General News Thread

[hejammy]

9 hours ago, Kisnorbo fox said:

I suppose living in Cornwall you wouldn’t really notice ! Try taking a trip to Leicester, Bradford, Birmingham, Rotherham, Rochdale, Bolton, Luton, Telford to name a few and I’m sure you would understand why quite a high percentage of the British public are taking the stance they do. I’d like you to call the members of the British public who have felt the consequences of Pakistani grooming gangs and third world cultures who believe in 1st cousin marriages, forced (arranged marriages) and have no interests in integrating into the western world as right wing cry babies ! 

Just as an FYI, forced and arranged marriages are 2 completely different things. I suppose you'd need to do a bit of research to realise this... 

[Zear0]

5 minutes ago, hejammy said:

Just as an FYI, forced and arranged marriages are 2 completely different things. I suppose you'd need to do a bit of research to realise this... 

Imagine many on here are victims of forced marriages...

[bovril]

Tonight I get to have the unique experience of buying the first drinks in one currency and subsequent rounds in another 

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/28/bulgaria-europe-eurozone-russia-disinformation-economy

[The Quick Brown Fox]

20 minutes ago, hejammy said:

Just as an FYI, forced and arranged marriages are 2 completely different things. I suppose you'd need to do a bit of research to realise this... 

Yes they are but at the same time they're not that different. 

I personally know someone who arranged a marriage for his son, I asked what happened if he didn't want to marry the girl he picked for his son. His reply was " he doesn't have to, but if he goes against my wishes, he will be cut off from everything and moved out of my house". So although it may not be forced, it isn't really a choice for the younger guys. 

He also said that they would buy their son a brand new car as a gift for accepting the wife. 

 

So yes, totally different in thought but in reality it's not so different.

[Bellend Sebastian]

1 hour ago, Robo61 said:

What absolute rubbish,  many surveys have concluded that the people of cities populated by many from different backgrounds have far less of a problem with multi culturism than area's dominated by white British.  You only have to see where Farage gets his votes to see that ,  those that don't come into contact with ethnic minorities that are frightened of the unfamilier it seems.   

Circumstances have brought me back into contact with a community I grew up in and I was a bit taken aback by some of the attitudes I've encountered. Before you even get anywhere near anything like race, religion, class, background or anything like that the 'othering' of literally anyone you don't know is quite something to behold

 

 

[Dahnsouff]

See Russia is using its playbook to expand its operational space (again) whilst all the while everyone else just grab their pearls

[Trav Le Bleu]

2 hours ago, Zear0 said:

Imagine many on here are victims of forced marriages...

My father-in-law definitely had a shotgun.

[Trav Le Bleu]

3 hours ago, leicsmac said:

Guys, we're all human.

News to some.

[Kisnorbo fox]

2 hours ago, StanSP said:

'forced to accept'. 

 

Nope. 

 

Doesn't like being called 'far right' but happy to call others 'looney left'. Such a snowflake. 

I didn’t state whether being branded far right was liked or not…. But you were right about one thing, I am happy to call others looney left, as it appears the general news forum has a rather large looney left a** licking brigade.

[bovril]

Kisnorbo, ooooh oh

He used to be shite

Now he's a swivel eyed loon 

[hejammy]

2 hours ago, The Quick Brown Fox said:

Yes they are but at the same time they're not that different. 

I personally know someone who arranged a marriage for his son, I asked what happened if he didn't want to marry the girl he picked for his son. His reply was " he doesn't have to, but if he goes against my wishes, he will be cut off from everything and moved out of my house". So although it may not be forced, it isn't really a choice for the younger guys. 

He also said that they would buy their son a brand new car as a gift for accepting the wife. 

 

So yes, totally different in thought but in reality it's not so different.

So what you describe is a forced marriage, arranged marriages are those who people of the families introduce the man to the women (or visa versa) and then it's upto them. 

