Mountain Climber
Well-known member
Went into Middlesbrough shopping today and was quite shocked at people clearly high on illicit subtances walking around, unchallenged, shouting abuse at everyone and no one in particular, or singing and dancing wildly to the buskers music. I did spot two patrolling community support officers, or whatever they are named these days, who were laughing and joking as they strolled around. ( Coincidently, never in the vicinity of the anti social behaviour I observed at all) And the same noisy man was walking around shouting for quite a while.
There were elderly people and families trying to shop in peace and it is shocking that they have to be witness to this. At one point a man had left Poundstretchers, I think asked to leave by the store security man by the look of it, and he then casually strolled along hurling expletives at everyone. He was looking around wildly as if he was experiencing paranoid hallucinations. This sight, and men riding on bikes shouting at each other, though only feet apart, with voices like fog horns made for a very unpleasant experience. Why do people with empty heads make so much noise?
A woman marched along singing loudly, stopping occasionally to dance, with the shoppers parting at each side of her to make sure they was a distance between them and her due to her unpredictable behaviour. WTF is going on? Surely the Mayor as he walks from the town hall to the centre must observe all this?
What is our town coming to? and am I the only one observing this is disgust? I recall with nostalgia the late 1970s when walking through the town centre was a pleasurable experience, with no community support officers patrolling, and yet now we have more anti social behaviour that seems to go unchallenged. Maybe I am too old and have to accept that this is now the norm. I just think it is all so sad and avoidable.
There were elderly people and families trying to shop in peace and it is shocking that they have to be witness to this. At one point a man had left Poundstretchers, I think asked to leave by the store security man by the look of it, and he then casually strolled along hurling expletives at everyone. He was looking around wildly as if he was experiencing paranoid hallucinations. This sight, and men riding on bikes shouting at each other, though only feet apart, with voices like fog horns made for a very unpleasant experience. Why do people with empty heads make so much noise?
A woman marched along singing loudly, stopping occasionally to dance, with the shoppers parting at each side of her to make sure they was a distance between them and her due to her unpredictable behaviour. WTF is going on? Surely the Mayor as he walks from the town hall to the centre must observe all this?
What is our town coming to? and am I the only one observing this is disgust? I recall with nostalgia the late 1970s when walking through the town centre was a pleasurable experience, with no community support officers patrolling, and yet now we have more anti social behaviour that seems to go unchallenged. Maybe I am too old and have to accept that this is now the norm. I just think it is all so sad and avoidable.