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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to not understand the outrage over the government’s so-called Christmas party?

778 replies

OneRuleForThem · 07/12/2021 22:33

I feel like this is only an issue if people automatically followed guidelines like robots. We were “told” not to visit our own families over Christmas. Nobody tells me whether I can or can not visit my own family, so I did, and had a lovely and nice normal Christmas last year.

It seems people are up in arms over the fact that Downing Street allegedly (do I have to say allegedly?) had a Christmas party and flounced the “rules” without social distancing. My only reaction is…And? And so? So what? Did anyone expect the government NOT to do something like this? I don’t know why people are up in arms over it tbh. It’s not like this government is brand new to people and they didn’t have prior information that this government backtrack and “do as I say not as i do” ALL THE TIME.

I really don’t get why people are so outraged by this. My main reaction is…why did you listen to them in the first place expecting them to be some kind of moral leaders? AIBU?

OP posts:
ClowningAround21 · 08/12/2021 11:13

He wasn't there. It was employees at work, I bet if you'd gone into any workplace last xmas you'd have seen employees having mince pies wearing Christmas jumpers

If it was more than that, if it was a riotous evening full of dancing and party games with Johnson leading the conga then I'd be as outraged as the next person. We just don't know the details yet do we and until we do I think all the hysteria is a bit premature

Drinks, party games, zero SD, carried on until past midnight, home workers came in for the party.

10 Downing Street is also his home.

A bit different from mince pies and jumpers around the office printer.

AssassinatedBeauty · 08/12/2021 11:14

@vickyp0llard I think a lot of people in this country watch BBC, blindly trust the government and genuinely believe they are all good, selfless people with the nation's best interests at heart.

I think this is patronising nonsense. The issue is that a very large number of people just aren't engaged with politics at all and think that it doesn't affect them or that voting has no impact on anything. And that all politicians are lying self serving career people, so what's the point of getting involved. The opposite really, of what you've said.

KrispyKale · 08/12/2021 11:17

Honestly I know of noone in workplaces who had a Christmas party last year. Some workplaces aren,t having them this year out of caution.

luverlybubberly · 08/12/2021 11:17

@KrispyKale

I'd love to know what Van Tam and Whitty are saying about it.
Professor VT made a statement about the rules applying to everyone after the Cummings stuff came to light. I can't imagine that he's moved from this position
SueSaid · 08/12/2021 11:18

'Drinks, party games, zero SD, carried on until past midnight, home workers came in for the party'

Says who, do we actually had evidence and confirmation or is the media whipping everyone into a frenzy?!

If it was as you say he needs to sack people and apologise. If it was employees at work then that is different.

lap90 · 08/12/2021 11:19

You really can't comprehend why people are outraged?

Lifeisshortandbittersweet · 08/12/2021 11:19

Maybe if you'd have had to care for residents in your place of work , dying from COVID , over Christmas , and facetiming their relatives so they could say goodbye to their dying mum/dad/sister/brother etc, and then finding out the government enjoyed their Christmas party , you'd be as angry as I am about it.

starrynight87 · 08/12/2021 11:20

YABU, if we had all done like you did and carried on regardless who knows what might have happened.

SueSaid · 08/12/2021 11:21

'Honestly I know of noone in workplaces who had a Christmas party last year'

No but I know of people who did secret Santas and wore Christmas jumpers in a work setting. It depends if they were pissed and dancing imo, we need footage like the Hancock situation. Surely the Downing Street mole has cctv footage??

luverlybubberly · 08/12/2021 11:22

OP the anger is probably from people who know others who followed the rules or were ill/ died alone over the Christmas and New Year period. Some people were genuinely scared of fines in light of cases like the police going hardcore on 2 women having a socially distanced walk. There's a lot of tears and pain that some people were hiding because they were told that it was the right thing to do Sad The video is shocking because Allegra is laughing and joking. Which is a slap in the face if you and your loved ones suffered last year.

hamstersarse · 08/12/2021 11:22

I try not to be histrionic about these sorts of things but this one really gets my goat.

It is the sheer audacity to put these rules onto everyone else while secretly knowing they are absolute bullshit. If it were so important to have these rules ("saving lives" etc) they wouldn't have had the party, they would actually have been frightened for their own safety.

It's the light it shines on the ludicracy of the rules for me that is galling. The rules were clearly never about safety, they were just about pleasing the pollsters and being seen to do things.

luverlybubberly · 08/12/2021 11:23

@JaniieJones

'Honestly I know of noone in workplaces who had a Christmas party last year'

No but I know of people who did secret Santas and wore Christmas jumpers in a work setting. It depends if they were pissed and dancing imo, we need footage like the Hancock situation. Surely the Downing Street mole has cctv footage??

