386 Responses to Midweek 3rd January 2024

  1. Fedup2 says:

    From the DT – bbc ‘news’ in the crap as usual

    STARTS The BBC has been criticised for calling Harvard’s president a “casualty of campus culture wars” following her resignation.

    Claudine Gay resigned following criticisms of her response to anti-Semitism on campus, and allegations that she plagiarised parts of her academic work.

    An article the BBC posted on X was headlined “Harvard’s Claudine Gay a casualty of campus culture wars”.

    Andrew Neil, the former BBC presenter, and John Sopel, the broadcaster’s former North American editor, criticised their former employer for its distillation of the reasons Ms Gay resigned.

    Critics pointed out that the headline omitted any reference to Ms Gay’s controversial testimony before a congressional committee on education, in which she remarked that activists on campus calling for the genocide of Jews might only violate harassment rules depending on the “context”.

    Following her comments, for which she later apologised, it was alleged that she had plagiarised part of her doctoral thesis, an accusation which was followed by further claims of other instances of plagiarism. She has denied all claims of plagiarism.

    Neil, a former Daily Politics presenter, criticised his former employer on X, stating that Ms Gay was not a casualty of the culture wars but “a casualty of being unable to condemn outright calls for the genocide of Jews – and of increasing evidence of widespread plagiarism in her limited academic output”.

    He added: “Your headline does not meet your regulatory requirement to be accurate and impartial.”

    The BBC’s former man in the US, Sopel , joined the criticism. He posted on X: “Are you sure you’ve got this headline right?

    “What brought her down was her inability to say that calling for a holocaust would be offensive to Jewish students. Condemned by left and right. And then plagiarism claims. Calling it ‘culture wars’ is lazy and misleading methinks.”

    The BBC deleted its original post on X following the backlash against the headline, stating: “This post has been removed because the article’s original headline has been amended.”

    The amended article’s heading stated: “Departure of Harvard’s Claudine Gay plays into campus culture wars.”

    The BBC has been contacted to confirm whether its original headline fell short of its duty to be accurate and impartial.

    Ms Gay herself has suggested that some of the criticism levelled against her was motivated by “racial animus”, stating in her resignation letter: “It has been distressing to have doubt cast on my commitments to confronting hate and to upholding scholarly rigour – two bedrock values that are fundamental to who I am – and frightening to be subjected to personal attacks and threats fueled by racial animus.”

    She added: “When my brief presidency is remembered, I hope it will be seen as a moment of reawakening to the importance of striving to find our common humanity – and of not allowing rancour and vituperation to undermine the vital process of education.”

    It comes as Samir Shah, the corporation’s incoming chairman, has insisted the BBC’s impartiality must be “beyond reproach” in any upcoming general election coverage.

    The Government’s preferred candidate as BBC chairman told MPs that the election night coverage needs to be “beyond reproach” and will be his first priority.

    His intervention comes amid speculation over who will anchor the main election coverage while Huw Edwards remains off air following controversy about allegedly paying a teenager for explicit images.

    Writing to MPs on the Culture Media and Sport Committee, Mr Shah informed them: “Next year is likely to be election year. It is BBC journalism’s World Cup.

    “We need to be match fit. We need to have figured out everything from studio debates to allocation of airtime. BBC coverage must be beyond reproach.”

    Edwards was suspended in November following an internal inquiry which looked into claims that he had paid a 17-year-old for explicit images.

    The teenager at the centre of the scandal, now in their 20s, denied the claims about Edwards as first reported in The Sun, with lawyers acting for the individual stating: “In a letter to the BBC, the lawyer wrote: ‘For the avoidance of doubt, nothing inappropriate or unlawful has taken place between our client and the BBC personality and the allegations reported in the Sun newspaper are ‘rubbish’.”

    The Met Police were clear there was no suggestion of criminality, and sources close to Edwards stated that his personal life could not offer grounds for dismissal, but it is unclear whether the presenter will regain his prominent role by the time of the next election.

    Mr Shah has said that controversies such as the reports about Edwards are common challenges for a BBC chairman.

    He said: “The BBC is constantly facing two types of situations: acute and chronic. The Committee should assess my, and the BBC’s, performance in how we have handled these situations.”

    He added: “Every now and then, the BBC runs into a storm of criticism. Often it is about impartiality and its coverage of a particular story. Sometimes it’s rather different (e.g. Huw Edwards, Tim Westwood).

    “The committee should judge my performance, and the BBC’s, by how well we have handled such ‘storms’.”ENDS

       13 likes

  2. Foscari says:

    I am finding the ” Mr Bates vs the post office” on the
    ITV riveting viewing.. The cover up by the establishment
    was scandalous.. Ed Davey the Liberal leader and former
    postal minister under the David Cameron in the coalition
    government . Didn’t cover himself in any glory in the
    affair. The best one can say about him . Was that he was
    indifferent to the terrible plight of the sub postmasters.
    At least Nadhim Zahawi former chancellor who plays a cameo role of himself. Asks the then chief executive of the Post Office Paula Vennells
    some searching questions in the Commons committee
    enquiry in 2015 into the Horizon computer system.
    You may by now asking why I am talking about an ITV
    programme.
    It is because if the BBC had produced it. Mr Barton would of
    been played by a black actor. And Paula Vennells chief
    executive officer of the Post Office would of been played
    by a white man.

       29 likes

  3. Thoughtful says:

    Tomorrow the Epstein list will be published and already the media are concentrating on an image of Donald Trump and his wife with Epstein and Maxwell.

    It’s massively disingenuous, maybe he went on Epsteins jet, maybe he didn’t, but we know Clinton did – a lot, and yet he and Hilary are never in the images.
    We suspect Obama went there, but again his image is never seen.
    Tomorrow I think we will see enormous bias from across the media with the use of the Trump photo with the others in there maybe mentioned in the text, but not the photos

       32 likes

    • Kaiser says:

      One of Epstein’s accusers said he suggested calling Donald Trump before they landed in Atlantic City.

