Sir Freds House Attacked
IMCer | 25.03.2009 10:48
According the corporate media Fred Goodwin, the ex-head of bailed out bank RBS, has had his house and car in Einburgh attacked.
The Guardian (
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/mar/25/sir-fred-goodwin-royalbankofscotlandgroup) writes that a group claiming responsibility had emailed threatening further action against "criminal" bankers. The Telegraph ( http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/5047751/Edinburgh-home-of-former-RBS-chief-Sir-Fred-Goodwin-vandalised.html) report "Hours later, the Edinburgh Evening News received an email from an anonymous address reporting the house had been vandalised and suggesting it had been in connection with the row over Sir Fred’s £700,000 pension payout."
All reports so far report that Fred is out of the country, and that the state owned bank has been paying for his security. Reports are saying that there is now a police car outside his house to guard it.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/mar/25/sir-fred-goodwin-royalbankofscotlandgroup) writes that a group claiming responsibility had emailed threatening further action against "criminal" bankers. The Telegraph ( http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/5047751/Edinburgh-home-of-former-RBS-chief-Sir-Fred-Goodwin-vandalised.html) report "Hours later, the Edinburgh Evening News received an email from an anonymous address reporting the house had been vandalised and suggesting it had been in connection with the row over Sir Fred’s £700,000 pension payout." All reports so far report that Fred is out of the country, and that the state owned bank has been paying for his security. Reports are saying that there is now a police car outside his house to guard it.
IMCer
Comments
Hide the following 22 comments
statement
25.03.2009 11:46
Sky News are saying that a statement claiming responsibility said:
"We are angry that rich people, like him, are paying themselves a huge amount of money, and living in luxury, while ordinary people are made unemployed, destitute and homeless.
"This is a crime. Bank bosses should be jailed. This is just the beginning."
The report also says that the Police are claiming they arrived within three minutes.
anon
digging up stuff
25.03.2009 13:15
curious
Unusual, suspect
25.03.2009 13:20
Danny
It has to start somewhere
25.03.2009 13:37
It's Started Now
Bandwagon!
25.03.2009 13:42
McJobby
Original reporting
25.03.2009 14:34
anotherIMCer
aye ehm
25.03.2009 15:55
I also think it is perfectly reasonable to post details of any action here, even if we disagree with the motives, simply so we can criticise and learn from the tactics and techniques and the coverage. The car window looks like a catapult shot. Provided the person checked that the room was empty before breking the window then it is a non-violent action. The guy has private security provided by the tax-payer and now a street crawling with cops and satellite TV vans.
Judging from the Edinburgh scene this seems plausible. I think this is a missed opportunity, if you knew his address you could have done more intelligent and damaging acts. It is sobering to read the condemnatory comments on the Evening News / Scotsman websites.
Danny
"more intelligent acts"
25.03.2009 19:40
anon
more intelligent acts
25.03.2009 20:04
I have neither a job, nor money, nor a future nor a fat ass for that matter, I am an old man with a boys arse. I act, well. I've hit places better than this recently, and will do soon again so get off your hobby horse. I'd give you five out of five for ID, two out of five for planning, three out of five for media work, and one out of five for bravery.
For instance, the only reason I would break an insured window is to get something inside, not to get publicity. I imagine only Direct Line are finacially distressed about this.
Danny
great story
25.03.2009 20:38
grin
Danny: the point of the attack is psychological, not financial
25.03.2009 23:00
I don't think the point of this action was economic sabotage, Sir Fred is so loaded he could buy new windows every day of the year and it would just be pocket change.
The aim would be publicity (propaganda by the deed) and psychological - so he can never feel safe wherever he is.
I say good, rich scum like him don't deserve to live in peace.
Of course the govt and media have singled him out as a scapegoat for some reason - to take the heat off other people perhaps? But there are many more people equally deserving of such treatment.
I salute the class warriors who carried out this action!
anon
The Edinburgh police have 300,000 suspects.
