To wish Sir Keir and his wife would not hold hands when working

[BeaQuiet]

They've arrived in Washington DC on official business clutching hands like the Macrons, the Obamas and the Sussexes.

AiBU to find it a bit cringey?

And before anyone asks, yes I do have bigger things to worry about but I fancy a chat.

35 years so far. Happy enough not to make mean spirited comments like you.

Maybe clumsy wording on my part.

as we were waiting for the declarations, there was a brief interview with the Rt. Hon. Gentleman, and he said something like (I paraphrase) despite the constitutionality of it which he was well aware of, the British public had started thinking in presidential terms. Whether this was a good or a bad thing was another matter, but he was noting it as a "thing" that had bearing on elections.

Not that controversial really. And probably true going back to Thatcher. Especially as she was seen so much with Reagan.

I smell a massive smash in the offing.

I just wanted to say thanks for the thread.
I too have other things to think about but happy to talk about this.

Thank you @thisoldheartofmine

I've been on MN long enough to remember when we could have a chat about any old shit without people getting Offended on Behalf of Others.

I've been accused of being a bitter Tory/Reform voter, a racist and being in a unsatisfying marriage. When all I said was I think it looks unprofessional to hold hands with your spouse whilst on official business. And cringey.

Yes, I saw it. Just before he talked about that he was asked about the result and he said that he knew - or had a good idea - what the it was and that we would have to wait to hear it. The presenter said, 'well, we assume you must've won then' and he replied, 'You mustn't assume that' (rephrase that in a JRM way). I was watching and him then saying what he did about the presidential system made me suspect he had indeed lost.

He is not much missed by me but I don't blame him for reframing his ousting like that. It's inaccurate to present it as an unbiased opinion though.

But it doesn’t. Such a dumb comment. Historically, politically and culturally tone deaf.

All my comments on here are not directed at you personally, but you seem to think they are?

I am responding to other posters too you know

As the son of someone who wrote one of the defining headlines of the 60s ("Who breaks a butterfly on a wheel ?") JRM is a source of endless fascination.

😂

Hear! Hear!

Hang on ...

You may say you just want to chat about it, but your 'chat' did offend a lot of people! Because you were accusing Keir Starmer/Victoria Starmer of behaving inappropriately.

I said in my OP that I fancied a chat. Clearly you did too or you wouldn't have waded your way through the thread to post.

👋

He is repugnant.

I've been accused of being a bitter Tory/Reform voter, a racist and being in a unsatisfying marriage. When all I said was I think it looks unprofessional to hold hands with your spouse whilst on official business. And cringey.

@BeaQuiet You forgot to add sexist as well, despite most if not all of us here being women. I pointed this out to someone, along with the fact that many of us here are lifelong Labour voters, and some of us are indeed women of colour. I was then accused of being unconscious to these issues, which I am certainly not.

I do not see why his father should make him of interest. Nor have I ever understood why using deliberately exclusionary language and references as a way of communicating to one set of people only - those that have the education to recognise them - is fascinating. I think it's a dick move personally, especially for a politician claiming to represent 'popular' opinion.

There there @whichmag

Don't think you understand irony or the purpose of chat forums.

Christ do people really get 'offended' now if you point out it looks daft to hold hands like teens when on official business? Toughen up!

He is lovely. So articulate and pleasant never gets wound up or screams scum at people who disagree with him.

Oh @Janiie. What would we do without you to point out the error of our ways?

Were you offended?

It’s just a lighthearted thread

You may say you just want to chat about it, but your 'chat' did offend a lot of people! Because you were accusing Keir Starmer/Victoria Starmer of behaving inappropriately.

I think the hand holding is unprofessional and makes me cringe which is fair enough (as is people disagreeing with me). But I wasn't accusing them of actually acting inappropriately i.e having rigged the election, having a sham marriage or planning to privatise the NHS.

Then I could understand people being offended.

Btw what did you say to get deleted @BIWI? I missed it.

I think I am losing the will to live here.

WRM was not a politician but a journalist and editor of the Times. The headline was defence of Mick Jagger and Keith Richard who were in the 1960s popular beat combo "The Rolling Stones".

I just find it interesting that he supported the musicians against the social mores of the time in arguably the establishment paper of the century. Especially given how little Jacob turned out.

Of course women can be sexist or misogynistic or hold other women to unattainable syandards. Being a woman and posting on mn is no guarantee of anything. In addition women of colour can have many different cultures, concerns, and political viewpoints as well as aesthetic preferences.

Holding up Starmer and his wife on this trip to discuss as rendering the OP uncomfortable invited a polarizing discussion (not a chat) in which participants explored all the ways they found the Starmer’s appearing together surprising (surely partners don’t go), inappropriate (surely not necessary) unbritish (ugh! American first ladies!), highly suspicious (my mum always said public displays of affection meant private disharmony), costly (hope my taxes don’t pay for it), anti family (surely she didn’t want to go!), frivolous (a jolly), fake (ordered to do it for public relations), too needy (why does he need support) etc…etc…etc…

OP says she is a labour supporter from way back. Ok—what strange pathology and anxiety causes you to vote for a party, support its presumed goals, and then start a thread that deliberately holds the new representative of the party up for a wide range if contempt for a public act of such tiny significance? Even if you don’t like it what impels you to elevate a personal preference to a public beating? To me its like complaining that the Prime minister likes chocolate cake. So fucking what?