17 ms·

The UK is an authoritarian, privacy-less, censorship-rife hellhole.

idlewords 4y ago
Really more of a heckhole; let's be honest here.
sschueller 4y ago
Take a look what the EU wants to do with CSAM. Distopian nightmare to protect kids while at the same time make every single one of them a suspect.
- LorenPechtel 4y ago
  Yeah, it's the reason da jour for getting rid of privacy. There's always a reason, it just keeps changing as people object to the old ones.
- leshenka 4y ago
  > Distopian nightmare to protect kids We know a little too well what "would somebody think of the childen" did to the internet in Russia.
danjac 4y ago
Having grown up in, and subsequently emigrated from the UK, I would say that Britain is a weird place when looked at from a distance. The class system has led to a society where the middle classes consider themselves the moral guardians of the working class, while looking up at the upper classes with a mixture of contempt and envy. Middle-class right wing readers of the Daily Mail and left wing readers of the Guardian are more similar in that regard than either would like to admit. So (while coming from a different political place) both want to crack down on the evils of the internet to Protect the Children and, of course, to save the working classes from themselves (and protect their neighbourhoods: think of the property prices!). As both Conservatives and Labour need their votes, authoritarian cracking-down on issue du jour is always a good vote winner. Today it's the internet, back in the 80s it was MDMA and rave parties, back in the 1800s it was gin palaces and gambling. Same thing though: Britain's self-appointed moral guardians and their representatives in the media and parliament wagging their finger at everyone else.
account-5 4y ago
I think that's a little harsh. Do you live in the UK?
- wunderland 4y ago
  I do. It’s harsh but accurate in my opinion.
- jasfi 4y ago
  I had money disappear out of my NatWest account several years ago, when I lived in the UK. No transaction was present to show where it went. Nobody at the bank would speak to me about it, not to this day. I'm talking making it obvious that they didn't want to speak to me about it. That was one of many incidents where I was blatantly ripped off. Nobody there cared one bit. EDIT: thanks for all the replies! That means something to me, I'll see if I can't get this sorted out. It's just weird that even the NatWest Twitter customer support account ignores my DMs.
  - YourDadVPN 4y ago
    That's... quite spooky, do you have any theories as to what happened? I hope you at least changed all your security info.
    - jasfi 4y ago
      I think this is related to corruption - of which I am a target, which started in South Africa (where I'm originally from and have now moved back to), which seemed to spread to the UK when I moved there. I can't get anything in black and white either.
  - turkeywelder 4y ago
    Raise it with the ombudsman!
    - jasfi 4y ago
      I'll try again. Everything I've done seemed like a dead-end, but I'll try.
AuthorizedCust 4y ago
Affirmed by gross mass-proliferation of automated ticketing machines on UK roads.
- Lio 4y ago
  You mean average speed cameras? If so, just stop speeding if you don't want a ticket. Go to a track day if you want to race. If you mean ANPR for tax and insurance, well again just pay the tax and insurance. It's not that hard.
  - AuthorizedCust 4y ago
    You’re missing the point. We don’t need a surveillance society to achieve societal goals. But the UK made that choice. What does that say about the UK? The mere presence of a potential harm does not justify all means to correct the harm. Where do we draw the line?
Gordonjcp 4y ago
You could say the same about the US.
- richwater 4y ago
  UK doesn't arrest you for carrying pepper spray.
  - implements 4y ago
    The incapacitating kind of pepper spray is treated as a Section 5 ‘Firearm’ in the UK, and would land you in a world of trouble. You can get unpleasant smelling / badly staining / hard to remove spray which acts as a deterrent by making an attacker easily identifiable, but that’s about it I believe.
  - localplume 4y ago
    Do you mean the other way around? Pepper spray is illegal in the UK (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/import-controls-on-offensive-weapons https://www.gov.uk/guidance/import-controls-on-offensive-wea...) but its legal in all states in the US.
  - mytailorisrich 4y ago
    The only weapon you're allowed to carry in the UK is a disapproving look.
    - sh4rks 4y ago
      And everyone seems to carry that one
    - TheSecondMouse 4y ago
      For which we are all heavily armed.
      - jjgreen 4y ago
        Look out George! The bastard's got a disparaging look! (*) (*) Obscure Sweeny reference, if you get it, you're too old to be here Grandad
NoImmatureAdHom 4y ago
Yeah...I see more and more China in the U.K. The U.K. has a wide-reaching internet censorship scheme too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_blocking_in_the_United_Kingdom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_blocking_in_the_United_Kin...
circuit10 4y ago
On https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index the UK is one the most democratic countries (18th), significantly higher than the US (30th) Edit: To be fair that’s done by a UK-based company but I don’t think they would have much reason to be biased
- CamperBob2 4y ago
  On https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index the UK is one the most democratic countries (18th), significantly higher than the US (30th) Also, Calvin's dad faces an unprecedented decline in the polls after grounding Calvin for flushing the entire household inventory of toilet paper.
- throwaway09223 4y ago
  You seem to be suggesting that authoritarian and democratic are exclusive attributes but this isn't the case. Authoritarianism (the degree of control vis a vis personal liberty) has absolutely nothing to do with democracy (the way decisions are made). A dictatorship can be less authoritarian than a democracy.
  - andsoitis 4y ago
    > A dictatorship can be less authoritarian than a democracy. While it is theoretically possible, I have a hard time coming up with an example where that is the case. What dictatorship is less authoritarian than democracies?
    - throwaway09223 4y ago
      It's quite common, actually. An obvious and extreme example would be American slave states pre-civil war as viewed from the perspective of Black Americans. There is a well known phrase, the "tyranny of the majority." It is in fact extremely common for a majority to oppress a minority within a democratic system -- often with severely authoritarian methods.
fIREpOK 4y ago
Any country isn't heading this way?

