Originally posted by Bryn
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General election results 2015
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Originally posted by Beef Oven! View PostI find their analysis lacking in objectivity. For example, their dismissal of UKIP's appeal as racist scapegoating and xenophobia, shows an analysis on par with 1980s student rants.
Bad news for us who are interested in political analysis, but good news for UKIP who will be around for a long time if it's not understood what the reasons are as to why they are the third biggest partying, in terms of votes.
How many of those who voted for UKIP (and that's more than half as many again as voted LibDem) will be other than profoundly disgruntled and disillusioned that, now that they've become the third party in terms of numbers of votes, the meteoric rise in their support will make not a scrap of difference in Parliament? The vast majority of them, I imagine! The same goes for the Greens.
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Originally posted by ahinton View PostThe number of votes polled for UKIP is what it is and, taken with those for the Greens, it is clear that some 5 million votes earned them one seat apiece […]
How many of those who voted for UKIP (and that's more than half as many again as voted LibDem) will be other than profoundly disgruntled and disillusioned that, now that they've become the third party in terms of numbers of votes, the meteoric rise in their support will make not a scrap of difference in Parliament? The vast majority of them, I imagine! The same goes for the Greens.It isn't given us to know those rare moments when people are wide open and the lightest touch can wither or heal. A moment too late and we can never reach them any more in this world.
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Originally posted by ahinton View PostYes, that's a tired old cliché, to be sure, although I can speak from experience long ago when, on my only visit to Aberystwyth, I went into a pub where everyone seemed to be chatting in Welsh already but, as soon as I ordered something, they all suddenly stopped talking altogether; not the most pleasant experience that I've ever had...
One day I asked my boss about languages, having noticed that when English visitors arrived, perhaps for negotiations, that the Swedes were at a potential advantage, because they could switch back into Swedish if they wanted to discuss matters in relative secrecy. "Ah", he said - "the ones with the greatest advantage are the Finns, because hardly anyone can understand them if they want to shut others out, and they can understand everything that everyone else says"
Having said that though, I have also found Finns easy to work with, but the point about language makes some sense.
We once went to see La Traviata in Helsinki - mrs d. booked the tickets - I'm not sure quite how, over the telephone - but she asked the box office lady "What language will the performance be in?" "Italian" was the reply "but don't worry, it'll be fine there'll be surtitles"
Yep indeed - an Italian opera with Finnish surtitles! Fortunately we knew the plot.
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Originally posted by MrGongGong View PostIt isn't given us to know those rare moments when people are wide open and the lightest touch can wither or heal. A moment too late and we can never reach them any more in this world.
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Originally posted by MrGongGong View Post
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Originally posted by jean View PostThis is a view that is heard a lot, mostly from English visitors, who like to imagine that everyone in the pub, or shop, or wherever was happily chatting away in English until the visitor appeared on the threshold, at which point they all switched to Welsh.
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Originally posted by Flosshilde View PostThat is an experience I had when I was at college in Aberystwyth in 1971-2
Two Welsh speakers entered a shop, run by an English-speaking Welsh shopkeeper. Therefore, they spoke to the shopkeeper in English, and after being served, continued to chat to one another in English. Then an English person entered the shop, and the Welsh speakers immediately reverted to Welsh. (I was a fly-on-the-wall during this incident.)
I've already recalled on this forum an incident when I was the English person, in a different shop (in the early 80s) with Eine Alpensinfonietta. Two customers started talking about us in Welsh is a somewhat derisory way, not realising that I had spent nearly two years in "digs" in Bethesda, where I had to pick up some Welsh in order to survive. When EA2 asked me what they were talking about, I told him, in a clear voice. Suddenly, there was an embarrassed silence.
However, this joked-about rudeness is rare in Wales, and when it does happen, it gets blown out of all proportion. And it isn't confined to Welsh speakers.
Recently, my daughter married a fine young man who has a British father and a Spanish mother. They are all bilingual. When we are with them, the family will speak in English, but if they want to say something they don't want us to hear, they switch to Spanish, in the full knowledge that we will not understand a word of it.
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StephenO
Originally posted by ahinton View PostHow many of those who voted for UKIP (and that's more than half as many again as voted LibDem) will be other than profoundly disgruntled and disillusioned that, now that they've become the third party in terms of numbers of votes, the meteoric rise in their support will make not a scrap of difference in Parliament? The vast majority of them, I imagine! The same goes for the Greens.
I've never understood the British abhorrence of coalition governments. They're the norm in most other European countries but for some reason we appear hopelessly wedded to the confrontational, yah-boo model of party politics which has done so much damage to Britain in previous decades. Our political culture seems to be based on a hatred of any party with which we disagree, a refusal to accept that any viewpoint other than our own can have the slightest validity and an inability to embrace compromise, labelling it instead as "deceit" and "dishonesty".
No wonder so many of our MPs behave like spoilt brats in a school playground and no wonder terms like "Tory scum" and "left wing scum" continue to be bandied about.
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Originally posted by Eine Alpensinfonie View PostHowever, this joked-about rudeness is rare in Wales, and when it does happen, it gets blown out of all proportion.
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Originally posted by StephenO View PostThey're the norm in most other European countries but for some reason we appear hopelessly wedded to the confrontational, yah-boo model of party politics which has done so much damage to Britain in previous decades. Our political culture seems to be based on a hatred of any party with which we disagree, a refusal to accept that any viewpoint other than our own can have the slightest validity and an inability to embrace compromise, labelling it instead as "deceit" and "dishonesty".
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