General News Thread

[Parafox]

4 hours ago, Raj said:

She's fit to be fair, who is she?

Not quite an airhead but certainly a Trump sycophant.

[Parafox]

3 hours ago, danny. said:

You've got wood and you'd rail her?

[Trav Le Bleu]

3 hours ago, Parafox said:

Not quite an airhead but certainly a Trump sycophant.

Don't tell @Raj that. He'll think that a sycophant is Dumbo with earache.

[CornwallFox]

I would most definitely rail her.

 

But if she started talking about Trump ending 8 wars, and celebrating the militarisation of American cities as a great accomplishment, I say "Oi, Leavitt, I enjoyed your sensual female touch and the curve of your fullsome breasts, but I don't want to hear fake news about the orange pillock running your country. I'd appreciate it if you could get back into your 80s style power suit and sod off back to Washington". 

Edited 17 December 2025 by CornwallFox

[Zear0]

So will the FIFA Peace Prize winner declare war on Venezuela on the day of the Epstein paper release on Friday? 

 

It's a bold move Cotton. 

[Md9]

31 minutes ago, Zear0 said:

So will the FIFA Peace Prize winner declare war on Venezuela on the day of the Epstein paper release on Friday? 

 

It's a bold move Cotton. 

He can do what he wants not he has his happy meal version of the peace prize he has always wanted 

not even pretending it’s about drugs anymore either. Such a shame he is so old and probably be dead in a few years would have been nice to see him rot in jail for a little while 

[leicsmac]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9qednjzwv1o

 

Teachers will be given training to spot the signs of misogyny and tackle it in the classroom as part of the government's long-awaited strategy to halve violence against women and girls within the next decade.

The plans - which focus on preventing the radicalisation of young men - are due to be unveiled on Thursday, after being pushed back three times this year.

Pupils will be taught about issues such as consent, the dangers of sharing intimate images, how to identify positive role models, and to challenge unhealthy myths about women and relationships.

The £20m package will also include a new helpline for teenagers to get support for concerns about abuse in their own relationships.

 

This is well-meaning and there certainly needs to be something done, but I'm honestly not sure about how effective it will be in addressing the very important issue without other measures taken as well. 

[Trav Le Bleu]

17 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9qednjzwv1o

 

Teachers will be given training to spot the signs of misogyny and tackle it in the classroom as part of the government's long-awaited strategy to halve violence against women and girls within the next decade.

The plans - which focus on preventing the radicalisation of young men - are due to be unveiled on Thursday, after being pushed back three times this year.

Pupils will be taught about issues such as consent, the dangers of sharing intimate images, how to identify positive role models, and to challenge unhealthy myths about women and relationships.

The £20m package will also include a new helpline for teenagers to get support for concerns about abuse in their own relationships.

 

This is well-meaning and there certainly needs to be something done, but I'm honestly not sure about how effective it will be in addressing the very important issue without other measures taken as well. 

Yet again, palming parents' responsibility on to teachers.

[leicsmac]

18 minutes ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

Yet again, palming parents' responsibility on to teachers.

No doubt. 

 

But with that in mind, what can be done there? There's not many choices and most if not all seem bad.

[Trav Le Bleu]

Sorry to report some terrible news

 

Pork scratchings firm G Simmons & Sons devastated by Walsall fire - BBC News

 

https://share.google/IsOXLmBetF4xxm9Yl

 

[danny.]

1 hour ago, leicsmac said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9qednjzwv1o

 

Teachers will be given training to spot the signs of misogyny and tackle it in the classroom as part of the government's long-awaited strategy to halve violence against women and girls within the next decade.

The plans - which focus on preventing the radicalisation of young men - are due to be unveiled on Thursday, after being pushed back three times this year.

Pupils will be taught about issues such as consent, the dangers of sharing intimate images, how to identify positive role models, and to challenge unhealthy myths about women and relationships.

The £20m package will also include a new helpline for teenagers to get support for concerns about abuse in their own relationships.

 

This is well-meaning and there certainly needs to be something done, but I'm honestly not sure about how effective it will be in addressing the very important issue without other measures taken as well. 

Yea, that should sort it. We’re so cooked in the U.K./Western Europe. It’s a bleak future for women and girls. 

[leicsmac]

1 minute ago, danny. said:

Yea, that should sort it. We’re so cooked in the U.K./Western Europe. It’s a bleak future for women and girls. 

As if both of those demographics haven't been given a hard time in terms of social status for the last few hundred years no matter the situation. 

 

This certainly isn't anywhere near a solution, but it does recognise a problem exists and it's sadly not really a new one, just the latest iteration rearing its head thanks to social media. 

[bovril]

7 minutes ago, danny. said:

Yea, that should sort it. We’re so cooked in the U.K./Western Europe. It’s a bleak future for women and girls. 

Brits like to lump in Western Europe when talking about British social problems but it's a very large and diverse area, I'm not sure how appropriate it is here. Why do you think  they are "cooked" in this context? 

[leicsmac]

On a related matter, good to see the Fail with their usual dose of UK exceptionalism and European declinism on the front page with respect to Erasmus, despite only 15% of polled people actually being opposed to the idea itself. 

[danny.]

