Armed police

Well, we just don't know do we? We didn't think it was necessary in Manchester a week ago. I hope they were friendly, like the one at the walk in Manchester who posed for photos with children.

Hope you enjoyed the fair.

Better safe than sorry?

Today in a Sussex town another person was arrested in connection with the Manchester atrocity. Damned if they do carry guns, damned if they don't.

At a Well Dressing in a Derbyshire village today there were 2 policemen with sniffer dogs walking through the crowds. I've never seen that before, not in the 20 years I've been attending the annual event. Whilst I'm sorry that it's felt necessary for police attendance, I'm very grateful that they were there. As NanaandGrampy says, better safe than sorry.

Yes it is like that Alima, police can't do right for doing wrong.

how exactly will armed police stop a suicide bomber ? I'm interested .

Perhaps they can't but have a better chance than trying to handcuff them

Terrorists aren't always suicide bombers though. One armed with knives was shot at the Louvre recently, and the Bataclan attackers were shot by armed police. I think I read that a couple of them wore explosives vests.

We live in a seaside town. A far greater, visible, police presence now. Very pleased to see them.

Very pleased to see the armed police and the bag searches happening at the Tall Ships event in Gloucester over the weekend, but in hindsight maybe my comment about tommy guns to the guard searching my husband's ukulele case was not as hilarious as I thought at the time???

I have a friend who is very worried that her choir concert in a small midland market town might be targeted by terrorists. I told her it was unlikely! But who knows?

Ha ha marionk - probably not a good idea to joke though!

My daughter is 30 today, I bought her tickets for Phantom of the Opera, I hope that every other seat is occupied by police and that the staff are all surveillance officers in disguise and that the taxi driver who takes her back to the station is James Bond at least.

When the IRA were blowing up various parts of London people got on with it as best they could as it was seen as one of the risks of living in a huge City. When they put a bomb in a waste bin in Warrington there was an enormous outcry which, eventually, led to the Peace talks and an end to the bombing. Terrorists know that people in large cities are likely to shrug things off and try to carry on - it is why they select targets where people wouldn't normally expect anything untoward to happen, it gives them maximum impact in the shock/horror of their cowardly act. Any gathering, large or small, could be a target. Being stopped/turned away/shot before you can detonate your bomb is not going to get you your heavenly reward - the presence of armed police (and you don't know if there are plain clothed police officers in the crowd too) is your best chance of deterring one should a terrorist be present.

My fear is a repeat of the Charles de Menezes killing

Probably the worst thing that could be joked about when the Country is on such a high security alert.

Sorry above reply to marionk

Glammananna, are you dismissing my concerns as a joke or another post?

This is the start of which unfortunately is to be our future.
Unlike WW11, and for those who were living in the UK, the enemy was flying above us and we were warned when they were approaching.
The enemy today is 'unseen'We have no warning.
I will feel safer with our armed police on the streets.A deterrent maybe or maybe not to those whose sole intent with their disturbed minds is to destroy our way of life? What is the option? Stick our head in the sand and it will go away?

I too feel comforted by an increased presence of armed police. We also live in a sea side town and it was lovely to see the police interacting with children and their parents over the weekend.

If only there were enough, putting armed women police officers on the street would certainly be a deterrent, Daesh believe that if you are killed by a woman, you don't go to heaven.

I've changed my mind-I realise now why the police were there. As you were folks!!!

It was on the news whitewave

paddyann they may not be able to but they could clear the area of innocent people and isolate him/her.

or like this paddyann by very brave police officers:

Local television footage aired on Kurdistan 24 TV shows a group of police officers holding the young boy while two men are seen cutting off a belt of explosives. After they remove the belt, the boy is seen being rushed into a police truck and driven away