Politics Thread!

[F-ZeroOne]

And with the distressing inevitability of an unloved season, Nigel Farage has returned to head up Reform UK. At least we will forever have the memory of a banana milkshake to the face out of it.

[KlaxonCow]

Ah, he'll split the vote on the right-wing, whilst not getting enough votes to actually win any seats in our lovely "First past the post" system.

(Well, he might just secure a seat for himself, maybe, if he's lucky - though he's never actually managed to do it before. Because, as big of a figure as he is, due to Brexit and stuff, he's never actually won enough votes to become an MP.)

So, in practice, despite whatever xenophobic rhetoric he puts out there in his campaign, all he's really doing is giving Starmer a leg up. Labour must be loving this.

[snaff]

Ah, he'll split the vote on the right-wing, whilst not getting enough votes to actually win any seats in our lovely "First past the post" system.

(Well, he might just secure a seat for himself, maybe, if he's lucky - though he's never actually managed to do it before. Because, as big of a figure as he is, due to Brexit and stuff, he's never actually won enough votes to become an MP.)

So, in practice, despite whatever xenophobic rhetoric he puts out there in his campaign, all he's really doing is giving Starmer a leg up. Labour must be loving this.

We know what Labour are like and it's their turn regardless. The Tories have betrayed conservatism and need to be destroyed and this is a good chance to do it. Reform need 20% of the vote to break through FPTP, then every 1% after that gets a good number of seats.

Nobody cares about the same old stupid accusations of racism from drooling wokeists.

[Orava]

I think racism in the UK is based on skin colour, I have not encountered any being a pale northern European. Obviously I have an accent but after so many years here even that is vanishing I sound 'southern'* if anything else.

* with a slight West Country twang - pirate speak, a bit less than my children, Oh arr my lover!

[Orava]

I do not how common it is the be addressed as 'my lover' elsewhere in the UK but it is fairly common here, hairdressers, the deli, everywhere. what are you being called?

[Harlequin]

I do not how common it is the be addressed as 'my lover' elsewhere in the UK but it is fairly common here, hairdressers, the deli, everywhere. what are you being called?

In most London businesses, "sir."

(Otherwise, "mate" is quite common around these parts).

[F-ZeroOne]

I think racism in the UK is based on skin colour, I have not encountered any being a pale northern European. Obviously I have an accent but after so many years here even that is vanishing I sound 'southern'* if anything else.

* with a slight West Country twang - pirate speak, a bit less than my children, Oh arr my lover!

It may be less prevalent than it used to be, but it wasn't that long ago that some businesses were advertising "No Irish". That attitude probably still exists with some (consider how often St. Georges Cross is seen among people of a certain mindset).

[PFVA]

Voting day tomorrow for the European Parliament.

and let's see what the results will bring us.

[Orava]

I could vote but because of circumstances I am not registered but my vote would go to LibDems.

[Deckard]

Lived in Bristol for 20 years never heard the N word - moved to Cornwall 8 years ago and heard it twice in the first month - go figure.....

[Orava]

Bristol is a very mixed lot, people from all around the place. I used to live in Montpelier next to a lovely Caribbean lady and some Polish neighbours. So after moving to the shires - yes people are a bit more xenophobic they ask questions like 'where are you from' to the answer is England!

[PFVA]

Ow boy. The RN of Marine LePen expected to get over 30% and Macron convoques election because his party will only have around 15%.

Around here, we managed to be more down to earth center right and center left getting around 30% each. And our colourful xenophobic right wing went down in comparison to our own government elections in March. We are going right but to the more normal right meaning right wing economics but openly anti-racism and anti-xenophobic.

[F-ZeroOne]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjmmrwexv4ko

They seem nice.

[snaff]

Reform now caught up with the Tories at 19%.

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/tr ... -intention

[KlaxonCow]

I know that, in practice, it's just one big pot of money and NI only nominally "pays for the Welfare State".

But the Tories' pledge to cut NI, and then cut it some more, then cut it year-on-year, then halve it by some date, with the "aspiration" to abolish it altogether...

...they're basically just stealth-announcing a policy to "de-fund the Welfare State", really.

This is the argument that the Americans keep falling for: "You want more money in your pay packet, right? You don't want the government taking taxes from your wage, yes?".

And the knee-jerk is, of course, "sure, I want more money and the government should keep its hands off my money! And we don't need no stinkin' 'socialised medicine' over here!".

But the end result is that they end up paying more than anyone else on planet Earth for medical care:





For only fairly average health outcomes as well.

Also, how the fuck does it cost $2,500 for one ambulance ride? Like, is the ambulance made of gold, and the engine running off unicorn tears?

Like, try and make a glorified cab ride as expensive as you possibly can - "Brewster's Millions" rules, where you're trying to waste the maximum amount of money you possibly can (though you're not allowed to just give it away) - and I bet you couldn't make it anywhere near that expensive.

Because, basically, if it's not the government taking taxes from your wage to pay for hospitals, then it's just greedy commercial companies taking MORE of that money from you later on, at the hospital itself.

Like, it's got to be paid for, one way or the other. And doing it as an amortised not-for-profit is always going to be cheaper than a "free market" middle-men-taking-their-cut for-profit orgy of gouging every last penny out of you.