Macron's open letter to EU citizens

Van

When I read this I though uh oh this is a windup this is some spotty teenager in some grubby room somewhere getting off by winding up the old hippies.

But then I thought that maybe not I have meet people as xenophobic as this before hatred is often easier than understanding, animus comes quicker to some people than empathy.

But I've found it can often be confused or manufactured, I knew this guy whole did this long rant about how he hated ‘paki’s’ and ‘Indians’ and wanted to have nothing to do with them then picked up the phone (it was pre mobile) and ordered a takeaway curry. The Brexit leader Nigel Farage goes on and on about how wonderful Britain and the British are (or at least the English) and then you find out he has a German wife, his children speak German and hold German passports.

So we have Van bemoan Europe’s colonial past and putting it forward as a reason for not wanting Britain to be part of the EU when Britain was the biggest imperialists in Europe.

 

Me neither. In fact if you search google you get this:

"King Edward potato. King Edward is a potato variety grown in the UK since 1902, making it one ofthe oldest varieties still grown commercially"

Still grown commercially - and still widely available in supermarkets in the UK. Here they are: 'British King Edward potatos' at Asda

Online Food Shopping - ASDA Groceries

So - is this an example of the kind of false propagada the media have been feeding the UK public for years? Seems so.

Myself I find that Maris Piper are a much better all round potatao.

.

 

Yes. One of many.

 

Mal

Why is it a Failure (with a capital F no less)?

But if an opinion is based on false information or built on bias rather than rational thought is that opinion a justified opinion?

Can it be shown to be the right and reasonable opinion to hold?

I mean injustice often comes about because of false information or where the verdict is built on bias rather than a rationally objective view of the evidence.

 

Bill

Very much agree they make a wonderful mash.

*

But back to the subject I think there is a huge amount of maliciously spread misinformation about the EU out there that is easily disproven with a simple google search – it often seems to me that leavers would actively not want to find out the truth.

The common one I’ve got thrown at me is all the laws EU that have been imposed on the UK – but when asked they can’t name one or start going on about straight bananas a myth that was debunked years ago.

So now we have a new one –

They banned King Edward potatoes –

Have you any proof

No, but it the kind of thing they do

At what point do people begin to realise that they are been manipulated by unscrupulous liars to work for their interests and against their own?

 

Lets argue about potatoes for a few pages

 

I think there's a big problem around all of these issues.

I don't think a lot of these people care much for any truth that doesn't cater to their prejudice.

I doubt some will ever admit that they've been fooled or manipulated by the media, even if there was no food in the shops and troops on the street they'll just continue to blame the EU.
It is the scapegoat on which they can balme all their disatisfactions, frustrations and troubles. It saves them the dreadful inconvenince and effort of having to think for themselves - even if they're actually capable of that, which I have to say I doubt in many cases.
It also means they never have to contemplate the real and serious issues humanity faces as we move into the future.

 

I searched for it too, but no.
You'd think a bureaucratic monster that is the EU would leave a written trace of a ban.

But I did come across a few articles that I thought were misleading, I think.
For example this
EU must be kidding! Brussels goes to war on British gardens with crackpot new rule
Kinda implies that legacy of beautiful gardens is more important than soil contamination?
What an odd article, probably meant to rile people up.


This kind of has to do with potatoes and whatnot.
Pesticide bans 'could hit UK crops'
Is it possible someone read something like that and said THE EU WON'T LET US GROW OUR TATERS, and that was it?

I really don't know. The EU publishes decisions and laws and everything, and I couldn't find anything about King Edward potato.

 

Quite likely. It's the kind of thing that's gone on. And given the increasing bias of the BBC one of the leave camp could probably say on a national radio news programme that KEs were banned and the presenter wouldn't challenge it, but let it go.

 

The post you quoted seems to have been edited away .

As my father was half French half Irish I was going to ask - am I a quater of a smug **** because of that? Or half of one, as the Irish like their EU membership too.....

