Links to Fleetingly Amusing Stuff

[Bubby]

Yeah ... "fleetingly amusing" as the contents of a colostomy bag for breakfast ...

I was refering to the wonderfully uplifting and life-like 'working for welfare' simulator! Harumph

[psparky27]

Now which one is snide and which one blubby!

[Bubby]

I want to talk about cardiacs. I have been here from 2007 and offered up far more interesting posts than your drivel

^^Yep, it's another world beater to add to the list

[psparky27]

I want to talk about cardiacs. I have been here from 2007 and offered up far more interesting posts than your drivel

^^Yep, it's another world beater to add to the list

Or at least relevent to the thread !

[Bubby]

oh, this is wonderful! (skip to 2 mins in).

[Snardbafulator]

John Oliver was a correspondent on The Daily Show for 7 years, then last summer, Stewart went to direct a movie for 3 months and Oliver filled in and his performance got him his own show on HBO, still based in the US, which is pretty similar to DS from what I have seen.

See, this is what I get for not watching my recommended daily allowance of television ... Hell, I haven't even seen Fargo yet, and everybody here is raving about it. But yeah, I should have realized it was a Daily Show spinoff and recognized Oliver. The satirical style is very similar.

Climate change, Creationism as a science....there are so many non-debate debates at the moment.

Yeah ... I can think of a few of those (names withheld to protect the ignorant).

oh, this is wonderful! (skip to 2 mins in).

I watched the whole thing. James O'Brien did a very sharp job there. Gods ... this Farage lizard just reeks of entitlement, doesn't he ... the self-made businessman, so self-confident of his unarguable status and worth, having to smack off all these insufferable plebs with their nattering, pointless questions ... You know, Sarah Palin came across as a ditz, but she seemed like a homebody (which was in truth bullshit). This guy is like a corporate villain in a B movie.

O'Brien was especially skillful in drawing out the real ugliness and letting it hang in the air. Well, there's no problem with Farage's ESL kids because they're German, you know, not like all those other races who speak other languages on trains (than German) which make him so uncomfortable. And then the classic: "You know what I mean about those Romanian men."

I'd have more respect for this sauropod if he went full-out anti-PC, but instead he has to play the game in tolerant Britain which puts him on the bad foot. "Well, why aren't you questioning the other parties?" O'Brien: "Because the other parties don't reek of pervasive racism."

And he and his party of National Front-Lite are likely to do even better than the last election.

I feel for ya, bro. If I were British I'd also want to crawl under a rock when this is over. It gives me creepy-ass memories of what it felt like when Bush was declared the "winner" in 2000.

Bob

[Bubby]

Heh, the way his whole demeanour changes when asked about the difference between Romanian and German people speaks volumes doesn't it?

It's a shame that this is the only sustained scrutiny of the ukips* dodgy politics i've seen recently (or maybe ever). Farage is constantly on question time on the (supposed leftist propaganda merchants) BBC and always twists everything around to talk about the fvcking EU and immigration, no matter what the question, time after time. So their other policies(or lack of) go unexamined.

Working class people have flocked to Farage because they think he's a salt of the earth type who farts straight and tells it like it is. "he's one of us" they seem to think perhaps not realising he's a rich ex-banker with a German wife and alleged ties to the BNP. Reading the comments from these supporters talking about the radio interview is predictably depressing. What with complaints about that nice mr Farage being "set up" and "made to look stupid" by someone who, i don't know, dared to actually ask questions that might dig a little deeper into what views they actually hold

Several hats off to O'brien anyway. Shame the BBC has been utterly toothless in the fight against right wing fuckery

* c/o stew.

just found this: O'brien vs IDS (like IBS, but worse).

[psparky27]

Come on Guys Go to your thread.

[dogsetc.]

James O'Brien really should be applauded for that object lesson in how to calmly defuse someone as noxious as Farage.

35% i just heard this evening... that's frightening, the prospect of mass unashamed xenophobia in this country is seriously becoming a reality. Horrible fvcking times.

[Bubby]

yeah, i saw that

I do think with the increased exposure they will be held up to a hell of a lot more scrutiny from the media in the run up to the election, the only trouble is by then it will likely be too late.

