Political Banter and Debate Thread

asfish · **Joined:** 5th Dec, 2010 **Posts:** 3353

How about another example? This one is related to gaming!

Quote:

Xbox Live recently banned Josh Moore for violating its gamers’ code of conduct. His offense? Filling out his Xbox Live profile. You see, Mr. Moore lives in West Virginia. More specifically, in FORT GAY, West Virginia. As Microsoft says, the word “gay” is always offensive. Never mind that several US townships incorporate the word into their name, many people have “Gay” as a first or last name, and some homosexuals do identify themselves as “gay.” No, Microsoft obviously had a wise guy in their midst, and he had to go. So, despite a total lack of customer complaints, Microsoft froze Moore’s account and warned him that he could lose his prepaid subscription if he badgered Customer Service further. Fort Gay Mayor, David Thompson, tried to intervene, but was told that the city’s name didn’t matter; the word “gay” was inappropriate in any context. As a result, Moore missed a Search and Destroy competition and his team lost. Microsoft has since carefully reviewed the matter and reinstated Moore with full Xbox Live privileges (translation: the story hit the web).

Mimi · **Joined:** 27th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 25588

Oh, there's a better example of that.

Doctor Glyndwr · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 32619

I should move to Scunthorpe.

Cras · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 49232

Malc · **Posted:** Fri Apr 29, 2016 22:12

Cras wrote:

You grew up in London, the world's most incredible multicultural melting pot. Elsewhere is different

From what I have seen There is very little racism in Devon (where it's something like 99.9% white). I really don't think if I move back to London my world view will change all that much. There are racists in London too

Cras · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 49232

Malc wrote:

Cras wrote:

You grew up in London, the world's most incredible multicultural melting pot. Elsewhere is different

From what I have seen There is very little racism in Devon (where it's something like 99.9% white). I really don't think if I move back to London my world view will change all that much. There are racists in London too

You've automatically contradicted yourself. You see no racism, specifically because it's 99.9% white. That's why so much of non-metropolitan England has awful views on immigration etc - because it's totally alien to their way of life. Not because they're bad people, just because it's a part of the UK they have totally no experience of.

Mimi · **Joined:** 27th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 25588

I was surprised when moving away from London just how white some places were. One of the girls from my uni was from Norfolk, or somewhere near that way, and she cane with neocon a trip to London and we stayed at my grandparents, in Neasden, Borough of Brent, London. As we stepped off the already very racially diverse tube at Wembley Park and into the clamour of the street and bus, ringing with a hundred different languages, it would be enough to send the senses of a lot of people not used to that atmosphere whirling. Nikki just sat wide eyed until we reached the quiet of my grandparents, then she almost gasped and said she'd only ever seen two non-White people before, memories that stuck out really strongly for her... She had never even imagined there could be so many peoples of different races, so many languages, all in one place. It was kind of amazing to see her reaction, and really sweet, actually. She had lots of questions about how people got on, language barriers, etc.

Can't remember where I was going with this, but it was quite nice.

MaliA · **Posted:** Mon May 02, 2016 17:51

MaliA wrote:

Doctor Glyndwr wrote:

MaliA wrote:

Reading back she says her Facebook statement "doesn't reflect her views" so that leaves lots of uncomfortable notions why she hit 'send'.

RTs are not endorsement HTH HAND

True. But adding a comment "might save them some pocket money" when sharing it can be seen to be. It's worth noting that her constituency has had Galloway trying to declare Bradford an "Israel free zone", a Tory in the same area has been suspended for allegedly making anti semetic comments and now this. Over in Bradford East there's the lib dem tweeting "Je suis Palestinian" the day after the Hebdo incident. And a labourcounciller being suspended for doing tweets against Israel. It's possible to join the dots and come up with a conclusion that in Bradford, a large anti Israel and pro palestine stance will win favour with the clan leaders and Imams which you need to swing large block votes your way. Galloway's stupid fucking bus had a Palestine an flag out the back of it, the council leader had the Palestine flag flying from the town hall.

Another 3 suspended...

