The end is already here

People in the same age group as me will remember when we were young (I am 74 years old) the men who used to walk around the streets with a sandwich board on their shoulders.Their message was written on the boards ("The end is nigh"). This used to make us laugh. The very thought of it was ridiculous.

The Second World War was over and we were happy with life. But today we are not laughing because the end of the world is not nigh, it is here. That is, the end of the world as we knew it.

What has Great Britain come to? Where is it going? The servicemen who fought for our freedom must be asking why, and the brave men who were killed in action must be turning in their graves.

All the vandalism, all the fighting, all the graffiti, all the terrorising of elderly people who are afraid in their own houses and many of them afraid to go out in fear of being mugged or beaten just for a few pounds.

The government should take a stronger line to deal with it, and give the courts the power to give appropriate sentences.

As far as law and order goes, this country will get worse instead of better. It is one war we are losing - the fight against crime. The worst is yet to come.

It might not happen in my lifetime, but I feel sorry for the young, law-abiding people because in the next 30 years it is going to get significantly worse, with our government showing a complete lack of ideas on how to deal with it.

My childhood was great. My father and mother were very strict, but fair with me. We were poor in material ways but all but a few of the other people in our area were in the same boat, or even poorer.

But there was no moaning from us about having nothing to do. We made our own games.

There was no bullying at school. People called me names. I had red hair and they called me Ginger Nut, Firebucket and Copper Top, but it was never in a nasty way.

There was the occasional fight in the playground. We used to make a ring round the lads fighting and as soon as we thought either lad had had enough we would jump in and stop it. They would shake hands.

It was was the same sort of thing with the men, if they had an argument in the pub.

This is in contrast to the present day where if there is a fight it is often a free-for-all with kicking of heads, knifings or even shots being fired.

I ask again, what is the future for this country? I shudder just thinking about it, especially for the future generations. Public disorder, crime, murder, terrorism and disrespect will affect people who just want a safe and peaceful life.

J Stampe, Wednesbury.