Stop & Search: Power, Process, and Perception

Alex is back in the listeners chair again today. You send in the questions, we tackle them live—always with an environmental twist and no peeking beforehand.

Jess, from  Bishop’s Tatchbrook, Warwickshire, England sets the initial question - “I’ve been thinking about the police Stop and Search tactics in the UK. Should we keep it? Done for the right reasons, with truthful explanations, is it wrong? It's about how it's done I think, without aggression, reasonably and respectfully. Done well it lasts seconds, done badly it progresses and escalates”.

Alex hasn’t had much direct experience with stop and search but has heard mixed views. 

William sees outcomes as shaped by the officer’s mindset, while Stuart argues stereotyping is inevitable—but misuse is harmful. 

Stuart’s been stopped often and feels both sides share responsibility. 

William stresses the need for solid reasoning, though Stuart defends instinct. 

They discuss vague intel, lost police experience, and knowing your rights. 

Stuart calls for balance; William urges activists to check their egos to avoid pointless conflict.

Vinroy, in Linstead, Jamaica sent us the next question - “Not been well recently so I have been thinking about some big issues. The world around us, including buildings and the sea, is it dominated by objects or processes?”

William sees our world as shaped by habitual processes—things built, then replaced. 

Alex adds that automation plays a growing role. 

Stuart argues nearly everything is a process, not an object: the sea, buildings, even plastic all undergo constant change and decay. He struggles to see anything as static. William agrees, linking deterioration to environmental forces. 

Alex counters that objects exist as matter, while life itself is a process. The conversation dips into philosophy. 

William’s action: don’t over define everything. Stuart’s: take time to reflect—or not. Alex’s: contemplate life’s full arc and step back from reality.

What do you make of this discussion? Do you have a question that you'd like us to discuss? 

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