To think this country’s gone to S***

[emsjk]

Second time now I’ve sat down to have drinks with a friend only to be met with “I don’t agree with Farage, but…”

Cue a rant about Muslims, immigrants, how the country is not what they remember in the good old days.

More and more people are starting to spout this drivel about immigrants. Yesterday it was literally ‘I’m not racist, I have asian family, but’ and then cue racist rant.

I feel like the country I love that used to be fair and tolerant has gone to shit.

Sounds like you need better friends.

It’s certainly true to say people have been hugely emboldened to share their racist views lately - it’s a real problem on MN. The big player parties have got to get their act together pronto as the more things deteriorate, the more people will move towards Reform. Its concerning.

Luckily I have not encountered this with my friends, but it is clear that anti immigrant and racist feelings run high in some quarters. Which is scary. One can only hope that Reform fuck up and people start to see sense. Though I’m not holding my breath.

The big parties like the division and confusion as much as the smaller ones do. Any rift is ripe for exploitation, everyone's an opportunist. I don't spend time with people who think like your friends, OP, and maybe you shouldn't either? You'd be happier with better friends.

I'm guessing you haven't a clue about why people claim asylum to begin with. Why don't you actually educate yourself.

I do think they should be allowed to work; perhaps in areas where there's a shortage of workers.

They come here an don’t do anything to contribute,

I assume you are referring to asylum seekers? How are they meant to ‘contribute’, seeing that they are not allowed to work?

Ineedthesun80 you probably need a bit more than just sun if that's how you feel. There's room for you in Lincolnshire, Andrea Jenkyns will welcome you. You lucky thing.

OP's point proven nicely.

They are not “hotels” as we would know them.

they are deeply unpleasant places to live.

I think we should be helping those people.

but I think the manner in which it’s done is just a mess and it promotes so much hatred and fear and discontent amongst certain people here.

I think the whole system is a mess.

as regards British people, I don’t disagree if Thatchers “if you can work, you should work” and if that’s litter picking until you work your way up to something better, so be it.

people need to contribute to society. For society’s sake and for their own wellbeing.

A good society need to take care of those who need it. And we absolutely need to do that. But we are also bankrolling a load of spongers who contribute nothing, and that needs to stop. Benefits, for some, is a way of life.

and the counter argument to this is always “people scamming the benefit system is a drop in the ocean compared to the millions that companies like Amazon are tax dodging”

well yeah, so? That needs sorted too. They are not mutually exclusive.

so in general OP, yes, I agree, the country is a mess.

I wrote a really long, sarcastic post and then realised that you don’t care that you don’t know anything about what you’re saying because it’s easier to read bots on Facebook and take that as factual.

They’re not refusing to work, they are not allowed to work! They want to work. In my area asylum seekers do all kinds of voluntary work. They do gardening in the parks, work allotments, build bird boxes, all kinds of stuff. They don’t want to be sat on their arse in shitty temporary accommodation.

People are not necessarily racist because they have concerns about the level of immigration or matters such as terrorism or Islamist extremism. People are entitled to their opinion- why don’t you listen and discuss instead of calling them names?

Wouldn't vote reform personally but I can see why people do. Do you not think it's even remotely concerning that each day around 250 fighting age men come over here illegally from France, a safe country? People being concerned about the cost of housing these people to the tax payer and also where we're going to find space for all these people is not racist.

It's also deeply unfair that the way they are distributed across the country, with most being housed in areas that are already very deprived. Start housing the people who come here illegally in nice, leafy middle/upper middle class areas and the bleeding hearts who call everyone racist will soon change their tune.

I actually thought this was going to be one of those threads complaining about immigrants! I agree with you completely. I only have one friend who expresses these views and I'm distancing myself from her. I just don't like her how I used to. Luckily most of my friends share my views. However, these racist, xenophobic views are extremely widespread at the moment and it concerns me. Reform's success highlights this (yes, I know not all Reform voters are racist, but all racists vote Reform).

I think a huge silent majority are desperately worried about uncontrolled immigration and so the extreme right wing and racist Farage is exploiting those people’s fears.

It’s not illegal to come over from France. You can only claim asylum in the UK once you are in the UK.

Interesting news today...I wonder how they entered the country 🚤

https://news.met.police.uk/news/five-arrested-as-part-of-counter-terrorism-policing-operation-496898

You are so ill informed. The vast, vast majority of asylum seekers want to work. They want to create a better life for themselves. There are far more white British people on benefits than people who have been granted asylum. If you really believe the opposite of what is the truth then you are a racist.

Why is it do you think that they come here to claim asylum rather than France?

and the counter argument to this is always “people scamming the benefit system is a drop in the ocean compared to the millions that companies like Amazon are tax dodging”
well yeah, so? That needs sorted too. They are not mutually exclusive.

One of their top priorities that isn't it, taxing the billionaire shoplifters of the world? It's not as though they're stripping some of the weakest and poorest in society (including hundreds of thousands of children) of their finances as a matter of urgency, with absolutely no plan to fuck over "those with the broadest shoulders".

Thanks for the Sunday morning guffaw, my eyes are streaming.

One of the biggest problems we are facing in terms of extremism and terrorism comes from the right wing - chiefly low achieving angry white men. Would you like to say anything about that?

You don’t need to be racist to be worried about the huge number of people who have entered the U.K. in the last several years. It’s unsustainable and has to stop, or at least reduce.

Well the people I hear expressing those views are basing them on incorrect information (see the post that most people are quoting as an example of this) and are using racist and inflammatory language to express those concerns (just look on Facebook etc on any thread about criminal activity).

After the riots I spoke to a young lad about it, he clearly had absolutely no idea of the reality of these people’s lives but had swallowed nonsense from Tommy Robinson and Nigel Farage. He’s a nice enough lad but is naive and believes what people tell him about why his life is a bit shit.