Avoiding politics

Beckett has said it all.

In fact I do have strong political views but the last place I would air them would be on Gransnet.

I caught this on FB the other day:

“I want my friends to understand that ‘staying out of politics’ or being ‘sick of politics’ is privilege in action. Your privilege allows you to live a non-political existence. Your wealth, your race, your abilities or your gender allows you to live a life in which you likely will not be a target of bigotry, attacks, deportation or genocide. You don’t want to get political, you don’t want to fight because your life and safety are not at stake.

“It’s hard and exhausting to bring up issues of oppression (aka ‘get political’). The fighting is tiring. I get it. Self-care is essential. But if you find politics annoying and you just want everyone to be nice, please know that people are literally fighting for their lives and safety. You might not see it, but that’s what privilege does.”

An interesting point .....

Although I am interested in Politics I don't very often talk about it. I don't see why anyone should be inflicted with my views & I'm not particularly interested in anyone else's as I have found it leads to arguments.
DH has no interest at all nor did my first husband- the only person I talk politics with is my ' since we were babies' friend & as we grew up on same road we are always in agreement.
My parents always voted but I never remember hearing them talk about it very much.
I would walk over hot coals rather than not vote myself.
My opinion is my business as far as I am concerned.

I think some threads are devised just to elicit a reaction, this one is a bit borderline others are definitely what I would call "goady" Varian makes the assertion "political discussion only leads to argument" Well of course it does, point me to a thread on this site where that hasn't happened, what more proof can anyone want! Some people will not want to assert their beliefs or political persuasions, don't want to be ridiculed, don't have the tenacity to keep "going at it" with some of the more voracious posters, who I imagine rarely change minds, in fact I'd say the more diametrically opposed discussions on contentious issues, the deeper the entrenchment on both sides.

varian. I am extremely interested in politics and the economy and how our country is run, locally and world-wide. I have my own views developed from experience and often I feel strongly about things. However I deeply respect the views of others and I do not want to upset friends and neighbours - including my GNet "neighbours" by disagreeing with them on political matters or enforcing my own feelings. I would talk about a particular incident that happened to me, since this is a personal experience. For example my MP came to my house and treated me so badly, shouting in a rage, denigrating my furniture, and ranting at me, demeaning me because I am disabled and saying I cannot have decorating materials! I tell everyone this because it is so incredible for a start and of course it was dreadful and really horrible. She has a reputation for such things being known to "flip" and "leave reality". I will not name her here simply because GNet might have some repercussions as she is very litigious.
I also showed my deep sympathy for the local Conservatives when their MP walked out of the party after all their hard work to gain her a seat in parliament. I am not a Conservative and did not vote for this person, but I still felt extremely distressed about the way this woman so high-handedly turned her back on them with no warning when they had given up their time and money to support her and without them she would not have been in Parliament.
So, no, I do not argue about my political ideals but I do have them. I respect the feelings of others who follow a political party I do not like.

I wish we could have a decent system of Politics whereby every Politician just stuck to the issues and voted according to the needs of those issues.

I heard Will Self say a couple of years ago ‘We have a political class unfit for purpose’. I would add we seem to have a large section of the population that is uninformed, and seems unable to argue: If someone takes a different point of view, instead of presenting their own case, they shower abuse. My view is it is opting out of human responsibility not to engage politically: it is about how to protect and share precious resources, especially for generations to come.

Agree Terri

I always read the political threads but get annoyed when it seems the same people keep posting the same incorrect facts.....e,g. Nigel had '£350,000 for the NHS if we leave the EU' on his bus. No, that was Boris' bus; different campaign group.

Also, some people state they voted not to join the Common Market (1973). No, there was no vote held when the UK joined but there was a referendum two years later held by Wilson when a majority vote was to stay. The difference was this democratic vote was enacted upon even though people had no idea then what they were voting for i.e. increased political union, not more trade.

Same argument used now though by the losing side! The cliff edge was actually when we joined, in my (researched!!) opinion.

Totally with MOnica on this. How I wish we could have open minds rather than the entrenched opinions which are regularly aired here.

I am interested in politics from the point of view that I always vote and personally think you should, if only because people died to give you the right . However I rarely post on the politics thread because it feels often like a lot of die hards not willing to listen to any viewpoint but their own and so I can’t be bothered to join in

I'm very interested on politics because it affects everything we do. I regularly watch the politics show and parliament TV also I uses to be. A civil servant so have a very clear view of how it works. But I tend not to engage on line in discussion, because it can often become unpleasent.

toscalily why should I not say what I think, you did? Whether or not varian chooses to respond has nothing to do with it. It is what I feel.

One of the other things which is irritating on these threads is when the person who has made the unpleasant comment and doesn't like the response, comes back with the 'hurt' comment. Choosing to portray themselves as a victim.

I am very interested in politics and used to comment on social media (although I never have here), but I have stopped doing so since Brexit. I think Brexit has been horribly divisive, not helped by social media forums where the people who do comment are very unlikely to change their opinion, so it all just gets nasty and pointless. It is an interesting question though. I am not sure why some people are accusing the original poster of being patronising, I certainly didn't take it that way.

It's not that I'm not interested, it's just I'm embarrassed to be British at the moment due to the farcical nature of our politics and politicians.

My view of politics is I know rather warped. This is due to having had to deal with complaints from politicians of all levels when I was working. Whilst they think they are helping their constituents they basically bullied not willing to accept that sometimes the law prevented them achieving the result they wanted. I have no respect for any of the them as they only undertake tasks to get votes. I do vote but try hard not to make it about the candidate but the party.

We all form our political opinions on the basis of our personal experiences but also on what we see, hear and read.

What I find sad is the unwillingness of some to listen go opposing views or read widely. You may prefer the comfort of your regular newspaper or social media echo chamber , but political issues are rarely simple and getting your information from a range of sources may open your eyes.

Agree with Becket

I've always been interested and often involved in politics. I enjoyed the cut and thrust of debate (seldom abuse) across the Council chamber when I was a Borough Councillor. I felt I'd been shunted into the wilderness when the party I had served for so many years became involved in what I considered an ill-conceived coalition. However, they will still get my vote, and, if asked, I will put up a poster for them.

If you avoid politics (do not vote or take an interest) you have no right to complain about the state of the nation. Every one should vote for the party that is closest to their beliefs. The main reason the British are relatively apathetic is I think down to the electoral system (FPTP) which tends to exclude the middle ground leaving so many of us feeling dis-enfranchised. Both main parties have migrated to the extremes of left and right. That is bad for the country.

Varian - wholeheartedly agree with you.

Urmstongran - one of the reasons people provide facts and links is to try to get to the truth. As regards people stating their opinion, with no supporting info, cannot expect to be believed. If I was to post on here IMO the earth is flat or the moon is made of cheese what do you imagine the comments would be? Might get a response from some flat earthers.

Beckett - for argument read discussion. Since I joined, only about a month ago, I've seen little sign of rudeness or abuse

That's a very good post you quoted, grammargran.

I've not been following Brexit and certainly not commenting about it, as there's nothing I can do about it.
I do catch up with it from time to time.

I was recently told that it's very unlikely Scotland would have got its first UKIP MEP if there had not been such a low turnout due, presumably, to apathy.

I haven been involved in politics for many years,but have now left the party I supported, so some rest as local elections are near I will still vote, but I know who will be elected in my area not who I want but can no longer agree with the party I once worked so hard for

I’m very interested in politics and belong to a political party but having been on the receiving end of some objectionable responses to a post I made, I don’t think I’ll bother again!