Lets cut straight to the chase here, I FUCKING hate London!!! It stinks, its depressing, its far too overcrowded, no-one seems to have any respect for each other, its quite possibly one of the loneliest places in Britain, if not the whole world.
For some almost unfathomable reason, people actually seem to love the place. Brits flock there in search of all the excitement and opportunity that our nation's capital has to offer. People from all over the world move to London in search of a better life. Tourists and travellers are constantly drawn to the place, wanting to experience what they perceive to be the pinnacle of British culture.
There's an old cockney sing-song that goes something along the lines of "Maybe its because I'm a Londoner that I love London town." I can see no legitimate reason why anyone would love London unless that's all they've ever known, or their life outside of London is so completely and utterly shit that the "Arse-end of England" is actually an improvement. I guess there are worse places in the world to be, but there are certainly a great number of better places too.
Its true that to some extent London is the pinnacle of British culture, there are things I love about this country such as the cultural diversity, the music, the arts, our great number of scientific advancements and achievements. London has all of these things taken to extremes. You only have to take a walk along Camden to see the more alternative side of British culture in full effect, to some it looks a lot like a freak-show, but for many of those that frequent the place its the perfect location to express their individuality.
On the other hand, London is also the epitome of everything that is wrong with Britain and for that matter much of western culture. Its the hub of big business and corporate industry. A city built upon a capitalist foundation, where the only way to survive is to work hard, spend hard, conform and consume. Wherever you go in London you are bombarded with advertising of some sort. Everyone wants your money, whether that be for the latest product, fast food, memorabilia or useless tat that serves only to feed our indoctrinated need to keep spending, those that sell are unrelenting in their constant pursuit of custom.
Often its obvious and unavoidable, many times its far more subliminal. The voiceover at the mall by Victoria station constantly repeats the same refrain: "Hungry? Thirsty? Why not try one of our delicious refreshments?" (correct me if I'm wrong on the exact wording but the message is principally the same). Do people even notice it anymore? Businessmen with their laptops, mobile phones and other great technical accessories send out a clear message that social status is directly connected to the gadgets they carry around, endorse and rely upon. Adverts on the tube trains declare that the average Londoner wakes up 44 minutes earlier than the rest of the UK (6:04 am) like that's something everyone there should be proud of, a prime example of the degree of dedication only found in the capital, while the rest of Britain is populated by lazy part-timers destined to under-achieve and ultimately fall behind in our modern fast-paced hi-tech society.
Traveling at peak time on the London Underground is possibly one of the most unpleasant experiences known to man. Millions of wage-slaves packed, squashed and compressed into dirty, underground stations and dense, sweaty trains. Everyone eager to get where they've got to go with no regard or respect for anyone else. All just cogs in the great big corporate machine. No-one smiles, no-one talks, every day our self-respect and dignity is reduced little by little until we all passively accept that our lives are ultimately worthless and miserable, so we conform.
Control is such a huge part of London, through advertising, routine and misery everyone is forced to adapt to the system. London's other great weapon is intimidation, if ever there was a prime example of Britain turning into an Orwellian, dystopian, police state then London is it. The law is everywhere, the minute you step off a train at Paddington the welcoming committee is there in full uniform with sniffer dogs. What sort of enforcement is this? Are they there to protect the individuals, or simply to search and possibly arrest otherwise innocent people, guilty only of smoking a joint before they left home in the morning? In a city that brings everyone down on a daily basis, the law is there to ensure that no-one dares to consider such an illicit pleasure while attempting to lead a "normal" life.
The police presence is only one part of the authoritarian nature of London law enforcement. CCTV is in abundance throughout the capital. Cameras are everywhere, there is no privacy. Whatever we do, we are always being watched. Security in London is big business, don't believe that these cameras are passively recording you for your own protection. They exist to control and intimidate, just like the police, just like the advertising, just like the underground.
Someone visiting from one of the more civilised areas of Britain may find that people in London are rude, disrespectful and to some extent unpleasant. Its not the fault of the individual, everyone's just trying to adapt as they go about their daily business. This is the lifestyle they lead, for many that's all they've ever known. I could imagine that many Londoners would find the somewhat more laidback pace of the rest of the country dull or boring. Its a sad shame for those people. For the tourist visiting England, London offers many things to do and sights to see. It does not offer a true representation of the country. The North of England is vastly different, the Westcountry is far more relaxed and laidback. London is what it is, but it isn't the be-all and end-all.
The idea that London is the place to be is a self-propagating myth. Many talk about the music scene in London to the extent where it is the only city in which great success can be achieved, for the most part this is true, but it can also be where the greatest failures occur. Spend too long in London and one may very well lose all motivation and love for music, maybe even the will to live.
Once again, I FUCKING hate London. I could never live there, nor would i ever want to. Its a truly horrible, miserable place. For the millions of people that call it home, i have great sympathy. There's a lot of things wrong in this world, London is one of them.
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