Labour is a disaster. Private Eye was reporting that Milne wanted back into the grauniad, too.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 8:01

"Labour is a disaster"

Yes. Yes, they are.
Thing is though Mali, they've *always* been a disaster, in all respects too. Well, for at least as long as I've been alive at any rate; I can't speak for the early 20th Century Cooperative Movement.

The hour grows very late, but welcome to the party. I think there's a dusty sausage roll left somewhere...

Curiosity · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 8:57

And yet the Tories not only condone racism and Islamophobia, but promote it and use it as a top campaign tool.

Weird that racism is only bad when done by the Left.

MaliA · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 8:59

Curiosity wrote:

And yet the Tories not only condone racism and Islamophobia, but promote it and use it as a top campaign tool.

Weird that racism is only bad when done by the Left.

Hey! I'm only commenting on the stories that enhance my position that anyone but Corbyn would have been the correct choice!

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 9:06

"Tories condone racism and islamophobia"

Yeah, course they do Curio, we're buggers for that. You forgot to mention our penchant for killing first born sons too. :roll:

Lol. That gets a solid 8 on the groundless, hysterical bollocks scale, not bad for an opening salvo on at the start of the working week.

MaliA · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 9:08

Cavey wrote:

"Tories condone racism and islamophobia"

Yeah, course they do Curio, we're buggers for that. You forgot to mention our penchant for killing first born sons too. :roll:

Not even touching the punchline to this.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 9:09

I don't blame you.
Sausage roll btw? It's ok, they're Waitrose.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 9:17

Continued commiserations re. corbyn btw; I realise schadenfreude isn't the most attractive human attribute but you'll hopefully forgive my hilarity as he staggers from one belm to the next appallingly handled situation or laughably ill advised appointment. He'll be gone in a year or so, possibly much less if he carries on promoting his loony lefty friends.

It's a bad time to be a labour supporter that's for sure lol. Not that there's ever a good time to be one of course, but still.

JBR · **Joined:** 2nd Jun, 2008 **Posts:** 3214

Curiosity wrote:

And yet the Tories not only condone racism and Islamophobia, but promote it and use it as a top campaign tool.

Weird that racism is only bad when done by the Left.

You missed homophobia, mind. Cameron should rightly be applauded for the gay marriage bill being approved on his watch, but it was in spite of his party, not because of them.

Curiosity · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 9:19

Cavey wrote:

"Tories condone racism and islamophobia"

Yeah, course they do Curio, we're buggers for that. You forgot to mention our penchant for killing first born sons too. :roll:

Lol. That gets a solid 8 on the groundless, hysterical bollocks scale, not bad for an opening salvo on at the start of the working week.

Clearly you haven't been following the London mayoral election then. It's been openly Islamophobic. Zac Goldsmith's only policy has been to say that Sadiq Khan is a terrorist sympathiser.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 9:21

I don't live in London.

Mimi · **Joined:** 27th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 25588

JBR wrote:

Curiosity wrote:

And yet the Tories not only condone racism and Islamophobia, but promote it and use it as a top campaign tool.

Weird that racism is only bad when done by the Left.

You missed homophobia, mind.

And bestiality. Oh, no, that's right... That's the one they're OK with.

:DD

Curiosity · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 9:45

Cavey wrote:

I don't live in London.

Okay, well, Zac Goldsmith (presumably at the behest of Lynton Crosby) is being a bit of a tit.

asfish · **Joined:** 5th Dec, 2010 **Posts:** 3353

Quote:

Zac Goldsmith's only policy has been to say that Sadiq Khan is a terrorist

Well that's Jews for you, you should listen to the Labour Party

Doctor Glyndwr · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 32619

Cavey wrote:

I don't live in London.

You don't live in any of the towns the Labour councillers have been suspended from, either.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 10:03

Doctor Glyndwr wrote:

Cavey wrote:

I don't live in London.

You don't live in any of the towns the Labour councillers have been suspended from, either.

Surely you can appreciate this isn't a matter of mere geography, not having a dog in the fight (or whatever the saying is), but simply not being exposed to the ins and outs of the London mayoral campaign? I know almost nothing about it, as I've said.