      Johanna Sjoberg told lawyers that when Epstein learnt his plane could not land in New York but was being diverted to Atlantic City instead, the financier replied: “’Great, we’ll call up Trump and we’ll go to’ – I don’t recall the name of the casino, but – ‘we’ll go to the casino’.”

      In a separate unsealed document, Epstein’s housekeeper, Mr. Rodriguez, recalled that Mr. Trump called Epstein’s house on occasion but added that he never saw the former U.S. president at the property. He did not give a timeframe for the calls.

      The former President has distanced himself from Mr. Epstein, despite their friendship in the 1990s, and has claimed he is “not a fan” of his.

         3 likes

  4. BRISSLES says:

    Is it me ?
    Having spasmodically watched the Repair Shop over the years, and with the exception of a rare few, most of the owners are not terribly over enthusiastic with their “thanks”. Yes, there are plenty of measly “oh thank you”, but had I just had an item of sentimental value repaired for free, I would have been practically airborne with gratitude.

    Agree that some are overcome with emotion, but a great many sail out of the door with a mumbled thanks. Do people actually hate showing gratitude, or is it just ignorance of having any sort of manners.

       22 likes

    • Thoughtful says:

      Or maybe they have been dragged through so many re-takes of the same scene that the initial euphoria has dimmed somewhat and they aren’t professional actors.

         26 likes

    • Flotsam says:

      Boris and Rishi will turn up at the Repair Shop and ask them to repair the Conservative Party and their careers

         21 likes

    • BigBrotherCorporation says:

      Manners are so ‘yesterday’ Brissles, do keep up!

         13 likes

    • Deborah says:

      I suspect many of the people getting the repairs done are friends or family of the production company and didn’t want to be on the tv. When the programme started the emphasis was on how the repair was carried out, ie how the wood was sanded down or how the paint was mixed. Then the repair was downgraded and the backstory took centre stage, for example the same sex couple with a broken pottery cat. When I stopped watching the people carrying out the repairs were being recruited from anywhere in the world which wasn’t Britain and their level of English was poor but the subliminal .message was admiration for immigrants with skills. I also noticed the downgrading of antique to junk.

         25 likes

    • Scroblene says:

      It’s the season of not-writing ‘Thank You’ letters, Brissles!

      I had a beef with Sainsbury’s the other day, when the kid on the till, after taking over sixty quid off me, just chucked the receipt at me with a glare and a reluctant ‘There you go’.

      Not a thank-you in sight!

      JS have been informed…

         15 likes

    • digg says:

      Brissles, thanks, manners and gratitude are just the trappings of white supremacy didn’t you know that?

      In our brave new world everyone deserves everything they can get their hands on whether they pay for it, get it for free or even steal it so there is no need for thanks etc. anymore.

         8 likes

  5. G.W.F. says:

    The Epstein list has not yet being released which suggests we will not see the raw data. No doubt BBC Verify will be asking some very searching questions.

       15 likes

    • Fedup2 says:

      They’ll find any reason to prevent publication – or plenty of £ redactions £ …. Ideal twitterfare..

         11 likes

  6. Flotsam says:

    Before the event I joked on here that the London New Years Eve fireworks would display the Palestinian colours. It noe seems prescient remark. Kahnt surpassed himself by having the display spell out “London, A Place for Everyone”. Perhaps he should have spelled out “London, a Place to Run Up UlEZ Fines”.

    Frankly I think he’s thumbing his nose to all of us that thinks his policies are wrong.

       30 likes

  7. tomo says:

    Stick it to ’em Vivek!!

       29 likes

    • Zephir says:

      Fantastic response, shame on her indeed, did not ask a question about black on asian attacks all over the US, for example

         23 likes

    • BigBrotherCorporation says:

      I wouldn’t mind him standing in this country next year… move over Rishi.

         18 likes

  8. Zephir says:

       22 likes

  9. taffman says:

    Would you readers say that the “comments” here are monitored, biased, censored and concocted ?
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-67871679

       8 likes

  10. Yasser Dasmibehbi says:

    I post this just in case the BBC don’t cover it.

    Muslim communities do not welcome genuine Muslim refugees.
    I wonder if the polis will charge the protesters with hate crime?

       20 likes

    • Yasser Dasmibehbi says:

      Even the students don’t want them.

      Poor Rohingas. they were expecting to be taking to four star hotels as they’d get if they had landed at Dover.

         16 likes

  11. Zephir says:

    I’m Afraid Liberal Values Can’t Defeat This Threat | Eric Weinstein

    “Western society has been gamed”

    “we will cause your children to come home from college supportive of barbarism and atrocities”

    Friendly college students with blue hair, promoting the precursors of genocide.”

    “It starts with the Jews and it’s not ending there….”

    comments on diversity, tolerance and intolerance

       9 likes

  12. Zephir says:

    At long, long, last: what we all knew, or strongly suspected:

    “Jeffrey Epstein ‘victim’ Johanna Sjoberg claims predator told her ‘Clinton likes them young’ in bombshell newly-released court documents”

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12923589/jeffrey-epstein-list-names-released.html

       20 likes

    • JohnC says:

      Just been reading it and THAT is the front page headline Zephir.

      But the BBC do their usual lie-by-inference by telling us Andrew has been named in the front-page headline. Most people seeing that will infer he is guilty. I bet it’s the first thing they say on all the news reports all day.

      But so have 149 other people BBC. And no evidence whatsoever he did anything actually wrong. However odious he is.

      This is absolutely typical of the BBC and how they abuse their power. When they hate somebody, they will keep kicking them when they are down to make sure they are absolutely finished.

