The GD forum was never a perfect place but there used to be some interesting threads and conversations across a fairly wide range of subjects. Some were controversial, some went to epic proportions and certainly the odd insult was offered, but on the whole it was kept reasonably civil. All that has now gone. Every thread follows the same theme and ends up with the same half a dozen people throwing the same insults at each other. It never used to be like that so why does it need to be now? Here’s my thoughts;
Obsessive posting of anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim, anti-everything-that-doesn’t-look-like-you propaganda isn’t particularly interesting or informative. It’s not that I’m unconcerned about immigration - In fact I am very much concerned about it - but it has to be kept in perspective. Immigrants have been coming to this Country for hundreds of years and we simply couldn’t survive (as a Country) without them. I think you misunderstand what ‘control of immigration’ means. An important subject that needs to be discussed sensibly can’t be discussed at all under constant bombardment of aggressive, across the board negativity about everything immigrant. It doesn’t add anything to the debate, it destroys it, reduces it to such a ridiculous base level that any discussion becomes pointless.
On the other hand, obsessiveness at the opposite end of the scale is equally damaging. Just look what it has achieved in this small forum. Inappropriate comments in the past were often ignored but very often challenged. I myself had a particular run in with Joe-you-know-who over his holocaust theories. In general though, overt racism was fairly low and mostly benign – certainly not the central theme of almost every thread. But that’s gone. What we have now are more extreme views expressed far more readily and far more aggressively. No debate, no discussion, just extreme bile, poison and abuse. Most of the people that brought reason to the GD forum have gone.
I’d like to debate immigration control. I’d like to debate the influence of certain minority groups who use the Islamic religion as an excuse to perpetrate hatred and crime. I’d like to debate the contribution of immigrants to the future of the UK. I’d like to debate Calais. But I can’t, because I know where it will go.
Obsessive posting of anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim, anti-everything-that-doesn’t-look-like-you propaganda isn’t particularly interesting or informative. It’s not that I’m unconcerned about immigration - In fact I am very much concerned about it - but it has to be kept in perspective. Immigrants have been coming to this Country for hundreds of years and we simply couldn’t survive (as a Country) without them. I think you misunderstand what ‘control of immigration’ means. An important subject that needs to be discussed sensibly can’t be discussed at all under constant bombardment of aggressive, across the board negativity about everything immigrant. It doesn’t add anything to the debate, it destroys it, reduces it to such a ridiculous base level that any discussion becomes pointless.
On the other hand, obsessiveness at the opposite end of the scale is equally damaging. Just look what it has achieved in this small forum. Inappropriate comments in the past were often ignored but very often challenged. I myself had a particular run in with Joe-you-know-who over his holocaust theories. In general though, overt racism was fairly low and mostly benign – certainly not the central theme of almost every thread. But that’s gone. What we have now are more extreme views expressed far more readily and far more aggressively. No debate, no discussion, just extreme bile, poison and abuse. Most of the people that brought reason to the GD forum have gone.
I’d like to debate immigration control. I’d like to debate the influence of certain minority groups who use the Islamic religion as an excuse to perpetrate hatred and crime. I’d like to debate the contribution of immigrants to the future of the UK. I’d like to debate Calais. But I can’t, because I know where it will go.
