World war 3....

I think from the bits I’ve heard on radio 5 today, there are some sanctions going on the Belarus top brass, can’t recall exactly what they said. But it sounds like a start, they’ve facilitated the movement of Russian troops and vehicles, which is maybe not surprising given it looks like he is allied with Putin or at least in his pocket - tbf he soonds like a ‘lovely bloke’ the leader of Belarus, from what info we hear, here. It’s all immaterial as he is basically helping them and who knows, it may go further yet with them helping militarily. It’s going to hit the normal people in the long run, same as in Russia, no matter what protests they make it seems pretty impotent, almost like Nato’s position! I feel the protestors in place like Moscow and St Petersburg in their own right are showing amazing courage doing that but it’s not like they can overthrow a government.

 

I disagree.

46% of the voting electorate voted Conservative in 2019. Add on 2% for the Brexit party and you have the right of centre total vote. There were also a few nut job far right parties, but their vote was insignificant.

Labour, Lib Dems, SNP and Green - all to the left of the Tories - totalled 50.3% of the popular vote.

The Tory vote share - artificially swelled by 1) a population sick of all the Brexit shenanigans and 2) the worst Labour leader in history - achieved the highest vote percentage of any party since 2019. But, despite that, they still polled less than half the votes cast. So in what parallel universe do most people in the UK have socially conservative views?

The vast majority of people in this country hold middle of the road political views - somewhere between the left of the Tory Party and the right of the Labour Party. The vagaries of our first past the post political system can produce big swings in Parliamentary seats but this is usually based on relatively small swings in a relatively small number of constituencies. Also, the way that the constituencies are drawn up gives an electoral advantage to rural and small town areas (which tend to be older, whiter and tend towards the conservative side) over cities and large urban areas (which are generally younger, more racially mixed and more liberal oriented).

I'm very well aware that people tend to socialise with those of like-minded views. I also fully accept that the majority of my friends, acquaintances and ex-colleagues hold centre left views, which make us slightly to the left of the mainstream. I've never pretended to be a 'typical' voter (if there is such a thing) though I'm nowhere near as left wing as some on here would appear to believe.

But the voting facts don't lie - a majority of people consistently vote for centrist or left of centre parties. Tony Wilkinson may believe that his socially right wing views are accurately representative of the British people, but he's wrong.

 

At no stage have you factored in the non voting population, I know they cannot be quantified but I would imagine most would have abstained in despair of the way this country is heading especially with all the woke institutions which now prevail in today's society....

 

I know left wing people who haven't voted for years for various reasons - eg, they think it's pointless because the overwhelmingly right wing press will always skew the result rightwards; they believe that the establishment will always close ranks to thwart any meaningful change towards a more just society; because they think the Labour Party is too middle of the road; because they live in rural areas where their vote has no chance of making any difference, etc etc. So it's not just social conservatives who don't vote.
The majority of habitual non voters are likely to be unaligned and centrist. Most people who have strong and relatively fixed left or right sympathies tend to vote out of duty.

 

I agree that the imperative is to stand up strongly to Putin.

I disagree that Trump's emphasis on Western Europe being more energy self reliant was evidence of him being 'anti-Russian'. It was more about Trump's general feeling that Europe should be more self sufficient and less reliant on the USA.
If Trump is anti-Russian, why was he still praising Putin during the build up to the invasion and why hasn't he condemned Putin since the invasion?

Trump's entourage were up to their necks in collusion with Putin. You will dismiss this because it's in the Guardian but the facts are there for all to see:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/mar/02/time-to-confront-trump-putin-network?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

I've never said or implied that Putin is a puppet master who has leaders all over the world by the balls. That's a total fabrication and a gross distortion of what I said or meant. My comments were exclusively specific to the relationship between Putin and Donald Trump and I stick by them.

Time to agree to differ and stop this conversation.

 

Starmer upping the ante on oligarchs and Abramovitch specifically.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/02/keir-starmer-questions-why-roman-abramovich-not-facing-uk-sanctions-russia-ukraine CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

Government action is pitifully slow. The horse will have bolted long before the stable door is shut. No surprise from this incompetent shambles of a government.

 

Not just in The Guardian but an actual opinion piece in The Guardian. Why should I put any weight in that? Please try to widen your media intake.

Okay. Not leaders all over the world but the leader of the free world. Both suggestions are as ludicrous as the other.

 

You can argue percentages between left and right till the cows come home but the fact is that the Tories ( right ) have now been in power for nearly 12 years, The only poll that matters is the actual voting box that elects a government,
Shamefully as politicians make speeches and cheer our free society they ban the transmission of RT in the UK in a terrible act of censorship, I no way support the views of Russia and RT but we should defend the rights of those with a different view, We are doing the same as the Russia in denying democracy to the public with only one view allowed

 

RT in the UK is not pro Putin and they gave one of their "ministers" don't know what else to call them an absolute pasting in an interview last week. They're anti US and EU for sure but they do provide a different slant on things which actually helps form some kind of balance. Censorship is rife on both sides tbf .

 

Apparently the freeview company that controls the RT broadcasts is based in France which is why it's been taken down before the ofcom investigation has been completed.

 

you say woke more than anyone else on the forum give it a fecking rest man

 

Yeah let's pretend it doesn't exist eh...?

 

Which entirely missed the point of the discussion. It wasn't about electoral results but about whether there is a right wing majority of people in this country. The two things are very different.

I agree completely about the stupidity of the EU blocking RT, which is why I 'liked' your original post on that subject.

 

Stop being such a snowflake

 

One of the best posts I've read on here regarding politics. And arguably the reason is in there as to why I don't vote. At the moment I would vote (which isn't like me) for the sole purpose of getting rid of the Johnson regime. But then what the hell do I vote for to oppose it? I've one realistic option which aren't fit for purpose either. I find it almost impossible to vote for a party because its 'a bit less shit' than the other one.

 

Where have you got this information from?

According to fact-checking organisation Newsguard, this is one of a number of myths promoted online by Russian backed websites. Have you seen or read it in any reputable news media?

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/03/russia-ukraine-conflict-top-10-war-myths-newsguard?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

 

think @Tony Wilkinson is the biggest snowflake on here.

"Snowflake" - overly-emotional, easily offended, and unable to deal with opposing opinions.

 

If you can bear to look at information not skewed to the USA and its domination of the news there are lots of independent websites for news the western media and the USA (fact) checking websites that claim to tell the truth but are sponsored by the west and the USA. Have a good look round and see the difference.

 

How will this situation conclude, as it looks the Russian army will continue to push on regardless taking the Ukraine, both sides losing many lives.
What sort of country will the Ukriane be for its people living under Russian occupation will those who have fought against the Russian army be prisoners of war and put in camps etc, I can't see any sovereign country being governed by Putins puppet as in Brlarus and it not being a constant thorn in Russia's side will it be another Chechnya but on a much bigger scale.
I would be interested to hear others opinions on the outcome of this terrible situation.

 

I'm sure there are, but I already spend too much of my time online. Do you have any links to good examples of such sites reporting on Donbass?