The case for Breturn

At the very least it was a bizarre interjection at that point in the conversation.

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What is a “Jo Cox type of incident?”
If a strongly expressed feeling with a slightly contemptuous tone is an incitement to murder, the whole world has gone mad!
There are any number of disturbed individuals allowed to walk the streets without taking their medication. They don’t need the likes of us to light their fuses.

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Referencing the brutal and cowardly murder of an MP in that way was beyond foolish Robert and could be construed as a threat, what’s worse for me is that you can’t see what’s wrong with that and worse still you’re seeking an apology! I’m going to respectfully suggest/advise that you take some time to reflect on the anger you’ve caused before posting again.

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Good grief Robert, this is at the very least inappropriate and crass. Why on earth would you refer to the dreadful murder of an opponent of Brexit in this way? I can well understand why Cat and James were more than concerned.
I would repeat Tim’s advice to think seriously before posting again.

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I’m inclined to agree with Tim - it was, as I said, a bizarre and quite sudden interjection - perhaps you did not mean it as a threat but it is hard not to read it that way.

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Yes but you were referring to MY spelling of Brexit @Robert_Hodge.

Therefore, it would imply that the comment WAS directed at me.

And many other people who I spoke to at the time also agreed with me that it came across as at very least, a veiled threat.

There’s a phrase about holes and digging…

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Perhaps this discussion would be better moved to a more discrete area

I have and it has not changed my view. The use of the expression

was in my view directed at Cat - why else would you say it?
@cat talks about holes and digging… I would add worms, wriggling, stick…

I’m quite happy about it being public Eddie.

My whole point was, and indeed is, that the use of words deliberately made up to insult, offend, and inflame such as ‘Brexs***t’ or ‘Remoaner’ is inapropriate in a sensible conversation between adults.
I think it’s a bit of a poor show if a person cannot adequately express themselves without resorting to such language. It’s wrong, offensive, and actually detracts from the validity of the point that the user of said language is trying to make.
When a discussion in the general public domain starts to become inflamed in that way, is it really any surprise when some individual then takes it upon themselves to commit an illegal act.
What I was doing was saying that all persons, regardless of rank, position, or function should refrain from such language, both then and now in the interests of maintaining peace and goodwill in the community as a whole.

Okay . Personally I think it was a daft thing to say,but I wouldn’t have considered it a threat,however we do all view things differently and from our own perspectives

rolls eyes and yawns

That’s my favourite line with cold/scam callers😂

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nor might I @Eddie but neither did Jo Cox when approached by her killer. The papers are full of incidents where someone makes such a remark to a third party and then senselessly carries it out. Dangerous territory. But who knows in this day and age? If someone made a similar comment about my wife - directly or surreptitiously in a coded fashion, I’d be very concerned.

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I tend to excess in inflammatory language too often. The case against @Robert_Hodge has made my mind up. I understand Cat’s and James’s concerns. They are in the direct line of fire and take the flak to safeguard us all.

But I don’t see Robert as a loony or a troublemaker. I think his explanations have been moderate and convincing. The reference to Jo Cox’s murder, read in context, did not persuade me that it was a threat to Cat’s person, even indirectly. It was a valid comment on the incendiary risk of polarised opinions. People who voted for Brexit deserve our respect, even if we disagree with their opinions.

It is an object lesson to those who are open to its message and I am one such, so I owe thanks to Robert for delivering it, although I was probably not it’s target.

We live in fractious, divisive and unstable times. Let’s unite around à more cordial and constructive discourse. I am open to any future criticism if I don’t live up to this mission. #washyourmouthoutpete. :thinking:

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But this dispute has highlighted something that is at the heart of the matter. The threats and actual violence have largely come from supporters of Brexit.
Even the sneering “you lost, get over it.” doesn’t seem to have provoked anyone to take physical revenge.
So why are the “winners” so bloody nasty? They won, so why don’t they get over it, instead of giving us a verbal kicking at every opportunity? They should be very pleased to be able to drag all the rest of us with them into their fantastic, world beating future.
Maybe they are not so sure of themselves as they pretend. . . . .

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Some of those whose vote carried the day have been nasty to some of those who have been vociferous about losing. “Some of us” (I include myself) have been vociferous and indeed nasty about the “winners”. So it has often been a mutually nasty slanging match that has generated more heat than light, and does none of us much credit, let alone laying foundation upon which to move forward towards a common future.

So much, I think, must be fairly obvious to both sides. Each side needs to find a position that is true to their own beliefs and aspirations, whilst acknowledging and respecting those who take a different view, and without descending into an ugly and menacing harangue.

The first question is, I think, are we willing and capable of reaching an amiable accord? The second is, what practical steps do we suggest might lead to that accord? If we don’t know the answer to either, who or what might be a source of help? We could ask Google… :hugs::grinning:

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I just wish just one of the joyous victors could explain exactly what it is that Britain has achieved by leaving the EU. I have never seen an answer by any one of them, including Mr Hodge, that is actually not referring to something that the U.K. government has always has always had control of. It would appear that lies generating from the likes of a pre PM Boris Johnson, The Telegraph and the Sun hit the target that they were aiming for. I find it hard to respect people when their battle plan is based on rubbish that was disproved long ago.
I probably wouldn’t go as far as calling Mr Hodge a looney or a troublemaker on a public forum but I do feel that he lives in a completely different world to me rather than in a nearby department.

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Because the prize is actually less than we have now and many of them seem to fall into a groupthink where what matters is not what was won, but merely that your opponents lost and reminding them of that often and violently is all the “victors” have.

It is the same mentality which sees someone destroy a thing merely to deprive someone else of having it.

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