      It’s the same with the trans-activists who go after people’s employers etc to absolutely ruin them. It’s ideological hatred : the worst and most nasty kind of all.

         24 likes

      • Zephir says:

        The bbc must be gnashing their teeth that this witness exonerated Trump….

        “Jeffrey Epstein ‘victim’ Johanna Sjoberg denies MASSAGING Donald Trump and reveals how predator financier boasted of being able to call former president before trip to his casino, court papers claim.

        She responded ‘no’ to whether Trump had asked her for any sexual favors or if she’d ever massaged him ”

        https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12924669/Jeffrey-Epstein-Johanna-Sjoberg-Trump-massage.html

           25 likes

        • Fedup2 says:

          Who is the ‘ex PM ‘ on the list ? Surely not Mary “liz’ truss…?

          I suspect too many of approved types are on the list so ‘verify ‘ won’t go near it ….

             12 likes

    • tomo says:

      Nobody at the BBC wants the by-line?

      Given the BBC’s common MO of omission – shows that they’re frightened of the topic?

      name-day.jpg

         4 likes

      • Fedup2 says:

        I thought the lads on ‘toady ‘ sounded depressed that the name of Donald Trump didn’t appear in the Epstein list ….

        .. imagine how much time would have been given to reprising the story and sins if president trump has been mentioned — I’m still intrigued by the ‘well known PM ‘ who is on the list …

           9 likes

        • digg says:

          They did actually manage to get Trumps name mentioned in the context of Epstein but only in the context of someone else involved mentioning him by name at he time but to the BBC the only thing that matters is “smear by association” which is exactly what they were trying to do!

          They have no moral fibre and they obviously think we are all gullible enough to be influenced by such tactics which can only be described as desperate and reprehensible!

          In the long run I believe this sort of deliberate manipulation will eventually lead to their demise when they take a step too far!

             6 likes

  13. andyjsnape says:

    bbc promotion for the labour party

    Keir Starmer seeks new year boost before 2024 election
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-67878342

    Surely the electorate can see thru voting for Conservatives, back to Labour and so on. The 2 party system doesn’t work

    Only the 2 parties benefit, going from Government pay, to opposition pay, and so on. They have taken the electorate for mugs for too long

       20 likes

  14. tomo says:

    I feel Davey isn’t bvery bright …

    But this is pitiful …

       20 likes

    • Fedup2 says:

      Lib Dem gets ministerial job – screws it up …

         16 likes

      • tomo says:

        The political equivalent of Frank Spencer.

        I followed his tenure at DECC and came away thinking that he’s profoundly ignorant *and* monumentally dim *and* incurious.

        Utterly unfit for high office.

           17 likes

        • Docmarooned says:

          Tomo – like the vast majority of our elected MP’s – thick as planks.

             5 likes

    • MarkyMark says:

      “Royal Mail slump ‘vindicates’ £3.3bn sale price, says former business secretary Vince Cable
      By CALUM MUIRHEAD FOR THE DAILY MAIL

      UPDATED: 21:55, 5 January 2023

      e-mail
      58

      View comments
      The crisis at Royal Mail ‘vindicates’ the Government’s decision to sell it for £3.3billion, according to former business secretary Sir Vince Cable.

      The Liberal Democrat politician faced a barrage of criticism for offloading Royal Mail on the cheap when it was privatised at 330p a share in 2013.

      But with shares now at 225p, and the company facing annual losses of close to £650million, Cable defended the move.”

      https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-11604091/Royal-Mail-slump-vindicates-3-3bn-sale-price-says-Vince-Cable.html

         7 likes

      • Fedup2 says:

        Funny isn’t it – although I’m a believer in small state – perhaps utilities such as the post office – will never be fit to be private – water too ….

           13 likes

        • atlas_shrugged says:

          I am guilty of total naivety. I never realised that privatise actually meant globalise.

          Everything in this country has been sold and is now owned by outside interests who have none of our interests.

             13 likes

          • MarkyMark says:

            Saudi Wealth Fund Weighs Buying Another Top Football Club in Europe
            Newcastle United owners keen to pursue a multiclub strategy
            Recent UEFA ruling opens door to more big football club deals

               3 likes

        • MarkyMark says:

          Amazon?

             2 likes

  15. Fedup2 says:

    Toady
    I thought I’d catch the Big Piece on the Epstein list in the `Big 0810 interview . Nope . Silence – some blah blah on the excellent ‘terrorist attack on Iran ‘ – then some nothing on rivers with ‘community swimming ‘ on New Year’s Day …… maybe the Epstein thing doesn’t matter – but it gives just a glimpse of what the great and good do in real life … right Andy Windsor ?

       16 likes

  16. AsISeeIt says:

    2.0 edition

    The formerly patriotic Times – which for some time now has been conducting a rather public bromance with Sir Keir – begins the year as we presume it will continue by promoting the Labour leader’s adonoidal utterings to its frontpage: Starmer: Labour is party to end the despair

    Ah, still in the honeymoon phase I see: Sir Keir Starmer is to urge voters to hold on to the “flickering hope” that life can get better (Times)

    Cue D:Ream Things Can Only Get Better 2.0 – the Obama/Blair Change Mix featuring a few world music samples from friendly collaborators of DJ Corbyn

    As far as political slogans go – the phrase ‘whispering sweet nothings’ comes to mind.

    The Labour leader will use a speech in the West Country to position himself as the candidate of change (Times) – so this is one of those pre-speech press releases to create a puff piece in friendly media outlets

    Keir Starmer seeks new year boost before 2024 election (BBC)

    Credit where credit is due (Mr AsI is always at pains to grant that) By Chris Mason, political editor BBC News our Chris doesn’t wear the rose-tinted beer googles with the hots for Starmer so peculiar to the modern tabloid Times: Don’t expect any new policies. There won’t be any. Instead, he is arguing he is taking on two opponents this year. Firstly, as you would expect, the Conservatives. And secondly, what he perceives to be a lethargy, a cynicism, an anti-politics mood, that leads many people to conclude no one can make a difference to the big challenges society faces.

