tilting wrote:
Ah come on that’s a bit conspiracy theory isn’t it? I bet most of the TVP staff around in the 70’s don’t even work any more. They keep a close eye on festivals because it’s their job, not because of some 30 year old grudge.
of course its their job to watch for drug users – but the shooting of their detective isn’t gonna just be forgotten about whether its 3 years or 30 years ago. Older cops would have retired but some are (just) still around and would remind younger constables/probationers about the incident (particularly the newer generation of cop who actually often have more liberal views!) to make them feel more inclined to bust “druggies”
TVP press office also remind the local news media of the incident every so often – I certainly remember it from Reading newspapers fairly recently (I only left in 2006), it was mentioned in some detail alongside the usual sort of spin about the “brave work” TVP drug squad do “keeping festivals safe from the menace of killer drugs”
Anyway, whatever the underlying reasons, enforcement and surveillance of the underground music scene in the Thames Valley area has always been fairly full on – I lived there for much of my life, for many years was involved with both legal and unlicensed parties there and experienced it at first hand a few times.
The impression I get (from my own personal experience as well) is that cops still see “todays raver/recreational drug user/festival-goer as tomorrows potential full-on junkie” just like they did in the 70s,80s and 90s…
Quote:
It’s like saying today’s generation of ravers holds a grudge against the cops because of the Beanfield.
Beanfield, what Beanfield? :you_crazy
Many in todays generation of ravers (a far wider agegroup than many realise) are still partying or involved in the scene who are old enough to remember this – and just like the cops do the elders tell younger people, in some cases their own family (including their children) about what happened.
I regularly speak to people 10-15 years my junior who are well clued up about the Beanfield and also the early acid house days from their own research on the internet…
Perhaps “grudge” may come across as too strong a word as it implies bitter feuds and bloody revenge – but look at it this way – whatever “side” you were on, if something had happened in a historical conflict where one of your lot was killed or hurt, even if you didn’t seek conventional revenge against your opponent you wouldn’t just forget about it – you’d try to learn from the experience, maybe not seeking a resolution via overt force but via ingenuity or technology..
for the cops its stuff like helicopters, CCTV and surveillance drones (to get intelligence without getting “too close” to potentially hostile elements) , for ravers it was stuff like in the 90s using technology like mobile phones and the net to (at least for a while) stay one step ahead of cops and locals..