26.03.2009 00:23
The people we're always told would be pushed away by "violence" can see the difference between the 3 minute response time and CID officers for this incident and the last time they reported something to the cops. They know fine well that Fred can afford to buy diamond-coated window glass for the rest of his days, while his actions will soon put 20,000 out of work and many more with decimated pensions. They know that no matter how long and how hard they work they'll never get close to the luxury that man can live in, effortlessly.
I don't think he'll be moving back to Edinburgh. We're not all *that* genteel.
Edinburgh Resident
About time we had good news about the economy
26.03.2009 10:41
The Scotsman comment threads are the voice of Edinburgh's bored ruling class, infested by idle office workers, outraged stockholders and party political hacks scoring points for their team. When I looked there yesterday, they'd closed comments on the story.
What do we have today? Very little sympathy, even there.
"My neighbors car was vandalised. The police never showed up or pursued it, just took a note by telephone. People are assaulted and their property damaged every day in Edinburgh, you will be very lucky if the police do anything. Why is Goodwin getting special treatment?"
"All vandalism is wrong and should be condemned but some vandalism is less wrong than others and should be less condemned."
You Danny, may be bothered that the action wasn't as "intelligent and damaging" as you imagined, and that it must be the work of "upper class twits", "journalists" or "MI5". That's up to you, just don't confuse it with the whole of public opinion.
I haven't met anyone that hasn't smiled a little at what happened. I hear that busdrivers cheered when the news came over the radio at the depot and I'd love to have been in my local bank branch early yesterday. All in all, it's the first "good news" about RBS that we've had for months.
Edinburgh Resident
Homepage:
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/latestnews/Security-stepped-up-for-senior.5109976.jp
Action Police
26.03.2009 10:51
Why not simply join the cops and find the personal fulfillment you clearly don't get among activists!
I don't always agree 100% with every action or motive but I don't publicly slag off anyone who's had the guts or just the anger and frustration to carry out an action.
anon
My friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends
27.03.2009 12:40
Yeah, well I remember the unwarranted police hassle after other suspect actions. I'd just heard RBS are paying Clive Fairweather to bump up their security now, Raytheon in Glenrothes used him and he seems to use infiltrators. Interestingly he has a relationship with the Scotsman group. I also knew instead of going to bed exhausted I was going to have to go to a Mercedes dealership to let the mechanics there know whose car was about to come if it hadn't already.
>The Scotsman comment threads are the voice of Edinburgh's bored ruling class, infested by idle office workers, outraged stockholders and party political hacks scoring points for their team.
You think idle office workers are part of the ruling class? Surely workers are working class. And what about the Evening News comments on the same site? Not exactly Edinburghs private school elite.
If people want to vandalize but don't have the nerve or ability then sub-contract. Any local gang of teenagers would cause more damage than that. A car was firebombed in my street recently and it never even made the local press even though it was a more violent and dangerous attack. The attack is only getting press coverage because it is is a simple segue between Financial Collapse to the Summer of Rage stories.
Because Fred is widely despised other actions could have done more damage to him, and prolonged the story. Since vandalism isn't one of your skills then maybe you should've organised a mass sit-in / flash-mob / camp in his garden. Open up his tennis court to the public since they are paying for it.
Danny
Dear Daily Telegraph,
27.03.2009 13:52
Your headline 'Sir Fred Goodwin home attack applauded by anarchists' is pejorative and misleading, the attack has been applauded and criticised by people from a wide political spectrum. I know Conservatives that are baying for his blood, because they have been impoverished by his foolishness and greed. I was openly anarchist throughout my life and I've worked in the heart of the banking system and talked with people far richer than Sir Fred. I think the Telegraph should drag it's stereotypes of anarchists into the 20th century, at least.
You stated "One website posting included a photograph of the £3 million sandstone villa and a map showing its location", as if that was sinister and illegal. I posted the Google StreetView of Sir Freds house that you refer to. I first found his address in the Telegraph report 'Edinburgh home of former RBS chief Sir Fred Goodwin vandalised' so if that was criminal then I am simply an accessory after the fact to your crime. Other newspapers were already publishing up to date photos of his house. The reason I published it was to urge caution. It is very unusual for the Telegraph to publish someones address after an attack, and very unsual for the police to release the address. Just days after you'd written about Google Street View.
