The right wing bias of BBC Question Time tonight staggers belief, even for the BBC. One Francoist, two Tories, the still more right wing Chukka Umunna, all “balanced” by Akala, who thankfully has more brains, and certainly more compassion, than the rest put together.
Esther McVey, Tory. Champion of the rape clause, minister implementing benefit cuts and promoting privatised benefits assessments, lobbyist against regulating gambling machines. One of the very nastiest of Tories.
Chloe Westley Another Tory. Here representing the tiny far right fringe group the “Taxpayers Alliance”. Proponent of fierce benefit cuts. Studying the rampantly Islamophobic counter-terrorism course at St Andrews University. Her twitter handle is “LowTaxChloe” which is all you need to know.
Alejandro Agag Another Tory, invited by the BBC as a “businessman”. Former MEP for the Francoist Spanish Popular Party – the current government in Spain which is busy jailing as many political prisoners in Catalonia as they can get their hands on, and is happy sending in paramilitary thugs to club old Catalan ladies waiting to vote.
Chuka Umunna Full time taxpayer-funded right wing campaigner against Jeremy Corbyn.
Akala Very decent guy. Performing this year at our Doune the Rabbit Hole festival for which you should pull your finger out and get buying tickets now.
Why is the BBC permitted, day after day after day, to pump out programming which actively promotes a political programme far to the right of where the British population actually stand? With the continual over-representation of nutty right wing groups like the Taxpayers’ Alliance and the Henry Jackson Society, while left wing groups of much larger membership such as Stop the War are completely ignored. Why low tax campaigners but no invitation ever to groups like Black Triangle who represent claimants interests? Not to mention the routine ignoring of the SNP, parliament’s third largest party.
I strongly urge you not to pay your TV license to fund this barrage of right wing propaganda. I and thousands of others in Scotland have refused to pay since 2014, and other than lots of silly threatening letters nothing has happened. Just stop paying for this nonsense.
Weird, we just stopped paying the license fee precisely because our perception is that the BBC constantly displays a left wing bias. I follow you because on many subjects I find you rational and reasonable. Calling members of the opposition nasty is not the road to civilised discourse.
“…the BBC constantly displays a left wing bias.”
Er…you do understand what ‘left-wing’ means, yes? A written Constitution outlawing private property (nationalisation of all land, etc.), establishing the right of citizens to bear arms (as per the US Second Amendment), and so on in good Communist fashion.
Looking forward to your links showing where the BBC supports these objectives.
He probably thinks showing support for Blair is proof of “left-wing bias”. People like that don’t have any concept of absolutes, so anything not quite as far to the right of a swivel-eyed fascist is therefore a “lefty”.
It appears your perception needs gauging.
Good to see Chuka Umuna, the acceptable face of Toryism, joining the cast of The Only Way Is Essex here. I suppose he’ll be playing a hard-nosed polo-playing business guru with property bought for him by an offshore trust.
A “Francoist”? So he wants a military dictatorship, a one-party state, and a ban on independent trade unions, right?
No, he does not want any of those things.
The author of the words however is just another anarchist imbued with the “values” of the British establishment doing his idle best to provoke catastrophe in Spain. Fortunately the Spanish are far too smart and far too determined to ever allow Spain to descend into the chaos urged on them by their moral superiors the British.
Loony, like I said yesterday, I think it’s time you handed use of the computer over to another patient on your ward!
Leave him be. It’s a form of therapy. If he wasn’t vomiting his free form brain jiz into the ether, he would be ….. best not to speculate. Probably involves an AR 15 and a crowded place.
In a few years I won’t have to pay for a TV licence that has bought some really watchable programmes like Blue Planet, Last Tango in Halifax and a few other things I don’t mind funding. It is the news! Balanced news is very important but unfortunately we get so little of that. This morning, as if by magic, the BBC, and commercial channels were all running the same shit. It is the shit those who own the media think is good for us.
I often turn over to RT but this week we had to suffer a never-ending military parade which is about as interesting as a re-run of the Jewish holocaust, which we also get ad nauseam. Yes I know the Russians lost millions and respect and remembrance should be a part of life. But you cannot bring the lost back. And a display of the latest military hardware is only there to give the message “Don’t mess with us!”
