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Granny Danger

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http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/05/the-backlash-against-the-nus-has-begun/

The NUS to me represents this new anti-liberal philosophy that seems to be taking hold over universities. In my years as a student I felt a shift from freedom of expression towards 'safe space' politics where any opinion considered wrong is not only wrong, but offensive and dangerous.

Its identity politics as opposed to class based politics. Politics for them is a game of who can be the biggest victim rather than seeing themselves as the lucky ones in a wider society. This creates the divisive one up man ship of victim hood in lieu of broad based solidarity. 

 

Lots of people dial out of this kind of politics and thus it has little broad support when the hammer comes down. 

 

That said the NUS is always just a dysfunctional popularity contest. At each uni its whos the biggest arse licker in the biggest society and nationally who can spout the most carboard cut out rhetoric. No surprise their average career runs from Young Ones Rik Wevolutionary to NuLab aparatchick. Those at the top are natural ingratiators. 

Edited by dorlomin
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http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/05/the-backlash-against-the-nus-has-begun/

The NUS to me represents this new anti-liberal philosophy that seems to be taking hold over universities. In my years as a student I felt a shift from freedom of expression towards 'safe space' politics where any opinion considered wrong is not only wrong, but offensive and dangerous.

 

The safe space/no platforming bullsh*t has been doing my head in. Unless someone is inciting violence, there's no justification for banning people from speaking. If you're so convinced that their views are wrong it should be easy to take them apart in a debate. What's been going on lately is cowardly and dangerous.

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Its identity politics as opposed to class based politics. Politics for them is a game of who can be the biggest victim rather than seeing themselves as the lucky ones in a wider society. This creates the divisive one up man ship of victim hood in lieu of broad based solidarity. 

 

Lots of people dial out of this kind of politics and thus it has little broad support when the hammer comes down. 

 

That said the NUS is always just a dysfunctional popularity contest. At each uni its whos the biggest arse licker in the biggest society and nationally who can spout the most carboard cut out rhetoric. No surprise their average career runs from Young Ones Rik Wevolutionary to NuLab aparatchick. Those at the top are natural ingratiators. 

 

 

The safe space/no platforming bullsh*t has been doing my head in. Unless someone is inciting violence, there's no justification for banning people from speaking. If you're so convinced that their views are wrong it should be easy to take them apart in a debate. What's been going on lately is cowardly and dangerous.

 

Which is why it's going to be so utterly pleasing to see it fall apart. Shame on Exeter if they have truly hibsed it.

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Exeter votes to stay in the NUS. Hopefully there's some kind of legal challenge because the campaign tactics from the NUS were ridiculous (turning up at the doors of fresher students and refusing to leave until they'd vote yes, including bullying international students who had little or no idea what they were being coerced into voting for)

 

 

Pyrrhic victory for Malia and her cronies here. Hopefully the smear tactics will be well publicised and it will help the leave campaigns in the forthcoming referendums.  

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Exeter votes to stay in the NUS. Hopefully there's some kind of legal challenge because the campaign tactics from the NUS were ridiculous (turning up at the doors of fresher students and refusing to leave until they'd vote yes, including bullying international students who had little or no idea what they were being coerced into voting for)

 

 

Pyrrhic victory for Malia and her cronies here. Hopefully the smear tactics will be well publicised and it will help the leave campaigns in the forthcoming referendums.  

 

Shut up Scrappy.

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The safe space/no platforming bullsh*t has been doing my head in. Unless someone is inciting violence, there's no justification for banning people from speaking. If you're so convinced that their views are wrong it should be easy to take them apart in a debate. What's been going on lately is cowardly and dangerous.

1. The Social Justice Warriors don't have good arguments.

2. This is the fault of the parents. It's the end result of the bubble wrap generation. Kids have to learn how to work things out amongst themselves and we are now stuck with a generation who grew up with their play over supervised. They of course have no idea how to handle differences in any other way than running to authority figures and demanding protection.

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Its identity politics as opposed to class based politics. Politics for them is a game of who can be the biggest victim rather than seeing themselves as the lucky ones in a wider society. This creates the divisive one up man ship of victim hood in lieu of broad based solidarity.

 

Lots of people dial out of this kind of politics and thus it has little broad support when the hammer comes down. 

 

That said the NUS is always just a dysfunctional popularity contest. At each uni its whos the biggest arse licker in the biggest society and nationally who can spout the most carboard cut out rhetoric. No surprise their average career runs from Young Ones Rik Wevolutionary to NuLab aparatchick. Those at the top are natural ingratiators. 

Johnathan Butler, the black student at the University of Missouri who went on a hunger strike last year demanding that the University President resign and admit his "white privilege," is the son of a railroad executive who earns almost $10 million per year. He is in his 7th year of an out of state college paid with daddy's money. He is one of the most privileged humans in the history of the world and somehow he's turned himself into a victim in his own mind. It really is incredible.

Edited by Yank Mike
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Does any of this stuff have an impact on life outside of universities?

 

Not really, although some will go on to become grown-up politicians.

 

Patrick Grady would be a good example (President of the Strathclyde Union, went on to become an MP), Jim Murphy would be a bad one (NUS President, went on to become Jim Murphy).

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Not really sure which thread to put this in, but here is a nice little representation of how the main party votes have changed since the Scottish parliament was set up.

 

 

SPE1.png

 

SPE2.png

 

It's clear that the SNP constituency vote in the election just past has held rock solid (in fact it has increased slightly), even accounting for the higher voter turnout this time around.  The SNP list vote has taken a knock - looks like mainly to the Greens, but probably also to the Tories (disgruntled farmers?).

 

The real shift though is votes switching straight from Labour to Conservative.  Exactly how strong are your political beliefs when you can make that transition? I guess we always knew there was a high percentage of Red Tories, now they are just Tories.

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