Really more of a heckhole; let's be honest here.

Take a look what the EU wants to do with CSAM. Distopian nightmare to protect kids while at the same time make every single one of them a suspect.

LorenPechtel 4y ago
Yeah, it's the reason da jour for getting rid of privacy. There's always a reason, it just keeps changing as people object to the old ones.
leshenka 4y ago
> Distopian nightmare to protect kids We know a little too well what "would somebody think of the childen" did to the internet in Russia.

danjac 4y ago

Having grown up in, and subsequently emigrated from the UK, I would say that Britain is a weird place when looked at from a distance. The class system has led to a society where the middle classes consider themselves the moral guardians of the working class, while looking up at the upper classes with a mixture of contempt and envy. Middle-class right wing readers of the Daily Mail and left wing readers of the Guardian are more similar in that regard than either would like to admit. So (while coming from a different political place) both want to crack down on the evils of the internet to Protect the Children and, of course, to save the working classes from themselves (and protect their neighbourhoods: think of the property prices!). As both Conservatives and Labour need their votes, authoritarian cracking-down on issue du jour is always a good vote winner. Today it's the internet, back in the 80s it was MDMA and rave parties, back in the 1800s it was gin palaces and gambling. Same thing though: Britain's self-appointed moral guardians and their representatives in the media and parliament wagging their finger at everyone else.

account-5 4y ago

I think that's a little harsh. Do you live in the UK?

wunderland 4y ago
I do. It’s harsh but accurate in my opinion.
jasfi 4y ago
I had money disappear out of my NatWest account several years ago, when I lived in the UK. No transaction was present to show where it went. Nobody at the bank would speak to me about it, not to this day. I'm talking making it obvious that they didn't want to speak to me about it. That was one of many incidents where I was blatantly ripped off. Nobody there cared one bit. EDIT: thanks for all the replies! That means something to me, I'll see if I can't get this sorted out. It's just weird that even the NatWest Twitter customer support account ignores my DMs.
- YourDadVPN 4y ago
  That's... quite spooky, do you have any theories as to what happened? I hope you at least changed all your security info.
  - jasfi 4y ago
    I think this is related to corruption - of which I am a target, which started in South Africa (where I'm originally from and have now moved back to), which seemed to spread to the UK when I moved there. I can't get anything in black and white either.
- turkeywelder 4y ago
  Raise it with the ombudsman!
  - jasfi 4y ago
    I'll try again. Everything I've done seemed like a dead-end, but I'll try.

AuthorizedCust 4y ago

Affirmed by gross mass-proliferation of automated ticketing machines on UK roads.

Lio 4y ago
You mean average speed cameras? If so, just stop speeding if you don't want a ticket. Go to a track day if you want to race. If you mean ANPR for tax and insurance, well again just pay the tax and insurance. It's not that hard.
- AuthorizedCust 4y ago
  You’re missing the point. We don’t need a surveillance society to achieve societal goals. But the UK made that choice. What does that say about the UK? The mere presence of a potential harm does not justify all means to correct the harm. Where do we draw the line?

Gordonjcp 4y ago

You could say the same about the US.

richwater 4y ago
UK doesn't arrest you for carrying pepper spray.
- implements 4y ago
  The incapacitating kind of pepper spray is treated as a Section 5 ‘Firearm’ in the UK, and would land you in a world of trouble. You can get unpleasant smelling / badly staining / hard to remove spray which acts as a deterrent by making an attacker easily identifiable, but that’s about it I believe.
- localplume 4y ago
  Do you mean the other way around? Pepper spray is illegal in the UK (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/import-controls-on-offensive-weapons https://www.gov.uk/guidance/import-controls-on-offensive-wea...) but its legal in all states in the US.
- mytailorisrich 4y ago
  The only weapon you're allowed to carry in the UK is a disapproving look.
  - sh4rks 4y ago
    And everyone seems to carry that one
  - TheSecondMouse 4y ago
    For which we are all heavily armed.
    - jjgreen 4y ago
      Look out George! The bastard's got a disparaging look! (*) (*) Obscure Sweeny reference, if you get it, you're too old to be here Grandad

NoImmatureAdHom 4y ago

Yeah...I see more and more China in the U.K. The U.K. has a wide-reaching internet censorship scheme too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_blocking_in_the_United_Kingdom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_blocking_in_the_United_Kin...

circuit10 4y ago

On https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index the UK is one the most democratic countries (18th), significantly higher than the US (30th) Edit: To be fair that’s done by a UK-based company but I don’t think they would have much reason to be biased

CamperBob2 4y ago
On https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Index the UK is one the most democratic countries (18th), significantly higher than the US (30th) Also, Calvin's dad faces an unprecedented decline in the polls after grounding Calvin for flushing the entire household inventory of toilet paper.
throwaway09223 4y ago
You seem to be suggesting that authoritarian and democratic are exclusive attributes but this isn't the case. Authoritarianism (the degree of control vis a vis personal liberty) has absolutely nothing to do with democracy (the way decisions are made). A dictatorship can be less authoritarian than a democracy.
- andsoitis 4y ago
  > A dictatorship can be less authoritarian than a democracy. While it is theoretically possible, I have a hard time coming up with an example where that is the case. What dictatorship is less authoritarian than democracies?
  - throwaway09223 4y ago
    It's quite common, actually. An obvious and extreme example would be American slave states pre-civil war as viewed from the perspective of Black Americans. There is a well known phrase, the "tyranny of the majority." It is in fact extremely common for a majority to oppress a minority within a democratic system -- often with severely authoritarian methods.

fIREpOK 4y ago

Any country isn't heading this way?