The only way the TV licence can be removed is by everybody, as a union of TV licence-payers, to say together “Enough is enough!” It needs organising. A strong urge is not going to do it alone. Tony Rooke tried that.
Meanwhile, what twenty years ago was a fairly open WWW has become a tool of the pro-establishment and spooks alone (this manipulation of opinion being the main reason we have to sit through all the BBC shit). You used to be able to use Google putting a word string in inverted commas and it would find sites which included the string. That facility no longer exists and that is just one example of how you cannot find appropriate comment. But worse than that. They have developed software that makes the individual think he or she has posted an article, comment or photo because they can see it on their screen whereas others cannot. If you do not believe me click my name to read blogs about it. And please comment in reply because I no longer know exactly what is happening and who can see my blog. Thanks.
“In a few years I won’t have to pay for a TV licence that has bought some really watchable programmes like Blue Planet, Last Tango in Halifax and a few other things I don’t mind funding.”
You can download stuff as torrents for free, no TV set or TV licence required 🙂
“This morning, as if by magic, the BBC, and commercial channels were all running the same shit. It is the shit those who own the media think is good for us.”
(…)
“The only way the TV licence can be removed is by everybody, as a union of TV licence-payers, to say together “Enough is enough!” It needs organising.”
A case of demanding the right to eat free shit?
Also why should I pay through taxation for other people to eat shit that I myself don’t want to eat and to be quite frank I don’t want to encourage them to eat either 🙂
Agreed about blogging. Independent blogging is almost dead. Facebook is like a blanket and there are other means of independent-mind suppression too, as we all know. Independent blogging wasn’t ever much alive. Craig’s blog is highly exceptional. We need new methods, aimed at a minority. The majority are under the blanket (and there are various ways to read that metaphor), picking their smartphones on the way to Armageddon. It’s going to be difficult. There’s not a great history of non-sociopathic lone wolves.
“They have developed software that makes the individual think he or she has posted an article, comment or photo because they can see it on their screen whereas others cannot.”
This shadowbanning facility says a great deal about our times and how conformity is induced, under the heading of being “social”. It cannot be fought by old methods.
It should worry everybody especially since Theresa May has introduced legislation to permit even more intrusiveness. If people of the world do not start fighting back to revert to former laws where there was individual protection under the law whatever a person’s social class it could be too late. One thing to always remember is our advantage in numbers. As Shelley suggested in that formidable poem “The Mask of Anarchy” we are many they are few.
There are alternatives to Google. You can search for strings on http://www.duckduckgo.com
I use duckduckgo.com all the time, but still the search results in 2018 are 100 times worse than in 2002. Nowadays, all searches are dominated by MSM links, even if they are irrelevant and rubbish. 16 years ago I did some research on vaccines and a lot of independent sites came up in searches. Not any more…
What is needed is a global series of nationally-relevant, quasi-socialist citizen-owned search engines, reinventing the early Google algorithms. Any patents on them will disappear by 2025, courtesy of 20 year expiries. Then the internet can return to being for the people….paid for by taxation with possibly subscriptions for enhanced features….
“Then the internet can return to being for the people….paid for by taxation with possibly subscriptions for enhanced features….”
Good ideas. And agree an internet connection should be a right for everyone and paid for out of taxation is the way to go. In among that I would think that it needs to be made the case that the *only function* of an ISP is to provide a stable connection and they have zero involvement beyond that once it is in place. However, “subscriptions for enhanced features” is a very, very dodgy road to go down. Basically it would amount to introducing a two-, three- whatever-tier system for those that have the means. No, everyone gets the same and in that way pressures for improvement is improvement for all. Your whatever-tier system basically opens the door to break net neutrality. And we can already see signs of corporations and governments wanting to go down that road.
“What is needed is a global series of nationally-relevant, quasi-socialist citizen-owned search engines, reinventing the early Google algorithms.”
I bet there are some smart people Rhys who have retained copies of the source code. It’s not theft, it’s concern for society. A few minor changes and we’re up and running (or at least the developers of Chiliads might be). Google was based on a big number too. I expect Larry Page and Sergey Brin will have signed non-disclosures and other clauses not to divulge. These brilliant innovations always end up in the wrong hands.
“These brilliant innovations always end up in the wrong hands.”
