GCR(N) vandalism causes thousands of pounds of damage

[Malcmal]

So what are they going to actually do about it, then? Other than taking the easy option of feeling better about themselves because they've complained on an internet forum? Which achieves... precisely what, in real terms?

By the way, as an old fart myself, I disagree with Alanko's ageist comment... but that's pretty much the only thing in his post I do disagree with.

Like with any problem in life - admitting it exists and assigning the correct level of urgency is the first step. I think Britain sucks and am definitely not a nationalist but it doesn't mean I want to see it fall even further into the gutter.

 

[Mag_seven]

hopefully some incurable illness is heading in their direction

Rather than "hanging and flogging" or whatever would it not be better to force the individuals concerned to give up their weekends and help out with repairing the damage? You never know they may emerge as better individuals as a result!

 

[Malcmal]

Rather than "hanging and flogging" or whatever would it not be better to force the individuals concerned to give up their weekends and help out with repairing the damage? You never know they may emerge as better individuals as a result!

That is a solution I would see as great - but does it ever work out? I read already on this thread there was no financial restitution for the NYMR set smashed up. I am going to guess that no other reparation like you suggest happened either - hope someone proves me wrong.

 

[randyrippley]

...........The LNER teak set that got smashed up was definitely not rotting away and yet we all know what went on there.

Do we really?
How do you know it wasn't a repeat of what happened to the Pullman set stored on one preserved railway, which was systematically smashed and pilfered from by members of a rival preservation group? I won't mention names as I've no intention of reopening the court case.

 

[Malcmal]

Do we really?
How do you know it wasn't a repeat of what happened to the Pullman set stored on one preserved railway, which was systematically smashed and pilfered from by members of a rival preservation group? I won't mention names as I've no intention of reopening the court case.

Well this certainly is a new direction for the thread!! Time for some curious Googling...

 

[randyrippley]

What a ridiculous statement!!! I highlighted the key word myself.

Yeah you're right, the word "seemingly" is superfluous there. I should have said "If someone can't be bothered to look after their own property and leaves it totally neglected, rotting and rusting away, what right do they have to expect other people to treat that apparent rubbish with more respect than they do themselves?.................."

 

[Malcmal]

Yeah you're right, the word "seemingly" is superfluous there. I should have said "If someone can't be bothered to look after their own property and leaves it totally neglected, rotting and rusting away, what right do they have to expect other people to treat that apparent rubbish with more respect than they do themselves?.................."

One persons rubbish is another persons treasure. Maybe I will pop into your garage (assuming you have one) and smash up anything that looks tatty??

 

[Worf]

Yeah you're right, the word "seemingly" is superfluous there. I should have said "If someone can't be bothered to look after their own property and leaves it totally neglected, rotting and rusting away, what right do they have to expect other people to treat that apparent rubbish with more respect than they do themselves?.................."

One man's rubbish is another man's gold. Either way, it aint your to mess with.

 

[duffield]

Is there any evidence at all that preserved lines lose potential customers due to the sight of scrapyard sidings?
...

My anecdotal evidence is that on my frequent heritage railway excursions, I've *never* heard anyone make any negative remarks about the 'linear scrapyard' (I've heard things like 'that's a strange looking thing' in relation to some more unusual items, but I don't count that as negative). I think it's much more important to have the station areas well-presented.

However, I don't look at trip advisor etc. so maybe such websites are full of complaints about this issue.

I haven't got the time or inclination but it would be interesting if someone looked at a largish sample of HR-related trip advisor comments and worked out what % actually complained about 'linear scrapyards'.

 

[Paul Hitchcock]

Unfortunately railway enthusiasts - whether they 'also pay' or not - are in the minority when it comes to those who visit preserved railways. Alas, this is a truism that so many of them continue to be in absolute denial about.


There's a huge difference between 'works in progress and interesting vehicles' or 'a bit of industrial archaeology' and 'stuff rotting away that looks awful and realistically doesn't have a snowball in hell's chance of actually being restored'.

Preserved railways understandably have an attitude of 'get it while you can or else it'll be too late', but I think there is a balance to be had with that sentiment and just keeping stuff for the sake of it 'just in case' the funds and wo/manpower might one day be available to restore it.

