My town has really changed

[CatbellsOnTheSeashore]

In a confusing and not very pleasant way.

It was gradually changing for the worse before covid, but the pandemic seemed to accelerate it, and I am wondering if anyone else has noticed anything like this.

It became more insular whilst more populated, the population increased quite a bit over the past 5 yrs. More and more dereliction, low council maintenance and an influx of troubled people housed around the town centre, which is now a no-go zone. Areas surrounding have steadily grown worse also, as it seems to be spilling out.

What does feel really different is that there are now lots of groups of men, hanging around drinking or sat on pavements together (not begging). Drugs took over the local nature paths and canal walks so now there are large groups of people out of their heads lying on old sofas at the locks, it's really grim. Women who used to cycle and run in these areas have more or less moved elsewhere or stopped.

More and more standard sized houses in low to middle income areas are becoming HMO's, yet with poor refuse organisation and not enough parking. I'm not exaggerating when I say there are literally trails of dog shit in the streets in many areas, too, which pretty much hangs in the air and the place stinks. That, and skunk.

We live in a decent part of town but it is coming closer, and I only have that perk due to inheriting my parents bungalow. More and more people are moving out.

On a walk to Sainsbury's yesterday two guys were holding onto a sign pole hovering over a bin. As I passed by one of them vomited into the bin and then spat/gobbed an inch from my feet - he didn't notice me particularly, but it was quite sudden or I'd have given them a wide berth.
This isn't unusual now.

I know people usually blame the cost of living and covid, etc, but this was definitely on the rise before. There is far more noise pollution as more buildings go up, usually industrial, and the roads are a nightmare. Infrastructure for actual people is decreasing.
That said, I don't think most of these people were thriving before, so it isn't a sudden change. It is as if a new kind of culture is growing, that doesn't care a damn about anything. Everything is vandalised or shat on. More and more windows are broken in properties close to the town centre, and I doubt most of these people were thriving before the pandemic hit.

Is this bad luck or is anything like it happening elsewhere?
We are definitely looking to move away.

Tbh there’s a lot worse things going on than a bit of noise that need addressing - certain groups driving at uncontrollable speeds, causing accident after accident in Dads Range Rover, exploitation of women, murder and isolation of women, ignoring the police and only listening to authority figures in their own community -this needs to stop - it needs to be nipped in the bud. We need to stop using the term “racism” so much and start prioritising conversations around integration.

Not so much in my Somerset village but go into the towns and it's a war zone. So different from my grandfather's day when it was a very quiet farming county. I'm originally from Bedford and there is no way I'd go back there now.

Exactly, we need to get rid of this looney self flagellating attitude. Stand up for British culture and make it clear that this is the culture of these islands and if you don’t like it you might be better placed to find somewhere else. Look at how many inventions we are responsible for.

We have always been welcoming in this country. Mostly throughout history people have been grateful - now people are taking advantage. They are asset stripping the best parts of our culture.

Luckily the tide is turning. I’m seeing increasing amounts of English and county flags flying.

i do seriously wonder who it is that comes onto these forums parroting anti British sentiment and what they hope to achieve.

Boris was in power for a couple of months before experiencing an existential crisis due to COVID-19. His government took no significant action for 18 months, aside from printing money. Life was relatively peaceful during that time. Then, after COVID-19, the Tories doubled down, attempting to destroy what was left of the beleaguered economy.

Now, two years later, we have a Labour government that seems to lack fresh ideas. Keynesian economics has been replaced by even more superficial austerity measures.

Can you define and provide examples of this "British culture" that we are supposed to celebrate ?

Are we talking militant fish and chip consumption? Football? Enforcing "tea-time" and cucumber sandwiches? I'm a bit at a loss to think of anything that isn't basically a meme, hasn't been imported by the Empire, and doesn't involve military might or has religious connotations? Or is that what you mean?

“How to register with a GP surgery
Anyone in England can register with a GP surgery to access NHS services. It's free to register.
You do not need proof of address or immigration status, ID or an NHS number.
GP surgeries are usually the first contact if you have a health problem. They can treat many conditions and give health advice. They can also refer you to other NHS services.”

This is from the government website.

There's nothing wrong with feeling national pride. I love the UK and there are many parts of our history I'm proud of (other parts I'm not so proud of, but you can say the same of most countries).
However, I don't think pride in the country will solve our problems. Our problems are multifaceted and complex. How will pride help the 1/3 of children living in poverty? How will pride help the working class communities who have no job prospects, who have been left behind. Many of these people are proud but it's made no difference to their miserable lives.
I think working class men are in a state of crisis at the moment and I hope there's a way to change this.
And let's embrace positive pride not the pride we've seen displayed by "patriots" at protests who shout obscenities about other faiths and cultures. We can big up ourselves without denigrating others. How does division and hatred help anyone?

There is no doubting your voting choices!!

It is fine to be proud of your country but also point out the issues. Most people do that. Whether they are British, Italian, Indian, Australian etc. I have heard everyone complain about their country, whether it is property prices, bureaucracy, the government etc. That is ok surely?

And remember it’s luck where you are born. You are lucky to be born here. You are no better or worse than an immigrant from Albania or Iran. If you love the UK, you can see why someone from a poorer country wants to be here too! However I do agree with controlled immigration and much quicker processing of claims and decisions. And I think any immigrant should respect the rules of the country. Whether it’s Afghan refugees in Tamworth or Brits in Benidorm.

Do you think that if the immigrants left, everyone would behave better, be housed immediately in suitable accommodation and the NHS and schools would be much better? I think that’s unlikely. However many amazing things we have invented in the past. The whole world is becoming more dangerous and unstable and economies are tanking everywhere. Of course the UK will be affected too. It is not just immigration. Though that is an issue and I don’t agree with large hostels of single unemployed males, as people keep mentioning. That’s just asking for trouble.

