Reform UK rising in popularity with young men

[ILoveCustardTartsFromTescoBakery]

It's just being spoken about by Ben Kentish on LBC

Just about how Reform UK have a large following of 18-35 year old men. Specially men, not women.

Why is this? What's driving them?

The fact that some many young men voted for very far right leaders elsewhere in the western world is also being spoken about

So far, the opinion seems to be that it's because Reform UK are very active on TikTok/Instagram seems unlikely but I don't have a better idea

I personally know a few young men who are 'all for' Nigel Fanny but I don't understand the appeal, although I also noticed it's always men that seem to support him the most

For context, I'm 27. Married. Own husband seems to say 'well I don't hate him, no'. Argh.

I agree. Succinct summary of what drives these men's beliefs and motivations.

If reform has been able to generate voting interest from a demographic that established parties had written off as apolitical rather than disenfranchised then perhaps instead of reaching for the smelling salts they could actually resume some level of political engagement with this group?

It needs to be taken very seriously. Elon musk is rumoured to be willing to give 100 million to reform. That will buy a hell of a lot of propaganda.
Social media algorithms means that if young men engage with any of this content they then get fed more of this propaganda.it then becomes an echo chamber full of other angry people reinforcing the idea that they have genuine grievances that only reform will offer solutions to.
Younger generations get most of their news and opinions from social media, it is extremely powerful tool.
If you feel like your life is shit, there's no future and someone comes along agreeing with you, pointing the finger at others so you don't have to take responsibility for your shit situation and offering solutions then that's attractive and much easier than putting any effort in to improve your situation.

Corbyn did actually appeal strongly to young people. This was the period young people were written off as being all left wing.

But Labour hated Corbyn and his policies. I don't think he'd have made a good leader either but what he did offer was hope and policies people could get behind.

The Tories didn't offer any hope to younger people and neither has Starmer. Reform are just tapping into disillusionment.

“Social media algorithms means that if young men engage with any of this content they then get fed more of this propaganda.it then becomes an echo chamber full of other angry people reinforcing the idea that they have genuine grievances”

People say things like this as if the same dynamic hasn’t been present for years on the other side, dragging social policy further and further leftwards for example. Do you think BLM mania in the UK, to pick an example, was a genuine spontaneous reaction to what people actually see in their daily lives?

People are sick of liberalism or see woke as going too far and with that cones a backlash.

I'm talking politics. Not leisure.

But Grayson Perry? This bedildoed man?

At a kids charity event? Such an inspiration.

It needs to be taken very seriously. Elon musk is rumoured to be willing to give 100 million to reform. That will buy a hell of a lot of propaganda.

Every political party does propaganda.

If the Left as it were are not offering any hopes or aspirations to the young men of today then that's their look out.

I thought this had already been disproven?

Because apparently you can't give over something like £100k unless you're a British citizen etc

I'd perhaps aim that at the person that was spreading the rumour!

@AlisonDonut sorry, didn't mean to suggest it was you saying that! The poster who did was high listed on your reply so I just clicked 'quote post'

I think it's surely common sense that the mass immigration can't continue like it is when British people can't get affordable housing, dentist or GP appointments. Surely the numbers don't add up and that's the obvious?

But then again I couldn't vote for Reform. I am a carer. I have 2 disabled DC. I don't trust them not to throw us under a bus when they can

Yes that Grayson Perry, I haven't seen that image before, but I did watch his series about male identity where he listened to "left behind" communities and tried to understand the complexities of the modern male identity.

He was compassionate, warm, engaging and aware of his own failings in the process. He is odd and presumably regrets some decisions.

So do you hold someone to account for a mistake they made and hold it against them for ever more or look at a bigger picture of their lives? I had a quick search I can only find twitter outrage I can't find his response or explanation to this but I will have a look later if I get time.

It's a dreadful look it is.

But this is part of what people do now, have outrage all the time.

So should a working class young male who fucks up once, say steals something from work, be judged forever for their mistake? Or should they be given another chance?

