to ask you to check your facts before voting?

[silkybear]

There is a worrying trend on here at the moment where people say they will not vote a certain way because of XYZ when a basic google search will prove it to be completely untrue.

Gordon Brown was the cause of the GLOBAL financial crisis
Anyone voting tory is a heartless bastard scumbag
There will be a garden tax costing us 3k each

However you choose to vote, surely you owe it to all of us to do some basic research, read the manifestos and check the sources of information before hand.

I'm happy to debate politics all day long with people I profoundly disagree with, but when people resort to either total bollocks or insults I truly despair!

Aibu to expect people to either do some proper research or not vote at all?

Well said silkybear. I am absolutely with you. I am fed up with people who cannot be bothered to read or listen to the info that is out there. So many depend on sound bites or newspaper headlines. The result is the rest of us have to put up with the skewed results. This election has long term fall out for us and our children and grandchildren. If they cannot be bothered to think carefully then yes I agree perhaps they have no business voting.

Thanks for starting this thread. I wouldn't be surprised if it's completely changed polling predictions.

I love it when people post along the lines of; how come the Tory's will bail out the bankers but not the NHS? In a discussion.
Ah yes, the October 2008 bank bailout by then Labour chancellor Alistair Darling.
But you're correct OP, why let the truth get in the way of your perception of a political party.

Yup. Too much space for comment and opinion and too little space for facts.

Yes but facts are facts to one side and stats to another.

Most people who think one way is right accuse the other side of being stupid or not checking the facts.

You can't trust either of them really so I vote for which dude o think is telling me the more credible lies.

Mind you Gordon did say 'no more boom and bust'

and May said 'no tax rises under the tories'

Pick which fact you believe

A lot of people don't vote based on facts - other emotional factors are important to some people, like which "group" you identify with. These people will believe something, or not, depending on who is saying it (the "who" includes all media).

I am full of admiration for voters who listen, look around and check facts before making an informed decision. However I fear that most voters are of the NHS Brexit bus type. not on MN, of course

Yeah I guess there is alot of confirmation bias that goes on as well. My mum has decided to vote without looking into it at all, literally close your eyes and point at someone, then ignore anything relating to them good or bad. Does my head in!

Yanbu.

Great post OP.
There are so many political assumptions.

All Labour voters smoke Amber Leaf & are on benefits
Liberals all wear sandals
Tories are all blood thirsty fox hunters, who hate the NHS.

There are lies, misquotes & shitty illinformed graphs across the whole political landscape to prove absolutely nothing!

Thanks for this silkybear. There's a 30+ page thread on land value tax, and a bizarre number of posters making statements of "fact" when they've not even bothered to read the manifesto or the party stance on thr matter.

I'm not suggesting this doesn't go in both directions, but it's sad that a campaign will be won based on what is essentially propaganda.

I hold out hope that one day we will get proportional respresentation and proper political education in schools but can't see it happening any time soon!

Gordon Brown was the cause of the GLOBAL financial crisis
I have heard plenty of people say he didn't cause it but don't remember any claiming he did. Have heard plenty claim he left the country in a bad shape to cope with the crash but that's not the same thing.

There will be a garden tax costing us 3k each
Definitely heard that one, but I think its the result of trying to work out how JC will pay for all the spending he has promised. He will have to tax us somehow we just dont know where yet and LVT does seems to be a likely candidate.

I've been watching the posts with interest and I'll add my own personal thoughts on the issues around Police.

I was a Police Officer during the 90's and early 00's. During that time we faced huge cuts, I was in Southwark. During that time one Police Station closed, apart from reduced front office cover when we had spare staff. It didn't happen often and was very often closed. It hit the news when a stabbing took place outside the station and the victim died on the doorstep as no one was there. I did cover on occasion and would be the only cover in the station on my own. Circa 40,000 people.

A couple of years later due to reducing Police numbers two stations almagamated to enable us to have a half decent number on first response teams.

We'd have about 18 people to cover, Southwark, Walworth, Peckham, Bermondsey, Camberwell ...

I was in duty the morning of 9/11 all rest days were cancelled and officers from unfamiliar areas were drafted together to show numbers, offer public assurance etc. Sound familiar?

We worked 14-16 hour shifts because we still have to cover our usual work.

In one week I earned a months salary, not through choice we had no choice.

Moral was low. It never recovered.

We were frequently in danger as crime rates were actually higher then and back up wasn't always available so quickly, esp on a Friday or Saturday evening, by midnight you'd only be left with a couple of officers covering, others would be with their detainees either in the station, or hospital etc. Retiring or promoted officers were not being replaced.

Instead PCSOs were recruited who had no more powers, and still don't, than a civilian and actually created more work for us. That is where resources and funding went.

I'm still undecided on my vote, I can't trust May but feel Labour can't deliver what they promise, and Abbott as potential Home Secretary scares me, even more so than Boris!

Yabu
People can vote how they want with loads of research or none. Up to the individual.

Abbott is sick I believe, she has called off doing an interview today after another car crash interview yesterday. I think whatever happens in this election she will be moved to the back benches on friday.

I agree OP. The rival candidate to our last MP is claiming that the primary schools here are desperately overcrowded. In fact we have a surplus of primary places round here, as a whole new school was built. But it is compelling rhetoric!

Course they can Eleven but many will vote against their own interests without looking and then moan about it afterwards. Tis the british way 😊

Many will vote against their own interests without looking and then moan about it afterwards. Tis the British way.

Brilliant summary of the whole fiasco!

I heard that Abbott pulled out of an interview, but was later seen out and about.

Just vote according to the number of manifesto promises you agree with ( after having read them first, of course.)

True SB, or those who moan about the outcome but don't actually vote

It's up to individuals how they decide on their vote. Using the word fact in relation to politics is almost an oxymoron!

Yes yes yes - I agree, OP. I don't care which way you vote (well, I do...) - but there's no excuse for not doing basic fact-checking. It's not difficult, yet so many people prefer to mindlessly gobble up and parrot back misinformation. It happens all the time on both sides and it's probably the most depressing thing about this election. Why don't we care about facts anymore?

Not sure. The lines are blurred between fake and real news. There doesn't seem to be alot of proper investigative journalism in the mainstream any more, but then anyone with a computer can start a blog and some get a huge following. Social media makes it harder for politicians to lie I think, it will be interesting to see what happens on thurs.