Is the UK about to collapse?

[Penfield]

Sorry - There was probably a better way to put this.

Does anyone else have a feeling that we are close to some collapse, explosion, disintegration of society ...

With gas prices, petrol shortages, inflation, Brexit fall out, Covid, gaslighting government etc

I feel like we're on the edge of something - big ...

Yes and no. I feel that we are on the edge of something as a world not just a country. Life isn’t sustainable the way it is going. I’m not talking in a “Great Reset” conspiracy kind of way,just that the world seems to be fighting back against our current ways.

YABU There's always an Arquillian Battle Cruiser, or a Corillian Death Ray, or an intergalactic plague that is about to wipe out all life on this miserable little planet. [Country]
Theres always something, that's life. We just get on with it.

@Blossomtoes

That's what the tories want - disengagement and apathy. Put your fingers in your ears, deny, deny, deny....

Spot on.

Unfortunately it seems like that’s pretty successful.

The media is presented to be entertaining and titillating to appeal to us. We created the market for that. The trick is to read it with that awareness.

The current state of affairs isn’t particularly optimistic at the moment but avoiding all knowledge of that isn’t going to shield you from any problems that might personally impact you. The facts aren’t any less factual because they’re not good news.

@Ibelieveinghosts

Yes and no. I feel that we are on the edge of something as a world not just a country. Life isn’t sustainable the way it is going. I’m not talking in a “Great Reset” conspiracy kind of way,just that the world seems to be fighting back against our current ways.

It has been for a few decades. Our current lifestyles were never going to last forever, history tells us that quite clearly. That doesn’t mean that the end result is going to be awful but it does require riding out a period of change best we can. I’m sure someone in 1918 thought the world was changing beyond all redemption but I’m sure very few of us would want to swap place with them.

@MythicalBiologicalFennel

madisonbridges

Dysfunction? - I have no idea what is not operating normally. do you think the universal, free national health service is operating as it should? Don't enter into the reasons why, just answer. Are you denying there have been fuel and food shortages from the point of view of consumers?

Disorder . Did you miss the punch ups on petrol stations? The police who are meant to protect us are structurally misogynistic so half the population have been advised to challenge and resist should they be approached by a police officer. Hell we have senior politicians who don't know the word let alone understand the concept.

Corruption this has been going on for ages but this government is totally open about it. It's called corporate gifts, party donations, lobbying, peerages and honours, cronyism etc. Are you happy with the way the track and trace contract was awarded and how much it cost, especially compared with other developed countries?

Retreating rule of law see above.... also this government has several times refused to fulfil international agreements.

Actually I thought things weren't so bad but I am changing my mind reading this thread...

Dysfunction The NHS here is fully accessible, although the set up is different in such areas. My family, including elderly relatives, have all had routine dental appointments, including root canal work; sight checks; scans & blood tests; doctor, nurse and consultant appointments; routine mammograms, plus a follow up hospital check; emergency hospital admission with iron and blood transfusion; covid and flu jabs. One week of petrol shortages caused by panic buying and some temporary food shortages are not a dysfunctional example of societal collapse!

Disorder punch ups have always happened - I saw two women getting into a punch up one Christmas over the last jar of cranberry sauce. I didn't go round ringing a bell shouting, the end is nigh. The occasional punch up is not ushering in the end of civilisation.
What happened to Sarah Everard was dreadful and, as women, I'm sure we'll all be more wary in certain situations, but it won't mean I'll be out attacking police cars or arming myself with a shotgun to blow officers away. Despite the SE tragedy, most people will carry on obeying the law as they always have done.

Corruption so your one charge of corruption is contracts awarded under emergency time scales in a pandemic? This may indeed be misconduct and grossly wrong, but an independent enquiry will examine it, and then we will all know the facts. Even before those contracts were awarded, the parties concerned would have known there would be an enquiry into it. Corruption is where you think no one will ever find out.
If cronyism etc has been going on for ages, then it really isn't going to collapse the nation now. Surely its good that govt is open, as you put it, so everyone can see how it works. We have a free press that can report and comment on any cases to keep the public informed. People have no idea what truly corrupt countries are like.

Retreating rule of law I only know of the withdrawal agreement which was never actually broken because they got a deal with the EU. I think it's a widely held view that Biden should not have withdrawn from Afghanistan but to not do so would have broken an International Treaty. Is it OK to do do so in some circumstances and not others?

There is nothing at all in your arguments that would back up the claim that the UK is on the point of collapse or that we're close to the disintegration of society.

@madisonbridges, what are you doing here on MN? You sound much too lucid and rational . But thank heaven for the voice of reason.

@Penfield

Oh well.

I should just be resigned to our fate then.

Stop reading the news.

The way the Tories like things is the way it’s always been and will be forever now since we’re all
Ok with it. Look at a few history books.

It’s fine. I’ll just get on with life and accept my children’s lot.

I'm sorry. This was a terrible attempt at sarcasm.

It was a response to all those who say stop reading the news and just get on with it.

I want to protest and fight this bloody Tory government with all my might. I really do. As others say though - what are our options. Honestly, what are they?

Because I'm willing to give the fighting a really good go. We need to get rid of them.

@Penfield. I rather think that your over dramatic opening post is why the Tories keep getting re-elected. It makes other parties seem like they haven't got a practical, level-headed grip on the practicalities of life.

