Lives that must revolve around Politics

Kandinsky

Which is a shame because all you’re hearing is the same voices saying the same things.

So why not add your voice if you have something different to say? More interesting than sniping from the sidelines, surely?

We could be having the same conversation about almost every other thread.

I bet there are some posters who exclusively stick to the chat about food or TV or knitting, gardening, reading, or the Good Morning or kitchen thread etc etc.

My question is

So?

This is one of the more pointless threads, which has an undercurrent of nastiness about it.

Hopefully I dont need to say much more on here.

To be clear, I dont have a beef with people who spend a lot of time on Politics. I dont care.
But I do object to anyone, anywhere, expecting or even demanding others to be, or have the time or interest or ability or inclination, to do the same thing.

Visiting GN is like getting on a bus, where the passengers are all sitting chatting about various things. The people in the seat behind you might be discussing the latest way that Trusk and Mump are exploiting their newfound power by intefering with everything happening around them. The women in front watched Corrie last night and are dissecting the personalities and motives of some of the characters. Across the aisle you can just hear a woman telling her friend in a whisper about her plans to LTB as soon as she has squirrelled away enough for the train fare back to her mother's town. There is a loud rant going on away at the front, which seems to be someone who thinks that a general remark by another passenger was directly aimed at him, which he has reported to the bus company in the expectation that the speaker will be thrown off the bus at the next stop and banned from getting on again, ever.

Which conversation, if any, interests you enough to join it? Have you experience enough to give the abused wife any advice? Did you watch Corrie? Have you seen any detail about the effects on thousands of US citizens of being fired at a moments notice whilst all support agencies are being systematically dismantled by billionaires? Do you dare tell the paranoid git in the front seat not to imagine that he is important enough for anyone to be bothered to persecute him? And is there anyone on this bus who would be interested in discussing the best way to make a gluten-free loaf that couldn't double as a doorstop or a rockery stone?

Each of us on Gransnet has different interests - and not just one interest, most of us join in on more than one subject while they are here. For instance, this morning I have looked at the N & P pages, but have nothing to contribute at the moment, so haven't posted. I have tried to solve the (apparently age-old) problem of the cow and the half-a-field of grass. I have posted a poem by T S Eliot about a gourmet greedy cat. I have read some other threads, on various subjects.

When I get off Gransnet, I will be doing a whole lot of other things, not obsessing about ANY of the things I was reading online. Well, while washing dishes, I might ponder whether there was a more efficient way to get Buttercup eating exactly half the grass in her circular field without putting up more fencing and untying her tether, but since mathematicians have been working unsuccessfully at that for centuries, I won't waste time obsessing.

Kandinsky

Well, when I occasionally post ( or look ) on the political threads it’s always the same people there - I’d skim read some and it would be the same people posting more or less all day.
It’s not a difficult thing to work out.

If you were skim reading it, Kandinsky you were not reading the details and the implications of them, so you were not aware of the injections of new stuff (facts, references, opinions and and links to analyses by expert commentators) The actual posters may mostly have been the "the same people posting more or less all day" but the views and facts they quote and link to are from a very wide variety of sources.

If you have some different sources and views to contribute, perhaps you could share them?

Trouble is … by not taking an interest in politics we handover power to certain types. Parish, Town, District, County Councils are finding it harder to get volunteers to stand for election.

The very people, ordinary citizens like many on here, who are representative of their communities, who know what needs doing, really don’t want to stand.

Pity.

And this is where I lose you totally.

'But I do object to anyone, anywhere, expecting or even demanding others to be, or have the time or interest or ability or inclination, to do the same thing.'

who, where and when, has anyone expected you, or demanded of you, to do anything of the sort.

NO-ONE.

You say you haven't got the time, inclination or energy, and yet you've been arguing this on two threads non stop.

Lovely day today, sun, birds singing, off to the garden with the dogs. Enjoy your day- whatever YOU choose to do with it.

Former MP Dennis Skinner - voted out in 2019 - was an exceptionally ferocious and dedicated Labour politician for many years.
I think the fact that he had been a miner previously, had done actual bloody hard work and got his hands dirty may have had something to do with it.

Furret

Trouble is … by not taking an interest in politics we handover power to certain types. Parish, Town, District, County Councils are finding it harder to get volunteers to stand for election.

The very people, ordinary citizens like many on here, who are representative of their communities, who know what needs doing, really don’t want to stand.

Pity.

You have a point.

Younger people especially are time poor.