Really all down to TRIPS and all that goes with that: https://therealnews.com/series/trips-the-story-of-how-intellectual-property-became-linked-to-trade
P.S. This also on TRIPS specifically looking at China and TRIPS: https://therealnews.com/stories/chinas-embrace-of-an-intellectual-property-system-imposed-on-it-by-the-united-states
Hi John – agree wholeheartedly. Re your blog – I’ve tried posting to it a couple of times over the last month, but the messages don’t appear. If you can send an email, I’ll drop a note. Cheers.
Done Mark. Thanks.
I have absolute proof now that others see something much different from what I post. This is not all the time but certainly some of the time.
Google (just like Facebook) is an advertising company that, surprise surprise, has worked closely with the surveillance state since the beginning.
Almost every time someone uses Google or Facebook they are working for an advertising company for free.
And……the BBC have rolled the insufferable Chloe Westley out again today on the Daily Politics!
Just a short mention, in case anyone wants to go:
‘”9/11 Justice:Every Nation, Every Citizen” Richard Gage & Barbara Honegger…’:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/911-justiceevery-nation-every-citizen-richard-gage-barbara-honegger-tickets-45069841108?ref=esfb
It’s next Tuesday, 15th May, Covent Garden.
And, to that should be added the permanent right wing buffoonery of the egregious David Dimbleby.
Much more concerned by no coverage by anyone of the Israeli-led NATO apparently causing Iran to cross the red line in Israeli by bombing the Syrian occupied Golan Heights which did apparently no damage, but gave Israel seven times over cause to bomb all of Syria. Iran has said nothing about the source of the attacks.
Reminds me of how the Nazis stated WWII in Poland.
Yes indeed – it is important that A says B attacked it and has carried out a lot of bombing in response, and the Brit and US media doesn’t even report what B says. Nor does Britgov even say it’s formed its own opinion on events. (Strange – what does it pay its secret intelligence service for?) The only reports quote what A says.
This means A has enormous power in the world. So do we trust them to tell the truth on a matter that’s in their own interests? Like, duuuhhhhhhhh!
We mustn’t say any of that, though. We’d be “just like Hitler” if we did.
The IRNA website seems to be down.
Time website is reporting that the first shots were made by Israel just an hour after Trump’s leaving JCPOA speech, to which Iran fired 20 rockets in to Golan and then Israel launched their biggest strike in Syria since the civil war started. This wasn’t mentioned at all in BBC news reports and this nugget of info was halfway down the report on the BBC website. IMO that would be a distinctly different picture from what is being painted (big bad nasty Iran are at it again, we need a war etc). It’s happening again people, buckle up.
I should have added: Iran has denied firing missiles at the Znazi entity.
Sorry @Ashley, I posted before I saw your info. That’s interesting if the Z__nists fired shots before the alleged missiles were launched against them. Certainly it all seems part of an effort in which Trump’s announcement was part (and prob Netanyahu’s Moscow visit too).
Why has Iran still denied firing the missiles, when it could have said it was just responding to Israeli provocations?
Because, Trowbridge, I wonder how much Iran was involved at all. All the casualties and damage that has been mentioned was to Syrians, not Iranians.
I should just of course mention that there may not be many Iranians at all in Syria. I read an article a couple of months ago which said that at one time there were 30,000, but was now much less. Presumably gone home because no longer needed. Same with Hizbullah, their participation has been in major decline. Mainly Syrians fighting now. One Syrian brigade commander said his unit was 20% recycled rebels (former FSA).
Much more concerned by no coverage by anyone of the Israeli-led NATO apparently causing Iran to cross the red line in Israeli by bombing the Syrian occupied Golan Heights
There is this from Tom Duggan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plWTsNPnicQ
The mechanism of the license fee itself is a manipulation tool, in that the populace think they have some involvment in the BBC, as “they are paying for it” via the license fee. The BBC is a very corrupt and biased organisation. We are so brainwashed by the BBC from childhood up, that we see it as “Auntie Beeb” and have empathy for it.
The BBC tends to promote also a constant non-spiritual Darwinist version of life. This again is a manipulation to keep you in a state of “fear of death” etc. The state rules by fear. Fear of the bogeyman around the corner. This is why the likes of the BBC News is about “bad things”mostly. Fear inhibits rational thought, and keeps you controllable.