3 hours ago, bovril said:

Brits like to lump in Western Europe when talking about British social problems but it's a very large and diverse area, I'm not sure how appropriate it is here. Why do you think  they are "cooked" in this context? 

Cultural shifts towards misogynistic ideologies. 

[bovril]

3 minutes ago, danny. said:

Cultural shifts towards misogynistic ideologies. 

Yeah probably true. I've observed a similar development in some Eastern European countries. Seems to be particularly bad in England though, I think we have one of the highest rates of sexual assault in Europe? 

[leicsmac]

12 minutes ago, danny. said:

Cultural shifts towards misogynistic ideologies. 

 

7 minutes ago, bovril said:

Yeah probably true. I've observed a similar development in some Eastern European countries. Seems to be particularly bad in England though, I think we have one of the highest rates of sexual assault in Europe? 

Once again though, this is hardly a new problem, institutional or everyday, even though the methods have become more sophisticated.

 

The problem certainly exists, I'm just not sure about some of takes on the exact nature of it and therefore the solutions.

[The Bear]

Also, people who brake for the softer speed bumps when they're only going about 20mph any way. 

[danny.]

21 minutes ago, bovril said:

Yeah probably true. I've observed a similar development in some Eastern European countries. Seems to be particularly bad in England though, I think we have one of the highest rates of sexual assault in Europe? 

Eastern European countries (especially some like like Poland and Bulgaria) have much lower rates than Western: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/w/ddn-20241125-3
 

I believe the UK is around the same level as Sweden.

We also have multiple cases of rapists being let off from punishment from raping girls
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-39305042
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/apr/04/outrage-as-man-walks-free-after-of-13-year-old-girl-in-scotland
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2268395/Adil-Rashid-Paedophile-claimed-Muslim-upbringing-meant-didnt-know-illegal-sex-girl-13.html
the latter being an adult at the time so even more insane -  "Rashid claimed he had been taught in his Islamic faith school that ‘women are no more worthy than a lollipop that has been dropped on the ground’".

And obviously we have known grooming gangs covered up over decades which has caused immeasurable damage to women and girls, for example over 1400 girls in Rotherham alone between '97 and 2013.

[danny.]

26 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

 

Once again though, this is hardly a new problem, institutional or everyday, even though the methods have become more sophisticated.

 

The problem certainly exists, I'm just not sure about some of takes on the exact nature of it and therefore the solutions.

 

The data disagrees with you.

 

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/sexualoffencesprevalenceandtrendsenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2025
 

[leicsmac]

1 minute ago, danny. said:

 

The data disagrees with you.

 

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/articles/sexualoffencesprevalenceandtrendsenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2025
 

Now let's look at the pre-2000 historical data going back a few hundred years, and include instances of institutional misogyny as well. 

 

That's what I mean about it not being a new problem - it's an old one, just raising its head again after being thankfully quietened for a decade or two. It's clear it's on the uptick once more and that clearly needs sorting, no disagreement whatsoever there.

[Foxdiamond]

7 minutes ago, danny. said:

Eastern European countries (especially some like like Poland and Bulgaria) have much lower rates than Western: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-eurostat-news/w/ddn-20241125-3
 

I believe the UK is around the same level as Sweden.

We also have multiple cases of rapists being let off from punishment from raping girls
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-39305042
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/apr/04/outrage-as-man-walks-free-after-of-13-year-old-girl-in-scotland
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2268395/Adil-Rashid-Paedophile-claimed-Muslim-upbringing-meant-didnt-know-illegal-sex-girl-13.html
the latter being an adult at the time so even more insane -  "Rashid claimed he had been taught in his Islamic faith school that ‘women are no more worthy than a lollipop that has been dropped on the ground’".

And obviously we have known grooming gangs covered up over decades which has caused immeasurable damage to women and girls, for example over 1400 girls in Rotherham alone between '97 and 2013.

Staggering as I thought ignorance of the law was no defence 

[danny.]

1 minute ago, leicsmac said:

Now let's look at the pre-2000 historical data going back a few hundred years, and include instances of institutional misogyny as well. 

 

That's what I mean about it not being a new problem - it's an old one, just raising its head again after being thankfully quietened for a decade or two. It's clear it's on the uptick once more and that clearly needs sorting, no disagreement whatsoever there.

Literally no point looking at the medieval ages - we have evolved as a society and are now going backwards. You might as well argue that modern day slavery in Africa is not that bad because of the transatlantic and Barbary slave trades.

[leicsmac]

1 minute ago, danny. said:

Literally no point looking at the medieval ages - we have evolved as a society and are now going backwards. You might as well argue that modern day slavery in Africa is not that bad because of the transatlantic and Barbary slave trades.

And if that was my argument, then I would agree. 

 

But it's not, so it's not, and I think we're rather talking past each other here. 

 

Let me be clear, once more: there certainly is a problem. It's becoming bigger, and it's the latest iteration of a long history of misogyny that has gone on for hundreds of years. And it certainly requires addressing. 

 

I hope that, at least, is agreeable. 

[danny.]

6 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

Let me be clear, once more: there certainly is a problem. It's becoming bigger, and it's the latest iteration of a long history of misogyny that has gone on for hundreds of years. And it certainly requires addressing. 

 

I hope that, at least, is agreeable. 

I'd agree with that.