Submit your comments on this article | ||||
Britain | ||||
Kyoto protest beaten back by inflamed petrol traders | ||||
2005-02-17 | ||||
WHEN 35 Greenpeace protesters stormed the International Petroleum Exchange (IPE) yesterday they had planned the operation in great detail. What they were not prepared for was the post-prandial aggression of oil traders who kicked and punched them back on to the pavement. "We bit off more than we could chew. They were just Cockney barrow boy spivs. Total thugs," one protester said, rubbing his bruised skull. "I've never seen anyone less amenable to listening to our point of view."
Mr Beresford said: "They followed the guys into the lobby and kept kicking and punching them there. They literally kicked them on to the pavement." Last night Greenpeace said two protesters were in hospital, one with a suspected broken jaw, the other with concussion. A spokeswoman from IPE said the trading floor reopened at 3.10pm. "The floor was invaded by a small group of protesters," she said. "Open outcry trading was suspended but electronic trading carried on."
| ||||
Posted by:tipper |
#28 Thanks, AC. British slang isn't always intuitive. I suppose it works the same in reverse sometimes, too. |
Posted by: BH 2005-02-17 5:44:15 PM |
#27 BH "Barrow boy spiv" An unskilled day-laborer ("barrow-boy") who hires out as underworld muscle to supplement his income ("spiv"). With this, the GreenPisser betrays some pretty heavy class-prejudice, altogether in keeping with their fantastically deep elaboration of hypocrisy and status-seeking. Incidentally, the traders have now outdone the French Navy in a confrontation with a common enemy. The Frogs managed to sink their ship temporarily, drowning a media fellow-traveller, but they took some major political heat and lost some prisoners to the collaborationist Kiwi police. The traders on the other hand seem to have achieved an exchange rate of infinity on wounded and captured. |
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2005-02-17 5:14:29 PM |
#26 Hey Bulldog, can you give us a translation of "barrow boy spiv", please? |
Posted by: BH 2005-02-17 3:48:26 PM |
#25 I'd like to see them try it in Chicago. Heh! |
Posted by: Desert Blondie 2005-02-17 2:03:06 PM |
#24 Ima sensing a lot of envy on this thread. |
Posted by: Shipman 2005-02-17 1:49:10 PM |
#23 The beating will continue until morale improves... |
Posted by: Raj 2005-02-17 1:32:01 PM |
#22 I hope so, RC, but until recently it was "defend yourself, go to jail." In the US, this would be great as this was a conspiracy by Greenpeace, so they could be hit with RICO and sued for treble damages. Even in the UK, criminal conspiracy should be applicable. I don't know if they have something like RICO. |
Posted by: jackal 2005-02-17 1:15:58 PM |
#21 If English law has a lick of common sense, there won't be any assault charges against the oil traders. *THEY* weren't the ones committing breaking and entering. |
Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-02-17 12:15:30 PM |
#20 I love it. And I'm looking forward to the dueling charges. On the "Swampy" side we have assault and battery, and on the IPE side we have breaking and entering, assault, attempted sabotage, mopery and dopery on the high seas, conspiracy to lurk with intent to gawk, and just plain old "too stupid to live"... |
Posted by: mojo 2005-02-17 11:17:24 AM |
#19 I'll write it off to the surprise attack, but I expect better next time. If "next time" happens in a locale where I'm at, it will be better. As George Zimmer of the Men's Wearhouse says, "I guarantee it." |
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-02-17 11:14:24 AM |
#18 Bulldog---Don't know about British law in this area, but can't the exchange sue Greenpeace for the disruption? There is a lot of money moving around and that was denied during the brew-haha. It seems that Greenpeace needs to be hit in its pocketbook to learn a lesson, or to have the lessons of the last battle reinforced. |
Posted by: Alaska Paul 2005-02-17 11:10:07 AM |