    Fair comment, Chris.

    The Labour-supporting Mirror frontpage takes a break from politicking and reports on the young disappointed dartsplayer our media have done a pre-emptive Emma Raducanu on: Darts ace Luke, 16, narrowly misses out on £500k title… He does himself proud in epic final… and bags £200k – the Mirror neglects to tell us what level of fat cat windfall tax it would advocate

    I can’t watch darts matches in the same way since the Not The Nine o’Clock News team did their classic skit on darts – they do say the BDO decided to ban drinks on stage during matches after that sketch was televised.

    The Mirror promises Full story: P4&5 and sport – a nice distiction. By the way, back in the days of Freddie Trueman’s Indoor League we understood the difference between sport and barroom pastimes.

    The hypochondriacal coronaphobic left-leaning ‘i’ newspaper just can’t seem to shake it off: Health – Warning 100,000 could develop long covid after hospital cases surge – the ‘i’ really should see someone about that – which may take some time to get an appointment: Junior doctors’ strike: Some hospitals request staff return to work (BBC) – other hospitals say don’t worry carry on with your strike…? We’ve heard of Carry On Matron, Carry On Nurse… but carry on strikers?

    The left-leaning ‘i’ campaigns on the US election as their main headline: Trump 2.0 is a threat to UK, warn Britain’s top diplomats“Ambassador, you are really spoiling us.”

       16 likes

    • Fedup2 says:

      I always thought darts was drinking beer with a bit of arrow throwing and sums interrupting it ….

      I caught the last hour of ‘today ‘ – it really shows how much that programme has been hollowed out – a feature on why British comedy died – with a couple of ethnics not telling us why – and a final feature on ‘unemployment in China’ …. And a bit about darts – which the bbc sees as unapproved …. It’s just rubbish .

         17 likes

      • BRISSLES says:

        Um, shall I send you a pic Fed of my trophy gathering days in the 80s, when I was a bit of an arrer thrower myself – even played against Maureen Flowers in the British Open. We weren’t all beefy blokes with a pint on the side, us gals were glam with a chilled white to spur us on 🙂

           18 likes

        • Fedup2 says:

          How much for the peeekture laaaadee? I used to try to play got drunk too quick. ….

             8 likes

    • Guest Who says:

      Chris might be trying to cling onto professional cred, but…

      https://x.com/bbcnews/status/1742618070504374728?s=61
      Lib Dem leader Ed Davey launches ‘Tory Removal Service

      Using a press release featuring Ed Davey in a van is… brave.

         10 likes

  17. friend of yogi bear says:

    We should not jump to conclusions about Ed Davey, he obviously wants to make his mark and be relevant in 2024.

    So how about this for making a mark.

    He tells us he wishes he had asked “Even tougher “questions of those post office people ” he presumably means those intiating action against postmasters, about what was going on with the horizon scandal.
    So what did he ask?

    Why did he refuse to meet the postmasters/mistress representative when he sought a meeting with “tough talking Ed”.

    Why did he take a consultants appointment with solicitors Herbert Smith Freehills, who acted against the postmasters, and keep that job from 2017 to 2022 earning allegedly £275,000 in the process. Most people might have thought there was a massive and obvious conflict of interest, not Ed.

    So Ed , when you have parked up your big gimmick “remove the tories” van, perhaps you could answer some questions about what you do when trusted with office and why anybody would take you seriously.

    This is the time to make your mark.

    Another question, where is the BBC Verify team in all this?or is the truth simply that Ed Davey is just not relevant enough to anybody for this to matter?

       31 likes

    • Guest Who says:

      What BBC Verify is all over very much depends on BBC narrative requirements.

      Hence running Limp Davey photo ops without a second thought and carefully edited Epstein headlines and images.

         17 likes

    • Fedup2 says:

      Friend – let’s face it – Davey is just another career politician on the make – I can’t be bothered to look at his wiki or expenses claims – I know he has a disabled kid he deploys when necessary but just a waste of rations … on the make

         19 likes

  18. tomo says:

    YouTube plasters it with “warnings”

       7 likes

  19. tomo says:

       9 likes

  20. JohnC says:

    ‘Defendant leaps over US courtroom to attack judge’
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-us-canada-67879499

    That would be ‘black defendant’ there then BBC. And given the totally disproportionate amount of violent crime they commit, it WOULD have been relevant to mention it.

       20 likes

  21. Thoughtful says:

    US National debt has now exceeded $34Tn meaning the Biden (mal)administration has piled on a trilliion Dollars worth in just one short quarter !

       11 likes

    • Fedup2 says:

      Are they borrowing to pay the debt interest yet – time for wonga ….

         6 likes

    • MarkyMark says:

      https://www.nationaldebtclock.co.uk/

      UK National Debt Surpassed £1 Trillion

      Mainstream media headlines today are focused on Britain’s record national debt, which just surpassed £1 trillion, a figure that can only exponentially increase unless the entire mechanism of Government finance is overhauled. The truth however is much worse, factoring in all liabilities including state and public sector pensions, the real national debt is closer to £4.8 trillion, some £78,000 for every person in the UK.

         7 likes

  22. Emmanuel Goldstein says:

    Why do doctors think they should get their pay increased by inflation (from 2008)

    Why not everybody else in GB.

    What would that cost to the public sector (and their pensions)
    How many businesses would go bust.

    Does a bin man not deserve this inflation proof pay rise or is it only doctors.

