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Off Topic The Politics Thread

Discussion in 'Queens Park Rangers' started by Stroller, Jun 25, 2015.

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Should the UK remain a part of the EU or leave?

Poll closed Jun 24, 2016.
  1. Stay in

    56 vote(s)
    47.9%
  2. Get out

    61 vote(s)
    52.1%
  1. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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    #62901
  2. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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    Owen Jones’ hunt for broody lesbians
    Why are lefty men so willing to talk about women as if we are broodmares?


    Jo Bartosch
    6th April 2021

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    A piece of advice passed down by the women in my family is ‘when it comes to men, only screw blue’. I like to share this widely, because, as a rule, less than enlightened views tend to lurk under the man bun or beard of every woke bro. Thankfully, I’m settled with my civil partner and cats, so this isn’t something I need to consider anymore. But the point still stands: while those on the right might be more inclined to patronise and protect women, they are less likely to view women’s bodies as commodities to be pimped out in surrogacy, pornography or prostitution.

    To my mind, despite the lack of manbun or beard, Guardian journalist Owen Jones
    exemplifies the woke bro. Much to my disappointment Jones has blocked me on Twitter – presumably this is so he can stay safe from any of my offensive opinions. Nonetheless, when on 1 April he tweeted that he was ‘hunting for broody lesbian couples’ the response was so explosive that even the legions of social-media users he has blocked saw screenshots of it.

    Jones’ tweet was in response to a friend of his, who is co-parenting with a lesbian couple, announcing joy in being a father. The conversation between the pair seemed to suggest that Jones, who is gay and wants children, ought to ejaculate into a pot and then find a woman who also wants children.

    Jones is a proponent of the idea that ‘trans women are women’, and that, as such, some lesbians have penises. Given this, Twitter wits were quick to point out that he seemed to be able to distinguish between the sexes when he needed to make use of female biology. By neglecting to add the prefix ‘cis’ (ie, ‘not trans’) to the word lesbian, Jones arguably invalidated and dismissed the many lesbians with penises who may now be in mental anguish as a result of his thoughtless comments. Presumably a full and fawning apology will follow.

    While families should and do come in all shapes and sizes, many liberals and, in particular, some prominent gay men, seem to believe they have a right to have their own biological children. In September 2020, Benjamin Cohen, CEO of Pink News, complained:


    ‘In England, the NHS provides no support for gay male couples starting a family through surrogacy. In Scotland it does. So we have to do it privately, including blood and semen tests. All of our tests are invalid because of lockdown shutdown, so it means paying again… If we were straight, then we would be entitled to three cycles of IVF and all of the associated test costs would be covered by the NHS.’

    Perhaps it is controversial, but to my mind no one is owed a baby by the state, regardless of his or her sexual orientation. Furthermore, the idea that women can be used like broodmares is a grotesque and dehumanising abuse in the name of ‘equality.’ As writer and bioethics consultant Gary Powell outlines in an essay for Lesbian and Gay News: ‘So-called “fertility equality” comes at the cost of the rights and equality of women and children. Not only does surrogacy instrumentalise women and babies in a dehumanising way: it is also a physically dangerous process that can lead to serious illness, psychological trauma and death.’

    That some lesbians might find his suggestion of ‘hunting’ for a suitable candidate to carry his child predatory, not to mention dehumanising, was not addressed by Jones. Instead, he opted to accuse his critics of transphobia and homophobia. Interestingly, this is the same tactic used by Benjamin Cohen, who tweeted in response to criticism of his intended ‘surrogacy journey’: ‘When you crack open a transphobe, you find homophobes and anti-Semites too.’

    Lesbian feminist journalist Julie Bindel noted that Jones’ tweet was a reference to the practice of co-parenting rather than surrogacy, but argues that there was still an unpleasant undertone to his tweets. She said on Twitter:


    ‘The issue here, in terms of OJ’s sexism and hypocrisy, is that a) the blokes were talking about hunting down lesbians to have babies for them, or at least that is what I took from it, rather than having female friends that wished to enter an arrangement of mutual benefit, and b) that OJ knows fine well what a woman is and is not when the issue is about something he wants. This is the height of rank sexism, and what’s more he knows it.’