Labours racism-fuelled latest implosion is IMO at least quite a big deal and grabs my attention, even by their, ahem, standards. It's really quite extraordinary, and utterly shameful. Increasingly, nothing really surprises me from these idiots now, what an utter shower they are. Can you imagine these wankers running the country and doing grown up stuff? I would not trust any of them to run a bric a brac stall at our village fair!

Curiosity · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 10:11

Less extraordinary than the recent works of Mr Hunt and Ms Morgan, though.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 10:13

Ah, well, there we differ I'm afraid. Considerably.

Curiosity · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 10:27

I think a party suspending a couple of people for racism isn't quite as extraordinary as a man hell bent on privatising the NHS and causing the largest industrial action in nearly SEVENTY YEARS. This is a once in a lifetime stand against the NHS by someone who refuses to even consider a compromise, despite being called to do so by people from all the major parties in Parliament.

That weighted against Labour cracking down swiftly on racism within their ranks is exceedingly one-sided in terms of importance. Of course we know that if it had been, for instance, Boris Johnson, he of the 'picaninnies with watermelon smiles', it would have been laughed off as unimportant or misconstrued.

But yes, having your entire healthcare and educational systems and plans absolutely mauled and destroyed, whilst your own party tears itself apart over the EU, is far less important in a governing party than some racism from minor members of the opposition.

Madness.

Cras · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 49232

Labour have 7000 councillors. They've suspended 3 of them. That's 0.04%
UKIP got 12.7% of the votes at the last election.

By my maths that makes Labour 300 times less racist than the British public at large.

(This is obviously a joke, you can't compare the numbers like that, and yes it's unfair to label all UKIP voters as racists. The point however is to highlight the scale of the numbers being talked about).

While I don't for a minute condone what any of them said, this has happened because scrutiny has been placed on the Labour Party, and they've cleaned out their closet. I don't doubt for a minute if you shone the same torch on any of the other parties thousands of councillors, you'd get an equal or higher ratio of people saying unpleasant, racist things.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 11:13

Curiosity wrote:

I think a party suspending a couple of people for racism isn't quite as extraordinary as a man hell bent on privatising the NHS and causing the largest industrial action in nearly SEVENTY YEARS. This is a once in a lifetime stand against the NHS by someone who refuses to even consider a compromise, despite being called to do so by people from all the major parties in Parliament.

That weighted against Labour cracking down swiftly on racism within their ranks is exceedingly one-sided in terms of importance. Of course we know that if it had been, for instance, Boris Johnson, he of the 'picaninnies with watermelon smiles', it would have been laughed off as unimportant or misconstrued.

But yes, having your entire healthcare and educational systems and plans absolutely mauled and destroyed, whilst your own party tears itself apart over the EU, is far less important in a governing party than some racism from minor members of the opposition.

Madness.

Meh. Sorry Curio, normally I enjoy your posts as you know, despite our being poles apart. But you know, seriously, that just reads as shrill, hysterical nonsense and I wouldn't even know where to start. (To be fair, though, I do understand your anger, I would be too).

Not particularly wanting to be drawn on the junior doctors' strike, but you know my views - it's little more than just a grubby little dispute about money, however the BMA, unions (or you) wants to dress it up as 'a fight for our NHS' or whatever. Doctors refusing to give even emergency A&E cover...? Hang your heads in shame. Some of us are positively cheering from the sidelines; we remember the last Labour capitulation which saw GPs earning vast sums and being handed a 31% pay rise in one year under Labour, one year before it all went tits-up (but of course, we're paying them, just like we are the banks and all the other titanic cock ups http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6157219.stm Someone needs to stand up to these people)

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 11:16

@Cras

If you're comparing yourselves to the wacky world of UKIP councilors (and somewhat unconvincingly) claiming to be better and less xenophobic than them, well, that's quite some barrel your scraping, there. I rest my case!

Look, I think I'm about done with this intruding on private grief thing for now, so in the nicest possible way I'll just let you chaps suck it up for now. I'm sorry but I never denied I have feet of clay. As unhealthy as it is, I'm savouring all this like a big, fat bag of beef dripping fried chips, steaming with chip shop vinegar and with lashings of salt.

Cras · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 49232

Cavey wrote:

If you're comparing yourselves to the wacky world of UKIP councilors (and somewhat unconvincingly) claiming to be better and less xenophobic than them, well, that's quite some barrel your scraping, there. I rest my case!