    I don’t believe they only get £15 an hour (when they start their first proper job after Uni) I bet it’s highly manipulated to give an extreme case. Are pensions included for example.
    Do they only get charged (tuition fees) about 10% of the true cost of their training.

    I would like to see the actual breakdown in junior doctors pay.

    If they do actually get this sum then it will only be a year before the pay goes up and soon reaches very lucrative amounts.

    Everybody on here, was your first job pay very high or did you start at the bottom and work up to higher pay rates.

    Were the new doctors all unaware that their starting pay would be lower than what a consultant of 20 years would be getting.

    Maybe they do deserve a reasonable rise but surely only the ones right at the bottom of the pay scale.
    Something like 15% for first year doctors, 8% for second year doctors and that’s all. The older well paid doctors should get the same rise as nurses and other care workers.

       17 likes

  23. Guest Who says:

    Two ex BBC Newsnighters in total political agreement based on a politician’s promise.

    https://x.com/mrjamesob/status/1742871480206024992?s=20
    This is bang on the money.
    Lewis Goodall
    @lewis_goodall
    Starmer: “I promise this- a politics which treads a little lighter on all our lives. That’s the thing about populism or nationalism…It needs your full attention, needs you constantly focussing on this week’s common enemy. And that’s exhausting.”

    Next up….

    https://x.com/bbcr4today/status/1742789687327006993?s=58
    Good morning.

       4 likes

    • Guest Who says:

      Here they are ‘discussing’ stuff.

      https://x.com/bbcr4today/status/1742796753135354301?s=58
      Why did @bbcnickrobinson tell Boris Johnson to ‘stop talking’? And how did @amolrajan handle the former PM’s ‘blond wall of noise’?
      ❓ Find out on the new episode of The Today Podcast, where Amol and Nick answer your questions.

      Well, run propaganda. I wonder who posed and selected these questions?

      Massive audience as ever.

         7 likes

  24. Guest Who says:

    Mucho Simpo still gunning for a bigger gong.

    https://x.com/johnsimpsonnews/status/1742507477709599145?s=58
    About the honours system: MBEs, OBEs, CBEs etc reward ordinary people for doing their jobs well, and are hugely appreciated. Renaming the Order would make it even more inclusive. But I don’t believe it should be used to reward people for political services.

    Ordinary folk like Liberators of Kabul?

       4 likes

  25. Guest Who says:

    https://x.com/spikedonline/status/1742576814319435831?s=58
    Swearing has become a marker of dreary, middle-class conformism. Every posh entertainer with identikit views now peppers their outbursts with twee swear words. It’s a lame bid to add some frisson to their dull personas, says Julie Burchill

    Does get w1a commissars, sorry, commissioners, all atwitter.

       8 likes

  26. Guest Who says:

    https://x.com/JolyonMaugham/status/1742795598145728762?s=20
    An important thing not to read (as there isn’t anything) because (1) this is happening here and will happen more (2) the UK is especially vulnerable because of the huge dominance of Right wing media (3) those of us who want to resist it will need to wisen up.

    An import thing toot read because 1) it’s JoJo 2) it’s the Graun 3) with a picture of a diversity failure 4) trying to maintain news media is dominated by the right still, vs. ‘us’.

       4 likes

  27. Tabs says:

    The BBC have a Have Your Say on the mortgage rate reduction from 5.92% to 5.87%.

    I always like the test the moderators by reporting similar off topic posts to see which ones get removed and which ones can stay.

    I found 3 off topic posts all very similar which were:
    1. Anti BBC
    2. Anti Liz Truss
    3. Anti City workers

    I reported all three for being off topic, guess which one was removed and which two could stay up?

       11 likes

  28. Guest Who says:

    I have given up trying to figure out the ways a tweet from a person I don’t follow gets on my timeline.

    I get a lot from such as this guy.

    https://x.com/ShaykhSulaiman/status/1742840794804089144?s=20
    One can only presume he gets his news via the BBC.

       5 likes

    • tomo says:

      ditto

      What I’d like to know (unlikely to find out!) is how much “administrative licence” is delegated to regional Twitter entities like Twitter UK (77th Brigade)

         5 likes

  29. atlas_shrugged says:

    Hey bBC,

    Would this be a good idea?

    As you may be aware the bBC is the ‘Worlds most hated broadcaster’ and since you obviously relish this role why not put the pedal on the accelerator.

    How about using the Epstein leaks to accuse Stephen Hawkins of something or other?

    This would absolutely guarantee even more people would hate your organisation because they would see through the ridiculousness of what you may be alluding to and would see this as a smear campaign. You have plenty of track record of this in the past so why change the habit of a lifetime?

    This is what you do isn’t it?

    https://dailysceptic.org/2024/01/04/epstein-files-prince-andrew-bill-clinton-donald-trump-stephen-hawking-david-copperfield-and-michael-jackson-named-in-unsealed-documents/

       11 likes

  30. tomo says:

       14 likes

    • Thoughtful says:

      Douglas Murray is not unintelligent, and he must know that he is lying about the people of Gaza electing Hamas, because they never did.

      A power sharing agreement was reached in Mecca of all places and from there Hamas seized power and did kill off Fateh

      Trying to suggest the people of Gaza have a collective responsibility because they elected Hamas is I’m afraid clutching at straws in the extreme.

      Also he flies completely over Murrays head that Hamas didn’t win on October 7th, the won after Netenyahu ordered the IDF to bomb Gaza indiscriminately, and it doesn’t matter what Murray thinks about the culpability of Gazans, it’s how the world perceives it that matters.

      On October 7th the world was shocked and horrified. Sympathy from all corners lay with the people of Israel, but Netenyahu managed to completely reverse that over the following months. Now we are hearing the IDF aren’t actually winning over Hamas, and that in order to keep himself out of prison Netenyahu needs the war to continue for as long as it takes.