Where is the Panorama or documentary about why the Manchester fire brigade were not allowed into the fabricated terror event at Manchester arena?
To stop feeling it is Auntie, start submitting complaints. I complain regularly and many are upheld…..
Has anyone traced where “Auntie” and “the Beeb” come from? They are very friendly nicknames that must surely have originated from government propaganda, whether used favourably or ironically or otherwise critically.
Where’ s Nigel?
Where’s Kate Andrews?
Even Iain Duncan Smith wants action against Fixed Odds Betting Terminals!
You must not watch RT because that is just propaganda!
I’m strongly inclined to withhold my licence fee after what you’ve said!
No notice here either about the apparent false flag attacks in Syria.
Oh, lets hope that Isreal, NATO and the West has STARTED a lovely war this time.
Us salad dodgers got a ring side seat to BBC “impartiality” in 2014. James Naughtie (British American Project graduate) and Sarah Smith (daughter of British American Project graduate) were dispatched to the frozen north to modulate the natives (as a temporary secondment). As the referendum moved up the news agenda (squeaky arse time) Nick Robinson, star presenter (extremely highly paid) and expert in all matters was dispatched to convey events to a UK audience. It never crossed their minds to use someone like Ken McDonald (who had been covering the build up for years and new wtf he was talking about. “Use the local stringers? Don’t you think the accents would be a tad unintelligible?” Needless to say nasty Nick made an arse of himself.
The point is; stop consuming and stop paying. A lot of us did as of 2014 but comprising 10% of the revenue stream the hit was not terminal. Time for England, Wales and NI to follow suit.
Most satisfying aspect is that the legions of nonentity middle managers performing no discernible function on six figure salaries will be what hastens the crisis.
BBC – they play the monarchist anthem on the radio every day, right? And they’re biased? This is terrible!
And the Pope…he’s Catholic?
It has been the case for a couple of decades that the state media runs discussions featuring four or five w***ers and they are all on the far right.
(On one occasion they had someone who was a bit of a social democrat speaking for Bremain but he was dressed up as a woman and nobody was supposed to say “it’s ridiculous for a man to dress that way”, although of course about 99% of viewers thought exactly that. Even double-glazing conmen don’t cross-dress or dress as clowns when they’re trying to be persuasive. How Arron Banks must have cackled.)
Sometimes one of the far-right “panel” is a hate-filled ultra-racist and national socialist called “Melanie Phillips”.
Don’t watch TV.
But at least Melanie Phillips is not a foul-mouthed, nihilist loser with anger-management issues!
“But at least Melanie Phillips is not a foul-mouthed, nihilist loser with anger-management issues!”-Shouldn’t be so hard on yourself, Charles!
‘On one occasion they had someone who was a bit of a social democrat speaking for Bremain but he was dressed up as a woman and nobody was supposed to say “it’s ridiculous for a man to dress that way”, although of course about 99% of viewers thought exactly that. Even double-glazing conmen don’t cross-dress or dress as clowns when they’re trying to be persuasive. How Arron Banks must have cackled.)’
Am sure most people don’t care what others wear; quite a few have great respect for someone with the courage to be themselves despite what some people may (or may not) think.
Is Ms Westley responsible, with others, for paying the fine imposed on Vote Leave?
Brexit: Leave.EU fined £70,000 for breaking electoral law during referendum
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-44080096
‘Change Britain Head of Campaigns Mar 2017 – May 2017
Change Britain Digital Campaign Manager Sep 2016 – Mar 2017
Gove 2016 (leadership campaign) Advisor Jun 2016 – Jul 2016
Head of Social Media Vote Leave 2016’
From my earlier post detailing her Linked In entry.
https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2018/05/the-incredible-bias-of-the-bbc/comment-page-2/#comment-747756
Or is Leave EU different from Vote Leave?
Have you asked how much foreigners like George Soros pumped into Remain, especially indirectly?
What about head of Goldman Sachs, Barack Obama etc etc? Not to mention tapayers money to the brazenly Remain BBC?
I do love a good electoral cheating story, and when the poshboys and bureaucrats shit themselves for fear of what might unravel, and how far up it goes.
BUT, as usual, “criticism” is being encouraged to go only along certain channels. What some people are saying about the Leave campaign conveys the assumption that Leave votes were basically bought, and bought quite cheap, insofar as extra spending on campaigning persuaded people to vote Leave rather than to back Remain or abstain. Do we notice what that says about voters?