But yeah vote reform, that will most definitely be the answer to everyone's problems.

I don't know that many young men but quite a few of my late middle aged women friends have joined Reform - I just can't understand it.

Maybe young men don't feel well represented by a man with autogynephilia who considers it appropriate to attend a children's charity wearing a dildo - regardless of how warm and sympathetic he is towards them?

@frozendaisy with the exception of Marcus Rashford, everyone in your list is REALLY OLD

WWC males were never privileged in your society? I was told Britain was a class-based society lol why do British people crib all their talking points from American leftists? Tbh it’s super grating

Oh No how dare they how shocking that more regular people are voting for parties that say they'll cut immigration. The average mumsnetter who lives in leafy Kent with no experience of the "lovely diversity and multiculturalism" they live to talk about will never comprehend why.

Anyway back to discussing the real big issue whether to save up for the kids to go to private school or start tutoring them for grammar

I didn't hear the radio piece but imo the move to SM for younger people is a factor

If you look at stats it shows the decrease in people getting news from legacy media

The established narratives will strain as that happens

Also this is happening in many countries eg in the US and EU

I think there's a bit of head in the sand and has been for a while over it

Ignoring this increasing pressure won't help politicians or generally

Woah there what the hell is this comment? So apparently everyone opposed to mass immigration is a lazy bum who's jealous?

And you seriously don't see how the millions of people that have moved here have contributed to rising housing costs? It's simple supply and demand and no "build more" is not going to work forever unless you want absolutely no countryside or space to grow food/raise cattle.

But sure let's keep importing thousands of adult males from places like Afghanistan why don't you go look up the laws they have in Afghanistan and tell me if you want your grand daughters to live in a country run like that. Because people bring their mindsets with them, or have you never heard about the grooming gangs? But yeah sure anyone that speaks out is just a lazy jealous bum

Yes. White men from former mining villages in the north, thrown on the scrapheap by Thatcher and then patronised and ignored by everyone since - they have never been privileged. Telling them they are is a key source of anger ime

I worked with older teenage lads who tucked up time and again. I worked with lads who stabbed their dads and with rapists. I worked with those that couldn't tell the time and those that saw other kids being given preferential treatment and faked being SEN to avoid writing.

I worked with them in towns that were old mining towns and who had absolutely no heroes to look up to. A man with a black dildo hanging out of his trousers was ever someone I'd have recommended they aspire to. But I do try and do some research into who I recommend to young people.

Its fine to say that inequality is natural, but the fact is that young (and youngish) people, particularly men will not be happy if they can't get a decent job, or do get a decent job but it doesn't pay well enough to ever afford a house, or have a similar lifestyle to those around them. Or ever start a family. People have been talking about this issue for years and have been dismissed as left wing discontents etc. Jordon Peterson bangs on about the Pareto principle without really understanding its uses (the opposite to what he thinks). Suddenly, people on the hard right do a U-turn and start saying "look at all the discontented men. Why is no-one talking about how hard life is for them." Literally the SAME people (Peterson, Shapiro) will push the "inequality is natural" line and then perform outrage at young men being left behind.

Its particularly ridiculous in the UK because both Farage and his reform buddies were in the banking sector which crashed the economy in 2008 and led to so many of these issues. Then he exploited that discontent to agitate for Brexit which caused more issues. Now he is using discontent at those issues to agitate for his new party. Its like watching the same con-man keep going back to the same town again and again rather than watching people support a political position I disagree with.

Basically "Tut tut silly lefty liberals. There will always be winners and losers.... WAIT why is no-one addressing that so many men are now losing out???"
Its a surprisingly succesful strategy because when you hear people talking about "winners and losers" you naturally assume you will be the winner and the losers are someone else. Young men are particularly susceptible to being overly-optimistic in calculating odds (not always a bad thing) so when they do find out they are the losers (some) assume the system must be rigged against them rather than accepting it as the natural outcome of a highly unequal system or questioning whether that much inequality is reasonable.