This is amusing but I don’t really agree with this Although I have seen that the riot police are already getting them out. Have “squatters rights” changed over the years ? I thought that was something many used to dread - squatters declaring squatters rights being very very difficult to shift once they got in I assume that must have changed. Just seems a much quicker response that I would have expected here
Agreed, I find it very difficult to support people doing things to others that I would want done to me. As much as Putin is a prick I don’t think that’s an excuse to break into people’s property
While I agree in principle, that mansion is owned by an ally of Putin and is therefore a ****. #teamsquatters.
The amount of empty property needs addressing given the epidemic of homeless. Taxing and using the income to increase the social housing one measure as well as converting long term empty commercial buildings to residential use. Local authorities need more power and funds to deal with the problem. I think the squatting laws have been tightened, certainly have in the Netherlands.
I'm all for squat-a-yacht (or mansion) for use by Ukrainian refugees. Urgent amendment of legislation needed to make it so. Did I hear nozebag Gove had proposed something along those lines? Ah toot alors.
I applaud her bravery. It is striking that the protesting has not gone more mainstream and that journalists in Russia are not prepared to report at all objectively. Putin has really shut down on dissidents but the way the war has been reported all told is quite fascinating. There was a documentary on Radio 4 this afternoon which looked a cyber hackers and how they have managed to expose individuals in Belarus which I found to be fascinating. I was intrigued at what they had managed to acheive whilst also appreciating that it has not really made much difference. Loads of very clever people have worked out how to disrupt Russia by disabling the internet yet it is really hard to appreciate that this is probablyno more that a slight irritation for most Russians . The way the conflict has been reported is fascinating. I think that Putin has done a comprehensive job with his propaganda and really shut down the debate to a handful of dissenters. It is amazing in a digital age that he has managed to do this but , by the same token, I am more and more convinced that the Russian public do not want to hear the truth. Injust feel the Russian people have no appetite to hear the reality of what there armed forces are doing. By the same token, I think that the amount of poor journalism and speculation in the western media has been quite a surprise too. The BBC has done well yet I have been starting to wonder how biased and "pro-western" this platform is. No one seems to be questioning just how much military aid NATO is giving to Ukraine nor how that support is getting across the border other than stating that it appears to be gettng in through Poland and Romania. NATO's role in antagonising Russia is never discussed yet I cannot see it making pease any more likely. The role of mercenaries has also been over-looked in the west whilst the journalists immediately cried foul play when the Syrians offered to join up to help the Russians. There has also been loads of speculation about Putin's health that I am extremely sceptical about. The latter mostly seems to be junk. The other question ignored by the BBC is that of public opinion in Belarus . If Leveochencko is so unpopular, how come there are no protests in his country. Similarly, I think that the British press has swept Stop the War under the carpet. Putin has played in to the hands of the Western media who have quite rightly castigated him. His mental state has been question for medical reasons but I think the issue is that he is just evil. The continuation of the war is in no one's interest and I would like the western media to be more objective in discussion what it necessary to get the conflict the stop. There is almost a morbid fascination with the warfare and human suffering as to questioning why our leaders have allowed this to happen and what is necessary to make it stop. Biden , fr example, has been worse than useless. Shame that Obama is no longer around. I feel the Russians are not experiencing anything of any journalistic worth in their medias yet the amount of nonsense I have read on line since the weekend from a western perspective has often been poor too - I think the report of Elon Musk's proposed bout with Putin probably marks a new level in stupidity in this respect.
The Mirror is reporting that three ex-British special forces soldiers were killed in the Russian airstrike near the Polish border. I think that British citizens should only be out there doing humanitarian work. This will ultimately end out very bad.
Your posts confuse me at times Ian. There is no journalistic worth by definition in Russia surely? The TV station that was reporting some truth closed as they were not allowed to. I believe lots of young people are seeking VPNs so they can actually see the real news, as opposed to state controlled. I don't think the Russian people would want to know what their armed forces are doing no, I'd like to think any country would have shame with that ongoing truth. Regards our/wests media, then yes, sensationalist (some outlets, and not a surprise) and there is a macabre voyeurism that comes with such dark historic events, and is clearly effecting everything from security to global economics and politics. I personally look with hope at any news from the peace talks, desperate for people to stop being killed needlessly primarily due to one egotistical ****.
If Britain had obliterated another country in the way Russia has done to Ukraine, there would be massive protests almost immediately. The number of people who tookto the streets to protest against Iraq was really uite staggering. Even the media coverage was more questionning. I think there was an article in the Telegraoh last week about the scale of the protests in Russia which outlined just how small they are and that their significance is so small because the Russian general public is more likely to take the view of their leaders regardless of their propaganda machine. By contrast, the western press has focussed on the humanitarian disaster but not really looking at why we are in this position and could we have done more to prevent Putin . There is also an absence of looking towards how this conflict can be ended. I think the West has clearly antagonized Putin and has some culpability but, by the same token, I think we should have made more effort to marginalise him sooner by diplomatic means as opposed to recruiting new NATO members from his neighbours. For example, it is only with the invasion of Ukraine that people have talked about making a war criminal whereas nothing has been mentioned regarding this with his actions in other parts of the former USSR and in Syria. Ukraine has shown the west in a really poor light and our political leaders to be inactive. I would like our media to challenge them albeit I fear that we are at a point where the west cannot afford to go to war against Putin.
I think there have been articles regards Tories letting Russians launder money here etc, but the NATO question is probably more controversial right now considering it is seen as a potential protective factor, at least for now.
