Political threads, bullying and echo chambers

You need lessons in the art of conversation, as well as manners!

I haven't shoehorned anything into a chat about handbags. If someone wants to do that then they can. You don't have a right to tell people what they can and cannot say on Mumsnet. You might think it is rude and inappropriate but that is your opinion.

As for false statistics, there are people who think that someone who contradicts them must be a troll. They don't like to be contradicted but that will always happen on a forum because that's what forums are for.

I know it’s been said but the assumption that if you buy an expensive handbag you need telling to donate to charity is only made by the financially illiterate.

Quite apart from anything else, donations to charity bring tax breaks “the rich” are quite keen on. I remember going through an old boss’s charity file which was vast, in my early twenties as a contract secretary. I thought how much he gave to charity and was organising some big bunch of hedge fund bosses to come to an event and he very honestly admitted that it was all a huge tax break. I had made some comment about how nice it was these gazillionaires pitched up to dinner and flung £70k a head at a fake race and he looked shocked that I thought it was altruism and clarified it immediately. There was an upside anyway but Birkin buyers don’t need any civilian to remind them to donate to charity. They get so much tax back that Birkin feels free.

Isn't that the point of any thread?

Posters sharing their opinion and other posters choosing to engage with it. Or not. It's not compulsory to open a thread.

A lot of posters on this thread seem to think we need their 'opinions'. The same can be said of the thread in question. Posting hour after hour... day after day...does it make a difference?.are people really interested? Best left in their 'do not enter,' echo chamber.

😂

I'm not talking about false statistics, I'm talking about you shoehorning donations to charity into a chat about handbags. Rude and inappropriate.

I think it's very appropriate to point out false statistics. Especially when false statistics can affect the lives of women. Even whether they live or die. Someone on one side of the debate will think that it's rude to contradict and that they are derailing the thread but someone on the other side of the debate will be cheering them on.

It sounds like you enjoy banging an ideological drum, @JennyShaw, even when it's rude / inappropriate to do so.

I was responding to what you were writing about people who just want to discuss handbags and Christmas. So I wasn't missing the point of what what you wrote.

Some people give money to charity and some don't. Many people only have enough money to cover the necessities of life and can't contribute.

There will be people who are irritated and put off charities. Why are they irritated? Why don't they just ignore a post? Is it because of a guilty conscience? They weren't going to contribute anyway so it doesn't make a difference. Some people will be more inclined to contribute.

People write things in posts which aren't true. Such as false statistics. When someone points this out to them they are irritated. They are resentful. I don't care about that, and I don't care if pointing it out makes them double down on their lies. I am always going to contradict people who give false statistics.

A wage.

I haven't seen anything about flags either.

But you could use a VPN, with multiple email addresses, to create multiple accounts, that you use multiple browsers for.

And how many browsers you have open.

Where are the ‘flag shaggers’ on that thread? I haven’t seen any. They’re all anti Labour. That’s the common theme. Nothing about flags..

I stay logged in always because i can never remember one password, never mind multiples.

ETA- although I change my user name roughly every week or so. But the IP address is the same )

Fair point. If people can really be arsed to log in and out of different accounts in order to sock puppet, good luck to them. I'm not really sure what they get out if it tbh!

Depends on how many registrations you have.

🙌👏👏

As it is my post from the thread concerned and MNHQ have commented. I’ve brought this across for context. I am pleased this kind of nonsense is being stopped. Multiple threads were constantly derailed.

I feel like it went full DARVO yesterday. A few people expressed gratitude yesterday for this thread and only really post here now. Lots of people were discussing their experiences. If you DO NOT support Labour, then this place can be awful. People would follow you around threads, goad you, constantly attack you, report you, call you a bot or a Russian troll.
It still happens to some extent. If you want to seriously discuss the increasing welfare bill. Immediately jumped and posters project what they think you said. Serious concerns about immigration. Jumped as flag whatever or flag on roundabout lover. Insert abusive names and accusations here.
High earner worried about COL and tax? Don’t you dare post here. Be thankful you’re not eating gruel. Shut up and get off here. What’s the phrase? Read the room. A genuine concern about money, tax questions, schooling questions, insert lots of people swearing and hurling abuse.
Yet somehow, this thread, full of people who have been paid up member of both Labour and Tories. Voters across all political spectrums. Differing opinions across as things. The only thing truly in common is that we don’t think the Labour government at this moment is working. Some of us knew it never would. I didn’t, their only plan was: “Not the Tories.” Their flagship policy (VAT) was based on spite. I am a teacher and knew it was a terrible policy based on spite.
Yet somehow, we are echo chamber of bullies. Like I say talk about DARVO and gaslighting.

Mumsnet are undoubtedly aware that infiltration by coordinated groups occurs, but I guess they don't have the resources to investigate and push back.
You see it a lot with "shape the narrative" and other information operations. To the trained eye they're easy to spot.

I didn't think people could do that any more?

But that wouldn't be "continuing the argument", would it? It would be a new argument.

I interpreted that as name changing to contribute to a new thread.

Just noticed that MN said this:

Repeatedly returning to challenge others, or using new usernames to continue an argument, doesn’t change the guidance.

OH dear OP, were you caught out using multiple user names on the same thread? Very naughty!