It's equally understandable that the nostalgia business and reality checks are not the most comfortable of bedfellows. By and large preserved railways understandably don't want to scrap things, but otherwise you end up with what's known as correspondent Paul Hitchcock's 'linear scrapyard', a sentiment which I wholeheartedly agree with.

This in no way excuses the behaviour of the half-witted little scroats but, as has been stated upthread, decay tends to attract decay.

Just to agree 100%

 

[Derbyshire Gra]

As a volunteer at GCRN, I can honestly state that the spate of vandalism at the GCRN has affected the serviceable vacuum brake set, the Mark III set and numerous vehicles around the yard - some of which may be in less than perfect condition, but none of which had been earmarked for disposal. The picture of the operational signalbox is because that was also broken into, and damage done to the structure, flooring and some equipment. Condition and use was not a factor in the decisions of those involved to cause damage and steal property.
As a volunteer, it is heartbreaking to see thousands of hours of hard work undermined, and further hours wasted on clearing up. It is also a huge waste of the funds which have taken long periods to earn and are necessarily used on merely getting back to the starting point.
It is interesting that the one Mark III which is stripped and destined for scrap was left untouched, and perhaps fortunate that five heavily restored Mark IIIs were absent en-route to Yorkshire when the latest and most damaging attack took place.

 

[Malcmal]

As a volunteer at GCRN, I can honestly state that the spate of vandalism at the GCRN has affected the serviceable vacuum brake set, the Mark III set and numerous vehicles around the yard - some of which may be in less than perfect condition, but none of which had been earmarked for disposal. The picture of the operational signalbox is because that was also broken into, and damage done to the structure, flooring and some equipment. Condition and use was not a factor in the decisions of those involved to cause damage and steal property.
As a volunteer, it is heartbreaking to see thousands of hours of hard work undermined, and further hours wasted on clearing up. It is also a huge waste of the funds which have taken long periods to earn and are necessarily used on merely getting back to the starting point.
It is interesting that the one Mark III which is stripped and destined for scrap was left untouched, and perhaps fortunate that five heavily restored Mark IIIs were absent en-route to Yorkshire when the latest and most damaging attack took place.

My heart goes out to you and your fellow volunteers - it really does. All the best wishes in pulling everything back together and hopefully this is a turning point in the whole sorry situation.

 

[Cowley]

As a volunteer at GCRN, I can honestly state that the spate of vandalism at the GCRN has affected the serviceable vacuum brake set, the Mark III set and numerous vehicles around the yard - some of which may be in less than perfect condition, but none of which had been earmarked for disposal. The picture of the operational signalbox is because that was also broken into, and damage done to the structure, flooring and some equipment. Condition and use was not a factor in the decisions of those involved to cause damage and steal property.
As a volunteer, it is heartbreaking to see thousands of hours of hard work undermined, and further hours wasted on clearing up. It is also a huge waste of the funds which have taken long periods to earn and are necessarily used on merely getting back to the starting point.
It is interesting that the one Mark III which is stripped and destined for scrap was left untouched, and perhaps fortunate that five heavily restored Mark IIIs were absent en-route to Yorkshire when the latest and most damaging attack took place.

Really sorry to hear about this. Having visited the GCRN a few times, including a visit earlier this year, I can see how much the railway has achieved over the last few years.
The lineside is looking really good now, there’s lots of interesting stuff to see around the place, and there’s clearly a huge amount of work being done at Ruddington.
I hope that you can get all this sorted out as quickly as possible.

I’ve just looked at the website, what’s the best way of making a donation?

 

[yorksrob]

I've been meaning to sign up to this forum for quite some time (the heritage railways trying to have it 'both ways' thread got me 90% of the way there). Maybe not the best first post, but here goes.

When I first saw the photos of this vandalism, on Twitter of all places, I was upset but not especially surprised, as it isn't the first case of small railways being vandalised that I've heard of; in the last year alone. I also assumed that there would be an angry knee-jerky over-reaction from the 'cut off there (sic) hands' mob online. It looks like I was right!



This is what I thought when I saw the photos as well. This doesn't excuse the behaviour of the miscreants in any way, but derelict property tends to attract vandalism. This isn't unique to the world of railways or transport. Let a building sit idle for too long without any security measures and it will be picked clean, and every window will be smashed.



I'm one of those people who like looking to see what is on the 'dump' when I visit new airports. This probably puts me in the 1% of travellers through a given airport.

