I agree the parties aren’t but people were still allowed to go to work where they couldn’t work from home. I bet you that you could find thousands of examples of work colleagues, quite lawfully, discussing things outside in just the same circumstances.
I clearly have a very different idea as to what constitutes a party compared with some others! Call the above a party?!
Those gathered on the lawn, maybe. Are they around a BBQ?
Probably discussing Liverpool transfers.
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Why else would Carrie be there?
Possibly, but not in your back garden with some wine and the wife (partner) being there. So to my mind he’s lying again, and by extension has been lying all along about the parties. As the Tory party leader I assume he sent some correspondence giving guidelines on suitable Christmas celebrations that met the restrictions at that time?
If that was a formal meeting why split into 3 groups, why is no one taking notes and why was Carrie there?
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Speechless
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If it’s all so normal and innocent, is it the case that they consistently are drinking alcohol at formal meetings and in the office when ‘working late’?
Is it really appropriate for the people making decisions about the running of the country to be constantly rat-arsed?
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My take, from afar, is the government should be criticized and voted out, preferably on the basis of big stuff.
The sort of stuff I’m seeing - staying 3 weeks too long in a government property, and arguing the toss over what was work and what was play in the garden cheese and wine meeting… it seems small potatoes.
Granted, we all hate hypocrites, so if this is the straw that breaks the camel’s back, so be it.
But the government should come down on its poor policy execution - covid, Brexit, economy, education, health… that’s all way more important.
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100% but this is Brexit Britain where people are camped so hard on one side or the other there’s no shifting them.
The fact that Johnson’s indecision (at the very least) has cost thousands of lives is sadly irrelevant. Media is the other issue. It’s so broken that the truth is actually hard work to find. People have switched off. So long as they have some money in their pockets, can have their holidays, drive a car etc. they don’t care if their neighbour can’t afford to feed their kids or wonder why they have to wait 6 months for some basic medical treatment when the need arises. It’s properly fucked up
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If you can’t afford to feed your kids that’s absolutely not your neighbour’s fault. Is it their responsibility? No. Is it your fault? Probably in most cases. Not all granted but there is a safety net in society that should give anybody a basic level of food, heat, security etc. Cue gifs and rolling eyes emojis because people don’t like the truth.
If your neighbour is struggling do you shrug and walk away?
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If you knew a few of my neighbours, you’d run a mile.
Sure the safety net is there but it’s got massive holes in it. Cue Marcus Rashford.
My point being is that people vote for this to continue. In your case you don’t believe it exists. I’d say you need to look again.
Some people are in poverty and they are no good. It’s an unpleasant fact, but they make poor choices and they are scumbags, and blight the lives of others around them. Now, here is the proper truth though…
They are the overwhelming minority.
The vast majority people in poverty want a shot at making a life for themselves. They want to work. They want to do something useful. They want to feed their families and all the rest of it.
The problem with this sort of debate is we all have in mind the scumbags, and then if we aren’t careful, everyone in poverty is lumped together and compassion wanes. We have to work hard to resist that, and see people, just like ourselves, who want the opportunity to build a life.
FWIW I grew up in a council house, saw and experienced plenty of poverty - thank you Thatcher - was the first person in my family to go to Uni, saw my horizons expand, traveled, lived and worked in multiple places, been in the States for over a decade. Most of the people I grew up with had nothing, but they were good sorts. I’m sure the country has moved on since then, but possibly to a more savage and individualistic place with regard to how the poor are viewed and treated.
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The biggest cause of poverty is poverty. Always has been always will be.
You find yourself born into poverty and it’s nigh on impossible to escape that cycle. Meanwhile people are conditioned to believe that poor people are poor through entirely their own fault so we can all sleep at night.
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Spookily similar to my own upbringing. I was the first person in my family to go to Uni. Ever.
The weird thing was that so many people far brighter than me didn’t even see it as an option, because they had been conditioned to think it was just for other people, ie richer people. I even had relatives trying to talk me out of it - tha don’t wanna go there, get tha’sen a trade and earn some money. I remember one dear old Aunty telling me it wasn’t for people like us.
A lot of this isn’t to do with intelligence, laziness or any of the lazy tropes peddled by the right. It’s generations and generations of peoples horizons been dulled and narrowed by governments, media and education telling them what they can’t do.
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