Sure. I mean it’s true. But that isn’t all there is to it. Most people who voted Leave did it out of xenophobia and out of the totally rational knowledge that their views on what was happening to their living conditions, especially in connection with immigration, had been ignored by all major political parties for decades. Much of the left seems to find it impossible to say that. And saying that people voted Leave solely because of campaign spending continues to ignore that same matter. Ignore it again and ignore it too much and it will find another avenue for expression. Which I think will happen anyway.
If there were a third Brexit referendum right now, Leave would win a second time. Never mind all the parliamentary drama. That’s precisely the point. The referendum was, for once, a vote without parliamentary drama. If another Brexit referendum is held before the economy stops, the lights go out, the petrol pumps run dry and the shelves go bare, the only way Remain could win is if they paint themselves as the anti-immigration side. That may be hard for them to do openly, but there are ways and means. (Hello Sajid Javid, who wants a nice friendly environment for illegal immigrants. A what?) Politics is about emotion. Ask Cambridge Analytica.
“Most people who voted Leave did it out of xenophobia and out of the totally rational knowledge that their views on what was happening to their living conditions, especially in connection with immigration, had been ignored by all major political parties for decades.”
Another significant proportion of the Leave vote which is also never mentioned, presumably because it doesn’t fit into the narrative, is those people who voted leave because the Tory Government had aligned itself with Remain and the Remain propaganda promised much pain in the event of a leave vote, but mainly to the middle classes. To many of the non-home-owning poor, the chance to give the governing and middle classes in general and David Cameron in particular, a lot of bloody noses, was too good to pass up.
Leave would not win a teferendum
Yes, Rhys, it’d be those bloody foreigners again! To make it worse, Soros is one of the “J***ish brethren” you were going on about in your comment on OffGuardian the other day!!
The answer to your question is on the second line of the BBC page you linked to…
“The Electoral Commission said the group – which was separate from the official pro-Brexit group Vote Leave”
You forgot Louise Minchin’s eyebrows. Every morning on BBC breakfast TV she signals her disapproval of particular topics by dramatically raising one or both of her eyebrows as the story is presented, it is particularly true of anything to do with Trump or Brexit.
OK, that’s her act laid bare. What’s the analysis of those who watch it?
Minchin and the Football Focus Sidekick is not serious news it is gossip through TV….
A little sop for the people.
From 38 Degrees.
We have some fantastic news. Thanks to thousands of 38 Degrees-ers (including you!), on Wednesday the government scrapped the dangerous data-sharing deal between NHS Digital and the Home Office. [1]
Vulnerable patients’ personal details will no longer be shared with the Home Office. So people will no longer be so afraid of visiting the doctor they leave life-threatening conditions untreated. This could save lives. [2]
Thousands of us joined Doctors of the World to demand an end to the dangerous deal. We signed a huge petition, chipped in for hard hitting ad vans to drive around Westminster, and emailed, tweeted and phoned Jeremy Hunt demanding that he scrap the deal. [3] And it worked!
Home Office NHS data sharing ad van Image
It’s news to be proud of. There’ll be many more campaigns to work on together in the future, but today we can celebrate what our people-power has achieved.
Dr Tim Dudderidge, President of Doctors of the World UK says: ‘Thank you so much to everyone who signed the petition and chipped in to fund the campaign, this news means that NHS doctors can get on with doing what they do best – looking after the health of everybody in our community’
Thanks for being involved, etc’
[1] The Guardian: NHS will no longer have to share immigrants’ data with Home Office:
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/may/09/government-to-stop-forcing-nhs-to-share-patients-data-with-home-office
The Mirror: Home Office will stop using NHS records to track down illegal immigrants:
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/home-office-stop-using-nhs-12508018
Doctors of the World: Government will halt NHS datasharing with Home Office except for serious crime:
https://www.doctorsoftheworld.org.uk/news/government-will-halt-nhs-data-sharing-with-home-office-except-for-serious-crime
[2] In one case presented to the Health Select Committee a domestic worker died because she feared the attention of the authorities after contracting pneumonia:
Telegraph: Stop sharing NHS data with Home Office, officials told:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/04/15/stop-sharing-nhs-data-home-office-officials-told/
[3] Doctors of the World are an independent humanitarian organisation that works in the UK and abroad to help people get access to the healthcare they need. You can read more about what they do here:
https://www.doctorsoftheworld.org.uk/about-us
38 Degrees: Stop making our NHS doctors into border guards:
https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/stop-using-nhs-patients-personal-information-for-immigration-enforcement
38 Degrees blog: NHS data sharing with the Home Office:
https://home.38degrees.org.uk/2018/05/04/nhs-data-sharing-with-the-home-office/
‘For those in London, following the terrible shootings and killings of peaceful protestors in Gaza for the forthcoming 70th anniversary of the Nakba, Please do your very best to attend a vitally important demonstration taking place opposite the Israeli Embassy on Friday May 11, from 5.30 to 7pm.