I wasn't. I was comparing labour councillors and UKIP voters.

0.04% of Labour Councillors are racists
12% of the public voted UKIP
0.13% of the UK population is in prison!

The percentage of UK people in prison is four times higher than the amount of Labour councillors who've said racist things! Can you see how meaningless a number that is yet?

This isn't politics, it's statistics.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 11:30

Cras wrote:

Cavey wrote:

If you're comparing yourselves to the wacky world of UKIP councilors (and somewhat unconvincingly) claiming to be better and less xenophobic than them, well, that's quite some barrel your scraping, there. I rest my case!

I wasn't. I was comparing labour councillors and UKIP voters.

0.04% of Labour Councillors are racists
12% of the public voted UKIP
0.13% of the UK population is in prison!

The percentage of UK people in prison is four times higher than the amount of Labour councillors who've said racist things! Can you see how meaningless a number that is yet?

This isn't politics, it's statistics.

So, the whole thing hangs on the premise that "0.04% of Labour Councillors are racists", just because they're the ones who've been caught out and expelled. The other 99.6% are all okay and you can bet the farm on that. Yeah, righto.

This absolutely isn't statistics, man. Not even at all.
It's laughable wishful thinking, borne of increasing desperation. Sorry.

Cras · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 49232

Cavey wrote:

So, the whole thing hangs on the premise that "0.04% of Labour Councillors are racists", just because they're the ones who've been caught out and expelled. The other 99.6% are all okay and you can bet the farm on that. Yeah, righto.

But you're doing the same thing by saying that the fact that the other parties haven't sacked any means that they're not equally (or more) made up of racist councillors.

A party that's felt the need to examine its own and get rid of those that don't meet its standards is one that's doing its job. Should it have been paying more attention all along and got rid of them when their views first came to light? Absolutely. Doesn't change the fact that it's a tiny minority and they've been dealt with.

Saying "Well there's probably more" and trying to say that Labour as a result has a racism problem is crazy.

Grim... · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 11:39

It's like deciding that I can't have cancer, because I've not been tested.

Cras · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 49232

Schroedinger's racists

DavPaz · **Joined:** 27th Jun, 2008 **Posts:** 38460

Cavey wrote:

But you know, seriously, that just reads as shrill, hysterical nonsense and I wouldn't even know where to start.

You do this sort of stuff a lot you know. It's very condescending

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 11:51

Cras wrote:

Cavey wrote:

So, the whole thing hangs on the premise that "0.04% of Labour Councillors are racists", just because they're the ones who've been caught out and expelled. The other 99.6% are all okay and you can bet the farm on that. Yeah, righto.

But you're doing the same thing by saying that the fact that the other parties haven't sacked any means that they're not equally (or more) made up of racist councilors.

A party that's felt the need to examine its own and get rid of those that don't meet its standards is one that's doing its job. Should it have been paying more attention all along and got rid of them when their views first came to light? Absolutely. Doesn't change the fact that it's a tiny minority and they've been dealt with.

Saying "Well there's probably more" and trying to say that Labour as a result has a racism problem is crazy.

Mate. You're the one making assumptions about these 3 councilors being the only xenophobe tendency types in Labour, not me. I'm just the guy doing the laughing and pointing here (and am not saying there are NO racists, or 0.04% for that matter, in the Tory party because you know, that would be a bit silly).

I do like Schroedinger's racists though - bravo!

*applause*

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 11:54

DavPaz wrote:

Cavey wrote:

But you know, seriously, that just reads as shrill, hysterical nonsense and I wouldn't even know where to start.

You do this sort of stuff a lot you know. It's very condescending

Flip's sake DavPaz, it's like you're following me round with a red fucking pen as against my posts. You don't like "swivel-eyed". I'm not allowed to smiley my own posts. I'm not allowed to say x or y.
Mate. If you carry on with this I'm seriously going to try and do ALL of these things in each and every post I make, just to see if you explode.

DavPaz · **Joined:** 27th Jun, 2008 **Posts:** 38460

Cavey wrote:

DavPaz wrote:

Cavey wrote:

But you know, seriously, that just reads as shrill, hysterical nonsense and I wouldn't even know where to start.

