Marcus represents the very best of British. The @spectator, GB "News", much of the press & the Govt represent the very worst. They fear successful, decent, honest & altruistic role models - it's completely alien to them that people choose to help others, rather than themselves.
Yesterday 96 more lives were needlessly lost, today we're told UK journalists could face prison sentences of up to 14 years for stories that 'embarrass the Govt', & tonight @BBCNews went full Farage about migrants crossing the channel.
Britain resembles a failed fascist state.
And as for hard-right NUMPTY Andrew fucking Neil, he's one of deregulated free market capitalism's most powerful & vocal #propagandists - the catastrophic & divisive economic system which brought us the global financial crash, grotesque wealth inequality, & the climate crisis.
As Murdoch's lackey he was a nasty bastard, & his shitrag the Spectator relentlessly pukes out divisive #propaganda, deliberately outraging & polarising, demonising decent people while defending actual neo-Nazis & sucking up to vile authoritarian bastards like Viktor Orban.
Since parting ways with Murdoch, he's attempted to cultivate the character a 'maverick outsider' - is he fuck. I'm not sure that outside of the Royal family it's possible to be any more establishment than this charlatan. And as for the company he keeps...
And as for fucking GB "News", funded by hedge funders & vulture capitalists who thrive on chaos & division, & adored by racists, they slagged off Guto Harri for taking the knee then appointed king of the racists Nigel Farage!
The bastards downplay racism, went for Southgate & the England team, & now they're gunning for Marcus Rashford, a young working class black man who's done more good in the last few years than all those horrible arrogant bastards combined. These vile twats can all just FUCK OFF.
And here he is tonight, RTing fellow grotesque freak Julie fucking Burchill. To think I once watched the bellend on TV. Andrew Neil now symbolizes everything wrong with Britain. Bollocks to him.
Voters need to know how right-wing populist nationalist politicians and radical/far-right nativist extremists construct their divisive discourse and rhetoric to exploit the anti-elite climate and fuel violence and division - and what to do about it.
So what can be done to counter divisive narratives and framing and to help Britain to become a more open, inclusive, fairer, less polarised and better multicultural society?
I make several suggestions in the above article, but make more below,
Countering the extreme right’s narrative of feeling "attacked" and needing to "defend" national identity requires a strategic, multi-faceted approach that challenges their framing while addressing underlying concerns and emotions.
The shameless lie that "Britain is lawless" is categorically false, as it contradicts empirical data on crime trends, rule of law metrics, and the functioning of UK institutions. Reform UK often use fearmongering exaggeration and selective framing to create a sense of crisis.
Official data from the ONS and Home Office indicate that overall crime rates in England and Wales have fluctuated but do not support the notion of a "lawless" state. The ONS reported a 7% decrease in total recorded crime (excluding fraud) from 2023 to 24.
#OnThisDay, 21 July, 1969, the Chicago Daily News published: The ‘love it or leave it’ nonsense, by Sydney J. Harris.
It began: One of the most ignorant and hateful statements that a person can make is “If you don’t like it here, why don’t you leave?”
I reproduce it, below.
Harris was born in London in 1917, moving to the US in 1922. A formidable journalist who established a distinct voice integrating incisive social commentary with wit and humour, his weekday column, ‘Strictly Personal’, was syndicated in 200 US newspapers.
The ‘love it or leave it’ nonsense, by Sydney J. Harris.
One of the most ignorant and hateful statements that a person can make is “If you don’t like it here, why don’t you leave?”
That attitude is the main reason America was founded, in all its hope and energy and goodness.
A few thoughts on Bob Vylan leading the #GlastonburyFestival crowd in chants of "Death to the IDF" (Israeli Defence Force), livestreamed by the @BBC, and the mischaracterisation of the chant by some MPs, news media, and activists.
In England, where #GlastonburyFestival is located, all of us have the right to freely express our criticism of anyone or anything - as long as there is no intent to provoke immediate unlawful violence or there is a reasonable likelihood it will occur as a consequence.
In England, free speech is protected under Article 10 of the Human Rights Act 1998. However, inciting violence is a criminal offence under several laws which attempt to balance public safety with free expression rights.
In many countries, especially since Musk bought Twitter/@X, underregulated online extreme content has been used to groom and radicalise vulnerable people.
Too many cowardly politicians are scared to speak up for fear of being branded 'anti-free speech'.
Some MPs who have been in parliament for many years NEVER appear on any of the @BBC's "flagship" politics shows - but Reform's privately educated shit-stirring 'anti-elite' former Tory Sarah Pochin - an MP for FIVE WEEKS - gets her own special introduction on #PoliticsLive.
Politicians using dangerously irresponsible anti-Muslim rhetoric know their comments are normalising Islamophobia and endanger British Muslim women. Islamophobic incidents rose by 375% in the week after Boris Johnson called veiled Muslim women “letterboxes” in 2018.
#PolitcsLive
Britain prides itself in NOT being the sort of country that tells women how to dress. States that do dictate women’s clothing (eg Iran, Sudan, Saudi Arabia) are vilified as misogynistic & ultra-controlling: the antithesis of the enlightened, liberal west. theguardian.com/commentisfree/…