[Tommy G]

13 hours ago, CornwallFox said:

Benefits have no real impact on inflation given how scant they are. 

 

I'm unconvinced about it being a disincentive into work. Don't get me wrong, a very small % of people choose not to ever really work, but they'd be dealing out whatever other nonsense they get up to instead anyway. The idea huge numbers aren't working because they can get just enough to cover a grotty house in a grotty bit of town is rubbish tbh. The vast majority on benefits are working, disabled, carers, elderly, or have some other good reason. 

 

It's a positive because every penny (apart potentially for benefits to cover rent) go into the real economy and support businesses up and down the country. From a purely economic point of view, yes those people might not be adding to gdp, but tbh that's a bit of a false way of worrying about the economy given that ever smaller fractions of GDP reach the real economy thanks to late stage capitalism. Ultimately the economy needs liquidity and people that don't save or store money or assets. 

Your understanding of economics is marginally better than the chancellor’s 

[Trav Le Bleu]

16 minutes ago, bovril said:

Kisnorbo, ooooh oh

He used to be shite

Now he's a swivel eyed loon 

Shame, I enjoyed your posts

 

[leicsmac]

2 hours ago, Bellend Sebastian said:

Circumstances have brought me back into contact with a community I grew up in and I was a bit taken aback by some of the attitudes I've encountered. Before you even get anywhere near anything like race, religion, class, background or anything like that the 'othering' of literally anyone you don't know is quite something to behold

 

 

It's absurd, isn't it?

 

Surely as a species we can do better and be better than just being another member of the primate family subject to the same biological imperatives and the same horrible things as a result.

 

41 minutes ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

News to some.

Apparently so.

 

Still waiting to hear from those here who apparently are OK with tribal divisions, as to exactly why it's OK with them and all the associated consequences. Unfortunately so far I've not heard much. 

[bmt]

4 minutes ago, Tommy G said:

Your understanding of economics is marginally better than the chancellor’s 

I know this is just an insult but which parts are you disagreeing with. The first point is backed up by a fair amount of literature and empirical evidence, the second paragraph is an opinion but not particularly controversial, the third paragraph (although I dont think it is worded particularly well) doesn't seem that far from the truth either. Less well off people do have a higher marginal propensity to consume than rich people, so larger spending on benefits has a more stimulating impact on the economy than policies aimed at bettering the lives of rich people (i.e. most tax cuts). The point on GDP is a bit redundant.

 

The chancellor has no clue, so assuming i've got your point right, where is the crazy economics misunderstanding?

[leicsmac]

Anyhow, some more "masks off" news from across the pond:

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c75xnndvlyko

 

Apparently the very idea of fraud by brown people means that no child should get care payments in the whole state. Nice bit of cultural supremacy applied to policy in action.

[splinterdream]

13 hours ago, leicsmac said:

As I have mentioned a few times before, the consequences of abandoning a great many people to their fate, which appears to be, in ignorance or not, whether people want to speak of it or not, an option that is being led to.

 

As per before:

 

 

Leave who to their fate? I agree with asylum, I dont agree with how its being handled. There should be no legal aid to appeal, it should only be sought in the first safe Country, and there may be an application to seek asylum to another country from that safe country, we must treat people coming over in boats as illegal migrants 

[Trav Le Bleu]

19 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

 

Still waiting to hear from those here who apparently are OK with tribal divisions, as to exactly why it's OK with them and all the associated consequences. Unfortunately so far I've not heard much. 

A good number of people on here hate people just because of the football team they support. If anything, football encourages tribalism. It's a feeling of belonging, which in the increasing absence of religion and smaller rural communities, fills a vacuum.

 

It's weird how other sports have rivalry without hatred. Why is it football that has gone down this route?

 

If course, you don't HAVE TO hate other teams or fans. Myself, at worst I have distain for anyone who supports a team they didn't grow up with or isn't their most local, and I have a lot of respect for supporters of teams who have never been in the EPL.

