And having made sure my attention was focused in one direction the universe, which likes a good laugh, smacked me in the face from the other side. - Ben Aaronovitch

This is what’s known as operational flexibility, and definitely not making it up as you go along.

Nightingale had taught me to be cautious of the early sources. “A great deal of it is accurate,” he said. “And a great deal is less so. Unfortunately it can be difficult to determine which is which.”

Nobody had a clue what had happened, so the pundits were out in force, explaining how the riot was caused by whatever sociopolitical factor their latest book was pushing. It was certainly a searing indictment of some aspect of modern society—if only we knew what.