Ben Kinsella R.I.P.

Anthony Barnett (London, OK):  I have been very busy writing a chapter for a book on Charter 88 (while attending the brilliant and enjoyable seminar about it on Friday and Saturday). There is lots to catch up on. But today, I had to go past the spot where Ben Kinsella died of his stab wounds a week ago. I stopped to pay my respects. The pub where the fight began was one my younger daughter used when she was a student. The sweeping bank of flowers and candles, cards and toys, on the corner of North Road and York Way, recalled the response to Diana, although in this case many genuinely knew the victim personally. There was a large English flag and some Arsenal scarves. A small cluster of unopened beer bottles suggested an offering to the gods. New to me was the amount of writing on the pavement, with often quite long magic marker messages. "You have gone to a better place" was a shorter, unsigned statement. "The good die young and the bad still stand", observed another. The main facebook group is here. The official website with an appeal for a campaign to stop knife crime is here.