Current Affairs

[Stephen]

So here's a question everyone. If you were at an event where everyone went down on one knee would you join in?

No chance of me going down on a bended knee ... if only because it could be a bit of a bu**er getting up again .. on the basis that I do not, in my heart of hearts, support the cause. I didn’t warm to the protest because too many seemed to be there for an excuse to look good / feel good / else were riding a band waggon inspired by Social Media Groups. Were too many of the protesters young inexperienced woolly do gooders rather than mature family folk from Arcadia Avenue I found myself wondering.

I do however recognise that minorities often get a rough ride but way back in the dim and distant past I was written off because we lived on a large no nonsense / keep out type Council Estate who were destined to work in one of the local factories at best. It was the 11+ exam that sowed the seeds of change but not until many years later when I realised that I did, after all, have some control over my own destiny.

After attending the University of Life it was time to make the effort required to fight one’s way out of a paper bag to achieve something to be proud of. No protests of support in this hard cruel world of ours, nothing was delivered on a plate to myself and Mobietta via benefits nor any form of legislation. It was down to hard work and getting that large chip off one’s shoulder. It was an evolution process and one that has to be followed by each and every one of us if equality is the genuine objective regardless of colour etc etc.

Like I said .... I will not be going down on one's knee because it is nought but a hollow gesture if insincere.
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Brilliant post Mob.I would say quite a few of us on here had the same upbringing, I certainly did and like you I did something about my lack of opportunities,unlike I didn’t pass the 11+, I didn’t pass any exams.Hard work and realisation got me where I am and I don’t apologise for it. If I have to go on one knee I hope my Monarch will be standing in front of me saying, ‘arise Sir Screwy’.

I think they should bring back the guillotine. So much easier to pull a lever than holding that heavy sword

[Onelife]

... Your little boy made good theory would have more relevance if you were comparing like for like in terms of white/ black demographics of the time…just saying!

Tis easy to select the part that suits one's own views ... just saying

As a small boy I didn't see a coloured feller until I was maybe twelve years old but in my late teens that all changed because we witnessed first hand the arrival of umpteen Caribbean folk who were invited to work in the hospitals and on the buses etc in the town where we lived. They had different habits to us like cutting their hair in the front gardens or playing reggae music in the back garden on full volume until way past our usual bedtimes but hey it all added a bit of colour, literally one could say. We also played cricket with their 6 ft tall youths, not little boys at all, we were rubbish compared to them so we realised early on that they could certainly compete at sport.

During the period I referred to as a ' University of Life ' I shared social and work related experiences with folk from virtually every corner of the globe including many from the Caribbean, so, contrary to what you suggest I believe that I am reasonably well qualified to comment on such matters.
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I can’t see how the above relates to what I was saying?..…but you are right about life experiences, we learn by having our eyes open, if we choose to turn a blind eye then we will sooner or later face the consequences of what ignorance does to our country.

[screwy]

There’s always one....and it’s usually Stephen.

[Mervyn and Trish]

It is the obligation to take a knee or face criticism as a racist that I object to. If others wish to do so, that's fine. But it is not a free choice as it should be.

It is also blazoning of footballs shirts with the BLM slogan I don't like because of the double standard. I still remember 2017 when footballers were barred from wearing poppies as it was deemed political. Would anyone dare to ban this as political?

Footballer can wear one slogan. An aeroplane displays an alternative, albeit maybe tactless, and gets investigated as a possible criminal act?

For me All Lives Matter. Not one more than another. That should be the campaign.

Time to re-read 1984. The Thought Police are all too real in 2020.

[towny44]

Boris missed a golden opportunity for a superb backhand return of Sir Kier continually harping on about the track and trace only finding a small percentage of those the ONS say are infected, when no system could find those who do not request a test. Similarly his insistence that we desperately need the app to help us identify all those who are infected, when again the app can only load data from those who had a positive test.
Also he stressed how other countries like Germany are successfully using the app and crowed how they had 12 million downloads, forgive me but isn't the population of Germany somewhere around 90 million.

[Mervyn and Trish]

Boris missed a golden opportunity for a superb backhand return of Sir Kier continually harping on about the track and trace only finding a small percentage of those the ONS say are infected, when no system could find those who do not request a test. Similarly his insistence that we desperately need the app to help us identify all those who are infected, when again the app can only load data from those who had a positive test.
Also he stressed how other countries like Germany are successfully using the app and crowed how they had 12 million downloads, forgive me but isn't the population of Germany somewhere around 90 million.

I agree and thought exactly the same a few days ago when someone else was banging on about it. The ONS figure is an estimate and many people do not have symptoms, or only very mild ones, so will not report themselves or get tested.

[david63]

And I was reading the other day that there is no evidence yet that the German app actually does what it is supposed to do!

[screwy]

But Germany can do no wrong.!

Don’t talk about the war.....

[Gill W]

Boris missed a golden opportunity for a superb backhand return of Sir Kier continually harping on about the track and trace only finding a small percentage of those the ONS say are infected, when no system could find those who do not request a test. Similarly his insistence that we desperately need the app to help us identify all those who are infected, when again the app can only load data from those who had a positive test.
Also he stressed how other countries like Germany are successfully using the app and crowed how they had 12 million downloads, forgive me but isn't the population of Germany somewhere around 90 million.

