Eagleman13
Member
- Location
- On The Road To Hell & Alicante
- Country
Bermuda
You know this, because . . . 😀
Tommy Robinson
- Topic starter Rudi Hedman
- Start date
Yes yours.
I cannot imagine anyone piercing you. 😆
It's about the media rather then the police per se but I suspect you know that. 😀
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Stirlingsays
Member
- Country
England
Runningman
Member
- Location
- Keston
- Country
-
England
But it’s only September ! Plenty more to come surely ! 😂
eaglesdare
Member
- Country
-
England
PalazioVecchio
Member
- Location
- south pole
- Country
Netherlands
did we have this at the Tommy Carnival ? it all seems rather arresting. That cop looks kinda familiar ?
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Hrolf The Ganger
Member
- Location
- a sofa somewhere in Kent.
- Country
-
England
You implied it.
If you weren't disagreeing that they were 'morons,' why did you bother to reply?
I'd call that being unnecessarily 'bellicose'.
Living In Hope
Member
- Location
- Petersfield
- Country
-
England
Essay warning but hopefully a balanced view... My wife volunteered as a steward at yesterday's march, because I refused to attend with her, as I remained very suspicious of Tommy Robinson and some of those associated with the event.
I have always taken the view that the BBC and other mainstream media are broadly balanced in their reporting, and the BBC in particular genuinely aims at finding a neutral balance. My views have been shaken and seriously challenged.
Firstly my wife is a most assuredly not a far-right racist thug. She is the kindest person you could meet, working in public service, but utterly fed up with what is going on in this country. One example is that she feels that she could be removed from her job because her catholic beliefs do not correspond to woke gender ideology. For some reason, though it is a belief system as opposed to science or fact, you have to subscribe to the theory of gender identity, and you are not allowed to believe that gender does not extend beyond biological sex. She does not demand that everyone else holds the same belief as her. For some reason in 2025 Britain others, and indeed it feels like the state itself, are allowed to demand that we all share this belief in gender identity.
As a steward my wife got a pretty clear perspective of what went on. She said that because there were far more people on the Unite the Kingdom event than expected, the police diverted some away from their planned route, towards the counter protesters, which is what sparked some confrontation. She met a lot of nice, ordinary people, of a variety of ethnic backgrounds.
Let me first say that the speeches included things I strongly agreed with, other things I strongly disagreed with, and some things which left me deeply uncomfortable (one speaker leading a chant of "Send them back" was in my view dehumanising, even though I am very much of the view that we must be far more robust in our response to illegal immigration / small boats). But the mainstream media went out of their way to dismiss the event, to disparage it as far right, trouble-makers, racists and so on. The theme was freedom of speech.
I have no idea how to estimate attendances, but the aerial footage of the crowds was staggering, and must surely point to a massive understatement in the mainstream media of how many were there. They said 110k to 150k. I would guess it was many hundreds of thousands, and clearly the biggest political rally in recent history (though notably Tommy Robinson I think massively over-estimated). So a huge movement of people, but one which no mainstream politician deemed it appropriate to attend.
In terms of thuggery and trouble-making, I need add nothing to others' comparisons with the Notting Hill carnival. The trouble was tiny given the scale of the protest, and the huge amount of non-mainstream coverage showed peaceful crowds who were there to try and get their voices heard.
The coverage in the mainstream media was wholly dishonest, not just in factual inaccuracy, but also in failing to acknowledge the legitimate concerns of the vast numbers of people who attended. In some ways it reminded me of Brexit, where those on the Remain side, instead of acknowledging and addressing the concerns that tempted people to vote Brexit, generally dismissed Brexiteers as racists and idiots. For my part in that debate, I was on the fence but inclined to vote Remain, and that very reaction persuaded me to vote for Brexit. I am starting to think the same about this situation.
My take-away from all of this is that cancel culture and the threat to free speech have become so pervasive that the mainstream media simply refuses to view this movement from an impartial perspective. It is far easier and safer to insult it instead. I am really shocked and genuinely starting to rethink things. I know some of you will say "I told you so."
But as a parting shot with a different slant, perhaps the worst nonsense I heard at the march was those who tried to link Donald Trump with free speech. He is the precise opposite. It's a complicated world.
