'Policing benefit bashing in the forum: valid debate or hate crime?' blog discussion 2 August 2010 at 4:18PM in Martin's Blogs & Appearances & MoneySavingExpert in the News 127 replies 16.6K views

bat-out-of-hell

MSE_Martin wrote: »

Im not sure why you say that - its certainly not my view. Vulnerable people should be able to post here. Yet if you can't engage with people with a different viewpoint you shouldn't be in the discussion boards.

.

You just answered your own question Martin, I am not sure why you can not see why i said it, as you just confirmed it.

The fact they can not 'engage with people with a different viewpoint' will never stop them, which was my point, you run the biggest forum in the UK Martin, so they will come here, whether they are strong enough or not.

But i dont wish to cover old ground Martin, I accepted years ago that you could not do do anything about it, i am just sickened that it is still seen by some as 'normal', 'it happens'....thats the attitude that allows it to continue.

John_Pierpoint

bat-out-of-hell wrote: »

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Do you want to try that bit again so it actually reflects real life?:p

Sorry I don't understand your posting.
(and I'm not the first:D)

globalds

Politicians and internet forum users are maybe just expressing public opinion

It would appear most of the general public do not like the notion of a benefit lifestyle.

The unfortunate consequence of this hardening of the public's mind , is that genuine claimants are going to get a tough time.

The way I see it at the moment is lots of people are moaning because they will be falling out of there comfort zone ..Most reasonable people can see the difference between that and someone facing real hardship and not being able to help them selves out.... Maybe that is why there does not apear to be much sympathy about.

bat-out-of-hell

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

Sorry I don't understand your posting.
(and I'm not the first:D)

To get a together mortgage, you must have had a job, so paid taxes too, and most that now know how foolish an idea it was still work and pay tax,so its not just your tax 'bailing them out'

thus stopping you being thrown out on the street by the liquidator

Why do you think that would happen?

the book of debts would just have been sold to the highest bidder, best return for the least work, why would a liquidator go to all the trouble evicting people? by the time they had done, the legal fees would offset a big junk of what they could ever possibly make.......

Sueinbirmingham

I must admit to having been surprised by some of the unpleasant messages I've read on here, because I didn't think it was that sort of board. (Although I've been registered for a while, it's only in the last week or so that I've been posting much and I haven't read much of the boards.)

On reflection, though, benefits bashing is fashionable right now, so you find it everywhere. It's just a shame to find it on here.

MicheH

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

However if someone posts something on the lines of:
We took out a Northern Wreck mortgage for 135% of value, 'cos we also needed a new car, guaranteed to be no more than 1% over base rate for the first 4 years and in September we will have to switch to the standard variable rate. We have tried to switch and nobody will accept us. This bank is now owned by the Government and they owe us a duty of care...................
Don't expect us other long suffering tax payers, who re-financed your bank, thus stopping you being thrown out on the street by the liquidator, to be terribly sympathetic.
Something about making beds and lying on them come to mind.

Opinion is dangerous when it comes from ignorance and that is a major problem here. Ignorance.

3Dogs

MSE_Martin wrote: »

Im not sure why you say that - its certainly not my view. Vulnerable people should be able to post here. Yet if you can't engage with people with a different viewpoint you shouldn't be in the discussion boards.

The MoneySAving boards are different (and they are 95% of the boards) there the aim is to help each other.

Yet we need to accept sometimes some nasty people will post horrid things that can hurt the vulnerable - and we can't premoderate the 10,000s posts a week - so there will be times when there's something nasty on the site - until someone reports it and then the abuse team get back to it.

Sadly there is nothing we can do to stop that.

The annoying thing about this is when members report abuse, in great numbers, and nothing is done about it - or at best it takes too long to be removed/actioned - meaning that the obvious abuse is left in situ for far too long. Also, I agree with the comment about the vile long-term abuse of a certain member which was totally ignored and allowed to continue which left him no alternative but to leave this site, taking his invaluable advice with him - and we all know who this is

bat-out-of-hell wrote: »

You just answered your own question Martin, I am not sure why you can not see why i said it, as you just confirmed it.

The fact they can not 'engage with people with a different viewpoint' will never stop them, which was my point, you run the biggest forum in the UK Martin, so they will come here, whether they are strong enough or not.

But i dont wish to cover old ground Martin, I accepted years ago that you could not do do anything about it, i am just sickened that it is still seen by some as 'normal', 'it happens'....thats the attitude that allows it to continue.

That is exactly how I see it too!!!

loracan1

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

Personally I think it is unforgivable to attack a posting asking for advice when the OP is obviously in current financial distress.

However if someone posts something on the lines of:
We took out a Northern Wreck mortgage for 135% of value, 'cos we also needed a new car, guaranteed to be no more than 1% over base rate for the first 4 years and in September we will have to switch to the standard variable rate. We have tried to switch and nobody will accept us. This bank is now owned by the Government and they owe us a duty of care...................
Don't expect us other long suffering tax payers, who re-financed your bank, thus stopping you being thrown out on the street by the liquidator, to be terribly sympathetic.
Something about making beds and lying on them come to mind.

Unfortunately the first happens regularly in the benefits board, I wander in occasionally and it's the same members over and over again who's mission in life seems to be to pick holes in someone's story and pass judgement. (If it were me I'd change odd details if I were enquiring about something, so I believe that's why there are holes to pick)

The second - well - just don't reply, let it die a death.

delain

When I joined this site I was looking for genuine advice and I was told that I was a liar and committing fraud I wasn't, and everything got sorted in the end.

I did wander over to the rest of the boards and now MSE is the reason my house isn't tidy :rotfl: and I find it mostly positive. The pregnancy thread in particular has been a life saver for me and kept me sane this last few months.

I do however say out of the benefits/DT boards most of the time because it makes me so cross when someone is upse and worried and the same group of people jump on their backs to tell them just what scum they must be because they don' have a job or own their own home, and obviously lost their last job on purpose just to annoy the self righteous

Butti

Oneday77 wrote: »

The Debt Free Wanabee board lost one of it's best posters a few weeks ago due to abuse both publicly and by PMs. This needs to be stamped out.

It wasn't so much that we lost him as he was hounded out. The people sending him abusive PMs, sending other people abusive messages and PMs under a name very very very similar to his and publicly attacking him just got too much. Many of us believe that this group included those working for banks, debt collectors and other financial institutions, basically those organisations that DFWs need protecting from and need to be given clear advice about. We believe he was very effective in this and that is why he was hounded out.

There seemed to be very little protection of him and for him.

B