         3 likes

      • digg says:

        Thoughtful, you may need a refresher re the Hamas position in Gaza…

        In particular …the people of Gaza electing Hamas because they never did….”

        Well The Council On Foreign Relations website tells us …..

        “A spin-off of the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood in the late 1980s, the Islamist militant group Hamas took over the Gaza Strip after defeating its rival political party, Fatah, in elections in 2006.”

           5 likes

        • Thoughtful says:

          Yes yes all that is known history, but that is nearly 20 years ago. In following elections they didn’t vote Hamas, and they never have done since.
          We vote out BLiars Nu LIebour, we have to live with the consequences of that, but it doesn’t mean because we voted for him decades ago that we support him today – quite the opposite in fact.

             0 likes

  31. JohnC says:

    ‘We have so much respect for him’ – crowds of Palestinians mourn Arouri
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-middle-east-67879726

    ‘“Saleh al-Arouri was not just a regular person he was an exceptional leader, a freedom fighter, an intellectual and we have so much respect for him,” Hala Abu Gharbia tells me as she carries a Palestinian flag.’

    ‘The voices on the streets were that of protesters chanting Arouri’s name. Chanting for freedom, resistance and calling for revenge. Some protesters were waving Palestinian flags, a couple of others carried green Hamas flags.’

    It sickens me to read this BBC report of a terrorist leader. There is no doubt whatsoever which side they are on and why isn’t there a law to prevent such reporting about official terrorist groups ?.

    Maybe some descriptions of what the group he led did to others would be more appropriate BBC to explain WHY he was killed.

    Something REALLY needs to be done about the BBC. They are complete activists now.

       28 likes

  32. Jeff says:

    Blimey, that’s a surprise…

    According to the Met’ Office, 2023 was the second hottest in Britain since records began. Now, call me a miserable old sceptic if you like, but…it certainly wasn’t anything remotely like that in the part of Britain I reside in. In fact, we had a bloody cold winter and an almost non existent summer.

    I know how bad it was because I grow most of my own food and had dismal results. The frost and snow slaughtered all of my chard and during (what we laughingly called) summer none of my melons or aubergines developed. That suggests it wasn’t warm…

    This latest BS from the Met’ office is just more blatant propaganda…like all of those BBC shows that are pumped out. We’re never far from a melting iceberg or a starving polar bear, with the whispering tones of David Attenborough informing us, “This poor polar bear mother has lost all of her cubs…thanks to climate change.”
    Utter b@ll@cks!

    I remember one particularly dark and dismal Friday evening, sitting and watching Gardeners’ World. I was told I’d have to start growing drought resistant plants to cope with the increasingly arid conditions we’re now experiencing in Blighty.
    I could hardly hear what Monty was saying as the wind howled and torrential rain rattled my windowpanes.

    It’s all nonsense, but…

    They never give up, do they?

       40 likes

    • G says:

      Jeff,

      Your analogy of growing food. Me? How often and for how long I use a pedestal fan in my bedroom at peak heat times. Zero for 2023 on both counts. West Wales.

         10 likes

    • digg says:

      I had the same experience on my allotment on the South Coast this year Jeff.

      It really has reached the point of comedy as the BBC struggle to push climate armegedon despite the obvious truth that it is utter bollox that we all experience.

      It can only be a stance pushed on the BBC by their “partners” in the WEF, UN, Gates Foundation and etc. that makes them act in this way. It makes you wonder what they have been promised in return.

         17 likes

  33. andyjsnape says:

    Microsoft announces AI key on Windows 11 PCs
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-67881373

    “The UK’s competition watchdog is looking into Microsoft’s relationship with OpenAI after boardroom chaos resulted in a close relationship between the two firms”

    Maybe the watchdog could look into the close relationship between the bbc and microsoft, and its “sponsorship” – Doubt it

       15 likes

    • G says:

      Andy,

      Literally, Just bought Linux/Ubunto package to install from The Linux Shop (£38). Going to get rid of the ‘spyware’ from MS otherwise known as, “Updates”. Phone next on list.

         13 likes

      • andyjsnape says:

        Hello G

        Unfortunately i’ve worked with microsoft for 30+ years. Unfinished product, and they wait for users to tell them of issues 🙁

           14 likes

        • Fedup2 says:

          … sounds the same with vaccines … people telling the manufacturers there’s a ‘problem ‘ by dropping dead ….often without any existing condition …

             16 likes

  34. JohnC says:

    Rishi Sunak suggests general election in second half of year
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-67883242#comments

    ‘Breaking News’ opened IMMEDIATELY for comments.

    Now we will see how unbiased the BBC are by the people who comment on the article. If it were true and the BBC applealed to people equally, it would be a roughly even split of pro-Tory, pro-Labour. I’ll give it 15 minutes then check the top comment and uptick ratio.

    Top comment now even though it’s just been opened:
    ‘clinging onto power like a t*rd clings to the toilet bowl’
    22 upticks, 2 downticks.

    Troll farm most definitely instantly engaged. As the BBC knew full well it would be – I would not be surpised if they told them to be ready.

    This is basically attempting to apply pressure to do it earlier before the polls swing away from Starmer. The ‘unbiased’ BBC are in full election mode now.

       22 likes

  35. tomo says:

       19 likes

    • MarkyMark says:

      Living causes 100% of deaths.

         15 likes

    • taffman says:

      tomo
      Operative word “could”.
      On the other hand, not heating your home could be the cause of old people dying of hypothermia ?

         14 likes

  36. vlad says:

    Police are now saying they think the stabbing on Primrose Hill was not racially motivated.

    In other words, the murderer was black and it probably WAS racially motivated.

    The Black Broadcasting Corporation have gone very quiet on the story.