The police will know who attended. There's policemen at the front door and probably every other entrance too and I would imagine that they log comings and goings.
Nothinbut · 08/12/2021 11:23

For me it's more what they have said about it then the 'party' itself, it shows not just that they don't give a fuck, but that actively think nothing about us.

Lorriestakingppe · 08/12/2021 11:25

People like you OP and Allegra Stratton etc make me bloody sick. How dare you come on here basically laughing at all of the people who tried to do the right thing last Christmas?? I am glad 88% of people on here agree that you are unreasonable Angry

vickyp0llard · 08/12/2021 11:27

It's the light it shines on the ludicracy of the rules for me that is galling. The rules were clearly never about safety, they were just about pleasing the pollsters and being seen to do things.

Yes - this is the crux of it for me. I don't believe they did it for safety or because they care, it was a populist move made under peer-pressure so they could be seen to be doing "the right thing". They obviously didn't believe in it, otherwise they would have stayed at home and been scared of catching/spreading covid. Out of the people I know who cancelled their Christmases, no-one did it for "the greater good" - they did it because they were too scared of being fined or reported by twitchy neighbours.

getsanta · 08/12/2021 11:27

we need footage like the Hancock situation. Surely the Downing Street mole has cctv footage??

Why do we need more footage than Allegra Stanton having a practice press conference practicing for having to answer questions about the party?

TakeMe2Insanity · 08/12/2021 11:28

Is that you Carrie?

YABVU

KrispyKale · 08/12/2021 11:28

We never needed the Hancock footage. 😂

VikingOnTheFridge · 08/12/2021 11:29

@KrispyKale

We never needed the Hancock footage. 😂
I want this on a t shirt. It was upsetting!
MissingGrandstand · 08/12/2021 11:30

@VikingOnTheFridge THANK YOU. Exactly this - while people may be blasé about saying “oh well I still saw my family,” what about those that couldn’t? Due to hospital/care home rules?

The day before this party I was admitted to hospital for an ectopic pregnancy. Losing a baby I wanted without my husband there, not allowed any family to discuss whether medical or surgical was the best option, just me in a room on my own. Sat in hospital processing the loss and what this may mean for our chances of starting a family in the future for 3 days unable to see my husband and grieve with him. Yes this is a situation personal to me, but so many people have similar stories of things they had no choice but to miss out on.

Others had it so much worse, unable to say goodbye to family members.

So yes I find it pretty damn unreasonable that people don’t see an issue with the government, who make the rules, not following them.

MyDcAreMarvel · 08/12/2021 11:32

Well of course you don’t understand you were a bad as them. People could not have proper funerals while you visited your family, pre vaccines, with a very fast spreading variant. You should be ashamed of yourself.

VikingOnTheFridge · 08/12/2021 11:34

I can totally see why you would be upset MissingGrandstand and am sorry for your loss. You have every right to be bitter.

getsanta · 08/12/2021 11:39

@MissingGrandstand so sorry for your loss and.

This post is making me so angry. I couldn't attend a funeral of a dear friend who died suddenly. It was awful.

Ang69 · 08/12/2021 11:40

I try not to be histrionic about these sorts of things but this one really gets my goat.

It is the sheer audacity to put these rules onto everyone else while secretly knowing they are absolute bullshit. If it were so important to have these rules ("saving lives" etc) they wouldn't have had the party, they would actually have been frightened for their own safety.

It's the light it shines on the ludicracy of the rules for me that is galling. The rules were clearly never about safety, they were just about pleasing the pollsters and being seen to do things.

No, the rules were not about pleasing pollsters, they were actually sensible and were there to try and save lives. It is so depressing knowing that many people think like this. I hated not seeing my family as much as everyone. I am terrified going to work even though I'm vaccinated as I never know when a new variant might strike and I take it home to my child who is cv.

The problem now is the fact we have such a corrupt government that even if they tell us to do something that we really should do no one will listen and I wouldn't be able to blame them for that, why listen to a bunch of hypocritical, lying bastards? Where does that leave us though should god forbid a new variant take hold and decimate us. What will happen to all the cancer patients, MH services, people in pain waiting for their new hips and knees, businesses closed and travel banned? Yeah go ahead and break the rules but do what?

Lorriestakingppe · 08/12/2021 11:41

So sorry for everyone who suffered so badly, it's just unspeakable, OP you really have upset me this morning, you're as bad as that lot at no 10