 

He just likes to wind up Europeans. I admire it, in a way. I’m finding I make a terrible troll.

 

Bill

I agree and yes there does seem to be a tenancy amongst many leavers to look back rather than forward. WWII is referenced a lot with - Britain standing proudly alone, Dunkirk and the Blitz another theme is Empire in the sense of - see what Britain could do when not tied to Brussel bureaucrats.

Basically more myths, more manipulation.

But it is as you say they seem able to carry on believing in the lies even when the lies have been disproved.

I talked to a remainer who after half a bottle of merlots argued that we should leave, and leave hard, to teach the leavers - make them realise the realities of the world and Britain’s (well England’s) place in it and what it is like outside of the EU.

But I think I’m like you - because I just said the people that took us out would just carry on blaming others, it wouldn’t be about us leaving it would be about the EU not giving us a good deal (to punish us) the right wing media will gild the shit trade deals we get, the blame for unemployment will shift to new targets and more myths and manipulation will go on.

Oh the excrement will hit the air circulator at some point but I’m sure the people that lead us out will be hoping the waters will be so muddy by then that their part in it all will have been forgotten.

 

McFuddy

LOL as I’ve said [when he does that] he just comes across as some petulant teenage boy, pimply, virginal and friendless suffering from a hygiene problem [and who I imagine] lives in the Mudgeeraba Caravan Village with his alcoholic grandmother.

 

Hahahahahaha
Jesus Balbus
Gave me a good chuckle.

 

You don't seem like troll material.

 

The potato thing scares me.

Recently an acquaintance said to me "did you know illegal immigrants can claim £29,000 a year pension and British citizens only £6000?"

He knew this because a friend had repeated it "from his phone". It was SO obviously nonsense.. And researching it found a text graphic stating this "fact" that had been circulating Facebook and such websites.

I kind of gave up a bit of hope over that incident.

 

It can get exasperating at times. That 29,000 vs 6,000 is such an absurd claim! I imagine your acquaintance is of only 'average' intelligence not to immediately smell a rat. But unfortunately there are millions of dupes out there. People who for one reason or another are not capable to thinking critically, not able to question such fake stories and disinfo.
In old fashioned criminal jargon you had 'con men' who preyed on 'marks'. We live in a culture of 'marks' led by 'con men' I'm afraid to say.

It looks like a huge problem for the future of democracy.

 

Funny how no one wants to discuss monetary issues and Central Bank policies.

Is the EU a success or failure ?

Well after 11 years of ZIRP and even NIRP acronyms for Zero Interest Rate Policy and Negative Interest Rate Policy the EU is a cesspool of stagnation with a forecast of a meager 1.1% growth rate. As I said in an earlier post pretty close to flat line economy. Here in the US we haven't seen numbers like that since 2013. Let's not forget the entire reason for these programs in the first place is to stimulate an economy out of its slumber and get things rolling again.

We haven't begun to discuss the crisis brewing at Deutsche Bank which has the potential to topple the global economy. It's beset with rising expenses , declining income, talent drain etc. There is talk the government may force a merger with Commerzbank but then tying an albatross to another bank with it's own problems only delays the inevitable , a marriage of two flat-line companies doesn't suggest stellar results.

Debt issues ?

Italy's debt to GDP ratio is currently 140.25%.
Greece ( remember them ? ) 197.8 %
Belgium 113.71 %
UK 96.6%
France 105.53%
Portugal 119.95%
Spain 108.54%

Is the EU a success or failure ? These numbers offer a very telling assessment when one is willing to understand the ramifications.

 

Those same sort of rumors persist here, a scarily large portion of the population believes illegal immigrants are able to come here and live on welfare and food stamps (of course they cant, illegal immigrants live in the shadows for fear of deportation). I find it so disheartening how many people just believe things without thinking about it or verifying it

 

Massive failure But Never mind ! its not supposed to be about That is it ?