They either split the right wing vote, or force the Tory party to the right, thus making them half as likely to win elections. Basically though, they're just a single issue party. No one who votes for them knows anything about any of their other policies, other than that they want out of the EU. With a lot of the right wing press (i.e. all of it) getting behind this, it's generating them a lot of support.

If people in their droves did start voting for the ukips, i'm not sure that they'd be able to cope. I think that they can whip up the masses into a frenzy, but they can't control that frenzy and direct it at anything other than the EU.

They're going to be shot to pieces eventually, but unfortunately i don't think that's going to happen for a while

[Mr. Minnow]

yeah, i saw that

I do think with the increased exposure they will be held up to a hell of a lot more scrutiny from the media in the run up to the election, the only trouble is by then it will likely be too late.

It's too late already, certainly as far as the 2015 election is concerned. It takes a while for the way a party is portrayed in the media to have an effect on the public and UKIP have had an incredibly easy ride in terms of lack of scrutiny of their policies on anything other than the EU. Farage has been allowed to get away with portraying himself as a "man of the people" type, even though he's anything but, and he's also been allowed to get away with sidestepping questions on other policy areas by reciting his favourite mantra about the EU being in control of them. Even if the right wing press turned on UKIP tomorrow, which they won't, it would take a pretty long time to undermine the image that Farage and his party have been able to project, especially as the "we're the anti-establishment party" cobblers means that when they do come under attack, they can spin the line about plucky little UKIP being ganged up on by the Westminster bullies and their friends in the press who don't want the public to know "the truth".

They either split the right wing vote, or force the Tory party to the right, thus making them half as likely to win elections. Basically though, they're just a single issue party. No one who votes for them knows anything about any of their other policies, other than that they want out of the EU. With a lot of the right wing press (i.e. all of it) getting behind this, it's generating them a lot of support.

The right wing press has dug itself a bit of a hole with UKIP. They can't really start attacking UKIP in any meaningful way because UKIP is their ideological wet dream, and not just on the EU. On the other hand, they don't want UKIP to take too many votes from the Tories, as winning an overall majority will be hard enough for the Tories in 2015 even without the UKIP effect.

I don't think UKIP are quite a single issue party, though they're not far off. They're a two issue party - Europe and immigration. I think it's the latter rather than the former issue which is the reason for most of the working class voters they've attracted. If those people knew how far to the right UKIP are on other areas I doubt very much they'd be so inclined to vote for them. If UKIP were in the Tory party they'd be on the hard right of that party, espousing the same sort of nonsense that made so many working class people loathe Thatcher. I think they'd be especially disillusioned to find that "taking back control of our own affairs" is code for slashing employment rights and allowing business to do pretty much what it wants. Getting rid of "Brussels red tape" might sound good; getting rid of rights that people value and would never want to give up, not so much.

If people in their droves did start voting for the ukips, i'm not sure that they'd be able to cope. I think that they can whip up the masses into a frenzy, but they can't control that frenzy and direct it at anything other than the EU.

They don't need to control it though, unfortunately. Whipping up people into a frothing hysteria is working very nicely for them, and as long as their policies go largely unexamined it will continue to do so. The only way they'd implode is if they ever got themselves into a position of any real power, such as having enough seats at Westminster to be part of a potential coalition. That would be interesting - we could have an equalities minister who thinks Lenny Henry should go back to "a black country" and an environment minister who thinks flooding is god's punishment for allowing gay marriage. It certainly wouldn't be dull.....

[psparky27]

http://www.led-zeppelin.org/current-new ... -to-heaven

[Bubby]

The right wing press has dug itself a bit of a hole with UKIP. They can't really start attacking UKIP in any meaningful way because UKIP is their ideological wet dream, and not just on the EU. On the other hand, they don't want UKIP to take too many votes from the Tories, as winning an overall majority will be hard enough for the Tories in 2015 even without the UKIP effect.

Just imagine for a minute the prospect of a tory/ukip coalition
I can't imagine this would ever happen though, too many monstrous ego's on both sides and of course ukip supporters would drop them like turds.

You've put your finger on something i've been wondering too, is it possible that Farage has been pushed by the media as he's a man who can attract the votes of the angry, disenfranchised and disillusioned, but would merely galvanise and further entrench the forces, structures and institutions which are at the root of that dissent if he was in power. He's fvcking ideal. As has been alluded to before, Farage is the anti-Ron Paul - a corporate state would never allow Ron near high office, because his economic policies (if enacted) would shatter the foundation which is almost entirely fundamental to their existence.

