I’ll say it again. Distancing from the USA is something we need to start to focus on. The worst bit of migration was their corporate takeover of the UK. We need to get close to the EU. Cameron has done a lot of harm and the power hungry liars Johnson and Farage should be nowhere near decision making. This is what Farage is flirting with and asking for investment.
Farage seems to be totally focussed on us becoming USA-lite with private health schemes, mass deportations and division ... ... his frequent visits to Trump are a real concern.
That yes man they have as the head of the FBI was nauseating thanking Trump first and foremost and then assuming all the glory. The FBI was contacted by his dad. it all feels rather Russian where his yes men gather and make up crap to make themselves look good and extol the glory of their leader.
We roll our eyes at divisions in the Tory and Labour parties ... ... but the Trump/Farage fanaticism is more worrying for me. Any rioting today, with the BNP, will be blamed on 'Two Tier Starmer', the police and anyone but the BNP.
I completely disagree with that. Or rather, I disagree with the premise that 'name calling' isn't harmful. Most normal people would look at what Kirk is saying in that reel and think he was extreme and not worth listening to. But if that same normal person expresses a fairly mundane view that is slightly right of centre and is then called a fascist for it, they will be pushed away from the faction that calls them a fascist. Do that often enough, and they'll start to identify with the group they are being told they are part of. And, of course, the same applies the other way around. I think you have to have already travelled a good distance on that road before you start agreeing with Kirk. Particularly what he is talking about in that reel.
Like you said earlier i think we need to switch off from this. Im the most worried ive ever been about our safety. From the psychopathic leaders of other countries and danger from within in the name of Farage and Reform. It’s really anxiety inducing. I’m not happy with things now but if the grifter gets power it will be a dark place to be. I reckon deepest Scotland might be a good bet.
Well I complete disagree with you, A few years ago a designated extremist organisation had a ban the burka campaign. That language was an opening speech from a Reform MP. Musk literally mimicked Hitler. UKIP leader mimicked Hitler. Reform are copycatting Musk. Farage was trying to kiss his arse. Why is that? These are dangerous times. Where we agree is that we need to connect to stop this stuff. Where we don’t is that people need to have things pointed out because they aren’t noticing.
The existence of extremists doesn't drive people to the extremes though. There have always been extremists, at both ends. Various factors have given those extremists a louder voice. Really, we should ignore them. But the loud voices of those extremists are telling moderates who might fall slightly on the other side of the fence that they wrong or evil. That just drives them into the arms of the extremists because they feel that the other side aren't interested in them. I agree that people need things pointing out to them. They don't realise that their own attitude is making things worse.
There’s an element of victim blaming (in a way) in there for me. It’s not name calling that leads mainstream politicians to pivot to ethno-nationalism. It’s not people views they don’t respect that cause people to embrace these ideologies. If far right ideology is on the rise it’s because the predisposition was always there underneath the surface - combined with people looking for easy answers as to why standards of living keep slipping.
It's a pretty well-observed phenomenon that nationalism and right-wing sentiment increases when people feel dissatisfied. If people are told that their dissatisfaction is wrong or that they are stupid for feeling that way, they will move towards the group that they feel take their concerns seriously. This moves them away from the centre ground. Then you get an opposite reaction as people with concerns that fall the other way are told that their concerns are of no consequence or are wrong, and they are pushed in the other direction. What we are seeing now is almost a text book example of this. It has all happened before and I find it quite concerning that people are unwilling to recognise this. Victim blaming? I suppose that depends who you see as the victim. Personally, I think it's the normal, sensible people in the middle.
Victim blaming was an imperfect phrase I know, but absolving people of their personal responsibility for adopting outright racism as a magic bullet for complex (and almost totally) unrelated issues is simply inaccurate. It isn’t lefties that cause people to be racist.
I'm pretty certain that's not what I said. There was no absolving anyone but people who feel dissatisfied will gravitate to anyone who claims to be able to solve their problems. If you tell people they are stupid for believing that that body can solve their problems, they only double down on those beliefs. That's all been seen before. Groups and individuals with rigid, unbending beliefs, that believe that their view is correct and any other stance is wrong do have to take some responsibility for contributing to the conditions that cause division and polarisation.