"Meanwhile there was debate on the Indymedia activists' website yesterday on whether the attack on Sir Fred's property was the action of activists or a disgruntled former employee. One post said activists would not have sent an email claiming responsibility to the "mainstream media". "
I said it was unusual that a press release didn't include activist websites. It is not unheard of though. There is no way to really know if this was activists or security services or journalists or employees or neighbours because no one in the UK likes Sir Fred. He can afford to live anywhere except where he was born. His personal incompetence is only a tiny part of the financial crisis, but his blatant and unrepentant greed has made him the poster-boy fat-cat.
Danny
Homepage:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/5056499/Sir-Fred-Goodwin-home-attack-applauded-by-anarchists.html
No "press release" required for something like this
27.03.2009 14:33
It got publicity anyway because it was newsworthy, though I'm sure later ones will be suppressed by the media eventually to prevent copycat attacks.
The risk of being traced through DNA on a letter or IP logging and CCTV for an email might be too much risk for some people. There are many in prison right now who have been traced for sending communiques of their illegal activities.
Sometimes, as well, the fear of the unknown assailant can be psychologically more damaging than an anonymous but visible attacker who leaves some clues about their motivation.
Take care out there, everyone.
anon
past experience
27.03.2009 14:55
Excellent point except for the fact two emails were sent to the Evening News which has to be far riskier than posting here using Tor. If it had been posted here the Evening News would have reported on it anyway, hell, even the Telegraph is grubbing around here for columnage on this. You are right though, there could be any number of legitimate reasons for the Evening News being chosen exclusively.
"Take care out there, everyone. "
I'd recommend everyone in the Lothians should avoid any sudden new friends with a military background or demeanor.
Danny
Um
27.03.2009 19:14
So why would it have been posted here?
Why, because it wasn't, does this imply that it was done by MI5, journo's or whatever? I mean ffs Danny. That's a daft idea even by your tin foil hat standards.
The people who did this are working class heroes and if they're not activists then so much the better.
Miserablist
Marx to Max
28.03.2009 12:37
Should banks be targetted? Yes.
Are banks the real enemy of progress? Not for the last century or two.
I don't mean to be patronising here but I honestly think some people here are getting caught up in media hype. I see Sir Fred has hired PR schmuck Max Clifford to hype up the threat to his life. Really good timing for Max now his Goody cash cow has gone. Sir Fred has enriched himself shamelessly but not so much as others in the corporate world.
Bankers do not fear protestors. Bankers do not fear public opinion. Bankers do not fear financial depression. Bankers only fear corporations. The reason banks fear corporations is because corporations are far more powerful and wealthy.
If a corporation wants a bank, it buys one or sets one up, as Virgin are about to do. Apart from central-banks and banking infrastructure organistations, the largest banks can be bought and sold by any mid-sized corporation. This generally doesn't happen because corporations view themselves as in a state of war with each other, and annexing banks was seen as an aggressive move.
Banks used to be important, certainly were much more important when people like Marx were writing, which is why we have inherited more slogans about banks than corporations. Even then though the banks were simply shysters who took a cut of peoples wealth in return for guarding it.
The banks failed because their function was undercut by Thatcher and Reagan ( and their subsequent followers like Blair and Brown) deregulated them. That allowed banks to play like they were corporations, to expand 'financial services' in an unsustainable way. They were encouraged to expand like a rising helium balloon until the inevitable 'pop'.
This is simply an analogy but if you compare capitalism to slavery, compare a corporation to a slave plantation, then you are the enslaved, the corporations owners are your owners and the banks are the owners employees who keep you fit enough to work, and dispose of you when you can't. They aren't the owners. You shouldn't like them or forgive them but they aren't the main problem.
Danny
Miserablist: activists are anyone who takes action
29.03.2009 22:54
I would say that if someone trashes Fred Goodwin's house for political reasons they are by definition an activist.
Activists are anyone who takes action. It doesn't matter if they know other activists or know about Indymedia, they are still activists.
anon
Naw
31.03.2009 18:37
Miserablist