I'm in two minds about heritage railways though. At their best (or at least most fiscally viable) they present a sort of sanitised version of the past that never actually existed. It gives visitors the chance to imagine they are extras in an adaptation of an Agatha Christie novel. Like in the historic aviation world, this can get overly saccharin very quickly, and it can appear that more time is spent on various '50s nights, '30s nights, swing bands, dinners and dressing up than actually restoring aircraft.

At the same time there are many aviation museums with one Meteor rotting into the weeds, one Vulcan with water pouring through the wings, lots of faded, peeling paint and lots of hazed over cockpit canopies. The spotters and aviation diehards prefer the latter, right down to the yellowed, hand-typed scraps of paper telling you what each crudely excavated shard of scrap metal supposedly belonged to. The bulk of visitors probably want a 'Duxford' or 'Cosford' experience; especially if they have kids in tow. The aircraft (much as the trains) are just part of the bigger package and experience.

Probably the heritage railway and historic aviation world share a lot of the same elements here. There are lots of people willing to tell the small museums above exactly which aircraft should be preserved, and how badly they got the shade of grey wrong, and why they are idiots for making some other minor transgression or historic inaccuracy. Said 'enthusiasts' don't always dip especially deeply into their own pockets to correct these errors.You can't really avoid the fact, however, that a lot of these museums are aircraft graveyards which exist more for the indulgence of retired men who wish to spanner aircraft for a few hours a week, away from 'er indoors. The heritage railway community seems likewise to be littered with numerous 'The Class (whatever) Preservation Society' outfits with their circa 1998 Geocities websites and rotting slabs of defunct traction dumped along a heritage line somewhere in the middle of nowhere. In both camps "restoration projects" is probably hopelessly optimistic thetoric used to refer to scrap metal. 45015 on the Battlefield Line, for example, is simply dodging the cutting torch out of sheer luck. With all the will in the world it will never move again under its own power. I got pretty tired of the various aviation restoration groups who were going to be doing something within the next couple of months... then again I never donated that much money to them!


In terms of promoting the message of "this outfit have their stuff together and have a sustainable business model", long lines of faded mk1s, anonymous rusting boilers dumped in the weeds, rotting colliery engines, and a Class 26 under a tarp that hasn't been touched since 1991, don't really cut it. Likewise most people probably don't want to see knackered aeroplanes when they visit an airport or museum as it suggests the place is disorganised, run by chancers of fantasists, and is potentially a dangerous place to be.

And any rotting stuff attracts Urbex-ers and vandals in no short order.



Vandalism isn't a new phenomenon. The difference is that we hear about it more readily, and we hear about cases from further away. The Twitter-sphere also helps to perpetuate a sort of continuous loop of anger as well. Don't worry, something new will be along shortly to make you even more angry.

I don't understand those who take relish in pointing out how steeply in decline this country supposedly is. Especially when such types are fairly often rabid nationalists who are the first to proclaim their love for that same country. I think it must be an age thing!

Welcome to the forum, and thank you for a very enjoyable first post !

It particularly resonates with me because I had an uncle in the RAF and as a child I used to enjoy sitting in various static cockpits !

I doubt most people who visit these museums and preserved railways are particularly bothered that they have a robust business case, and are only partially aware of their operation as a business at all. To my mind, having vehicles and exhibits at various stages of restoration (or not) in sight, helps to bring home to the public, just how much work and effort it takes to maintain an item in a cosmetically fresh condition, let alone bring it back to working order.

Unfortunately railway enthusiasts - whether they 'also pay' or not - are in the minority when it comes to those who visit preserved railways. Alas, this is a truism that so many of them continue to be in absolute denial about.


There's a huge difference between 'works in progress and interesting vehicles' or 'a bit of industrial archaeology' and 'stuff rotting away that looks awful and realistically doesn't have a snowball in hell's chance of actually being restored'.

Preserved railways understandably have an attitude of 'get it while you can or else it'll be too late', but I think there is a balance to be had with that sentiment and just keeping stuff for the sake of it 'just in case' the funds and wo/manpower might one day be available to restore it.

It's equally understandable that the nostalgia business and reality checks are not the most comfortable of bedfellows. By and large preserved railways understandably don't want to scrap things, but otherwise you end up with what's known as correspondent Paul Hitchcock's 'linear scrapyard', a sentiment which I wholeheartedly agree with.

