To think the comments in the Daily Mail are frightening

[MotherOfDragons90]

I shouldn’t read it, I know, it is drivvel, but I downloaded the MailOnline app to read the Brexit stories as my friend said most of the comments were from Leavers and I quite wanted to know what Leavers think of how Brexit related things are going. Anyway, I digress.

There’s an article on today about new mothers and their maternity rights in the workplace.

The comments have shocked me to my core!

So many posts basically claiming women shouldn’t have any rights as they choose to have children, people saying they refuse to hire women of child bearing age etc.

If this is how Leavers feel, AIBU to be scared for our future as women?

Seline- I meant career opportunities- and yes, of course we would miss out on other things.
I took about four years out and found it almost impossible to get back into the workplace and know of some who didn't ever manage it.
I wish it could be better but how?

people saying they refuse to hire women of child bearing age etc

This is actually really common, just people don’t admit it

Oh yes - my boss who thinks he is a non-sexist male actually asked me if I was planning on having another baby before I returned after mat leave. When I said ‘no’ he wanted to offer me a promotion

Luckily, I got a new job. I was interviewed by a male and he didn’t ask any such question. Funny, that 🤔

If virtually everyone in the comments section disagrees with you then maybe (just maybe) it's time to accept that, as valid as it is, yours isn't the only opinion there is.

I do enjoy the quality journalism though. Can anyone spot the error in this tragic story?

I do enjoy the irony of someone on Mumsnet complaining about a 'narrow-minded' comments section!

PBo83 while I've had disagreements on here people are far more open minded than the mail.

Seline, to be fair, it's Friday afternoon, I'm bored, tired and just felt like being a bit contentious!

There is a lot of truth though in the fact that people are more likely to read a publication or forum which agrees with their own views. For example, if you consider yourself right-of-centre and are pro-Brexit (neither of which are necessarily a good/bad thing) then you are more likely to read the Daily Mail.

By the same token, if you are a mum and are concerned about issues surrounding parenthood then you are more likely to read Mumsnet.

With regards the original subject of working rights however, I think that two, frequently opposed sides, may actually be in agreement (albeit for completely different reasons).

So we're just ludicrously pretending that the very right wing old angry men who comment on there probably didnt vote for or support Brexit are we? I have some magic beans to sell you.

www.unilad.co.uk/articles/what-happens-when-you-leave-nazi-propaganda-in-the-daily-mail-comment-section/

What happens when you post Hitler's comments on the daily mail.

Mumsnet is a bit of a political and feminist bubble really. I’m not saying that’s wrong at all but my own experience of speaking to people in the real world is that most people think more like the Daily Mail comments. I do live in South Norfolk though which is traditionally very conservative etc.

Like it or loathe it the Daily Mail does have a huge readership.

Living in a liberal minded (and liberal voting) area in the south-east, I dip into the Mail and read the comments once or twice a week. It helps me to remember that not everyone is tolerant, broad minded, inclusive and generally in favour of helping those less fortunate than themselves.

I get the brain bleach out afterwards though, to prevent contamination.

The Daily Mash's succinct view of Daily Mail Commentators. Spot on.

Daily Mail commenters
Despite the loss of nutter-in-chief Paul Dacre, Daily Mail commenters have not given up posting hate-filled opinions based on their childlike understanding of the world. Do you feel Britain would benefit if we hanged all students? There will always be a Mail reader who agrees with you.

There's a very high % of bot comments and comments generated by employees on the Daily Mail. Estimates are that 50 - 75% of Daily Mail comments on brexit, trump and anything to do with Russia originate from Russian owned bot farms.

I think it's easy to imagine that there is a person behind everything we read on the internet, but that's absolutely not the case. It's old school propaganda 101, making people doubt their views and own experience and ignore facts. So many people seem to fall for it.

I am strongly in support of both leaving the EU and of maintaining or increasing maternity rights. Your assumptions are worrying and counterproductive.

The internet is a phenomenal tool for spreading false information and propaganda to (almost) the whole world. The stuff you are treating as fact or interesting opinion or some kind of barometer of public opinion could have come from anyone or anything. A software script, a sex offender, a young teenager, a prisoner, a paid campaigner, a drug dealer, your nan. I could be a bot, running from a script, and you and mumsnet would not know.

Oh dear @Toastedstrudel you do realise that's an oxymoron?

I'm strongly in support of both tackling climate change and reinvigorating the coal industry

I though a lot of them were bots, I'm sure there are many on here also.

Nope. Not an oxymoron at all. Do people really believe it is only women in the European Union that have maternity rights?

This view is quite common actually.
Our top boss openly critisised a female senior manager for taking her full maternity leave. Yet a male senior manager is about to become a father and that apparently is all well and dandy.
People forget/don't realise that it was the EU who helped pass maternity laws as well as lots of other rights for workers.
I think deep down a lot of ( perhaps older, male) voters resent independent women. They know full well that given the chance their wives would not have tolerated the rubbish they did if they had had better options.

@Toastedstrudel You simply must let the Trades Unions and Maternity Action know that they have nothing to fear.

After all, most of our maternity employment protection didn't come from the EU. No, it absolutely didn't. Um....

And of course when the UK did implement those completely unneeded EU Directives (because we were doing so well by ourselves!), they absolutely did not find exemptions or build-in qualifying periods and other barriers to weaken those maternity rights.

No, the UK will absolutely not consider removing or weakening maternity rights obligations for small businesses in a post-brexit climate. Who told you that? That absolutely will not happen. Even to stimulate economic recovery. Post Brexit governments will prioritise strengthening maternity rights. Can't wait! We'll be just like America! No, don't mention America. Norway! Absolutely Norway!

Having gone through my first pregnancy in another country (not in Europe, Norway or USA) I can assure you it is not unique to the EU.

I agree with ilovelurcher. Sorry, but I would also avoid hiring women of childbearing age due to those year-long mat leaves and then the possibility she'll come back pregnant again. I worked in a place where a woman did this 3 times in a row. Yeah, rights and yadda yadda yadda but it was a PITA for the rest of us.

For example, if you consider yourself right-of-centre and are pro-Brexit (neither of which are necessarily a good/bad thing) then you are more likely to read the Daily Mail.

I'm a Conservative voter and voted Leave. I wouldn't read the Daily Mail if you paid me; I prefer The Telegraph.

It seems to me that the most prolific readers of the DM are left wingers who read it avidly just so they can froth at the mouth and come on here to say how disgusting it is.

I M a daily mail reader, I comment, nicely. I agree some are horrible, but then so are some on this forum