Johnson has lied twice about no country having a track and trace app

[Manoverboard]

Boris missed a golden opportunity for a superb backhand return of Sir Kier continually harping on about the track and trace only finding a small percentage of those the ONS say are infected, when no system could find those who do not request a test. Similarly his insistence that we desperately need the app to help us identify all those who are infected, when again the app can only load data from those who had a positive test.
Also he stressed how other countries like Germany are successfully using the app and crowed how they had 12 million downloads, forgive me but isn't the population of Germany somewhere around 90 million.

Johnson has lied twice about no country having a track and trace app

I hadn't realised that, ' source ' if you would be so kind.

[Gill W]

My roots are in Leicester where I still have family. This is a city where white people are now the minority but, by and large they all rub together and in many cases have integrated into the wider community each embracing the other cultures such as Christmas, Easter, Eid, Diwali. It's not perfect but it takes time.
Interestingly a few years ago the council decided they would not put up the usual crib scene in the town hall square along with all the other trappings of Christmas. There was an uproar - not from the white community but from the Asian community who said it did not offend but Christian traditions should be upheld and in fact they join in and share this tradition. This is in marked contrast to some of the rhetoric coming from the BLM activists.

I haven't seen anything to indicate they have been talking about religion ?

[Onelife]

Interesting article here by Ben Bradley MP for Mansfield

Hi Foxy…I’ve always got an ear for Ben Bradshaw as he talks from the heart rather than a government prepared script…. He was very helpful in a campaign I was involved with when he was leading up DEFRA.

I’ll forgive him on his stance regarding Brexit

Yes, he makes some interesting comments but nothing that hasn’t already been aired on this forum.

Did you read the reply to Ben Bradshaw from Ex- Stags player Nathan Arnold? Not sure this link will work click here but if it doesn’t the link for it is at the botton of Ben Bradshaw’s letter.

At the end of the day both parties feel the inequalities need addressing which is all that matters

Love and kisses

[Gill W]

Boris missed a golden opportunity for a superb backhand return of Sir Kier continually harping on about the track and trace only finding a small percentage of those the ONS say are infected, when no system could find those who do not request a test. Similarly his insistence that we desperately need the app to help us identify all those who are infected, when again the app can only load data from those who had a positive test.
Also he stressed how other countries like Germany are successfully using the app and crowed how they had 12 million downloads, forgive me but isn't the population of Germany somewhere around 90 million.

Johnson has lied twice about no country having a track and trace app

I hadn't realised that, ' source ' if you would be so kind.

He said it in PMQs today, repeating same lie from yesterday.

[Gill W]

It is the obligation to take a knee or face criticism as a racist that I object to. If others wish to do so, that's fine. But it is not a free choice as it should be.

It is also blazoning of footballs shirts with the BLM slogan I don't like because of the double standard. I still remember 2017 when footballers were barred from wearing poppies as it was deemed political. Would anyone dare to ban this as political?

Footballer can wear one slogan. An aeroplane displays an alternative, albeit maybe tactless, and gets investigated as a possible criminal act?

For me All Lives Matter. Not one more than another. That should be the campaign.

Time to re-read 1984. The Thought Police are all too real in 2020.

I can't imagine any gathering I might attend where people would be expected to 'take a knee'. Especially at the moment, when I'm not going anywhere.

May I gently suggest that you are worrying about something that'll never happen to you?

[Manoverboard]

Johnson has lied twice about no country having a track and trace app

I hadn't realised that, ' source ' if you would be so kind.

He said it in PMQs today, repeating same lie from yesterday.

Sorry but I was unable to locate any lies at all, during PMQs , please clarify.

[Gill W]

So here's a question everyone. If you were at an event where everyone went down on one knee would you join in?

No chance of me going down on a bended knee ... if only because it could be a bit of a bu**er getting up again .. on the basis that I do not, in my heart of hearts, support the cause. I didn’t warm to the protest because too many seemed to be there for an excuse to look good / feel good / else were riding a band waggon inspired by Social Media Groups. Were too many of the protesters young inexperienced woolly do gooders rather than mature family folk from Arcadia Avenue I found myself wondering.

I do however recognise that minorities often get a rough ride but way back in the dim and distant past I was written off because we lived on a large no nonsense / keep out type Council Estate who were destined to work in one of the local factories at best. It was the 11+ exam that sowed the seeds of change but not until many years later when I realised that I did, after all, have some control over my own destiny.

After attending the University of Life it was time to make the effort required to fight one’s way out of a paper bag to achieve something to be proud of. No protests of support in this hard cruel world of ours, nothing was delivered on a plate to myself and Mobietta via benefits nor any form of legislation. It was down to hard work and getting that large chip off one’s shoulder. It was an evolution process and one that has to be followed by each and every one of us if equality is the genuine objective regardless of colour etc etc.

Like I said .... I will not be going down on one's knee because it is nought but a hollow gesture if insincere.
.