       28 likes

    • Fedup2 says:

      It’s yet another reason for the cloak of anonymity on under 18 year olds charged with serious crimes to be lifted . The ‘community ‘ deserve it – even after conviction would be something ….

         19 likes

      • vlad says:

        I’m no lawyer but it seems to me that anonymity for minors IS sometimes lifted when it’s in the public interest.

        But apparently it’s never in the public interest when certain communities of future doctors and engineers are the perpetrators.

           14 likes

        • Fedup2 says:

          Vlad – you can count the number of cases where judges have lifted the secrecy probably on one hand per year . The burden should go the other way – individuals of any ages must be he;d accountable for their crimes – and naming is part of that …. Bloody liberalism …

             15 likes

  37. Eddy Booth says:

    Powerful – just from one page
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-middle-east-67879726

    “The latest statements by the powerful Lebanese armed group Hezbollah”

    “The attack hit the southern suburb of Dahiyeh, a stronghold of the powerful Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah.”

    “What is Hezbollah?
    It’s a Shia Muslim organisation which is politically influential and in control of the most powerful armed force in Lebanon.

    You think the BBC is in love..

       19 likes

    • Terminal Moraine says:

      I’m sure Lebanon is popular at the BBC, as a model of a multifaith society.

      They also make excellent hummus and have been ahead of the curve in terms of economic crisis — sorry, degrowth — for ages.

         14 likes

  38. taffman says:

    “In total, more than 100,000 people have come to the UK in small boats since 2020”
    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-67883084
    Stop The Boats ! Rishi , Stop The Boats !

    What about all the people that were ‘legally’ allowed in by the government ?
    The Tory Government have absolutely failed us despite their pledges ……..
    https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prime-minister-pledges-to-control-and-reduce-immigration

       18 likes

  39. Terminal Moraine says:

    The bloke accused of stabbing the pregnant woman in Aberfan last month is up in court. Just skim reading the report:

    “… spoke through a Romanian translator…”
    “… pending psychiatric reports…”

    All part and parcel of living in rural Wales.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-67880689

       24 likes

  40. Zephir says:

    Something more for the bbc staff to have a group w@nk about:

    “Don’t Forget, or Deny, Hezbollah’s Brutal Crimes
    For the victims of Hezbollah terrorism, this week is a painful one. While the world was focused on horrifying attacks in France, Germany and across the Middle East, a grim anniversary on July 18th went little noticed.

    In 1994, Hezbollah carried out the suicide truck bombing of the AMIA Jewish community centre in Buenos Aires, killing 85 and wounding 300 people. Eighteen years later, the group struck again, this time blowing up a busload of Israeli tourists at the airport in Burgas, Bulgaria, killing seven and wounding 32.

    In February 2016, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) implicated Hezbollah in a multi-million-dollar drug trafficking and money laundering network that spanned four continents. According to the DEA report, Hezbollah had relationships with South American drug cartels in a cocaine-smuggling network to Europe and the U.S. The proceeds funded a money laundering scheme known as the Black Market Peso Exchange and provided Hezbollah with “a revenue and weapons stream.

    Beyond Syria and transnational crime, Hezbollah continues to engage in — and deny any connection to — terrorist plots around the globe. Peruvian counterterrorism police arrested Mohammed Amadar, a Hezbollah operative, in late 2014.
    Meanwhile, Hezbollah’s support for terrorist groups in the Gulf region also continues unabated. In January, Bahraini authorities detained six members of a Hezbollah-linked terror cell blamed for the July 2015 explosion outside of a girls’ school in Sitra that killed two people. In February, the Yemeni government asserted evidence of “Hezbollah fighting alongside [Houthis] in attacks on Saudi Arabia’s border.” It should therefore not surprise that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) designated Hezbollah as a terrorist organization for committing hostile acts within GCC member states’ borders. The Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation followed suit within weeks.
    Contrary to its denials, Hezbollah continues to engage in illicit activities around the world. This week, as we mark the anniversary of two of Hezbollah’s most spectacular attacks on opposite sides of the globe — from Bulgaria to Argentina — it is high time to a call spade a spade: Hezbollah is a social and political movement in Lebanon, but engages in terrorist, military, criminal activities there, and around the world. Its legitimate activities in Lebanon should not be a free pass for its illegitimate conduct.”

    https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/dont-forget-or-deny-hezbollahs-brutal-crimes

    “Timeline of Terror A Concise History of Hezbollah
    Atrocities

    Hezbollah’s activity as a terrorist group is often thought to be limited to its war against Israel. This is a great mistake. From its killing of 58 French peace-keepers in 1983 to the current day, Hezbollah has repeatedly sought out, killed and been implicated in the killing of numerous European targets.
    Yet despite this fact the European Union (EU) refuses to put Hezbollah on its official list of designated terrorist groups.
    This list includes Hamas but, inexplicably, not Hezbollah.
    The official reason given by the EU is that there is a separation between the political and military wings of Hezbollah. In reality no such separation exists. Hezbollah does not see it. Lebanon – which Hezbollah has done so much to destroy – does not see it. America
    does not see it. Only the EU sees it”

    Click to access Timeline-of-Terror_Membership-version_low-res.pdf

       20 likes

  41. Fedup2 says:

    Two charged with arson of Mike freer MP office ….

       8 likes

  42. digg says:

    The BBC news labour party propaganda machine is in full flow I see.

    Meanwhile they are rifling through the bottom of the Epstein barrel to try to find more Republican leaning right-wing nasties to smear.

    Business as usual at the Beeb!

