Do you agree with our readers? Have your say on these MetroTalk topics and more in the comments.
Reader says economy is responsible for government being ‘a few scandals away from disaster’
Some people are comparing this government’s scandals with the ‘teething problems’ of the Blair era.
Who remembers the Harriet Harman donation affair, for instance? Even considering the things people do remember – like the first Peter Mandelson scandal or the resignation of Robin Cook – none came close to threatening the prime minister.
Yet, if they happened now, they’d be a major escalation of the current crisis. So what’s the difference?
It’s the economy, stupid. In the late 1990s and (to a lesser extent) the early 2000s, the economy was booming. So we weren’t fazed by these little furores because we generally felt well-off. Now the economy has been in the toilet for nearly 20 years and the blame is always going to be on the people in charge.
So we’re looking for excuses to pick holes in them and any excuse will do.
That’s not to say we’re wrong to do this but if the economic situation was improving, these things would be ‘teething problems’ just like before and quickly forgotten.
Unfortunately the economy is in a mess and people are fed up. And as long as that’s true, this government will only ever be a few scandals away from disaster. Helen Shaw, Liverpool
Reader criticises those supporting Trump’s state visit
I’m not quite sure what Julian (MetroTalk, Thu) is on about when he says protests at Trump’s visit are pointless and actually harm the nation.
There is always a point to public protests like this, even if they don’t appear to ‘achieve’ anything, which I think they do anyway. We must never let Trump and his ilk think that everyone is happy with them or accepting of their shameful behaviour and deeds. Agatha, Surrey
Reader defends LGBTQ+ flag, a ‘symbol of unity’
I have to appreciate the irony of Paul (MetroTalk, Thu) accusing others of missing the point as he bemoans people calling out the removal of LGBT flags from council buildings.
I’m curious who he thinks the rainbow flag is being ‘prejudicial’ against, when it has always been a symbol of unity – that no matter your colour, gender or sexuality, you are welcomed as a person.
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The only people who seem to have issues with it are the bigots who scream that seeing a rainbow will somehow brainwash their children into becoming a homosexual. In fact, it does a better job of doing what the English flag is supposed to represent, before the likes of Britain First co-opted it as a symbol of hate to hide behind while they target anyone who doesn’t fit their white-washed, Aryan-eqsue image of what Britain should be. Matthew, Birmingham
Would ‘working-class men’ be the only ones to defend the UK in war?
Martin (MetroTalk, Thu) makes quite the presumption in asserting that ‘working-class men’ are the only ones who would ‘step up to fight for our country’ in the event of a war.
This ignores the backlash against the idea of conscription among this demographic should Putin expand his aggression further through Europe.
As to his other assertion that it’s only ‘middle class wets’ who even read the paper, Metro is a free paper consumed by those who use public transport, which I think Martin will find, are usually those ‘working class’ people he seems to know so well. David, Birmingham
Reader says Unite the Kingdom rally was a ‘gathering of far-right and ultra-conservative political activists’
Brian (MetroTalk, Wed) claims Saturday’s rally led by ex-con and former English Defence League member Stephen ‘Tommy Robinson’ Yaxley-Lennon was the British people desperately trying to draw the government’s attention to their concerns. Pull the other one!
They may have tried to hide behind their British and English flags and liberal values such as freedom of speech, but this was plainly a gathering of far-right and ultra-conservative political activists – not just from the UK, but from Europe and the US.
The game was given away by the appearance of, and loud cheering for, Elon Musk – who polls have shown to be very unpopular, with most ordinary UK citizens – as well as the prominent lauding of late MAGA idol Charlie Kirk, who most people in the UK had never heard of until recently.
Let’s not be fooled by this imported nonsense – this is part of a cynical ultra-conservative campaign, backed by foreign billionaires and employing far-right thugs, to overthrow a legitimate moderate government and replace it with an autocratic MAGA-style regime. Paul Johnson, Ilford
Reader highlights Starmer’s shift in perspective over ‘migrant deportation’
Sir Keir Starmer used to be a legal officer for Liberty, a leading group advocating for the human rights of migrants, among other similar issues.
He decided to work for a human rights law firm, Doughty Street Chambers, who have won various cases by appealing to the European Court of Human Rights.
He also served as a human rights adviser to the police, helping to protect the human rights of people being arrested or detained. All of this was by choice.
Whether you agree with him or not, this suggests that if he was still just a lawyer, Starmer would be opposed to migrant deportation flights.
Yet now, as prime minister, he claims to support them. Given that we have this pretty solid evidence that he’s sold out his beliefs, how on earth are we supposed to trust anything Keir Starmer says? Sharon, Manchester
Autumn fever?
Is it me or is everyone overreacting to the change of season? Not only am I having to endure a colleague having a heater on in the office all day every day, but now I’ve noticed the trains and buses have started cranking up their heating, too.
I know the heatwave season might be over and the weather has become a bit miserable, but it’s not that cold.
How will all these shivering people cope in December and January? Bethany, Coventry
Another supporter for the campaign against hyperbole
I totally agree with Laurence (MetroTalk, Wed) and his campaign against hyperbole. I frequently hear people telling their friends that they ‘literally died’. I must say, they all look pretty healthy to me. Rosen, Portsmouth
And, it seems, another?
Laurence asks for examples of annoying everyday hyperbole and asks whether anyone can top ‘beyond perfect’. How about ‘110 per cent’ or ‘infinitely better’? Nick, London
Do you agree with our readers? Have your say on these MetroTalk topics and more in the comments.