It is essential that there is as big a turnout as possible ahead of May 15, which marks the climax of the Gaza protests. The people of Gaza urgently need the support of international civil society as they attempt to break the siege by means of non-violent resistance.
Many thanks
PROTEST: STAND UP FOR GAZA: STOP THE KILLING
When: Fri, 11 May, 17:30 – 19:30
Where: Israeli Embassy, Kensington High Street, London (The Embassy is in Palace Green, off Kensington High St.)
Closest Underground: High Street Kensington
Organised by: Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Al-Aqsa, Palestinian Forum in Britain Supporting: Muslim Association of Britain, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Stop the War Coalition, EuroPal Forum. ‘
I see from the website that they close on Friday afternoons. http://embassies.gov.il/london/Pages/default.aspx
If you click on ‘go to map’ you receive a google message – 404: Page not found – the page https://goo.gl/maps/zZq1W%E2%80%8B%E2%80%8B%E2%80%8B does not exist. Fancy that!
***************************************************************************
Video: Celebrating the Great March of Return
The Electronic Intifada 7 May 2018
Not far from the protests on the Gaza boundary, families have been gathering every Friday since 30 March to participate in activities for the Great March of Return.
“People come here from all over Gaza,” said Majed Qadih, one of the attendees. Brought together by the collective demand to end the siege and return to their homeland, Palestinians celebrate their heritage with traditional food, song and dance.
“Me and my children and my children’s children. We come here and we explain everything to them,” said Abedrabbo Abu Daqqa. “We tell them this is our land right before our eyes.”
See the video
https://electronicintifada.net/content/video-celebrating-great-march-return/24176
Video by Ruwaida Amer and Sanad Ltefa.
I gave up on QT a while ago now- I had forgotten about it altogether until reading Craig’s blog.
As much as I respect and admire you, sometimes you say the silliest things. Do you really expect state run media whose livelihood is acquired through involuntary confiscation from the citizenry to be anything but pro-state establishment?
Maybe I was just naive when younger but I don’t think they were quite so reactionary 30 years ago as they are now.
They made dramas like Boys From The Blackstuff at the height of Thatcherism. I can’t imagine anything like that happening at the beeb now. All too cozy with their political masters.
Mr Murray’s article would have been better if he had, at the same time as urging people not to pay the TV licence fee, warned them not to keep watching TV. His failure to do so might have incited some of the dimmer minds to think that payment is volontary whereas, as we law abiding citizens all know (don’t we?) it is a criminal offence to watch TV without paying the licence fee.
It’s a forced tax by the government and the BBC only, the other terrestial channels do not enforce it. It’s a racketeering scheme that Al Capone would’ve been jealous of.
If you wants to keep paying to be lied to fair enough, I guess it could be classed as a form of Stockholm syndrome.
Waffle which doesn’t address my point. All taxes are ‘forced’ and can be avoided to some extent, eg by having a low enough or no taxable income and buying the minimum of consumer goods subject to VAT. Same with the BBC – if you don’t want to pay, stop viewing.
Perhaps an independent Scotland would abolish the TV licence fee and TV could be subsidised entirely from the public purse, aka the taxpayers (whether they watch TV or not).
“Perhaps an independent Scotland would abolish the TV licence fee ”
Perhaps it would, but there’s no denying the state broadcaster is a full blown mouthpiece for the Tory government, why on earth would I want to pay to be lied to.
Well then don’t pay and don’t watch the lying TV. The choice is yours, is it not?
I thought that would obvious, apparently not.