Just to reassure you, I have met patients who are asylum seekers living in the hotels. Life is shit. They have something like £8 a week to spend. They eat the same slop every day. Worse than prison food. There are educated families living in one room escaping political torture. Scared to leave their room with their kids because of the kind of people living in the hotel. The hotel staff are low paid and don’t give a shit and conditions can be dreadful. Hope that makes you feel a little better!

@Gettingbysomehow yes Bedford town centre is very much like other towns described in this thread 🙁

And don’t you think that’s the problem. The fact you can no longer identify what British culture is! Maybe do a bit of research.

I live in the north east and work in child protection. We’ve got a real problem at the moment with southern councils exporting their problem families, ostensibly for housing reasons but it’s odd that it’s always the violent drug addicts with neglected kids that their children’s services are aware of but haven’t done anything to protect them. As if moving a family that already has issues away from any and all support network is going to benefit anyone except the person filling out an “adequately housed” spreadsheet.

And remember it’s luck where you are born. You are lucky to be born here. You are no better or worse than an immigrant from Albania or Iran

This is absolutely false. You are, I suppose, lucky to be the descendant of people that ran a tight ship and built a successful country (at some point). This is a rare feat. You, as you are now, could never have been born in a different country. You are the end point of thousands of generations of ‘British people’. People are not interchangeable little widgets.

More to the point, your country should have more obligations to YOU than they do to a literal foreigner. They shouldn’t treat you as if you live on a tax farm. And you shouldn’t have your wages taken to pay for any non-British. If they can’t afford to live there then they need to go home.

If you love the UK, you can see why someone from a poorer country wants to be here too

I used to live in the Gulf. Do you think I loved it? Nah. I just wanted the tax-free income. But I never considered myself a fellow Emirati either. More honest this way tbh

They should just ask a foreigner. Well tell them lol

Oh dear, oh dear. Which election are we talking about here? I’ve green, Lib Dem, Tory, Labour, reform and independent. In fact the only party I have been a fully paid up member of is Labour. I don’t get your point. Actually I do, you can’t argue against the actual points being made so you try and stereotype because it’s more comfortable for you to do that.

Everything is an accident of birth. No one is arguing against the need for asylum. But you don’t go to a country, attracted by all its good points then fail to fully integrate.

Yes without the pressures of non highly selective immigration, we would have more housing, we would have less crowded hospitals and doctors, we would have more money to spend on other things. Surely you can see that.

Life will always be full of people who have won the lottery of birth. If people just flee the shit areas then things will never get bettter there.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_the_United_Kingdom

Well, I'll take the arts and literature,but those are often dismissed as frivolous and routinely underfunded

Our pre-Christian folklore, of which I am a fan as a Pagan leaning Goth is often ridiculed and treated as superstition (unless we're talking about a good old fashioned witch burning of course).

You see, most of our culture is imported and influenced by invaders or the countries we invaded, so I am interested to know what is quintessentially British in your opinion.

I agree with this but Britain isn't business friendly under high tax Labour and has very high energy costs (and highest electricity cost in the world) thanks to both party's mad net zero policies which just export all the jobs to China etc then import all the products back (at high environmental cost). Not sure where any growth or jobs are supposed to come from.

I think I made balanced points about immigration.

Btw did it make you feel a bit better to hear that the hotels have shit conditions and the immigrants are often suffering?

Do you think the money saved by not housing immigrants would be enough to transform the NHS, housing crisis and schools? Do the numbers add up? Genuinely. And if not, what then? Who to blame?

This not integrating thing is often a myth in my opinion. Obviously it takes a while, years, to integrate and those living in severe poverty will find it much more difficult to fully become part of society. However, in general I see no evidence of people not wanting to integrate.
I live in a very diverse place with a large Muslim community. People are fully integrated.
I work in a very international team. Out of 36 people I think 6 ate native British. We have people from all over the wired, Bangladesh, Syria, Palestine, Vietnam, China, South Korea, Poland, Bosnia, Bulgaria, USA. Most moved here in the last few years. All are integrated and very respectful of British customs.

I’m not sure about using Wikipedia as a research tool.

What particular elements of our culture are you considering has been imported. All cultures have an element of being influenced by other cultures. It’s the level to which they have been integrated into the existing culture

Take Christmas etc. many of the traditions of pre Christian time were integrated into Christianity-there is an assimilation. All cultures grow and expand. So for instance to take an example from another country Yoga- historically is very different to what we think of today. It was mainly seated assanas and philosophy- what we now know as yoga is mainly Swedish gymnastic strength and flexibility movements (and much of the philosophy is new age). But it’s integrated. The issues arise where integration doesn’t happen but people want to replace one culture with another - especially where there is a fundamental conflict

I’m in Bedford quite often and there are a lot of drug addicts begging on the street and sometimes fighting each other. Quite common to see young men with amputations. They’re all white, though.

I lived in an area with ever increasing Muslim population (mainly Pakistani) I also worked in a profession with a high Muslim population. Work - yes there was a lot of integration because that was effectively enforced. On the streets, no, there was no desire to integrate at all.

Please define what you consider to be British culture - you obviously have a strong sense of national pride worthy of the flag etc. I would like to know how you want to see it demonstrated and celebrated.

Quite possibly veterans who we don’t take care of at all.

Our history, our arts, our undisputed place as one of the worlds top contributors to science and technology, to freedom. Our traditions, our mythologies - our heritage. Our principles.

why do you not know about what British culture is?

Theoretically possible but unlikely! They look too young for that. And like they’ve had years of drug use behind them, not years of military service.

Repeatedly injecting into the same vein can make amputation necessary.