FAKE NEWS - EU edition

[houseboy]

My apologies houseboy. I was confusing your post with that made by gtclaret, above.

I apologise unreservedly to you. There are only a very small number of things that I get so mad about and being called a racist is one of the worst. I accept your apology and again I am sorry for the rant.

[bfcmik]

Have a word with your labour mates and oust Corbin. You might have a hope in hell's chance then!

Nah. The Tory loving media would just shoot them down straight away - whether truth or lies it wouldn't matter as they work of the principle that if you throw enough mud often enough people will believe whatever you say.

[gtclaret]

Just done a little poll
My question, what was the biggest single reason why people voted to leave the EU
I asked 14 people of different races
All 14 said immigration, without hesitation. When I showed some of the comments on here, the reaction went from amusement to anger. Odd comments like what do you expect from Burnley fans

[Lancasterclaret]

Just done a little poll
My question, what was the biggest single reason why people voted to leave the EU
I asked 14 people of different races
All 14 said immigration, without hesitation. When I showed some of the comments on here, the reaction went from amusement to anger. Odd comments like what do you expect from Burnley fans

DNHOTYA contender

[AndrewJB]

I understand Houseboy frustration about being called racist. The level of EU corruption was not clear in the referendum and the full extent is still not clear. I don't believe that was the reason why the referendum resulted in a leave vote. The issue is not if you believe in uncontrolled immigration or even if you don't believe its a problem or if it exists at all. What I am trying to say is that the perception is that there is open door immigration and it is a problem, and when anyone voiced concerns they were contemptuously dismissed and insulted. This I believe was the single (not the only) biggest reason why we had the leave result.
To interprete this obvervation in a way that makes me racist simply makes my point

I haven't suggested you're a racist, and don't intend to, so hope we can have a conversation in good faith.

I completely agree with you that it was the perception of immigration as a problem that contributed to the vote to leave, but this leads to a question that I think is important to address. How did this perception come about? If we consider the facts, Britain has never had an uncontrolled immigration system (over the last eighty years). Free movement within the EU is not "uncontrolled immigration". Secondly, as I've pointed out, anti immigration policies play far better in areas less touched by immigration, than they do in areas where many immigrants have settled. And this takes me back to the question; how did this perception come about? Virtually every day for the last thirty or forty years, newspapers like the Sun, Express, Daily Mail, and latterly the Telegraph, and Times, have bombarded the public with articles and stories demonising immigrants and the EU. These stories would never work in places like London (though those stories demonising benefits claimants achieved traction), but in Burnley or Sunderland - where you're less likely to meet an immigrant - I think they did work, and created the perception you've described in your post.

I agree that it's unfair to categorize people simply concerned about their country, as racists, but then it's incumbent on us all to show this as a false perception, foisted on us over decades by a segment of our media that are unashamed to lie outright to promote their agenda - as the first post illustrates.

[gtclaret]

Calling me racist was the funniest of all. My very best friend is a black woman who is also my ex wife

[gtclaret]

I've told her to go back to where she came from, but South London is a tad expensive

[tarkys_ears]

DNHOTYA contender

I voted to leave the EU and couldn't give a **** about immigration.

How does that rate with your automatic "everyone who did is a racist" fantasy?

[JohnMcGreal]

I agree that various Government could have had more control under the EU rules, the lack of outcry was because people didn't know that.

What the average Joe didn't know about the EU (and our membership of it) could fill a book.

Which just shows how insane and reckless it was to hold a referendum on such a complex and important issue when most people weren't equipped with even the most basic facts.

[Lancasterclaret]

I voted to leave the EU and couldn't give a **** about immigration.

How does that rate with your automatic "everyone who did is a racist" fantasy?

If only I posted that, that would makes some sense.

But as I didn't, it just another made up thing on this thread to add to the list isn't it?

[gtclaret]

What the average Joe didn't know about the EU (and our membership of it) could fill a book.

Which just shows how insane and reckless it was to hold a referendum on such a complex and important issue when most people weren't equipped with even the most basic facts.

Completely agree, it was the most reckless decision made in modern history. The fact that Cameron said in the campaign that there were national security issues involved was sufficient reason not to have the referendum