Originally Posted by
JamesWales
It’s not defending the Tories, it’s seeking the truth, because that’s how you solve problems.
On CCMB at the moment we have threads entitled: “The Tories are utter twats” and “Rod Stewart Tory Scum arrives at conference”
Yesterday on one thread, one user in 24 hours said the following: "An absolute pig of a woman", "twisted, verminous, item of trash", "ghoulish right wing freaks", "certain individuals who disgrace the human race."
"contemptuous behaviour of a chancer appealing to the base nature of the lowest of the low."
This isn’t normal.
On most threads, there are some people who will blame every last thing on the UK government, taking no account of local governments, councils, other countries, the environment, global markets, wars, pandemics, a huge variety of economic factors. Governments are not the cause of every issue in every country and nor are they the fixers of them. Some, yes. All, no.
In every country there are populists (for that is what many on here are) who peddle the lie that it’s all the govts fault and that in removing them, the problems disappear. It simply isn’t so.
The first step to solving problems is recognising that, not just ‘changing the government’. Spain has a centre-left govt, currently way behind in the polls. Germany has a centre-left govt, currently way behind in the polls Sweden had one and it just got kicked out. Italy had one and it just got kicked out. Jacinda Adern is behind in the polls in New Zealand despite her landslide win, inflation is far higher in other countries, some countries have a huge unemployment problem, some stock markets are in massive decline..I could go on and cite a dozen more examples. There are problems EVERYWHERE, some worse than here, some not so bad.
That’s the way of things. I’m not saying that the govt is perfect, far from it. I’m saying things should be looked at holistically. Unfortunately, when faced with a series of posters who only post from one direction, restoring balance involves questioning those things and presenting a different argument or at least pointing out to someone who only posts negative things that actually there are positives too.
In the unlikely event that numerous threads on here insulting anyone who voted Labour and blaming everything on the Welsh Labour Govt, I would do the exact same in reverse.
And why? Because the truth is more interesting than bluster. And because this stuff matters and if there is a global or external cause to a problem, then just changing a government is probably pointless. Just like if a rash is caused by an infection, taking headache tablets is pointless.
The difference between what people often post on here and the reality of the situation is often very stark indeed, and there is nothing wrong with pointing that out. It’s a much better use of my time than coming on here, claiming the world is going to hell, dropping endless insults and blaming everything on something that often isn’t so.