#17 Am I the only one who saw the âThe violence was instant,â Jon Beresford, 39, an electrical engineer from Nottingham, said. âThey grabbed us and started kicking and punching. Then when we were on the floor they tried to push huge filing cabinets on top of us to crush us.â What's Greenpeace doing w/ an electrical engineer (assume he's out of work/unhirable)? Don't they know electricity is EVIL (/sarcasm off/)? I mean, it comes from power plants and such, who use either coal, oil products or nuclear material to produce power! Two minutes later, three Greenpeace vans pulled up and another 30 protesters leapt out and were let in by the others. WTF? They used a van? You mean they didn't show up in environmentally friendly eco-vehicles! Why, vans are the evil cousin of SUVs aren't they? Why didn't they take mass transit to the "event"???? |
Posted by: BA 2005-02-17 11:05:22 AM |
#16 Anonymoose, I wouldn't bet on it. I know a couple of them around here and their attitude is that they know more than anyone else what's best for the environment. There is no rational, logical dialogue with these people. |
Posted by: Glereper Craviter4297 2005-02-17 11:04:54 AM |
#15 These noisies are more than willing to die for the cause, but they aren't so hot for taking a royal thumping for it. After a few instances like this, I would expect the number of Greenpeace incidents to sharply drop off. |
Posted by: Anonymoose 2005-02-17 9:58:13 AM |
#14 Greanpeace. Aren't these the people who want to shave the whales? What can they possibly do with a bunch of whale whiskers? |
Posted by: Glereper Craviter4297 2005-02-17 9:52:10 AM |
#13 It would be great if someone got some of this on the security cameras. I want to see it. |
Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom 2005-02-17 9:46:19 AM |
#12 I find it a bit disappointing that all those nominally-25-year-old traders only put two of the invaders into the hospital. I'll write it off to the surprise attack, but I expect better next time. |
Posted by: Tom 2005-02-17 8:44:22 AM |
#11 Well this was only about 20 years overdue. Worth the wait though. What I want to see next is some Hummer dealer with a shotgun waiting on some ELF clowns pulling a raid in the middle of the night. |
Posted by: tu3031 2005-02-17 8:43:29 AM |
#10 "Ouch! Ow! See the violence inherent in The System. Help! Help! I'm being repressed!" |
Posted by: jackal 2005-02-17 8:21:48 AM |
#9 First they get their asses kicked, then they get arrested - beautiful. |
Posted by: Jarhead 2005-02-17 8:10:50 AM |
#8 âIâve never seen anyone less amenable to listening to our point of view.â Perhaps if you had tried speaking to them instead of whistles, foghorns, and rape alarms? Last time I checked, all three of those items are not really intended to communicate, but do a rather good job of stopping communication. |
Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-02-17 7:57:22 AM |
#7 They shold have mounted the operation as the traders were breaking for lunch, so they could deal with an empty floor. Just their style . . . protest nothing . . . |
Posted by: Jame Retief 2005-02-17 7:07:19 AM |
#6 a spokesman said. Protesters conceded that mounting the operation after lunch may not have been the best plan. âThe violence was instant,â This means they had a liquid lunch at the pub and were up for some 'excitement' |
Posted by: phil_b 2005-02-17 6:46:33 AM |
#5 They were just Cockney barrow boy spivs. Behind all that high minded rhetoric lies the essence of Greenpeace: simple class warfare. |
Posted by: trailing wife 2005-02-17 6:36:49 AM |
#4 At first, I thought it said "Kyoto protest beaten back by inflamed petrol." Well, maybe next time. |
Posted by: Mike 2005-02-17 5:54:55 AM |
#3 This crap needs to happen more often. When these ignorant fools come on to private property then need to be met with resistance. These fools could have cost these traders plenty. I am glad they beat the piss out of them and tossed them out onto the curb. |
Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom 2005-02-17 3:34:30 AM |
#2 "'Sod off, Swampy.'" Now there's an insult! Swampy Lives! He spends most of his time in trees, presumably to stay out of the reach of commodity traders. |
Posted by: Bulldog 2005-02-17 3:23:52 AM |
#1 ROFLMAO!!! The ultimate wankers got zapped by real people living in the real world doing real jobs and who had no time for their kiddie tantrums. Who'da thunk it, eh? Fuckwits. LOL! |
Posted by: .com 2005-02-17 1:39:13 AM |