I've also heard that there's footage of Farage on a US business show where the mask slips and his agenda of further opening up the UK for the interests of foreign private companies becomes apparent. When this is considered, the notion of his party being about 'independence' is laughable.

I don't think UKIP are quite a single issue party, though they're not far off. They're a two issue party - Europe and immigration. I think it's the latter rather than the former issue which is the reason for most of the working class voters they've attracted. If those people knew how far to the right UKIP are on other areas I doubt very much they'd be so inclined to vote for them. If UKIP were in the Tory party they'd be on the hard right of that party, espousing the same sort of nonsense that made so many working class people loathe Thatcher. I think they'd be especially disillusioned to find that "taking back control of our own affairs" is code for slashing employment rights and allowing business to do pretty much what it wants. Getting rid of "Brussels red tape" might sound good; getting rid of rights that people value and would never want to give up, not so much.

Indeed. Many people mostly seem to pick up on the one or two things they can relate with and fear of immigration (or even scarier, this idea of mass immigration) and the fact that they 'work hard' while the feckless unemployed sit around in their smoking jackets playing x-box and eating cavier on their taxes are the ones thay are most enraged about, though of course most of this outrage is manufactured by the goverment and their lapdogs in the press to support the goverments own case. This would be even worse under the ukips.

[dogsetc.]

Jonny Trunk on twitter:
Overhead from pensioner in local cafe: "I used to have to go to the circus to see the fat tattooed lady. Now I just walk out me front door."

[Mr. Minnow]

Just imagine for a minute the prospect of a tory/ukip coalition
I can't imagine this would ever happen though, too many monstrous ego's on both sides and of course ukip supporters would drop them like turds.

Farage's ego alone would be enough to prevent any chance of a coalition with the Tories, or indeed anyone else. He'd demand to be made Lord President of the Council of the Time Lords at the very least. But it's not just that - you can't really sell your party as the voice of the anti-establishment outsider and then jump into bed with one of the main parties of the establishment, as the Lib Dems have found to their cost (though of course in the Lib Dems' case their unpopularity is also down to their failure to stop the Tories' poor-baiting agenda, which horrifies most of their supporters).

You've put your finger on something i've been wondering too, is it possible that Farage has been pushed by the media as he's a man who can attract the votes of the angry, disenfranchised and disillusioned, but would merely galvanise and further entrench the forces, structures and institutions which are at the root of that dissent if he was in power. He's fvcking ideal. As has been alluded to before, Farage is the anti-Ron Paul - a corporate state would never allow Ron near high office, because his economic policies (if enacted) would shatter the foundation which is almost entirely fundamental to their existence.

I think you're spot on. I don't know what programme it was on, but I do recall a couple of years back seeing Farage saying he backed Romney over Obama in the presidential election because of Romney's "experience in building up businesses", or some such drivel. That really says it all - an anti-establishment "man of the people" backing a corporate shark like Romney. But of course that's all lost in the endless guffstorm about Europe and immigration, which is designed to pander to people's instinctive human urge to have something and someone to blame for their troubles (and it doesn't matter who or what they blame, just so long as they don't blame the rapacious cretins who really are responsible for tanking the global economy).

I've also heard that there's footage of Farage on a US business show where the mask slips and his agenda of further opening up the UK for the interests of foreign private companies becomes apparent. When this is considered, the notion of his party being about 'independence' is laughable.

Given his backing of Romney, that's entirely plausible.

Indeed. Many people mostly seem to pick up on the one or two things they can relate with and fear of immigration (or even scarier, this idea of mass immigration) and the fact that they 'work hard' while the feckless unemployed sit around in their smoking jackets playing x-box and eating cavier on their taxes are the ones thay are most enraged about, though of course most of this outrage is manufactured by the goverment and their lapdogs in the press to support the goverments own case. This would be even worse under the ukips.

That's all true, but there's also the point that many people are only too willing to hear what they want to hear and block out or dismiss what they don't. So someone who supports UKIP because of the immigration issue will probably dismiss any attack on UKIP for being so right-wing on other areas of policy as a smear tactic perpetrated by the establishment. Only if that is brought to their attention repeatedly is there any chance at all that they'll think a bit more deeply about what sort of party they're supporting.