       21 likes

  43. andyjsnape says:

    Always nice to look at the 1 star reviews 🙂

    https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.bbc.co.uk

    About sums it up. Looks like the 93% agree with ourselves

       12 likes

    • MarkyMark says:

      “2024 but it’s always 1984 For The BBC
      Lets all make the new year, one that resists the licence fee with more fervour. The vast majority of the BBC,s public ransom money appears to go on presenters and producers, who are paid regardless of talent or ability . The BBC no longer broadcasts in the public interest, services like BBC for Schools ceased decades ago .
      High time that the BBC sent itself to the dragon’s den it loves to promote for others who have to pay for. It.

      Date of experience: 31 December 2023”

         13 likes

  44. vlad says:

    WOW, here’s Geert Wilders giving it straight to muslims in Holland !

    2 minutes and 39 seconds of TRUTH like you would NEVER hear from a politician in UK. And even if one dared to speak like that he would be roundly condemned and censored by everyone, starting with the BBC.

    Note his 5 suggestions to the Dutch cabinet, especially number 5 which is a real zinger!!

       25 likes

    • MarkyMark says:

      A very brave man …. “…and don’t you worry. It’s coming to a place near you…we cannot have state subsidized preachers…give it up or give it to your deadliest enemy and pay for the rope that will choke you.“

         8 likes

      • vlad says:

        “It’s coming to a place near you…”

        Tragically, it’s already here, and probably in power!

        Sorry to be pessimistic, but I honestly believe the situation in UK is irreversible, and about to get worse under Labour.

           20 likes

    • Thoughtful says:

      And has our Marxist government still banned an elected foreign leader of a friendly country from entering the UK ?

         18 likes

      • atlas_shrugged says:

        Thoughtful

        Not only would this NL politician be welcome here by me but IMHO he should take power.

        He would be the best thing since William of Orange (unless you were Catholic).

           16 likes

  45. pollyanna says:

    I used to read this site a lot back in the day, was even a regular contributor for a while. It’s a shadow of its former self. Hardly any mention of the BBC, no actual blog posts and zero meaningful analysis of any broadcasting output. It’s turned into (as it always threatened to) an echo chamber for some very angry, very right-wing old men. Twenty years ago this website used to get mentioned on air and referenced in print. Not any more. What a waste.

       12 likes

    • vlad says:

      I’m not old and I’m not angry, most of the time. But perhaps pollyanna makes some fair points ?

      S/he might consider returning to the fold and contributing some ‘meaningful analysis’ of BBC output?

         19 likes

    • Jeff says:

      Well Polly, if you don’t contribute, you’ve only yourself to blame…however…thinking about it…

      I have to admit to ticking several of the boxes you gave us.

      Very angry…yep…
      Very right wing…well, depending on your perspective…
      Old man…can’t be denied, I’m afraid…sigh…

      However, we do have a number of very reasonable and articulate women on this site.

      Don’t just whinge from afar. Let’s hear your take on the BBC.

      Join us…

         24 likes

      • JohnC says:

        Yup : come on ‘pollyanna’.

        Show us how it’s done and prove not you’re not just another bitter Leftist troll like those who flood all the political HYS at the BBC these days.

           14 likes

        • Guest Who says:

          Certainly what falls under ‘meaningful analysis’ would be interesting.

          Perhaps what is meant is JezBo’s team guessing what bomb damage looks like or something Toenails (yawn) read in The Critic Magazine that turned out to be incorrect?

          But turning up once in a blue moon to diss this forum rather than offer anything per critique about the BBC does seem familiar.

             8 likes

    • Fedup2 says:

      Dear Polly – thanks for your input … I’m sure you will find a more suitable website elsewhere … always easy to criticise from the outside isn’t it …?

      Nice bit of ageist sexism though ( to use the language of the Left ) …

         13 likes

    • Nibor says:

      It was mentioned by the blokes defending the BBC in their book The War Against The BBC .

         3 likes

    • Lunchtime Loather says:

      Very angry: Check
      Very right-wing: Check
      Old man: Check

      You know me so well. Would love to read what you have to say.

         11 likes

    • Nibor says:

      I think another problem about the lack of BBC content that Pollyanna complains about is due to the fact that twenty years ago more of us had the telly tax and were watching the BBC .
      I haven’t bought the licence for twenty years and didn’t watch television.
      A lot of others I know just gave up on the BBC and didn’t watch or listen to any of it .
      It’s hard to monitor the bias when you cut the BBC out of your life .

         14 likes

    • atlas_shrugged says:

      “I Enjoy Making Men Uncomfortable”: Feminist Star Wars Director Slammed for Setting Up Film to Be Disney’s ‘Biggest Woke Flop Yet’

      https://dailysceptic.org/2024/01/04/i-enjoy-making-men-uncomfortable-feminist-star-wars-director-slammed-for-setting-up-film-to-be-biggest-woke-flop-yet/

      “To every action there is an equal and opposite reaction”
      Newtons 3rd law of motion

         2 likes

  46. richard D says:

    I noted on the ‘Today’ programme today, regarding the report on the Epstain ‘associates’, that the BBC was extremely quick to point out that Prince Andrew had been mentioned around, *gasp*, 60 times in the papers released, and former President Clinton had a number of mentions also…..

    I later read that the number of mentions of Clinton was over 50 – i.e. in the same ballpark as ‘Randy Andy’. Not that the BBC was trying to downplay the Clintons’ involvement in any of this, you understand…

    Bias by omission is still bias.

       28 likes

  47. Guest Who says:

    Simpo, a journalist, reportedly, another of an ignoble line of staff the bbc are deploying on an individual basis to ‘share’.

    https://x.com/johnsimpsonnews/status/1742893171762147424?s=61
    This is Hamza Hammad, a well-known Palestinian journalist, who was injured, reportedly by an Israeli incendiary bomb, while reporting in Gaza. The danger to journalists in this war is the worst for decades.

    Gaza’s journalistic population appears to rival that of its burgeoning youth sector.

       9 likes