This in no way excuses the behaviour of the half-witted little scroats but, as has been stated upthread, decay tends to attract decay.

I think normal punters are far more concened with their experience on the day - the maintenance of the train they're on, the station facilities and the event they're attending. You're assuming that most of general public have a clue how much work it takes to restore anything and whether a particular item is a viable proposition in the first place, which is a very unlikely in most cases.

One man's rubbish is another man's gold. Either way, it aint your to mess with.

Very well put !

As a volunteer at GCRN, I can honestly state that the spate of vandalism at the GCRN has affected the serviceable vacuum brake set, the Mark III set and numerous vehicles around the yard - some of which may be in less than perfect condition, but none of which had been earmarked for disposal. The picture of the operational signalbox is because that was also broken into, and damage done to the structure, flooring and some equipment. Condition and use was not a factor in the decisions of those involved to cause damage and steal property.
As a volunteer, it is heartbreaking to see thousands of hours of hard work undermined, and further hours wasted on clearing up. It is also a huge waste of the funds which have taken long periods to earn and are necessarily used on merely getting back to the starting point.
It is interesting that the one Mark III which is stripped and destined for scrap was left untouched, and perhaps fortunate that five heavily restored Mark IIIs were absent en-route to Yorkshire when the latest and most damaging attack took place.

As someone who's been involved in carriage restoration myself, I can heartily sympathise with you and your colleagues over the pointless damage and the waste of precious time and resources caused by this act.

I had a great visit to Ruddington on a railtour once, and very much enjoyed looking around at the various exhibits. I wish you all well in getting things back to normal.

And from my experience are also the visitors who spend the least amount of money when they do visit.

That depends on how good your refreshment facilities are.

Has anybody ever quantified how great a proportion of visitors to preserved railways are obsessive compulsives who are likely to be unduly concerned by items in a yard that have little to do with their experience of their day out ?

I suspect that it is vanishingly small, compared to enthusiasts.

 

[Peter Kelford]

Why on earth do people do this sort of thing? Don't they have brownfield sites to play on or a derelict building?

 

[Peter Kelford]

They should be given a loan to pay for the damage and be expected to pay it back over their working lives at 10% interest per year. Don't ruin their lives, give them a chance to correct it. Also give them community service at the railway.

 

[Flying Phil]

As others have said - heartbreaking to see that two youths can do so much damage and affect the hard work of so many people.
I'm sure that more people will realise what an asset they have in the GCR(N) and it will repair..... and come back stronger than ever.

 

[Worf]

I am always impressed by the progress that has been made on the GCR(N) over the years, and their plans for the future. Don't let this setback dampen you enthusiasm.

If the parents of under age vandals were made to do their offsprings community service it might actually focus a few minds.

 

[The_Train]

If someone can't be bothered to look after their own property and leaves it seemingly neglected, rotting and rusting away, what right do they have to expect other people to treat that apparent rubbish with more respect than they do themselves?
I it looks like junk it will get regarded as junk and treated accordingly.
Its not just the preserved lines that are the problem..........those abandoned vans owned by WCRC at Long Preston are an example on the main network, while as for Carnforth, there's enough scrap there to keep Ward's in business for years

There are a couple of rusting old land rovers parked in a guys yard across the road from me. I've never seen them move and never seen anyone show any signs of restoring them. Does that mean I can go across the road and smash them up?

 

[The_Train]

Rather than "hanging and flogging" or whatever would it not be better to force the individuals concerned to give up their weekends and help out with repairing the damage? You never know they may emerge as better individuals as a result!

To be fair, I read a story of 2 youths who egged a guys front door. What they didn't realise is that they were on CCTV and once the bloke saw who they were he went and found them and instead of reporting them, he simply made them clean up the mess they had made.

No way of knowing what effect this had on the lads but you'd like to think it at least made them realise that even though they were 'only' throwing eggs at a door, it does still impact on a person somewhere down the line

 

[Malcmal]

There are a couple of rusting old land rovers parked in a guys yard across the road from me. I've never seen them move and never seen anyone show any signs of restoring them. Does that mean I can go across the road and smash them up?

Apparently this is ok as long as you are under voting age!

Seriously, people on here are talking about the original topic is if it was some kind of youthful high jinx. What was done must have taken time and real evil to carry out. Is there anyone here who would put their hand up to having done something as a kid that would be equally nasty / downright f*cked up as this and give a viewpoint from "the other side of the fence".