    Jones is the epitome of the enlightened, lefty bloke. He has penned such pieces as: ‘To end the harm inflicted by aggressive masculinity men must embrace feminism – without stealing it.’ And yet when feminists have asked him to listen, he cowers behind blocks on social media and accuses them of whichever ‘phobia’ or ‘ism’ takes his fancy. He will vociferously make pronouncements about human rights so long as they cost him nothing. As with so many other right-on lefty men, Jones defends politicians caught using pornography and critiques capitalism while staying notably tight-lipped on the trade in women’s bodies.

    We should recall the observation made by the radical feminist Andrea Dworkin in Right-Wing Women: ‘The difference between left-wing and right-wing when it comes to women is only about where exactly on our necks their boots should be placed. To right-wing men, we are private property. To left-wing men, we are public property.’

    I have never really understood the desire to have children; somewhat stereotypically I think cats are far superior. Unlike pink, mewling babies which might grow up to become whining Guardian journalists, aside from bringing in the odd dead rodent, cats are never disappointing.

    Jo Bartosch is a journalist campaigning for the rights of women and girls.























































     
    #62902
  3. Willhoops

    Willhoops Well-Known Member

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    Guess what Brentford striker Ivan Toney has received, hint it’s not a dozen roses.
     
    #62903
  4. Sooperhoop

    Sooperhoop Well-Known Member

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    And it's not even marching season....

     
    #62904
  5. YorkshireHoopster

    YorkshireHoopster Well-Known Member

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    It's genius. Bottles of lager bought in or donated by supermarkets will be a far cheaper option than small bottles of water.
     
    #62905
    kiwiqpr likes this.
  6. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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    BBC North West
    @BBCNWT



    The Home Secretary's under growing pressure to deport members of the Rochdale grooming gang, including Qari Abul Rauf, who was seen and photographed in the town recently. Rochdale MP Tony Lloyd is angry at the years of delay, and says they should be removed as soon as possible.


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    3
     
    #62906
  7. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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    attempted murder???
     
    #62907
  8. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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  9. Bwood_Ranger

    Bwood_Ranger 2023 Funniest Poster

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    In the government’s defence, this was entirely unpredictable and if we just pretend it’s not happening it will go away.
     
    #62909
  10. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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    What was entirely predictable
     
    #62910

  11. Willhoops

    Willhoops Well-Known Member

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    So Swansea are coming off social media for a week party due to something three of there players had been subject to recently.... any guesses ?
     
    #62911
  12. Quite Possibly Raving

    Quite Possibly Raving Well-Known Member

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    Attacked by a herd of sheep?*

    *Light touch irony intended.
     
    #62912
  13. ELLERS

    ELLERS Well-Known Member

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    Kamala Harris talks out of her nose. I hadn’t noticed before she sounds very nasally and now Mr Biden has forgotten where he is during his speech. 300 million people and this is the best they have? Bring back Ronald Reagan!
     
    #62913
  14. Bwood_Ranger

    Bwood_Ranger 2023 Funniest Poster

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    Yeah it’s the nasally politicians you have to be wary of.
     
    #62914
  15. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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    #62915
    Last edited: Apr 8, 2021
  16. ELLERS

    ELLERS Well-Known Member

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    i have never really heard her speak before. nothing against her, just noticed she talks out of her nose. Starmer is a bit nasally as well.
     
    #62916
  17. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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    she cant be a real politician then
    they talk out of their arse
     
    #62917
  18. rangercol

    rangercol Well-Known Member

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    Extremists finding any excuse to kick off again.
    They'll always find something.
     
    #62918
    Sooperhoop likes this.
  19. Willhoops

    Willhoops Well-Known Member

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    The other Rangers and Birmingham City to follow Swansea and come off social media for a week, another two clubs who have had players racially abused
     
    #62919
  20. kiwiqpr

    kiwiqpr Barnsie Mod

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    What is behind the violence in Northern Ireland?
    By Michael Hirst
    BBC News NI

    Published
    7 hours ago
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    image copyrightPacemaker
    image captionThe rioting has mostly involved gangs of youths armed with bricks and petrol bombs
    More than 50 police officers have been hurt and 10 people arrested as a result of rioting over the past 10 days, in several towns and cities across Northern Ireland.

    The UK and Irish prime ministers have condemned the violence, and Northern Ireland's government met on Thursday to call for an "immediate and complete end" to the unrest.

    All Northern Ireland's main parties have condemned the rioting, although they are divided over its causes.

    Where has the violence been happening?
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    image captionSince the end of March, there has been unrest on a near-nightly basis, mainly in loyalist areas of a number of towns and cities
    Violence involving gangs of people as young as 12 started on 29 March in an area of Londonderry that is loyalist - in favour of keeping Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom.

