Trenton Oldfield, the boat race disruptor

I was wondering if Oldfield himself is one of the elite at all (not that I really know who or what counts as elite; after all, there are different kinds – intellectual elitism can be useful (no harm in recognising when someone is better at something than someone else and rewarding them according to how valuable what they are good at is to society), class elitism probably not.

This page about him made me laugh

I was going to "do a jingle" and not bother to look at other links, but I did.

That hand grip to haul him out of the water is not a good one. Better grab each other's wrists – more secure.

Now I'll go and look at the other link.

He did endanger life – his own. How would those rowers or the following boats have felt if they'd killed him. You really wouldn,t want to get your head tangled with those oars, not to mention with the motor boats behind. His choice, I suppose, but there are plenty of ways he could have made a protest without spoiling the event. The guys who row in this race train very hard and it's a complete toerag who then goes and wrecks it for them.

I think the court judgement is a bit 'steep' too. I wonder if the judge had a rowing blue?

I agree that he's a prat. I also agree that he has a perfect right to protest. I'm not sure I agree he has a right to spoil a much-loved national sporting event.

criminalization of protest

have we? Tougher on what..the democratic right to protest in public or on criminals?

It seems like an over-reaction to me. But, we have long been wanting this country to get tougher, haven't we?

Flickety the harsh reaction I was referring to was the court, just in case you thought I meant yours!

I do not necessarily think his behaviour warrants either his imprisonment or his deportation but my opinion on him stands.

I think that it is a harsh reaction. Many people protest and we have that right to do so. He was an idiot, imo, to do what he did but it was not an act of terrorism! However I do think governments and courts are making examples of people to discourage protests, which of course should be safe and not endanger life or damage private property... which I do not think he did. However it is obviously a legally OK decision.

As a lifelong protester I do worry that the right to protest is being undermined.

The man's a prat but it's a bit hard on his wife.

I just read the interview he gave to R5. He reminded me of the bod who insists on walking the country unclothed and ends up in and out of court and prison.

It always strikes me that people like this essentially think themselves to be much cleverer than they really are and are aggrieved that nobody else shares that opinion and when they do not get the career progression/jobs they are convinced they deserve, decide to join the awkward squad and be even more awkward than anybody else.

the "no's" are winning here

#britainsgotsense

I can't believe that! Total over-reaction, or what?! He swam in front of some boats. No bomb involved. No violence. Ok, it was THE Boat Race, but come on................!

additional info to *Bags' excellent link