Because I'm willing to give the fighting a really good go. We need to get rid of them.
If you want people to vote for your party, you don't need to fight. You need to get a leader with wide appeal, who people feel they can identify with, and want to listen to, and whom they feel like is speaking for what they believe, rather than speaking for fringe groups and making them feel excluded. Then start to talk AND LISTEN to what people are saying and how they feel. Because they don't always reflect what you are thinking, it doesn't make their feelings less valid. Telling them they're thick because they voted in a different way, won't give them a fertile ear for your opinions. Saying you're listening but acting in a way that indicates you're not, just pushes people away even more.
And don't think MN is representative of what the general public are thinking. There's a very vocal anti-Consetvative section of posters on here. It's easy to believe that their opinion and reasoning is mirroring what is being said by the rest of the population. Polls tell you that's not true.
The Tories are so vulnerable but unless there is a credible alternative, people will keep on voting for them.

[quote XingMing]@madisonbridges, what are you doing here on MN? You sound much too lucid and rational . But thank heaven for the voice of reason.[/quote]
😊 Thank you.

I am totally with you OP.. I feel like we have had a mere tiny taste of how quickly things can unravel for us as a society, and I think we are in real danger of things getting much much worse. I am not hopeful, but probably still slightly in denial about it.

Only if you read the Daily Mail. Full of drama and BS

To an extent we live in a country where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.
We've all had a shit 18 months, bills are in the up and it all feels doom and gloom.
I grew up in the thatcher years, it was shit then but I survived.. Batton down the hatches, cut your cloth accordingly, look out for each other where you can and we'll be OK.

I’ve had major surgery during lockdown, many scans and eleven infusions of chemotherapy. I have seen and spoken to my GP many times. I have had 2 Covid jabs and a booster. My flu jab is booked. I have received fantastic treatment from the NHS over the past year. Tomorrow I have another hospital appointment.

My Mum had had various appointments over lockdown too to get her heart checked. They haven’t found it but are still looking.

Petrol crisis caused by the media who are also now starting a Christmas gift/food shortage crisis.

Boris is in power because believe it or not people liked him. Corbyn had so many ‘sweeties’ in his manifesto it got more and more ludicrous.

The UK is traditionally centre right. Not far left or even middly left. When it comes down to it everyone only cares about jobs and taxes.

Of everything that's happened in the last 5-10 years, since the Tory's got into Westminster, I am most concerned about the gaslighting government that people are continuing to support and vote for. I was a child in the 80s and as horrible as Thatcher was, she at least based what she did on an economic and political ideology. I feel so sad about how I feel society is unravelling under the current leadership because all they care about is feeding from the troff. I can't even bring myself to think of where we are at with the environment. So yes OP. I totally agree. Hugs to everyone who didn't vote for this shit show. X

We just have to ride it out, we’ll be ok in the long run

I tend to avoid the news as much as possible. What is entirely true in terms of what we are told is always in question. The severity of these issues is always in question. Fear sells. Fear also enables government to implement what would otherwise be unpopular policies.
I feel much less anxiety about this sort of thing the more I tune out. I also don't use social media and feel significantly better for this.

The media want you to think that. They even want you to panic and rush out and buy a turkey in case Xmas is cancelled. Do yourself a favour and Switch the news off and watch something funny instead.

The media want you to think that. They even want you to panic and rush out and buy a turkey in case Xmas is cancelled
Why on earth would the media want us to think that? What's in it for them?

@QuentinBunbury

The media want you to think that. They even want you to panic and rush out and buy a turkey in case Xmas is cancelled Why on earth would the media want us to think that? What's in it for them?

Views. Clicks. Fear that keeps people wanting to know more, so they get more views and clicks. Meaning they're getting paid. They don't this with our best interests in mind.

@QuentinBunbury

The media want you to think that. They even want you to panic and rush out and buy a turkey in case Xmas is cancelled Why on earth would the media want us to think that? What's in it for them?

I don’t think this is surprising.

One thing Covid has shown media is anxiety inducing headlines get clicks / sales

@QuentinBunbury

The media want you to think that. They even want you to panic and rush out and buy a turkey in case Xmas is cancelled Why on earth would the media want us to think that? What's in it for them?

In a twisted kind of way, it makes sense. So the papers run all these stories about a CHRISTMAS TURKEY SHORTAGE, WARN FARMERS (etc). Result: everyone rushes out and creates a shortage. Then the papers get to report on the CHRISTMAS NIGHTMARE/CANCELLED CHRISTMAS/FIGHTING IN TESCO!!! And all the sad face human interest stories. Woman in a paper hat holding up a pack of fishfingers and looking aggrieved.

Ha at fishfingers

Covid has actually suppressed lots of stuff and media have had to spin quite a lot to keep things new. Add some fear type stuff so it’s picked up and shared

And don't think MN is representative of what the general public are thinking.

I think it increasingly is. Even The Telegraph’s turned against them. Allison Pearson, of all people, says they’re not Tories any more and she won’t vote for them.

It's not just you OP, sadly, you are right. The government hasn't got a clue how to move ahead. It's plans to supplement the workforce with even cheaper workers from the East have been upset by Covid. Worldwide production of everything has been disrupted by Covid and UK left the EU at exactly the wrong time, regardless of how one feels about Brexit. Still, we have blue passports so not all bad. Hurrah. Whether or not you watch the news, it's still happening. As, however, you're not in a position to influence events, you may want to stop paying attention to it. But buy some extra groceries if you can though, it's going to be a long cold winter.