You do this sort of stuff a lot you know. It's very condescending

Flip's sake DavPaz, it's like you're following me round with a red fucking pen as against my posts. You don't like "swivel-eyed". I'm not allowed to smiley my own posts. I'm not allowed to say x or y.
Mate. If you carry on with this I'm seriously going to try and do ALL of these things in each and every post I make, just to see if you explode.

So... you're close to exploding?

DavPaz · **Joined:** 27th Jun, 2008 **Posts:** 38460

Oh, wait. You said I'd explode.

Carry on.

Doctor Glyndwr · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 32619

David Silvester, the UKIP counciller who blamed flooding on gay marriage, was elected as a member of the Conservative Party who defected. Just last week, the Conservative party suspended a councillor over antisemtic comments. The week before that, one was caught growing cannabis. There's any number of such stories, because a corpus of ~5000 minimally vetted local politicians is sadly always going to contain some dickheads.

But sure, three suspended Labour councillors is statistically significant and a reasonable grounds to judge the entire party while the above examples from the Conservative party are isolated examples. Unless you want to conclude the Conservative Party is full of homophobic drug-dealing racists, that is.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 12:10

DavPaz wrote:

Oh, wait. You said I'd explode.

Carry on.

So really, you're being swivel-eyed about this DavPaz.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 12:10

Cavey wrote:

DavPaz wrote:

Oh, wait. You said I'd explode.

Carry on.

So really, you're being swivel-eyed about this DavPaz.

Mr Russell · **Joined:** 6th Apr, 2008 **Posts:** 12243

Cavey wrote:

DavPaz wrote:

Oh, wait. You said I'd explode.

Carry on.

So really, you're being swivel-eyed about this DavPaz.

Quote:

swivel-eyed
adjective
British (informal)
adjective: swivel-eyed; adjective: swiveleyed
•holding or expressing political views regarded as extreme or fanatical.

I had to look it up. It... really only seems to apply to you Cavey.

Mr Russell · **Joined:** 6th Apr, 2008 **Posts:** 12243

The fanatical part that is. I haven't read closely enough to know if they're extreme.

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 12:16

/scratches head

Really? Mate, if you think that I, as your archetypal, middle aged 'small c' conservative, in my leafy little village, toddling off to Church each Sunday and helping to organise the village fair and suchlike, is "extreme and fanatical", well, you'd need to write off pretty much all of Cheshire and Shropshire as such, for one.

Of course, my post to DavPaz was a joke and good-natured parody, as he'll recognise. But, all joking aside, I do think it IS interesting that I am so perceived; this is an extremely left-leaning board and so I guess this is the genuine perception. Fascinating.

Grim... · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 12:18

Anyone defending / agreeing with the Conservative party about anything is seen as a mentallist by the Beex circle-jerk.
Much like you think about anyone defending the Labour party

Cavey · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 12:21

Grim... wrote:

Anyone defending / agreeing with the Conservative party about anything is seen as a mentallist by the Beex circle-jerk.
Much like you think about anyone defending the Labour party

Well, I do admit to loathing Labour with a burning passion.
But what does always amuse me is when my detractors always start every sentence with "I'm not a Labour supporter but"; the Lady doth protests too much etc. I know what I am, what I'm doing and why I'm doing it - and will gladly tell anyone who wants to know, in very clear terms.

Doctor Glyndwr · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 32619

Cavey wrote:

Really? Mate, if you think that I, as your archetypal, middle aged 'small c' conservative, in my leafy little village, toddling off to Church each Sunday and helping to organise the village fair and suchlike, is "extreme and fanatical", well, you'd need to write off pretty much all of Cheshire and Shropshire as such, for one.

No. I don't. Because I think judging the actions of a party by 3/4000 of it's councillors is a bit silly. Do you see?

And how did you not understand that's what I was saying?

Cras · **Joined:** 30th Mar, 2008 **Posts:** 49232

Grim... · **Posted:** Tue May 03, 2016 12:28

Doctor Glyndwr wrote:

And how did you not understand that's what I was saying?

Ironing.

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