 

[Calthrop]

Apparently this is ok as long as you are under voting age!

Seriously, people on here are talking about the original topic is if it was some kind of youthful high jinx. What was done must have taken time and real evil to carry out. Is there anyone here who would put their hand up to having done something as a kid that would be equally nasty / downright f*cked up as this and give a viewpoint from "the other side of the fence".

Although in my youth I perpetrated much extreme foolishness, a lot of it highly inconsiderate; will admit that vandalism was never my thing. However, I see it as -- while highly regrettable -- something to be expected.

A thought or two, pertinent I think to this issue, vouchsafed via that notorious dripping-wet understand-and-forgive-everything bleeding-heart liberal and egalitarian Harry Flashman (channelled by George MacDonald Fraser) -- quoting a comrade-in-arms with whom he witnesses the (officially sanctioned) wrecking by Western troops, of the exquisite Old Summer Palace outside Beijing, in the Second Opium War in 1860. "See how they enjoy destruction ! ... It's a marvellous thing, the effect of plunder on soldiers. I suppose they feel real power for once in their wretched lives... the power to destroy a creation of the mind, something they know they could never make."

Human nature being as it is: it would seem a certain thing, that vandalism has existed for as long as humankind has been making artefacts. "Real evil"? -- perhaps; but in my maybe over-tolerant view, fairly ho-hum ordinary and everyday evil -- I see numerous more-wicked things, of which humans are capable. Joy in wanton destruction, is a particular tendency of disadvantaged folk at the bottom of the social heap (as with the soldiery as mentioned above -- low-rank soldiers in 1860, were mostly from society's poorest and meanest echelons) -- but not confined to the "underclass": it's a thing for which, especially, very young males society-wide are apt to have a propensity. I'm inclined to think that often, such young guys in time grow out of it -- even if they never receive deserved retribution for their destructive doings.

Vandalism is, for sure, bad and reprehensible; in normal peacetime society, it's appropriate that those who engage in it should be, when possible, corrected in one way or another (short of mutilation or incarceration in hell-camps; but I'm a wet, unworldly do-gooder) -- and education is appropriate, to try to "forestall those who might; and teach better, those who do". However -- in dealing with our highly imperfect species, it's a thing which is likely to happen, and unlikely ever to be eradicated.

 

[Up Main]

Really sorry to hear about this. Having visited the GCRN a few times, including a visit earlier this year, I can see how much the railway has achieved over the last few years.
The lineside is looking really good now, there’s lots of interesting stuff to see around the place, and there’s clearly a huge amount of work being done at Ruddington.
I hope that you can get all this sorted out as quickly as possible.

I’ve just looked at the website, what’s the best way of making a donation?

Hi Cowley, the GCR(N) support charity Web page is lnergcheritagetrust.co.uk, which is inviting donations to help with information under the headline "We will not be broken! ". There are various ways to donate including PayPal, Virgin Giving or directly to the Charity bank account or good old fashioned cheques. Thanks for all the help and good wishes.

 

[Alanko]

Joy in wanton destruction, is a particular tendency of disadvantaged folk at the bottom of the social heap (as with the soldiery as mentioned above -- low-rank soldiers in 1860, were mostly from society's poorest and meanest echelons) -- but not confined to the "underclass": it's a thing for which, especially, very young males society-wide are apt to have a propensity.

Quite. The Bullingdon Club is proof enough that wanton destruction takes place at the top of the tree as well. The difference is that Evelyn Waugh writes about it, and apparently there is nothing quite like smashing up a restaurant or two!

I think Britain sucks and am definitely not a nationalist but it doesn't mean I want to see it fall even further into the gutter.

Why does Britain suck? It isn't because teenage boys started arbitrarily vandalising things!

 

[Cowley]

Hi Cowley, the GCR(N) support charity Web page is lnergcheritagetrust.co.uk, which is inviting donations to help with information under the headline "We will not be broken! ". There are various ways to donate including PayPal, Virgin Giving or directly to the Charity bank account or good old fashioned cheques. Thanks for all the help and good wishes.

Donation made. Thanks Up Main.

 

[Malcmal]

Although in my youth I perpetrated much extreme foolishness, a lot of it highly inconsiderate; will admit that vandalism was never my thing. However, I see it as -- while highly regrettable -- something to be expected.

