Train staff assaulted by members of the public---shameful.

When it becomes unsafe for hardworking members of our train staff, we need to take a long hard look at where we are going as a society. I can think of nothing that justifies this low form of behaviour and my head is full of specific terminology to describe the thugs who perpetrated these senseless acts of violence. We must deal to them in a manner that will discourage such behaviour in the future; yes I am suggesting prison terms. We want people to take the trains, but they need to pay just like most of us do for other services. We need to get people out of cars and onto public transport, but these latest attacks will be a double-edged sword in that they will put off would be employees (who don't exactly get paid much!) and the travelling public who do not wish to be exposed to these crazy and dangerous passengers.
I know that the officers on the trains are clamping down on free-riders and that some people have been paying during rush hours, but now that the Hop system is coming in, there are spot-checks. If that makes some people angry, then too bad---they need to pay!
I hope that other more responsible members of the public come to the aid of our train staff and that the employers take steps to keep their staff safe. In this day of relatively cheap surveillance methods, they should be able to bring these criminal to task. Lets keep our public transport safe; for the customers and the workers.