What the fuck do you think you're doing?

This is London. We've dealt with your sort before. You don't try and pull this on us.

andrewducker

Cultural differences

The responses by people today really highlight for me the differences between Americans and English people.

Americans: OMG! there's been a terroroist attack! My prayers are with you!!

English: London's been bombed. Shit. that means the tube is closed. I wonder if I can still make it into town tonite to see that play I have tickets for. Not to say this isn't upsetting or that people aren't worried. There's just a certain lack of melodrama.

In the days that follow look at our airports, look at our sea ports and look at our railway stations and, even after your cowardly attack, you will see that people from the rest of Britain, people from around the world will arrive in London to become Londoners and to fulfil their dreams and achieve their potential.

Coping with emergencies the British way: The nearest branch of Pret has sold out of chocolate cake.

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When the news reporter said "Shopkeepers are opening their doors bringing out blankets and cups of tea" I just smiled. It's like yes. That's Britain for you. Tea solves everything.
You're a bit cold?
Tea.
Your boyfriend has just left you?
Tea.
You've just been told you've got cancer?
Tea.
Coordinated terrorist attack on the transport network bringing the city to a grinding halt?
TEA DAMMIT!
And if it's really serious, they may bring out the coffee. The Americans have their alert raised to red, we break out the coffee. That's for situations more serious than this of course. Like another England penalty shoot-out.

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It's hard to panic the British. They've dealt with the Blitz, the IRA, the Silurians, the Zarbi, the Daleks, the Cybermen...

And for the London PoV on these attacks, well we get on with it. Trying to terrorise a city that lived with the constant threat of bombs for the best part of 30 years was a pretty stupid idea. And the swift, efficient response of the emergency services and lack of widespread chaos and panic shows that it was something that London was prepared for, in fact I'm suprised it hadn't happened sooner. I suspect by next week it will be pretty much business as usual, and for most of us all the excitement today will feel like a distant memory.

I'm not trying to belittle the memory of the 39 people who were murdered today, or the many hundreds injured. Families and friends will be in mourning for a long time to come, and my thoughts are with them. But I think London as a whole will refuse to be crippled by this, and will get up, dust itself off, and move forward as it always has done, indeed its started already. Outside the affected zones life pretty much continued as normal, I know it did here in West London at least. I think if the terrorists were expecting some kind of victory here in London today, they were sorely disappointed.