Two days ago, I was on the train home when I witnessed a woman around my age assault a 50 year old man with a Desperados bottle. Things escalated very quickly – they were arguing loudly, and we the commuters were all being very polite and not getting involved. Then all of a sudden their noise became more primal and I spun in my chair to see the man’s face covered in blood. He was still standing, and pushing her around, and she was thumping him in the chest, having lost her grip on the bottle. I got up to intervene, as did a Brazilian man from the other side of the carriage. We were the only two that did. The man, still bleeding from his head, got off at the next stop and the woman then proceeded to apologise loudly to the whole carriage, saying we all saw how he provoked her. She and her friends left at the sop after that, shouting loudly about going to Brixton that night.

Last month, I was walking up to my front door when two men in balaclavas mounted the pavement with a moped and blocked my path, shouting and swearing at me. Luckily, I was already at my gate – which they had no way of knowing of course (I hope) – so I was able to back into my house and call the police. They showed up promptly, but the men on the moped rode off down the Thames where they could not follow in their car.

On my first night in London, I went to Tesco’s to buy dinner with my new flatmate. We were leaving when a man tried to run out of the doors, but was grabbed by two security guards. His shirt was comically stuffed with clothes – he wasn’t being subtle. He wrestled and punched his way out of the guards’ grasp violently, while screaming “I wouldn’t touch me mate, I’ve got AIDS!” He lost most of his score, but the guards let him get away. He jogged past me and into the night.

As amusing as this last story is, these three are all examples of violent crime that I have seen in the last six months – and they aren’t the only ones I could cite. Over Easter I was spoke to a friend I have who works as a security guard in a Sainsbury’s in the West Midlands. “People are getting desperate,” he told me, following up with anecdote after anecdote of the sneaky tactics used to steal £1700 worth of chewing gum. His sentiment seems to be echoed by everyone I speak to about this.

And yet we are told by the official numbers and statistics that crime is falling nationwide, and somehow I have heard no discussion of it anywhere, despite the fact that we are on the brink of a general election. Crime has been a major talking point in every election in living memory, and if crime rates are falling, why is no one leaping to take credit for it?

“But Leo,” you may cry, “the politicians are talking about making the economy better, making people’s lives better. Surely then there will be less crime!” That’s what I thought too, but no one seems to be able to make clear the link between crime and the economy. Criminologists seem to say that poor economic conditions drive people to crime and economists say that good economies lead to more opportunity for crime. The data (American, 2012) seems to support both claims, but my gut is with the criminologists.

Maybe it’s no surprise that this isn’t being hotly debated this election. The independents UKCrimeStats admit that there are huge problems with the data, including that all the numbers are based on the 2001 census, which is expected to be quite out of date now. Others claim that violent crime is actually on the rise, and with daylight rapes in my home county and recent high-profile scandals, who can blame them? It’s a messy issue, and no one wants to be smeared with it.

This is just something that, for obvious reasons, has been on my mind. My gut and my experiences tell me that people are getting desperate, and people are getting angrier. I just worry that this anger will lead to a harmful rejection of “the system”. So I make no strong assertions here but this one:

Vote, and vote for policies. If you don’t know about this informational gem, go and take a look at it. Millions of people don’t vote each year, claiming that they couldn’t possibly make a difference. Pay attention to the MCU, folks! One person can make a difference, and millions can change the face of politics. If you ask me, I kinda hope that we get a parliament hung so badly that no strong party lines can be established. Maybe then we might see some independent voice come through, and change things.

At time of posting, there is still time to register! Registration closes 21st April and Polling Day is 7th May.

GO VOTE.

(It’d be a crime not to)