ask the question “where is this going?”. It was evident from the last protest how easy it is to be influenced into being a part of something you don’t intend to be. Students were sucked into the action in Millbank tower without fully realising what they were doing. The aftermath of which seemed to be a wide variety of opinions on why people went, what they wanted to achieve and how much they even understood of the situation.

The UK’s the debt is too high, the spending deficit is too large and, and the UK would be playing with very hot fire if it comes to defaulting on its loans next year. Not cutting spending would create a mess far worse than diarrhoea on your wedding day, and to increase taxes further would push the UK further past peak tax income resulting in further economic uncertainty.

Day by day, as this progresses I feel like a prisoner shouting from the bars of my cell “what is going on out there!”

Thousands of students gathered at Millbank tower 2 weeks ago

A quick look at the demonstrations’ Facebook event and it’s already clear that non-Southampton activists are attending. Posts such as “anyone know where the nearest car park is?” and “where’s the university building from the station?” are written on the event wall, and are clear evidence of this.

Not suggesting that they will cause trouble, but then again did anyone expect the other non-student activists to smash in the windows of property that did not belong to them?

I will be there tomorrow, watching from afar to see what happens. I actually look forward to getting an insight on what people’s ideas and understandings of the situation are.