I thought it was awful years ago when i lived over in Scotland..
and it is even worse now..
the youth act like thugs.. it is almost comical.. to see kids in school uniforms .. that are rude, obnoxious and daily openly threaten violence on passerbys..
breakin seems like an actual job for many.. the goods sold openly and the police realize there is little they can do..
knives, guns and "weapons" are all illegal and plentiful ...
Basic laws on knives
It is illegal to:
sell a knife of any kind (including cutlery and kitchen knives) to anyone under 18
carry a knife in public without good reason
carry, buy or sell any type of banned knife (the list of banned knives is below)
use any knife in a threatening way (even a legal knife, such as a Swiss Army knife)
Knives with folding blades, like Swiss Army knives, are not illegal as long as the blade is 3 inches long (7.62 cm) or less.
Lock knives (knives with blades that can be locked when unfolded) are not folding knives, and are illegal to carry in public.
an individual must provide evidence to prove that they had a bona fide reason for carrying a knife
basically no one has a "need" to carry a knife.. not even a simple locking utility knife that I use almost daily..
it is to the point that many thugs know the average victim is unarmed,.. that a belt/buckle is a decent weapon used by thugs to brutalize weaker victims