To be clear, I thought I was very, but maybe not, there does seem to be an assumption that others have, of everyone
oh, I just cant be bothered to repeat myself. I have written carefully enough what I needed to say.
Thanks for those who understand.
End of rant. Good.

fancythat

To be clear, I thought I was very, but maybe not, there does seem to be an assumption that others have, of everyone
oh, I just cant be bothered to repeat myself. I have written carefully enough what I needed to say.
Thanks for those who understand.
End of rant. Good.

So why not add your voice if you have something different to say? More interesting than sniping from the sidelines, surely?

Well, firstly, I haven’t got anything interesting to say, nothing that no one else is saying anyway .
And secondly, starting a thread does actually take up a lot of time. You have to read the responses and reply to them, that’s time consuming.
Yes I’m doing it now, but I’m not having to think much about this reply, I’m not having to back up what I’m saying with 6 different links etc etc.

Whitewavemark2

We could be having the same conversation about almost every other thread.

I bet there are some posters who exclusively stick to the chat about food or TV or knitting, gardening, reading, or the Good Morning or kitchen thread etc etc.

My question is

So?

This is one of the more pointless threads, which has an undercurrent of nastiness about it.

Absolutely agree. Anyway half a dozen short posts on GN of a day, hardly counts as an obsession.

Personally. I wouldn't comsider someone had an obsession unless they were posting 30 or 40 posts a day and bringing it into threads about M&S. Most people post on subjects that interest them, why is politics, to be excluded?

I certainly do have people in real life I can talk politics with. DH and I will discuss items as they come up in the news or in the newspapers and DS, his best mate and I all comment on Facebook. Both can be very wittily excoriating - and I do like a good excoriation now and again

On the other hand. I talk textiles and costume with DD, post a lot on websites about listed buildings and their upkeep - subjects that never really appear on GN!

This is such an odd thread. What’s that old saying -
All the world is queer save thee and me, and even thou art a little queer.
Just about sums it up.

I don't think that it is mandatory for anyone to be interested in anything at all.
Nor do I think that the list of the OP's main preoccupations and an interest in politics is/are necessarily mutually exclusive.
As for using Gransnet, there are a great variety of discussion topics available, that is why I like it.
Sometimes I'm interested in political topics; sometimes not.
Each to their own.

Oh for goodness sake just turn the radio or tv off and don't read the newspapers. Politics does rule our lives in an indirect way you just cant deny it. If that's ak you have to worry abut, well you are a ver fortunate soul.

Gosh, are you talking about my DH? 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 I sympathise. It is totally and utterly draining when a person becomes obsessed with politics - not to mention very boring.
It annoys me because I am interested - but I don't want to be obsessed in this way.

Furret

Trouble is … by not taking an interest in politics we handover power to certain types. Parish, Town, District, County Councils are finding it harder to get volunteers to stand for election.

The very people, ordinary citizens like many on here, who are representative of their communities, who know what needs doing, really don’t want to stand.

Pity.

I am very active on environmental issues and especially plastic waste getting into the sea. As a result I've attended several meetings of our local town council and made contributions. Every time I go they ask if I will stand for election but it's such a time consuming and thankless task anyone who does it deserves a medal.

I have to say too, that a lot of the time it is a group (of mostly older men with very set views) chatting amongst themselves and not really getting a lot done. I can understand why people wouldn't want to give up their time to this.

Kandinsky 'I’m not having to back up what I’m saying with 6 different links etc etc.'

no-one is forcing you to do this.

BUT, if you do write things which sound like nonsense, or even propaganda or lies- it is fair enough for others to require you to back your sources. You can ignore, of course, but then some will come to the conclusion that it was indeed one of the two above. Fair enough too.

fancythat

To be clear, I thought I was very, but maybe not, there does seem to be an assumption that others have, of everyone
oh, I just cant be bothered to repeat myself. I have written carefully enough what I needed to say.
Thanks for those who understand.
End of rant. Good.

to be clear, I thought I was very, but maybe not
Very what?
Curiouser and Curiouser.

To be clear, I thought I was very, but maybe not, there does seem to be an assumption that others have, of everyone

I must be having an off day, but that isn't very clear, sorry.

You said it in your "rant". What rubbish.

But there are other people who dont.
They may be
putting food on table
Giving birth
Childcare
Looking after elderly or dying parents
Multiple hospital visits

All of which can be affected, favourably or adversely, by politics and politicians.

Allira

^To be clear, I thought I was very, but maybe not, there does seem to be an assumption that others have, of everyone^

I must be having an off day, but that isn't very clear, sorry.

It’s not you. 😂