All taxes are ‘forced
Excellent point.
Avoid paying taxes that go to the Defence Dept. when there’s an inappropriate bias in their targeting.
You are naughty ‘h’.
The BBC mantra is always “we get criticised by both ‘sides’ so we must be doing something right”.
.
Patently nonsensical.
@Merkin Scot – I have to agree that it gets excruciatingly tiresome hearing the typically colonialist-flavoured propaganda line again and again, as if they were the grownups running things and, well, some natives say this and other natives say that, and you’ve got to listen but at the end of the day you expect natives of various kinds to be a bit restless in their own dearypants and often quite colourful native ways, and the white man must shoulder his burden with a view only to what he knows is right, what is good, what is proper, and God Bless Her Majesty.
But what would else one expect of the kingdom state’s broadcasting organ?
Exhorting illegal behaviour is irresponsible. Certainly the BBC is biased. Indeed, it clearly sees itself as a propaganda organisation. As Annita McVeigh stated: “We are in an information war with Russia…” and that is only one of its biases. Rather than exhorting people to refuse to pay the licence fee, a more responsible position would be a campaign against BBC bias, even a campaign to abolish the organisation: ie, the legitimate use of the right to freedom of expression.
There’s a good old russian joke regarding a freedom of expression, time of the Cold War.
British journalist: – In Britain there is freedom of speech!
USSR journalist: – What does it mean?
BRIT: – For example, I can stand up in the center of the Trafalgar Square in London and shout “Prime Minister of great Britain is a dumbass!”
In Russia you can’t do the same.
USSR: – Oh, you’re wrong, my friend. There’s freedom of speech in Russia also. Me too can stand up in the center of the Red Square in Moscow and shout “Prime Minister of great Britain is a dumbass!”
You can’t expect parity from the state broadcaster it takes its cue from the Tory government.
Indeed during and after the 2014 Scottish indyref the 4th Estate played its part in scaremongering and prevaricating to frighten yes voters into submission.
We condemn the likes of Iran or Russia for state sponsored news, but the British media is fast catching up with them.
Nearly a year on and May is still messing around.
Grenfell Tower inquiry panel broadened in apparent U-turn
29 minutes ago
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-44085044
Nothing to do with the location of next week’s QT we trust.
Rhys Jaggar
May 11, 2018 at 14:20
Corruption in both sets. What about BLiar and Campbell still propagandizing for Remain and their followers on the Green Benches? There are dozens of them. So many lies have been told on BOTH sides.
The referendum was, after all, Cameron’s legacy as he slid off to make even more sponduliks.
Well said, Craig! I agree entirely with your comments.
Except one. If anyone is worried about those t’hreatening letters’ they might get if they refuse to pay their license fee, then… Have no fear – you can do it legally. Just use the online ‘cancellation’ page on the BBC website and let BBC know you no longer watch ‘live’ TV. And then close the DD. BBC will tell you, “Okay. We’ll write you in two years to see if things are still the same”. And they do. To which you write simply. “Yes.” And – no hassle. No threatening letters. Nothing.
There are umpteen ways to get programming that is NOT LIVE’. There is a Netflix subscription which is cheaper than BBC, there is YouTube and then there is a Kodi box (£30. and NIL after that). Each of those options gets you everything you want from TV. It’s all there – and IT’S ALL LEGAL!! The news can be seen on your computer – RT, Aljezeera, it’s there and costs nothing.
By doing it this way you need not fear the ‘TV License Bogey Men’ and you will NOT be supporting BBC propaganda being piped into your home. If you don’t watch it, don’t pay for it. It’s that simple.
In Glasgow Jeremy Corbyn empathically endorses Scotland being in the union and denies any sympathy with the cause of independence.
Tellingly he endorsed what Carwyn Jones did in Wales and said that he was fine with it. Saying “that is how devolution works”. Except devolution isn’t going to work now in Wales you berk.
We’ll now see how long Corbyn puppet Richard Leonard and Scottish Labour defy the Tories over the power grab.
Is it any wonder Mhairi Black’s furious with flip flopping Corbyn. His wee jaunts north of border do little to bolster his branch office popularity in Scotland.
I hope you all realise that the TPA itself opposes the licence fee
https://www.taxpayersalliance.com/time_to_scrap_the_licence_fee