@Julien Frighteningly so, even in Germany with the rise of one or two very hard-line parties.
However, alongside showing such people up for what they are we should ask what it is all the mainstream politicians of any persuasion have either done or failed to, that is they lose support to fanatical fringes.
@ArishMell Thats a very good point bur to be fair either they do something and face harsh criticism and do nothing and receiving the same treatment ( like during Covid )
@FreddieUK A bit like the German American Bund here in the US, I think -- officially gone via WWII but sadly still lingering on in spirit to some extent.
@BritishFailedAesthetic They walk amongst us. I was happily talking with a friendly man of the same age as me on the bus last week, when he suddenly came out with, "Of course, it's the immigrants who are the problem." I was having none of it and very firmly shut him down with some facts. He went quiet after saying, "Oh, it's like that is it?"
The people protesting against illegal immigrants should direct their ire at the British governments of the last several decades because much of the problem is self inflicted because the legal system is so absurdly slow to determine who can stay and who is to be deported.
Here's a chart showing different types of immigration
@ninalanyon We could effectively clear the camps in Calais by setting up offices in France to process asylum claims before they set sail. Which politician would be courageous enough to adopt the most obvious practical solution?
@devonman How would you counter these beliefs and resentments? The government has reduced small boat crossings as promised, but as the "illegals" accounted for less than 5% of all arrivals, this barely registers. It is making good progress on ending the use of hotels to house asylum seekers, but the press labels the converted army camps they now use as acvommodation as "luxury resorts". The right wing establishment will not be happy until migrants are thrown in the sea or frogmarched onto planes in leg irons. Immigration is a convenient scapegoat for social ills. Responsible politicians ought to be redressing the balance and telling the public uncomfortable truths, but no one dares.
@SunshineGirl They are not succeeding in reaching those that don’t get news content from Radio 4 or similar respected platforms . I don’t know how they do so , but recent events are truly disturbing .
Weekly street protests and counter protests in Bristol. .are costing a fortune and highly disruptive to residents
I find it a bit odd that climate protestors as soon as they sit in a road in London are arrested or forcibly removed. Don't understand how that didn't happen on this protest on the Portsmouth one.
If I was to sit in a public place with a sign with a certain states name followed by the word action I would be arrested.
@ArishMell but couple of years back climate protestors sat in the road at Dover over 30 were arrested. I'm just trying to understand why we get hours of traffic disruption and no arrests this time. 🤔
@KatyO83 It's so f*cking maddening. Literally there's not been a single arrest and instead politicians are excusing their behaviour saying they have the right to protest if it's done "correctly".
@Waveney I suspect there is more to come, as the demonstrations were not conducted according to the rules and major disruption took place. The politicians are in a challenging position on commenting, as they could be seen to be the reason why disaffected and less articulate people felt this was their only way to express themselves. Ignorance is no excuse, of course, and I hope the man behind it is held to account for giving out misleading information.
Their sense of entitlement and certainty that they represent majority opinion are staggering. I also wonder what sort of a working age person has the time and resources to spend all day "protesting" like this. There is some very shady money behind this.
@SunshineGirl I don't think there's any pretense that they're representing anyone. They are just racist thugs looking for an excuse to cause trouble, knowing that some people in power will praise them for it.
@FreddieUK We British, English especially, should be the last people to claim any kind of racial purity. In Gaudy Night Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane are dining and in the conversation is this exchange:
“ I don’t think the compromise works ”
‘‘ That I should live to hear any person of English blood blaspheme against compromise ’ ”
“ Oh, I’m not all English I’ve got some bits of Scotch and Irish tucked away somewhere ”
That proves you’re English. No other race ever boasts of being mongrel. I’m quite offensively English myself, because I’m one-sixteenth French, besides ail the usual nationalities. So that compromise is in my blood.
@Strictmichael75 My hope is that they are actually quite disorganised beyond this kind of mob action and politically, they will quickly fall to pieces as previous right wing insurgents have. But that's a hope, not a certainty.
@22Michelle Not sure about "most", but too often some demonstrations do attract mere thugs hoping for a fight for the sake of a fight, and vandalism for the sake of vandalism.
To be fair, although this Thomas has been jailed for violence offence, it was reported he had urged his followers not to use violence.