[leicsmac]

16 minutes ago, splinterdream said:

Leave who to their fate? I agree with asylum, I dont agree with how its being handled. There should be no legal aid to appeal, it should only be sought in the first safe Country, and there may be an application to seek asylum to another country from that safe country, we must treat people coming over in boats as illegal migrants 

Well, firstly, the people that can and will fall through the cracks of the system described here, and secondly, as the Earth changes and resource pressures become ever more acute and with it increased migration from affected areas, would such a system really stop there in terms of its restrictions? There will be a lot more abandoning in that future, this would just be the start. 

 

I find it incredibly dishonest that people advocating for such restrictions don't accept the human cost of them that is both as obvious and inevitable as a law of physics. At least have the honesty to say that the death and suffering that will result is justifiable in some way, and own that responsibility. 

 

All of the above being said, there is no easy solution either, and the problem is only going to get more problematic as the world changes. 

[leicsmac]

8 minutes ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

A good number of people on here hate people just because of the football team they support. If anything, football encourages tribalism. It's a feeling of belonging, which in the increasing absence of religion and smaller rural communities, fills a vacuum.

 

It's weird how other sports have rivalry without hatred. Why is it football that has gone down this route?

 

If course, you don't HAVE TO hate other teams or fans. Myself, at worst I have distain for anyone who supports a team they didn't grow up with or isn't their most local, and I have a lot of respect for supporters of teams who have never been in the EPL.

I think I talked about this with another poster on here a few years ago - @Freeman's Wharfer - and they very eruditely indicated that tribal outlet is a good thing in football as it is (mostly) harmless these days.

 

However, the same sentiment causes so many problems in other areas and I really cannot get my head round how people pursue it and don't know exactly where it leads (or do and actively want that).

[Sampson]

Guys, it’s New Year’s Eve. I love squabbling on here as much as the next person, but go out and get pissed and don’t think about immigration for one day of the year. You can have all the arguments about immigration you like in 2026.

[Trav Le Bleu]

10 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

Appreciate someone else chipping in, thank you.

 

If that is true (and it's entirely possible it may well be), then the path forwards is obvious, inevitable and very, very grim. And, should there be anyone keeping records after, will be solely on the heads of those who thought it was not possible to escape that tribalism. It would be nice to have some honesty about that, too. 

 

If tribalism is human nature, then so is death and suffering, and that's all we'll deserve. 

Thing is about civilised people is they rise above human nature. We all, as adults, do things we wouldn't do if they hadn't been instilled in us during childhood.

 

All a baby knows is I need this and I need it now; it has no concept of others and their needs and desires. Tolerance and empathy is learnt and is the mark of civilised society.

 

To say that it's impossible, that we all succumb to the beast within? No. I've seen and been involved with community where it has been possible, human "nature" put aside and it's a beautiful way to live.

 

Sure it's not perfect, but what is? If you can learn from mistakes, maybe even atone for them, then you can get through multitudes of misunderstandings and contretemps.

 

 

Edited 31 December 2025 by Trav Le Bleu

[leicsmac]

Edited, as the OP is no longer available. 

Edited 31 December 2025 by leicsmac

[MC Prussian]

5 hours ago, Bellend Sebastian said:

Circumstances have brought me back into contact with a community I grew up in and I was a bit taken aback by some of the attitudes I've encountered. Before you even get anywhere near anything like race, religion, class, background or anything like that the 'othering' of literally anyone you don't know is quite something to behold

 

 

That's not a one-sided issue. Tribalism exists pretty much everywhere, the "community" usually doesn't expand past one's own kind.

Some would say it's cultural.

[leicsmac]

9 minutes ago, MC Prussian said:

That's not a one-sided issue. Tribalism exists pretty much everywhere, the "community" usually doesn't expand past one's own kind.

Some would say it's cultural.

And what happens when that cultural and tribal chauvinism combines with power (either through raw strength, technology, institutional control or a combination of the three)?