A thought or two, pertinent I think to this issue, vouchsafed via that notorious dripping-wet understand-and-forgive-everything bleeding-heart liberal and egalitarian Harry Flashman (channelled by George MacDonald Fraser) -- quoting a comrade-in-arms with whom he witnesses the (officially sanctioned) wrecking by Western troops, of the exquisite Old Summer Palace outside Beijing, in the Second Opium War in 1860. "See how they enjoy destruction ! ... It's a marvellous thing, the effect of plunder on soldiers. I suppose they feel real power for once in their wretched lives... the power to destroy a creation of the mind, something they know they could never make."

Thank you Calthrop for a really decent and interesting post on the deeper levels of this subject. I know there are more evil things that humans can do - I supposed I am just trying to make the point this attack was much more sustained and intense than the average egg throwing or nicking a bar of chocolate from the supermarket. What I worry is that the next step could be attacking a person rather than property. The level of anger inside those kids to make such an amount of damage is frightening.

Why does Britain suck? It isn't because teenage boys started arbitrarily vandalising things!

I never said it was particularly because of these boys. I just see in general a leaderless, broken country that forgets it is no longer of any real importance in the world stage with the "crowning turd in the water pipe" being the whole Brexit fiasco - which we won't get into now!! Of course compared to Venezuela Britain is paradise so it's all comparative but I am more thinking in European terms.

Edit:

Oh and in case you all think I like to just mouth off I have just added GBP100 to the "We Will Not Be Broken" fund :-P

 

[Alanko]

I just see in general a leaderless, broken country that forgets it is no longer of any real importance in the world stage with the "crowning turd in the water pipe" being the whole Brexit fiasco - which we won't get into now!!

I can get behind this, actually. Brexit is a protest of sorts. As a Scot I see Brexit frame far too keenly as a sort of Anglo-centric nationalism on steroids. It is all about Spitfires over the White Cliffs for a' that (an a' that), and a bid to get back to some sort of fuzzily defined point in the past (when we still built Spitfires and the sun never went down on the empire). How anybody can say it is a matter of regaining sovereignty with a straight face, when we have a house of Lords whereby one of the conditions for potential membership is simply being born with the correct blood, and when our great leaders have to kiss the ring (metaphorically!!) of an Australian newspaper mogul to gain any sort of political traction, is beyond me. When Rupert Murdoch decides to smash the NHS he will get it done through column inches in his various rags.

Perhaps teenagers vandalise old railway carriages because they feel no great affinity with our industrial past. Our heavy industry was erased mostly within a single generation (though the death spiral was longer than this). If you live in a former industrial hub, or smaller market town, then your greatest hope is to either scrape a 2:1 in a degree that lets you move to London to earn money, or secondly hope that Amazon fling up a warehouse or Vodafone fling up a call centre in your vicinity. We have a lot of non-jobs in this country or jobs that can be whisked off to Eastern Europe or India at a moment's notice. Lots of jobs are being automated or mechanised, and robots never go on strike. I'm not sure how you reconcile this against the notion that everybody should be gainfully employed at all times.

 

[Calthrop]

I know there are more evil things that humans can do - I supposed I am just trying to make the point this attack was much more sustained and intense than the average egg throwing or nicking a bar of chocolate from the supermarket. What I worry is that the next step could be attacking a person rather than property. The level of anger inside those kids to make such an amount of damage is frightening.

One can at least hope that a significant number of such young persons -- however angry -- would nonetheless balk at doing great physical harm to humans; and maybe, to other living creatures -- or perhaps that really is cloud-cuckoo-land...

 

[duffield]

£800 donated. That's 1% accounted for! (It is my closest heritage railway despite my username).

 

[Ianno87]

Thank you Calthrop for a really decent and interesting post on the deeper levels of this subject. I know there are more evil things that humans can do - I supposed I am just trying to make the point this attack was much more sustained and intense than the average egg throwing or nicking a bar of chocolate from the supermarket. What I worry is that the next step could be attacking a person rather than property. The level of anger inside those kids to make such an amount of damage is frightening.

I think these kids genuinely don't grasp how genuinely expensive such damage is, and the impact of it - financially and emotionally - on these organisations.

It's Grand Theft Auto mentality. Destroy something and it'll magically get replaced again and again and again...