    Since then, there have been protests and rioting on a near-nightly basis in a number of towns and cities, including Belfast, Carrickfergus, Ballymena and Newtownabbey.

    The rioting has largely seen loyalist youths throwing bricks, fireworks and petrol bombs at lines of police officers and vehicles.


    But on Wednesday night the fighting escalated into sectarian clashes over a so-called peace wall in west Belfast that divides predominantly Protestant loyalist communities from predominantly Catholic nationalist communities who want to see a united Ireland.

    A gate that divides the two was smashed open and, during several hours of disorder police officers and a press photographer were attacked and a bus was hijacked and burned.

    Parts of Northern Ireland are split along sectarian lines, 23 years after a peace deal largely ended Northern Ireland's Troubles - which lasted almost 30 years and cost the lives of more than 3,500 people.

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    Who is behind the unrest?
    While there are no clear indications the unrest is being orchestrated by an organised group, the violence has been concentrated in areas where criminal gangs linked to loyalist paramilitaries have significant influence.

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    image copyrightPacemaker
    image captionThe violence has been concentrated in areas where loyalist paramilitaries have significant influence
    There is increasing evidence that senior figures in organisations such as the Ulster Defence Association and Ulster Volunteer Force are allowing the trouble to proceed.

    Analysts suggest loyalist paramilitaries of the South East Antrim UDA may have exploited an opportunity to kick back at the Police Service of Northern Ireland after a recent clampdown on criminality in the area around Carrickfergus.


    The paramilitary group is involved in many forms of organised crime, doing "untold damage to the community and exerting fear in neighbourhoods", say police.

    Read more: 'A criminal cartel wrapped in a flag'

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    What has this got to do with Brexit?
    Unionist leaders have linked the violence to simmering loyalist tensions over the Irish Sea border imposed as a result of the UK-EU Brexit deal.

    The new trading border is the result of the Northern Ireland Protocol, introduced to avoid the need for a hard border on the island of Ireland.

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    image captionUnionists say the protocol damages trade and threatens Northern Ireland's place in the UK
    The protocol means Northern Ireland remains in the EU single market for goods, so products being moved from Great Britain to Northern Ireland undergo EU import procedures.

    It avoids the need for checks on the Irish border, as EU customs rules are enforced at Northern Ireland's ports instead.


    Unionists say it damages trade and threatens Northern Ireland's place in the UK.

    In January, graffiti opposing the Irish Sea border was daubed on walls in some loyalist areas, including parts of Bangor, Belfast, Glengormley, and the home of one of Northern Ireland's main ports, Larne.

    These Brexit checks were temporarily suspended amid reported threats against port workers in Larne and Belfast - although the police later said there was no evidence of "credible threats".

    In March, a group which includes representatives of loyalist paramilitaries wrote to Boris Johnson to withdraw its support for the Good Friday Agreement, the 1998 deal that effectively ended the Troubles.

    The Loyalist Communities Council said it was temporarily withdrawing its backing because of concerns about the protocol.

    Read more: What is the Northern Ireland Protocol?

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    Are there other political factors involved?
    Some unionist leaders have attributed the violence to the decision not to prosecute leaders of the republican Sinn Féin party for breaching Covid regulations at the funeral of a former IRA intelligence chief last June.

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    image copyrightPacemaker
    image captionSome 2,000 mourners lined the streets for the funeral of former IRA intelligence chief Bobby Storey in June 2020
    Bobby Storey's funeral drew 2,000 mourners - including Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill - at a time when strict Covid restrictions were still in place, limiting the number of people who could gather in public.

    Many people expressed anger at Ms O'Neill for failing to follow the guidance she insisted the public should follow - guidance which had led to loyalist band parades being cancelled last summer.

    Some have accused police of double standards after the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) said there would be no prosecutions.

    While DUP leader and First Minister Arlene Foster said she did not share that view, she called on PSNI Chief Constable Simon Byrne to resign.

    Mr Byrne said he recognised people were angry, but has refused to step down.

    Calling for the ongoing street disorder to stop on Wednesday night, Mr Byrne said he was "open to dialogue with anyone who is willing to work with me to resolve the issues facing our community".

    Addressing the rioters, he tweeted: "Go home before someone is seriously injured. Violence is not the answer."

    Mr Byrne briefed Stormont's power-sharing executive on the disorder at an emergency meeting on Thursday.
     
    #62920

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