Asylum seekers

I recommend seeing the travelling play The Syrian Baker which afford an incredibly moving insight into the Syrian civil war and it's emigration consequences as well as being very good theatre initiated at the Farnham Maltings. In particular it shows that Syrian asylum seekers often carry their own hellish memories with them and deserve compassion and refuge along with other asylum seekers to the UK however they arrive, not the disgusting treatment given them by Braverman and the Home Office.

The question we should all ask is "why is the Home Office apparently incapable of dealing with the claims for asylum in a timely manner?"

The Christmas Story will be re-told in coming weeks. My four yiu g grandchildren are all rehearsing their school Nativity plays. Our Church is already making comparisons with no room at the inn and the desperate families trying to bring their children to safety.
Stating it’s an international responsibility to help them in no way suggests we don’t care about people in our own country who are struggling. It isn’t either or

allsorts -- when it states that hotels are being used to house these refugees - you need to forget what you think of as a hotel experience. These poor people are crowded into the rooms, (not individual bedrooms for them), no maid service, or restaurants to eat in. It really is just about a roof over their heads.

The hotel owners are doing fine out of it - for those in them it is an unhappy experience. The fault is down, almost entirely, in there not being a propoer system operating whereby asylum seekers, immiegrants, etcd can be properly and speedily processed AND able to make application BEFORE they get to the UK.

Fortunate that Mary and Joseph and their baby are not around now trying to get to UK - illegals as they would be called!!!!!

It was Franberns experience at U3A I was commenting on the de humanisation of Asylum seekers.I’m haven’t found the case, just the fact that economic migrants and people fleeing to save their lives are miles apart, apart from fact that so many are housed in hotels when so many people who are born and bred here are struggling on low wages and rising costs, using food banks to feed their families and have no chance of owning a home and with rental properties proving out of their reach to., The country is in crisis and to pretend we haven’t a problem doesn’t mean we don’t care but have to think about people who are just struggling every day with sub standard housing and rising costs.

Farzanah

I belong to a U3A Topical Discussion group and we very often have political discussions, where views can be very divergent, but are always respectful. It can be tricky challenging beliefs which are opposite to one’s own, but it is stimulating and means you have to justify what you believe, and most importantly listen to opposing ones too.

Allsorts - is this what you don’t recognise?

I am a member if U3A, certainly don’t recognise the behaviour mentioned. Some people think we should take everyone and if you don’t agree with this are shouted down, find some of those people very aggressive I’m afraid.

Well they should be reminded of a better known verse,
Hebrews 13:2
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Newsthump today on Facebook

''Right-wing Christians remind everyone of little-known Bible story where Jesus told refugees to 'sod off back where you came from''

in short, this.

Come to mine Franbern we’d welcome you with open arms.

This is a weekly u3a discussion group. We range from far right to me at, the most left. We manage to discuss and disagree without making it personal or having bad feelings. Hopefully, some of us do try to provide facts and figures to correcr peoples ideas learned from reading DM.

I belong to a U3A Topical Discussion group and we very often have political discussions, where views can be very divergent, but are always respectful. It can be tricky challenging beliefs which are opposite to one’s own, but it is stimulating and means you have to justify what you believe, and most importantly listen to opposing ones too.

U3A is a friendly organisation. So how do you challenge such attitudes without provoking hostility?

I was at a U3A group today. This always commences with th Chairman giving information on past event that happened during this week. So, today he reported on the horror of Krystallnagjht in 1936, Germany. Someone else there commented that they just could not understand how the German People allowed the racial hatred of nazism to grow amongst them in those years.

The same group, later went on to discuss asylum seekers coming to GB. Horrifically, many of them more or less de-humanized these poor people, decrying them daring to to try to better their lives. Using almost the same language about them as the Nazis did about the jews.

Some of us did try to point this out, but not sure if they took it on board.

It makes sense to look at the source and evidence, and apply critical thinking to all information you see on the internet and elsewhere. The press have their own agenda, and want to sell papers.
I think we are all guilty of seeking, and believing information which reinforces our pre-existing views, political or otherwise, and it is important to be aware of this bias.

It's rubbish and propaganda when it comes from the right wing press or hate groups...

Of course…….

I think you’ll find it’s informative and trustworthy when some are attempting to prove a point and dismissed as rubbish and propaganda when they’re trying to dismiss someone else’s point!

It's informative and trustworthy if it's based on academic research and verifiable data.

It's rubbish and propaganda when it comes from the right wing press or hate groups...

Oh Maudi you are so trusting!!!! Sadly, Google and u-tube is not usually very accurate about many things. Particularly propoganda.

I find the above statement strange. I don't post very often - more of a lurker but I have often read GN's advising the use of Google and often citing this search engine as a reliable source of information.

I think you’ll find it’s informative and trustworthy when some are attempting to prove a point and dismissed as rubbish and propaganda when they’re trying to dismiss someone else’s point!

surfsup

Oh Maudi you are so trusting!!!! Sadly, Google and u-tube is not usually very accurate about many things. Particularly propoganda.

I find the above statement strange. I don't post very often - more of a lurker but I have often read GN's advising the use of Google and often citing this search engine as a reliable source of information.

Google (or other search engines) are a great source of information, but it is up to the user to apply some critical thinking to the information that is available. Which means looking at who is posting the information, their reasons for posting it, their qualifications for imparting information, crosschecking data etc. etc.

Navigating the amount of information available is problematic, but there is so much out there that it is much easier to become better informed than it was 20 or 30 years ago.

Oh Maudi you are so trusting!!!! Sadly, Google and u-tube is not usually very accurate about many things. Particularly propoganda.

I find the above statement strange. I don't post very often - more of a lurker but I have often read GN's advising the use of Google and often citing this search engine as a reliable source of information.

Anything that can only be obtained by illegal means, is more liklely to be something houng people want to use. Legalise and control cannabis, take away the romance and mystique and usage will probably drop.

It always amazes me that tobacco - high addictive, highly dangerous, is not illegal, but cannabis is.

Does anyone have actual figures which show that occasional use of cannabis leads onto serious mental health problems. Alcohol is used by many people as a means of relaxation - quite legally - in fact so encouraged. Should think this, like tobacco, is far more dangerous. However the attempt in the 1930's to ban this ws so totally unsuccessfl and just led to criminal gangs providing it, bootlegging of dangerous home made stuff etc. etc. Surely, we should learn from that and legalise cannabis.

Cannabis can be taken in other ways than smoking it.

MerylStreep

My step daughter is payroll manger on a farm in Kent. No problems at all getting overseas workers with visas.

The vegetable farms in this area seem to have enough agency workers in the fields, dairy farmers are finding it hard to find milkers this year, skilled mechanics and welders difficult too.

The Skilled Worker scheme we do have currently allows highly skilled workers, scientists, doctors, engineers and managers to come to the UK on a temporary visa.
Usually a worker would be sponsored by an employer, eg:- BMW bringing in a manager from Germany, it’s not an easy way for individuals to come to UK.
Probably a lot more skilled workers are leaving than are coming into the UK

I know Jane J, too many things on the ‘too hard’ list

I understand everything is a complex issue