I have always taken the view that the BBC and other mainstream media are broadly balanced in their reporting, and the BBC in particular genuinely aims at finding a neutral balance. My views have been shaken and seriously challenged.
Firstly my wife is a most assuredly not a far-right racist thug. She is the kindest person you could meet, working in public service, but utterly fed up with what is going on in this country. One example is that she feels that she could be removed from her job because her catholic beliefs do not correspond to woke gender ideology. For some reason, though it is a belief system as opposed to science or fact, you have to subscribe to the theory of gender identity, and you are not allowed to believe that gender does not extend beyond biological sex. She does not demand that everyone else holds the same belief as her. For some reason in 2025 Britain others, and indeed it feels like the state itself, are allowed to demand that we all share this belief in gender identity.
As a steward my wife got a pretty clear perspective of what went on. She said that because there were far more people on the Unite the Kingdom event than expected, the police diverted some away from their planned route, towards the counter protesters, which is what sparked some confrontation. She met a lot of nice, ordinary people, of a variety of ethnic backgrounds.
Let me first say that the speeches included things I strongly agreed with, other things I strongly disagreed with, and some things which left me deeply uncomfortable (one speaker leading a chant of "Send them back" was in my view dehumanising, even though I am very much of the view that we must be far more robust in our response to illegal immigration / small boats). But the mainstream media went out of their way to dismiss the event, to disparage it as far right, trouble-makers, racists and so on. The theme was freedom of speech.
I have no idea how to estimate attendances, but the aerial footage of the crowds was staggering, and must surely point to a massive understatement in the mainstream media of how many were there. They said 110k to 150k. I would guess it was many hundreds of thousands, and clearly the biggest political rally in recent history (though notably Tommy Robinson I think massively over-estimated). So a huge movement of people, but one which no mainstream politician deemed it appropriate to attend.
In terms of thuggery and trouble-making, I need add nothing to others' comparisons with the Notting Hill carnival. The trouble was tiny given the scale of the protest, and the huge amount of non-mainstream coverage showed peaceful crowds who were there to try and get their voices heard.
The coverage in the mainstream media was wholly dishonest, not just in factual inaccuracy, but also in failing to acknowledge the legitimate concerns of the vast numbers of people who attended. In some ways it reminded me of Brexit, where those on the Remain side, instead of acknowledging and addressing the concerns that tempted people to vote Brexit, generally dismissed Brexiteers as racists and idiots. For my part in that debate, I was on the fence but inclined to vote Remain, and that very reaction persuaded me to vote for Brexit. I am starting to think the same about this situation.
My take-away from all of this is that cancel culture and the threat to free speech have become so pervasive that the mainstream media simply refuses to view this movement from an impartial perspective. It is far easier and safer to insult it instead. I am really shocked and genuinely starting to rethink things. I know some of you will say "I told you so."
But as a parting shot with a different slant, perhaps the worst nonsense I heard at the march was those who tried to link Donald Trump with free speech. He is the precise opposite. It's a complicated world.
Wrong. I didn't imply it; it was stating a matter of fact in reply to a previous poster. You wanted to believe I implied it by my response.
I replied to the 'moron' comment because it typifies your bellicose response to anything you disagree with. Why is it not possible to disagree with someone without insulting them? Because you're looking for a scrap.
Now , I await some comment like: "Well, you lefties do that to us" type comment in response; that's the stock response on these pages.
georgenorman
Member
- Country
-
England
Typical Leftie response.
ASCPFC
Member
- Location
- Pro-Cathedral/caravan park
- Country
Ireland
I think it was probably a little sarcastic.
DANGERCLOSE
Member
- Location
- London
- Country
-
England
ASCPFC
Member
- Location
- Pro-Cathedral/caravan park
- Country
-
Ireland
He went badly off message. He's got some explaining to do now.
georgenorman
Member
- Country
-
England
It's like shooting fish in a barrel.
ASCPFC
Member
- Location
- Pro-Cathedral/caravan park
- Country
-
Ireland
That's offensive to people that identify as fish.
georgenorman
Member
- Country
-
England
Pollocks.