Nothing is ever just one thing but financial inequality, or what I describe as a lack of cushioning is the biggest thing for me. Cost of living if you like but it reduces choice and the protective factor of fun and joyful experiences. It’s why I talk about wealth distribution so much. Immigration is on everyone’s lips but you make life manageable for all you reduce the power of the narrative. It’s perfectly achievable but money owns the political narrative.
The newest trend on social media is seeing a LOT of people being sacked for celebrating his death on social media and I must say, I’ve never agreed with people being sacked over opinions shared on social media unless it’s vile hate speech or personal attacks but dear me.. how stupid can you be to be doing this on an account that’s not anonymous in this day and age? The Defence secretary has now followed suit and asked pentagon bosses to identify ANY member of the US military who mocked the death on social media and punish them.
Interesting Clive Lewis commentary that I think connects to your points ….. ‘Believe it or not, I had an old school friend on today’s marches in London. He sent me some photos from the crowd. We went to middle school together and grew up on the same Eastern District council estate in Northampton. I asked him why he was there. He gave me two answers: 1. “The government doesn’t listen to us.” 2. “I want to feel proud of my country again.” He wore a Union Jack, not a St George’s Cross as he said that one had been hijacked by racists. He wasn’t there for Hopkins, Musk, or any of the professional grifters’ as he put it. He was there to feel part of something bigger, though he admitted there were a lot of, in his words, “assholes” there. He’s an electrician. He’s smart. He’s not racist, but he’s not “PC” either. He’s not a fan of Keir Starmer but he also believes Farage would be a disaster. Oh yes, he’s a bundle of contradictions! But aren’t we all? I don’t know what ‘box’ we put him or the millions like him in. And I think pretending they’re all racists or fascists would be a massive mistake. Some were. But not all. This is about something bigger than immigration slogans or GDP numbers. For decades we’ve hollowed out our national life, underfunding and undermining the very institutions that once brought us together. Karl Polanyi, writing in The Great Transformation, argued that when markets are “disembodied” from society, when land, labour, and life itself are treated as commodities society pushes back. He called this the “double movement”: people seeking to protect themselves, to reclaim dignity and meaning when everything solid seems to melt into air. That’s what I saw in my friend’s photos. Not just anger, but a demand for belonging. We’ve replaced collective experience with atomisation. Without getting too nostalgic, programmes like the BBC’s Generation Game once pulled in millions every Saturday night, giving us something we could all talk about on Monday morning. Now we watch Netflix, Disney+, Prime, or Paramount, alone, in algorithmic silos. Football used to be affordable and rooted in community; now it’s millionaires playing for the profitability of billionaires. The NHS, the post office, the railways - all chipped away, run down, sold off or centralised, leaving people feeling powerless and disconnected. And don’t get me wrong: some kind of “Hovis Labour” nostalgia for the 1950s isn’t the answer. The country back then was often intolerant, grey, and deeply unequal. But what we’ve built since is a society that gives people little to hold in common, no collective story about who we are or what we’re for. I reckon that’s partly why my mate marched. Not because he wants to turn back the clock. But because he wants to feel pride again. Pride in a country that is inclusive, fair, and offers a role for everyone. Pride in a nation that has a respected place in the world, tackles grotesque inequality, and gives people something real to believe in. Polanyi warned that when democracies fail to provide a humane alternative, the backlash can turn authoritarian. This is how fascism grew in the 1930s, not because everyone became a true believer, but because millions felt abandoned and looked for strength, identity, and meaning wherever they could find it. If Labour and progressives don’t offer that story of renewal, if we don’t rebuild our national institutions, restore collective pride, and re-embed markets within society, the far right will do it for us, in their own image. And by then, it will be too late’
True, however it’s something that’s happened for a long time for those who voice opinions on the far right. I don’t agree with the playing field but it has to be a fair one. You shouldn’t face the risk of sack for simply having opinions on the left or the right imo. Obviously if you overstep the mark that’s a bit different but in this day and age with so many lunatic sleuths online I’m surprised people post such extreme views with their personal information being very easy to get hold of.