My upbringing was similar to that of yours Mob as I also lived in a no-nonsense council estate but I dare say, ours like yours was void of families of colour which was probably the same with many council estates around the country when we were but two little boys. Your little boy made good theory would have more relevance if you were comparing like for like in terms of white/ black demographics of the time…just saying!

I was thinking along the same lines. At the time the gentlemen of this forum were growing up in the 50's, black people were still seeing notices in lodging house windows saying 'no blacks' (and no Irish, of course)

The experiences of a white British male of that time are going to be very different to anybody who came from an ethnic minority.

[Gill W]

I hadn't realised that, ' source ' if you would be so kind.

He said it in PMQs today, repeating same lie from yesterday.

Sorry but I was unable to locate any lies at all, during PMQs , please clarify.

No.

In the past I've gone to great lengths to give information to you, even providing links to back up what I'm saying. But you have refused to even look at the information that I've provided, so I'm not going to expend my energy on a fruitless task.

Sorry.

[Manoverboard]

He said it in PMQs today, repeating same lie from yesterday.

Sorry but I was unable to locate any lies at all, during PMQs , please clarify.

No.

In the past I've gone to great lengths to give information to you, even providing links to back up what I'm saying. But you have refused to even look at the information that I've provided, so I'm not going to expend my energy on a fruitless task.

Sorry.

Then kindly refrain from making accusations that you are not prepared to support with evidence.

ps .... why, without any evidence at all, are you now accusing me of not reading your links ?

[screwy]

Growing up in the 50s, we never saw a Ethnic person, certainly not in our area, possibly because Britain was at that time still a ‘ White,Christian, Anglo Saxon ‘ Country. You just have to look at the Films, Newsreels of that time. Now this may of course have been different in London and the south.
I could of course just be talking Bollocks.?

[oldbluefox]

Did you read the reply to Ben Bradshaw from Ex- Stags player Nathan Arnold? Not sure this link will work click here but if it doesn’t the link for it is at the botton of Ben Bradshaw’s letter.

At the end of the day both parties feel the inequalities need addressing which is all that matters

Worryingly Arnold did not refute the existence within BLM of a "core message as an organisation of ripping down our establishment; the Police, our institutions, capitalism...” That is worrying.

I agree that feelings of inequality need to be addressed where they exist.

[Mervyn and Trish]

I can't imagine any gathering I might attend where people would be expected to 'take a knee'. Especially at the moment, when I'm not going anywhere.

May I gently suggest that you are worrying about something that'll never happen to you?

Yes you're right in a way. But should I only be concerned about things that might happen to me? I'm also unlikely to be arrested and murdered by a policeman.

[Onelife]

Growing up in the 50s, we never saw a Ethnic person, certainly not in our area, possibly because Britain was at that time still a ‘ White,Christian, Anglo Saxon ‘ Country. You just have to look at the Films, Newsreels of that time. Now this may of course have been different in London and the south.
I could of course just be talking Bollocks.?3

Join the club

[Mervyn and Trish]

I was thinking along the same lines. At the time the gentlemen of this forum were growing up in the 50's, black people were still seeing notices in lodging house windows saying 'no blacks' (and no Irish, of course)

The experiences of a white British male of that time are going to be very different to anybody who came from an ethnic minority.

When I grew up in the 50s we had, at different times, two lovely black gentlemen lodgers in our family home.

[Manoverboard]

I was thinking along the same lines. At the time the gentlemen of this forum were growing up in the 50's, black people were still seeing notices in lodging house windows saying 'no blacks' (and no Irish, of course)

The experiences of a white British male of that time are going to be very different to anybody who came from an ethnic minority.

That is basically true but due to full employment going right through the late 50's and 60's there were obvious signs of greater tolerance and co-operation one with the other, we were all on a learning curve for sure. The real issues arose when the flood gates opened and immigrants flooded in from the Caribbean in particular because they had genuine fears of losing their British Passports. With them came the ‘ Yardies ‘ from Kingston, Jamaica or so I was told by a couple of Barbadian Police Officers. This coincided with drug and gang warfare and is the underlying reason why Caribbean folk continue to have a bad image to this day. The Government at that time were extremely weak and should have introduced controls to prevent entry without a position of employment or a skill that would lead to employment but they were totally indecisive and failed to manage the developing situation as should have been the case. Labour were in power during that period and their incompetence eventually led to Enoch Powell’s ‘ Rivers of Blood ‘ speech.
.

[towny44]

Boris missed a golden opportunity for a superb backhand return of Sir Kier continually harping on about the track and trace only finding a small percentage of those the ONS say are infected, when no system could find those who do not request a test. Similarly his insistence that we desperately need the app to help us identify all those who are infected, when again the app can only load data from those who had a positive test.
Also he stressed how other countries like Germany are successfully using the app and crowed how they had 12 million downloads, forgive me but isn't the population of Germany somewhere around 90 million.

Johnson has lied twice about no country having a track and trace app

Not quite true Gill, he said no country has a fully functioning app, and if you listened carefully to Matt Hancock and Dido Harding when they announced that we had dropped our own app, they gave an explanation of the deficiencies of both the iPhone and Android apps, and why they were joining forces with both to try and resolve said issues.