Comments on: Hatred, hope and a wet balloon

By: Clover

Clover — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:52:36 +0000

I’m confused about your comments on a civil youth service – I thought you were Liberal?

Surely, therefore, compulsion for any reason makes you gag, not philosophize. What ever the problem is, coercion isn’t an acceptable option, as it is the very opposite of the basic liberal values…and in this particular instance (i.e. forced voluntary work), it’s not just a reduction of individual liberty, it’s advocating slave labor.

In fact, I’m amazed anybody as even entertained such a disgusting idea in this day and age. People, of any age, should not be forced to do anything, or not to do anything, within the bounds of law.

By: DocBud

DocBud — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 09:20:53 +0000

Very disappointed after your illiberal response to home educating to see you saying without further comment:

“We had a bit of a meander through the philosophical issues around how you get the have-not kids to mix with the haves (how to heal a divided society) and whether a national, civil youth service would be an answer. If it was – should it be compulsory?”

Liberals are naturally appalled at the idea of a compulsory civil youth service, such an idea, even if some allowance is paid, amounts to little more than slavery and implies that the state owns people.

By: Douglas Quaid

Douglas Quaid — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:40:02 +0000

The point is that the programme was not very successful in disproving the statement that Britain is “pretty good in terms of tolerance and issues of race” as they deliberately sought out uneducated, racist people in a deprived area where they were already racial tensions.

It’s probably true that this isn’t the most tolerant society, especially when you consider the problems and mistrust resulting from some communities being to seperate and failing to intergrate. However the programme didn’t disprove anything either way and certainly wasn’t a success.

By: Henry North London

Henry North London — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:33:40 +0000

Its always the case Lynne, If you are in any way shape or form different, you are perceived as not being with the group. Groupthink or belonging to a certain class or grouping, and being different in the midst of that is psychologically going to be difficult unless people are tolerant. What we are seeing in our overcrowded neighbourhoods and towns and cities is division along group levels, you are perceived to be something when you are seen by someone else, someone makes a judgement and then acts on that Its graphically illustrated by the man with the green hair in the Naked Ape by Desmond Morris.

By: lynne featherstone

lynne featherstone — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:48:01 +0000

That was a point I was making – that possibly anything that makes someone ‘different’ race or weight – is enough to be targeted by those who appear so disenfranchised. The program clearly didn’t go far enough, wide enough or deep enough – but it sure showed that in one place amongst some people – what does goes on.

By: Douglas Quaid

Douglas Quaid — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:52:59 +0000

So a BBC panorama investigation has sensationally discovered that uneducated people form broken families living in poverty on a rough estate known for racial tensions can be a bit racist.

I’d dare say that any outsider entering such an estate would be in danger regardless of their ethnicity, and the thugs would just find some other characteristic they didn’t approve of – be it their accent, colour of their hair, weight (fat OR thin) height, sexuality etc etc.

I have to say the timing of the programme is incredibly suspicious (though there is a small chance it could be coincidence). Additionally, for it to be considered a reliable investigation they would have need several groups of people to have moved in so the results could be compared. On top of that it would have been interesting to see a white couple move into a racist asian area, e.g. parts of Burnley etc, but I don’t suppose doing that would be very PC would it?

By: dreamingspire

dreamingspire — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 20:36:34 +0000

It is an estate in Bristol, within the City boundary, with a mix of Council and ex-Council houses. And there is a report that two of the people featured (sic) have been arrested today, one a minor.
This evening I have been talking to someone who used to work for the Council there, and to someone else working in a Pupil Referral Unit in another LA. And I’m remembering what a friend who used to be a Deputy Head in a Junior school in a similar estate in another part of Bristol used to tell me over a pint, about children with no place they could call home, but having to find some relative who would let each little’un sleep there tonight. Basically, there are much worse areas, and Southmead is a lot better than it used to be.
Don’t, please, lose sight of the stories of families being really tormented, stories about which events have been featured elsewhere in the news recently, with claims that ASBOs don’t work and that the police repeatedly fail to keep order.