Captain Tom

[roxfox]

To be super fed up of hearing about him?

It's not his fault but the media etc seem to be using him to distract us from more important things. He's featured on the news more times than I can count. He received over 125,000 birthday cards - he can't possibly read even a quarter of them, what a waste of money and paper. And poor Royal Mail having to get it all to him.

There's not one day we don't here about him and now he's getting a plane or something flown over his house. The 28million he's raised is stupid money too - yes great for these NHS 'charities' but goodness, they are all on full pay! What about the food banks and million other things we could've all supported.

We've gotten so used to hearing Rishi throw money around I think we've forgotten how much money that is.

Is it just me? I feel awful. I know he's a lovely old man who's served his country all his life and will probably die very happy and yes we all need some lighthearted news but ffs all he did was walk around the garden.

YANBU. Every time I see him on tv I hate the way it’s simply stated that he’s ‘raising money for the NHS’ as if that’s unproblematic. The nhs is not a charity and shouldn’t be viewed as one. Yes, I know there are charities related to healthcare, hospices etc but I feel like every time Tom or someone similar is on the screen there should be a disclaimer along the lines or ‘The UK has a great way of funding the NHS - taxation!’ But we live in a weird society that votes in political parties that promise low taxes, then gets upset the nhs isn’t well funded, and so then feels the need to plug the gap by one-off charity donations!! It’s so inefficient, not to mention hypocritical.

critical thinking always means nastiness on MN

That's not true - lots of people have been at pains to make clear they are not attacking him or what he'd done. Criticising the media, and/or questioning the concept of raising charitable donations for the NHS, is not nasty - it's just having the ability to think and question.

With respect I think you are a but unreasonable! Because I like hearing about him because the news is bleak atm and watching this seemingly lovely 100 year old man do positive things that are getting media attention and helping a crippled health service is soo refreshing. Better then Thursdays look at us celebrities trying to get back all the attention big night in!

I do see your point but I think at this time it’s needed.

Criticising the media, and/or questioning the concept of raising charitable donations for the NHS, is not nasty - it's just having the ability to think and question. Think and question So people who donated are unthinking dopes.

I like hearing about him. I'm sick of everything being about Covid-19 - you can't even get away from it on the music channels.

I sometimes wonder if people even read OPs, or if they just glance at a few words and make the rest up, to fit however they want to respond. This is the important bit:

It's not his fault but the media etc seem to be using him to distract us from more important things.

OP isn't belittling or criticising him in any way at all. The OP is about the media.

To be super fed up of hearing about him?It's not his fault but the media etc seem to be using him to distract us from more important things. He's featured on the news more times than I can count. He received over 125,000 birthday cards - he can't possibly read even a quarter of them, what a waste of money and paper. And poor Royal Mail having to get it all to him.There's not one day we don't here about him and now he's getting a plane or something flown over his house. The 28million he's raised is stupid money too - yes great for these NHS 'charities' but goodness, they are all on full pay! What about the food banks and million other things we could've all supported. We've gotten so used to hearing Rishi throw money around I think we've forgotten how much money that is.Is it just me? I feel awful. I know he's a lovely old man who's served his country all his life and will probably die very happy and yes we all need some lighthearted news but ffs all he did was walk around the garden.
The OP mentions the media once. The rest is just goady stirring and the OP hasn't returned to the thread.

That doesn't make sense. Private homes charge for social care funded residents
They charge what the council will pay them and that's very little. Many can hardly make ends meet and profit is very little. Managers of such home earn much less than an NHS manager with similar responsibilities.

Of course its a media exercise. If it had been a 50 year old with arthritis, on benefits all his life, accomplishing the same challenge (which very well could have been even more challenging and/or painful) with no family with a PR company, how interested would the media been? Not at all.

It's a massive PR exercise and oh my has it worked!

@derxa

Ah, yes - “interesting first post”, as would normally be said

Think and question grin So people who donated are unthinking dopes.

Nope, didn't say that either. Nothing wrong with donating, or raising money.

But there's also nothing wrong with thinking about why the media latch onto things like this to such an excessive extent, and how the "feelgood factor" works to not just distract us from government incompetence, but also redirect us emotionally, so we're all cooing and aaawing over heartwarming stuff instead of getting angry.

That actually does serve a purpose and always has - you don't want riots and looting in this situation either. But it's OK to want to discuss it and to find some elements of it wearing.

But there's also nothing wrong with thinking about why the media latch onto things like this to such an excessive extent, and how the "feelgood factor" works to not just distract us from government incompetence, but also redirect us emotionally, so we're all cooing and aaawing over heartwarming stuff instead of getting angry. But wise ones like you would never be taken in by this media and political trickery so it shouldn't matter to you.

