OUG,

I think that you need to broaden your education about 'rubber bullets'; the ones that the British Police have are 1.5 inch diametre and 4.5 inch long.

"A low power propelling charge gave them a muzzle velocity of about 60 m/s (200 ft/s) and maximum range of about 100 m (110 yd). The intended use is to fire at the ground so that the round bounces up and hits the target on the legs causing pain but not injury.[10] In Northern Ireland over 35 years (1970–2005) approximately 125,000 baton rounds were fired—an average of ten per day—causing 17 deaths.[11] The baton round was made available to British police forces outside Northern Ireland from 2001.".
ref:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubber_bullet.

What was OK to use on British citizens in Northern Ireland is apparently not to be used in London.

mise from your link
""Rubber bullets are rubber or rubber-coated projectiles""

you are refering to the earlier
im refering to the later

""Rubber projectiles"'..ie your type
..""have largely been replaced
by other materials as rubber tends to bounce uncontrollably...

see link 5 your link

but as i allready accesed another link
http://www.slate.com/id/1006194/

i will quote from that one

hardly informative..but

""Rubber bullets describe about 75 types of "less than lethal devices""

and if someone thinks aiming anyone of them at me
will make me less angry..they better..think again

anyone aiming to 'shoot'..at me
neednt be that suprised..IF someone..chose's..to shoot back

OUG,

Note that I put ' ' around 'rubber bullets'; the plastic variety were introduced in Northern Ireland and tried out there on men, women and children. Their correct name is baton rounds.

The London police would have the latest variation, less lethal perhaps but not politically correct for London.

A few pennies, or other foreign objects, inserted under the projectile increases the possibility of damage and the subsequent injuries cannot be sheeted home to the firer.

"The British Government pioneered the use of plastic bullets. Used extensively in Northern Ireland, it was discovered they were lethal at certain ranges.[11]

From 1973 to 1981, over 42,000 plastic bullets were fired in Northern Ireland. Fourteen people were killed by plastic bullet impacts, including nine children. Most of the deaths were allegedly[12][13][14] caused by the British security services misusing the weapon, firing at close range and at chest or head level rather than targeting below the waist.

One of the victims, 12-year-old Carol Ann Kelly from Twinbrook in west Belfast died on 22 May, having been struck by a plastic bullet fired by a member of the Royal Fusiliers on 19 May 1981.[15][16] These concerns led to campaigners such . . . ."

Links.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_bullet
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_bullet

Yes Yabby,
I do agree with you, we in Australia, are pretty lucky compared with some countries around the Globe.
Putting people in high-rise ghetto's is not the way to go, it breeds discontent, racial disputes (in some cases), and also breeds the 'them and us' or the haves and have nots). But what is really missing is the inspiration through parenting and schools, that most things can be achieved if you want them enough, not just 'stuff', but careers also.
Perhaps there is more mentoring required for these kids, in so saying,
I deplore the wreckage that was inflicted on those people who worked hard to get where they were before the riots. Should they go to jail,
and get their 'training' from hardened criminals?, that would be a disaster, boot camp?, I don't know. 'Tis a difficult situation.
NSB

http://blog.alexanderhiggins.com/2011/08/13/london-riots-stiff-dose-truth-censored-corporate-media-55331/

A Stiff Dose Of Hard Truth And Startling Facts About The London Riots You Won't Hear From The Government Censored Corporate Media Propaganda Sources.

This video is chock full of the truths you won’t hear corporate media about the London Riots such as only 1 in 10 homes where the riots broke out have a toilet.

even the criminality of the rich pratts
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/8695990/Students-face-leaving-university-with-60k-debts.html
binds them into perpetual[eventual]..slavery

dont forget
the kids ALL have the same mindsets
weal-thy or poor
they all watched the simpletons
thats so funny

but they knew enough
to only riot..when the power goes OFF

you got sold a dream
that in time will not hear your scream

once they perfected the hussh dicent up teqniques
you will be too frightend by the thought of being 'poor'
you will do anything to keep the spin going

without their id
you cant do anything

and it all just happend
cause you hasd the sun shinning in your eyes
little realising it came from servants of satans butt
but you love your entertainment so much..you watched copshop entertaintment

enjoy murder mysteries and cooking shows
would rather blather than think

Dear grahamy,

You asked if the UK style riots could happen here. Hell if the Anzacs were responsible for setting the identity of our new nation then a bloody good riot was part of the legacy.

From Wikipedia "Following Australia's entry into World War I, many Australian men volunteered to fight in Europe and were stationed in camps around Australia to receive military training before being shipped to the front. At 9.00am on 14 February 1916, at Casula Camp in Liverpool in Sydney's south west, it was announced to the recruits that the current training session would be extended into the evening, meaning a 27 hour stretch for some of the recruits. Five thousand recruits refused to accept extra duty and went on strike to protest the poor conditions at the camp. The soldiers left the camp and marched towards the centre of Liverpool, where they were joined by other recruits from around Liverpool. The number of protesters now reached as many as 15 000. They invaded a number of local hotels, drinking the bars dry, refusing to pay and started to vandalise buildings.

The soldiers then gained control of Liverpool train station, overpowered the engineers and commandeered trains heading towards Sydney, where they began rampaging drunkenly through Sydney streets, smashing windows and targeting anyone with a foreign sounding name, including Italian restaurants, even though Italy was an ally of Australia in the war. Shops and hotels were looted and people were forced to take refuge in churches to avoid the soldiers. Police reinforcements were called in and began battling the soldiers in the streets of Sydney."

This why I got a chuckle from Banjo's preferred solution of national service.

Good rioters are just as much a part of our history as good fighters and mateship.