Uncouth Angela Rayner doing Labour no favours

Atqui

Why is deemed to be so wrong to critise people with regional accents or “ uncouth speech ” , but ok to make fun of people with “posh” accents even to the extent of calling them “tw***s.

because people deride those they deem lower than them from a place of privilege. It really isn't that difficult to work out. It's been happening for hundreds and hundreds of years.

MissAdventure

I don't think that posh people are self serving idiots, any more than I think non posh speakers are as thick as mince.
I understood this was a free for all, criticising MPs, so I was simply joining in.
People are free to agree or disagree as they see fit.

I had never heard the expression “thick as mince” before GN !
Always said ,,.as two short planks”

MaizieD

growstuff

... with mushy peas and pickled eggs (if you want a gourmet meal).

And scrapings. Don't forget the scrapings...

Scraps! Not scrapings!

I say short planks, too.
Is thick as mince perhaps a northern expression?

I like "So thick, they make 2 short planks look like a computer".

MerylStreep

*Atqui
The synonym for the c word is pronounced with an o as in swot
When it’s said/ written with an a as in cat it denotes a complete idiot.

Hmmmm, from my research , I believe that is an American pronunciation . ( ie as in swot) , but it’s not important , except that I think many people are surprised to learn the meaning of the word, apart from an obnoxious person!

Dominic Cummings described David Davis, when he was the UK Brexit negotiator, as 'thick as mince'.

I'd never heard of the expression before.

On the subject of Angela Rayner , I heard her on the radio this morning , and she was the same as any politician ,;she did not answer the question put to her - just kept repeating herself.

MissAdventure

I think the fact that Rayner is now in the position she is shows that she hasn't needed to do extensive reading in order to function well.
I expect caring for her mum didnt leave much time for that sort of thing.

Rayner, according to an interview she gave with James O'Brien, does read extensively. She says she always had to make sure she has mastered a topic before it's discussed.

I have no problem with what she says, or how she says it, so long as she knows what she's talking about. Politics is for people, not for 'people with acceptable accents'.

I read a lot of 18th & 19th C literature. That doesn't mean I talk like an 18th or 19th C person...

Some of the snobbery that has been displayed on this thread is quite astounding...

Riverwalk

Dominic Cummings described David Davis, when he was the UK Brexit negotiator, as 'thick as mince'.

I'd never heard of the expression before.

I expect it's a good old Durham School sneer.

Ah, I shall keep saying it then, in the hope that it makes me seem educated.

eazybee

Lack of education is apparent in the way people construct their speech, that is demonstrating poor use of basic grammar: 'them things' and 'we was' for example. Easily corrected by extensive reading, which is what most people who have been poorly educated do to improve their understanding.

It has nothing whatsoever to do with accent, regional or otherwise.

The past tense use of the verb "to be" is regional.

www.bl.uk/british-accents-and-dialects/articles/grammatical-variation-across-the-uk

Riverwalk

Dominic Cummings described David Davis, when he was the UK Brexit negotiator, as 'thick as mince'.

I'd never heard of the expression before.

That's the printable version I know it as S**t

MaizieD

MissAdventure

I think the fact that Rayner is now in the position she is shows that she hasn't needed to do extensive reading in order to function well.
I expect caring for her mum didnt leave much time for that sort of thing.

Rayner, according to an interview she gave with James O'Brien, does read extensively. She says she always had to make sure she has mastered a topic before it's discussed.

I have no problem with what she says, or how she says it, so long as she knows what she's talking about. Politics is for people, not for 'people with acceptable accents'.

I read a lot of 18th & 19th C literature. That doesn't mean I talk like an 18th or 19th C person...

Some of the snobbery that has been displayed on this thread is quite astounding...

Indeed. I wonder if those here who deride her accent, from regions where a strong accent is present- went to Grammar School and knew that to succeed they just had to get rid of their local accent, back in the day. I remember Melwyn Bragg, in his book on the English language, describing how he felt his accent would drag him down and he made a huge effort to get rid- when he got a place at Grammar School.

I remember the inaugural lecture at the Uni where I did my Degree as a mature student in the early 80s. The Dean told us all that if we were to have successful careers in education, we just had to get rid of any local accent! This is the strongest, clipped, SA accent!

The OP is totally uncouth and unfair- many in Rayner's situation as a teenager would have gone under and given up!

It's a terrible pity when women will happily tear down another who has done exceptionally well.
It seems we don't need men to pull us apart, when we happily do it to eachother.

Atqui

MerylStreep

*Atqui
The synonym for the c word is pronounced with an o as in swot
When it’s said/ written with an a as in cat it denotes a complete idiot.

Hmmmm, from my research , I believe that is an American pronunciation . ( ie as in swot) , but it’s not important , except that I think many people are surprised to learn the meaning of the word, apart from an obnoxious person!

There used to be shop (furniture I think) near me called Godfrey and Twatt.?

I wonder if Twatt was posh?

Atqui

Why is deemed to be so wrong to critise people with regional accents or “ uncouth speech ” , but ok to make fun of people with “posh” accents even to the extent of calling them “tw***s.

Because they are Conservatives I imagine Atqui and some posters think that anything goes.
What Grannyrebel says is spot on, and is all that most of us are saying about Rayner, that she needs to tone it down, what she says then will be more effective in any case, and she would be taken more seriously.

MissAdventure

It's a terrible pity when women will happily tear down another who has done exceptionally well.
It seems we don't need men to pull us apart, when we happily do it to eachother.

There is no need to place Rayner ( or any other successful woman) into a nest of cotton wool. Women should feel free to criticise other women or men, and frequently on GN, we do.

Agreed, but not for their accent!

Kali....it has been said many times, her accent has nothing to do with it.

I don't think there is any need to place anyone in cotton wool, so that's why I have criticised other mps.
It seems people aren't quite so keen on that, though.

Which MP’s and why MissA ?

I have criticised Lindsay Hoyle ( Speaker) before now because I can barely hear a word he says, he does have a strong accent but it’s more the fact that he sort of swallows his words.

Because I'm a single parent (bad lifestyle choice) who speaks in a way that probably grates on others. (Lack of education, apparently)
I find it offensive, it puts me off using the site, and I'm feeling quite fragile lately.
That's why.
I question why I would want to spend time here.