But it is really easy not to read about him now, ime.

This post is the only time I have seen or heard his name today.
And if you do see it - scroll on by if uninterested.
If you hear it, switch off.

I imagine he will be on the news a lot tomorrow as its his birthday, but after that much less so.

He's an elderly gentleman who did a nice thing. The media picked up on it as a 'good news' story so it went mad for a while. The monies raised are going to the NHS charities, so again - a nice thing to do.

I think it's wonderful, but I also wonder whether he wants the level of intrusion that comes with this level of notoriety in the first place.

At 100 years old I doubt he wants to be giving interview after interview, being mobbed by the press and feeling obliged to come out and meet with all of the people who are delivering him gifts and whatever else.

What ever will he do with that amount of cards? It seems like quite the hindrance to be honest.

I haven’t rtft I’m guessing there are a few miseries agreeing.

Just switch channels / stop reading if it’s too much.

He's done fantastically but can't help feeling this a convinient distraction from our chronically underfunded NHS.

But goodness they are all on full pay

Can you please explain this bit to me op, who is on full pay? Surely if he's made money for a charity it's not to pay wages

You really do need to take your misery elsewhere

He did something many have done. Start a just giving page.
It was picked up by the media are many are.

I think it went very viral because he's an extremely alert and witty man for his age and very endearing.

So the media escalated it but if he wasn't who he is and very humble about all he's done I don't think it would have gone so far.

But i get what you're saying. If anything it should show people how much control the media has over us for a supposedly free country.

I'm with you OP. Captain Tom as an individual human being is clearly a lovely wonderful person. He was also the right thing at the right time for HMGov to pick up and find a Good News Story. As a History graduate... this sort of news manipulation has been going on for about as long as history has been written down.

He will be living with a few strippers in Miami in a couple of years - living the pop stars life

They charge what the council will pay them and that's very little. Many can hardly make ends meet and profit is very little. Managers of such home earn much less than an NHS manager with similar responsibilities.

I am talking about private businesses. The staff should be looked after. Paid better. Thats not a charity matter. Even care homes that are entirely social care don't pay wages out of fundraising. That should be taken care of by the employers. Not fund raisers.

Would you raise money for any other private business so more profit can go to the owners?

My exh worked in care homes. Private ones. Their senior staff were well paid. He was one of them. They made a lot of profit, whilst allowing a small amount of social care residents. They are still paid for social care residents. They charge enough to make profit and do this.

i think it went very viral because he's an extremely alert and witty man for his age and very endearing.

Yes, he is. But also because this is his daughters job.

OP: what does this mean:
The 28million he's raised is stupid money too - yes great for these NHS 'charities' but goodness, they are all on full pay! ?

Why is ‘charities’ in ‘inverted commas’?

Who is in full pay, and why shouldn’t they be?

A lot of people seem to think I'm slagging off captain Tom - I wasn't. I have a lot of respect for him.

My point was the media are taking the mick and politicians are loving the distraction.

The NHS should be fully funded and doesn't need donations - Rishi Sunak promised a blank cheque for the NHS.

I'd be happier if this money had been raised for the families of people that had died.

For those that say we shouldn't need food banks because we have a benefit system. You're right. We shouldn't need them. But we do. Because for whatever reason people in this country are going hungry.

For the record I'm an NHS volunteer (yet to be called on unfortunately) and have been unofficially helping out in my local area. I also give to my food bank every time I shop as I knew a family who were personally affected by the five week wait for universal credit and had no access to food. Ever since when I shop I always try to get the bits I can to help another family in need.

Sorry to those offended- I genuinely have nothing against captain Tom.
Hope you're all safe and well x

*The NHS should be fully funded and doesn't need donations - Rishi Sunak promised a blank cheque for the NHS.

I'd be happier if this money had been raised for the families of people that had died.

For those that say we shouldn't need food banks because we have a benefit system. You're right. We shouldn't need them. But we do. Because for whatever reason people in this country are going*

How can you understand that we shouldn't need food banks, but we do, and not understand that we shouldn't need nhs charities, but we do?

The nhs charities give money for everything from teddies for children's hospitals to state of the art medical research equipment. Yes a lot of these things are also funded by tax payer money. The NHS is astonishingly expensive and successive governments have not wanted to raise taxes to foot the whole bill, that is why 'extras' are provided with charitable support.

I think pps have already linked to this:

www.nhscharitiestogether.co.uk/what-we-do/