To think the uk is on its knees

[Ilovemycatalot]

Just this. Every day negativity. No one is happy with life or working conditions. The country is at an all time low. Living standards getting worse by the day people getting poorer. I know we are not in poverty like some countries but honestly can’t see us ever returning to decent living standards unless you’re the few top percent earners. Tell me I’m being dramatic perhaps I am but can’t see much of a way back from this .

Rafael Behr talks about just this today in The Guardian today.

I'm not saying the media isn't "part of it". But it isn't the cause.

Routinely on a thread like this someone will pop up and say "I blame the media" for all the supposed ills in a country as if the media was a cabal of people which just makes stuff up for its own amusement.

There's a lot to dislike about our media and it certainly does hold a lot of power but it can't be held solely responsible for Brexit, intra Conservative Party infighting, the war in Ukraine and the behaviour of Putin, inflation, COVID-19 and its aftermath, the growing power of the unions, the crisis within the NHS and all the other factors which collectively have led to the situation we're in. These are economic and political factors which the media quite often amplifies and distorts for its own ends but these are far bigger than the UK newspapers.

Also it was the IMF which stated that UK growth is weaker than that of any other G7 country. Not the media.

I dunno. I am relatively ok. I get down from time to time but am generally upbeat. Happier now that we can travel, see friends etc.

There is just me to cater for and my heating and water is paid in the rent so I do not have that worry. If I was a parent trying to deal with that I think I may have pulled my hair out!

I have a job which I will probably stay in until I am 67! As long as I still have a free 60 plus oyster card I am happy!

Of course. by the time I get to 67 they will probably do away with the pensioners' bus cards!

The UK and England in particular are extremely self critical and tend to see the worst in everything we have and so. We just seem to be so much more self deprecating than other countries and self flagellate. It only serves to make us appear weaker to the rest of the world and deflects attention from their shortcomings. We are in a difficult place at the moment but being angry at your own country solves absolutely nothing .

Some days I would like to kick Boris Johnson in the face repeatedly with a pointy stilleto heel until he whimpered for forgiveness. And then do it some more until the police (even if the bother to turn up) eventually come to take me away and I scream "I got Boris done" and he goes for a lengthy wait in A&E.

Some days.

( a dreamscape vision obviously I wouldn't do it in real life ).

Sorry not meaning to be flippant . I do worry for other people and am thankful my parents and Aunt are no longer here to deal with all that. One of my friends her bill have doubled.

I posted upthread as well, as I wanted to say that from an outsiders pov, there are so many positives, but only the negatives get mentioned over and over.

I would like to share some of our issues, things that other people are having to deal with , I have tried before, and got the it's not a race to the bottom comments.

I bloody hate that phrase.

Agree.

Have not said the media is solely to blame.

I would say that the media has some responsibility in brexit, also globally putin utilises media and had done for years, reaction to covid was impacted globally as well - including for example China preventing media from reporting as well as impacting support or opposition to measures including lockdown and vaccines etc etc - so many of the things that impact the economy have been impacted by media.

And I have not suggested only uk newspapers- media is global

Absolutely. State education is dire here. Broken systems, mates MATs, divergence of money away from improving schools, poor learning, recruitment issues, lack of funding, lack of support services - a system in crisis.

How are we ever going to improve the UK andcompete globally, if we are not educating our children well enough.

Send them to Eton.....

We just seem to be so much more self deprecating than other countries and self flagellate. It only serves to make us appear weaker to the rest of the world and deflects attention from their shortcomings.
I think this is true to some extent. But part of it is that 99% of people outside the UK can read the UK news and understand what people are moaning about (and report on it in their own countries without always checking whether their own countries are any better off). If French was the world language instead, it would be France's problems that everyone would be discussing.

I don't read or listen to the news unless it impacts me directly as they are all so negative and IMO drive the current recession/depression. We will revive as we always do and the news will find something else to scare us with. Don't flame me I have mental health issues and have to do what I can to keep it together

Yes it is. GENERAL ELECTION NOW!!! ✊🏼 ✊🏾✊✊🏿

The thing is, we are doing worse than the EU. Worse than the USA, or Australia, or New Zealand. That's not pessimism, it's reality. Our growth rates have been awful since the Tories imposed austerity. We're poorer than we think.

Try having an octogenarian parent dying in hospital with a criminal lack of staff and care. You are very fucking lucky it's not affecting you yet. But it will.

This isn't true. I emigrated five years ago from the UK to Europe and we have a lovely life, and the cost of living is also far cheaper. The local council is very supportive, I see where our tax money is spent (largely spent very well), public services are great and health care is really fantastic. It's been a huge eye opener to me that life can be like this. I feel so happy here and there's so much less stress. My family say the same when they visit.

Of course every country and region is different - there'll be parts of the country we live in now that won't be as good as our region - but it's just not right to say that all of Europe is crap, with strikes everywhere, etc., because it is patently not true.

How do you know that if you don’t even live here? Many, many people are fine.

Wake up, on its knees, auto type from pandemic

Everyone I know is fine and happy and still with state services, I wouldn’t judge mn against rl, nor the general media

And good state at that. Education and GP compared to private as use both

What on earth would make you think it? It just is.

@MarshaBradyo

Do you work or live in a deprived area?

I earn a wage which would be considered pitifully low by many MNs. But I have 3 DCs, a nice DH, own my own home, I enjoy my job, we have a holiday booked and we do nice things sometimes; this week we went to a concert and on another day went out for a pub lunch. My life is not wonderfully wonderful or perfect and there have been many ups and downs but it's fine and I'm happy with my lot.

I don't buy into this oh my life is shit and everything is shit mentality and I don't understand why people on MN and on SM are bemoaning their lot and constantly whining.

Perhaps you all need to take a break from social media.

SE London so pretty mixed. GP same day, good schools.

@maddening

Fair enough.

It just really irritates me when people say things like "we love to do ourselves down in this country and it's all the media". When in fact objective evidence is coming in thick and fast from reputable and international bodies that clearly demonstrates that the UK is in a worse economic position than most developed market peers.

It's like the people who said that the anti-Brexit argument was just "Project Fear" and all we had to do was believe in our greatness as a nation. It's complete, self-deluding nostalgic hogwash. It's now been shown to be delusional and yet still people saying "its just the media trying to do us all down".

I know that probably wasn't what you were saying but the media is a very convenient whipping boy for anything that goes wrong.