I came to the forum to read about living and loving life in France, but there seem to be some many threads about Johnson’s perfidies, conservative cronyism and the shame of being British that it feels like the purpose of the forum is being hijacked. It’s not that I don’t care about what happens, but it feels like there’s a stream of poison running through the forum - if it had been like this last year I’d have just drifted away.
I wonder if this is what @cat and @james had envisaged when they started the site?
The politics of the UK affect all of us here who have pensions and family there.
Now, we can continue to voter in General Elections I feel that we should be maintaining closer ties with UK,
not running, or drifting, away.
Behaving like an ostrich does nobody any good.
@Ancient_Mariner
It’s a general free for all… which covers all sorts of stuff…
I’ve just taken a peep at my “muted” list.
13 threads in the Politics category so far… so you are not alone.
Just Mute 'em … relax… breathe… pour another glass of wine…
Thanks for pointing that out.
It’s a bit like boiling the frog! I hadn’t noticed the number going up, but you are right. I just skip them. It’s a bit like meeting up with friends who can’t get past Brexit. After a while their conversation is just one long whinge. We don’t see them as much as we used to.
I tried it, but it only seems to partially work, in that I can see some threads. The forum software has a sense of humour and apparently also defaulted to putting this in the politics section (and popped up a “this looks similar to” about Brexit) when I’d thought I had selected General.
I appreciate both those PoV. Perhaps the level of sweariness has increased because of that helpless frustration. At the same time it’s never good to defaecate on your own doorstep because everyone who comes to see you will inevitably track some of it indoors.
And that may also be true. The thread that got me to this point was “I’m ashamed to be British” and some of the comments contained therein. Adolf Hitler was Austrian, but I’m not ashamed to have been born in the same country. By all means use every lever you can to change the situation at home, but don’t wee in the punch bowl at the dinner party, or if you must then at least make sure it tastes good.
I think that thread is different, as you can usually read the “results” without opening the post. So yes your results are carefully studied!!
And so few about French politics!! Which is far more immediately relevant to most of us,
Apart from having a very small family in the UK it really no longer interests me at all, so quite rare that I will even read one of those posts let alone comment.
I believe, and I have said so before, that the obsession with the UK, and how bad life might be there, is a way of justifying someone’s choice to live elsewhere than the UK. It is, of course, made easier thanks to the current government. I’m sure for many who post on here it’s a matter of: “Thank goodness I don’t live there now”. The focus of many posters is, therefore, on another country. One, to be sure, with problems. That way, I don’t have to think too much about my adopted country’s situation.
That’s because you also have Schwarzenegger as a counterbalance. Just Hitler and I’d be deeply ashamed if I was born there, but as someone who can quote every Arnie line in both Kindergarten Cop and Twins, I can say he allows Austria to be somewhat redeemed. I’m not sure I can say the same for the U.K…
