Billy Bragg

Hi! We hadn’t bought tickets as just back from being away. Hope you had a great time.

Millionaire male senior citizen William Bragg has ZERO skin in this game, he doesn't care.

Well, clearly there can't be any issues, or someone non-bigoted and pro-trans would be saying something.

The only people making a fuss are anti-trans bigots.

And you can tell they're anti-trans bigots because no-one apart from anti-trans bigots is making a fuss.

Only an anti-trans bigot would think it's bad, cos all the non-bigots say they're good.

It's absolutely incredible to me that people can throw themselves into a campaign where one of the main battlegrounds is a novel medical treatment of children, which is known to have life-changing permanent effects, and yet these people make not the slightest effort to check the basic facts. It would take a few minutes to start to see that there is very little research supporting this novel treatment, there are serious question marks about the quality of such research as has been done, and the number of young people and teenagers desisting from treatment and being left with permanent side effects is going up all the time. Aren't they bothered in the slightest by the fact that there isn't a scintilla of evidence that there were huge numbers of 'trans kids' in human history but only in the last few years have they felt able to make themselves known? Or by the near total absence of middle-aged female transitioners? Or the massive over-representation of children and young people on the autistic spectrum, who've been bullied or sexually abused or gone through a family trauma, or have a diagnosed mental health condition like anxiety or depression, leading to self-harm, eating disorders etc before 'gender dysphoria'?

In the case of Bragg, it really has to be a dangerous combination of arrogance and stupidity.

My god, the irony. Which situations do you think extra safeguarding might be needed? For instance, transwomen swimming with me in a public pool?? = fine , welcome and included. Transwomen changing in the female changing rooms not the mens? = not fine, extra safeguarding is needed because I, a female, and getting naked in there. Ditto any public space, wear what you want go where you want , but not spaces and categories that are specifically for women because extra safeguarding is needed.

What a clown. He has waded into an debate that he knows so little about, yet is berating and attempting to belittle women who know so much more than he does. He has such misplaced confidence in his own understanding and knowledge.

I hear you.
When I think back to my youth, it was mainly people like Billy Bragg that went on all the protests, performed and was a solid role model (Glasto when it was a CND fundraiser, Red wedge, miners strike etc). I was gutted when I found his views on trans.

It's too late now but we were able to switch our tickets to a different day once the announcement was made about the Proclaimers.
Did you go today?

😂indeed

Did he ever come back and say he did actually understand that puberty blockers aren't the same as beta blockers, because it honestly seemed that he didn't.

Yeah, totally different 🤦🏼‍♀️

Aren’t beta blockers something different?

Well thank fuck for that, because all I saw here was a lot of men with beards shouting their support and - far more depressingly - lots of young women enthusiastically cheering all their sex based rights and protections away

Him not answering the question tells us he either has no clue about what blockers are/do, or he does know but won't speak out against them as he fears being cancelled.

He's being absolutely roasted on Twitter, or should I say X.

Starts around here. https://twitter.com/ewendj/status/1698039890305290734?s=20

FFS. Am currently at folk festival, listening. He's just so ILLOGICAL. Makes me doubt all the other stuff he says, too. He just repeats tropes, doesn't he? Disappointment doesn't touch it

I boycotted Bragg as I have come across his rubbish before

If you had gone to see baskery instead you would have seen an awesome 3 piece female punk folk band - they are real role models that I missed having as a child.

If you had kept your eyes skinned - I noted one definitions of woman bag and one tee shirts

Shrewsbury tends to have great workshops and open sessions if you have an instrument

Although there's a perception that folkies are all left wing in fact there's a strong strand of English nationalism and the cult of reclaiming old folk songs was more about that. And some groups celebrated re-establishing Albion (the white lands).

(I don't think there was anything similar in Scotland, Wales and Ireland)

But the sucess of Dylan and his (temporary) political influence meant some people claiming to be folk singers become more overtly political (certainly a better option than following Lonnie Donegan into music hall folk).

Billy Bragg was one of those wannabies who relied of being seen as genuinely working class re gurgitating classic "left" slogans, much as others have said as though he was still a 6th form school boy. He is now forced to be a parody of himself and just seems to be stuck on repeat. Its no wonder he has signed up to the left mantra of women can have penises. I just never understand why anyone thought he was worth listening to. He is like something out of some BBC parody of charicatues and the worse thing is he loves this re-affirmation of this.

But to link in with another theme of this thread, it was dominated by men (not so much now). Let's not forget John Peel who many people respected and his open acknowledgement of sex and marriage to underage girls. https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/john-peel-glastonbury-stage-petition-rename-b2116331.html

Would walk 500 miles to escape Billy

Yes!

Thanks. It doesn't quite scan, but I figured that is appropriate given the subject.

Impressive.

I've been condescending and it feels never-ending
I've made patronising sneers at women for years
If you have a cunt I will be arrogant
And if you stick around you're sure to hear that moany sound:

Sanctimoanius, a total bore but still cocky
Sanctimoanius, melody does not apply to me

‘Sanctimoanius’ - was I supposed to hear that in my head to the tune of Sexuality? Cos I did 😂

Yes. Anyone who wants to go and get a patronising lecture from Mr Clumsy Polemic in B Flat is very welcome to do so.

Women are also free to tell him he's a sanctimonious twit.

Maybe 'sanctimoanious'.