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Holidaying in England’s Most Deprived Town

EviLore

Expansive Ellipses
Staff Member


Provincial England gets the former Soviet bloc treatment.

Endearing people all around considering how miserable the town looks. Not sure why everyone has open sores on their faces but it’s probably not a great sign!

But there’s a Wetherspoons, and a beach rated “not clean, but swimmable”! And the hotel costs under $50/night!
 

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
The Budweiser part made me chuckle because I have a good friend in the medical field who lives in Whales (born and raised) who loves that shit. Blew my mind 15 years ago when I found out.
 
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Brigandier

Member
The UK Pension, Social Security equivalent, is only 203gbp/week??

Seems awful to have seniors subsisting on so little in a developed Western country. They’re stuck living in run down shacks, no wonder everyone’s drinking all the time.

The UK gov hates it's citizens especially the elderly, The government just want them dead.

If you're of over 65 and/or of ill health at any age in the UK the conservatives are coming for you.

The UK are behind the vast majority of developed countries for workers holidays, retirement age and pension amount.
 

kruis

Exposing the sinister cartel of retailers who allow companies to pay for advertising space.
The UK is a country in decline.





 

Brigandier

Member
The UK is a country in decline.







UK is a disaster shit hole of a country, When a government doesn't give a flying fuck about it's own citizens and treats them like second class or worse it's never going to be good, Sending more and more each year in foreign aid and getting involved in wars that have nothing to do with them rather than investing in social services and transport which is archaic....

A little island with approx 90m people on it at any given time, resources are under sever strain from cutbacks after cutbacks and an enormous population.

Allowing big corp like Amazon to get away with paying little tax and giving tax breaks to the rich, The gap between rich then middle class then poor is madness it beggars belief.

But when anyone stands up to the red and blue they are over powered by a severely corrupt parliament and gang of MPs that only care for themselves and their own.

The UK is finished within 20 years British will be queuing up for bread.
 
The UK is a country in decline.






They honestly still think they are the British Empire, they even left the EU because they thought they were still so great and could go it alone. Someone needs to wake them up to reality. The British Empire is gone. They are a small country now and need alliances like the EU to survive in a world dominated by the US and China.
 

Days like these...

Have a Blessed Day
The UK is a country in decline.






Following America's lead I see.
 

IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
They honestly still think they are the British Empire, they even left the EU because they thought they were still so great and could go it alone.

I disagree. I didn't vote Leave because I thought the UK still ruled half the world. I did so because I wanted my country to be independent.

Anyway, these towns were deprived well before we left the EU. I know that because I was born and raised in one.
 

Nitty_Grimes

Made a crappy phPBB forum once ... once.
The UK are behind the vast majority of developed countries for workers holidays, retirement age and pension amount.
I don’t understand that. By law in the UK we get minimum five weeks paid leave. How many days holiday is it in the USA? I read somewhere it’s 10 days?

Unfortunately this thread is also slowly sneaking in a lot of political beliefs which I didn’t think was allowed ?
 
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Brigandier

Member
I don’t understand that. By law in the UK we get minimum five weeks paid leave. How many days holiday is it in the USA? I read somewhere it’s 10 days?

It's 4 weeks minimum plus 8 bank holidays in which UK have one of the least in the world.

I'm not comparing to the US I'm comparing to everywhere, The US legally get 0 vacation time as far as I'm aware, Workers don't have proper employment rights in the US it's all about the business and big corps over there and they can fire people with at will.

Unfortunately this thread is also slowly sneaking in a lot of political beliefs which I didn’t think was allowed ?

Agreed I'm going to back out of this one before I get in trouble, Everything UK triggers a nerve with me badly these days 🤬
 
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jufonuk

not tag worthy
its Margate ? Clayton on sea ? Nope I’m sure there are more deprived places.


I’ve seen some run down towns in the EU too (shock horror)


Charleroi for instance reminded me heavily of Margate.
 
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Panajev2001a

GAF's Pleasant Genius


Provincial England gets the former Soviet bloc treatment.

Endearing people all around considering how miserable the town looks. Not sure why everyone has open sores on their faces but it’s probably not a great sign!

But there’s a Wetherspoons, and a beach rated “not clean, but swimmable”! And the hotel costs under $50/night!

Proper riviera: https://maps.app.goo.gl/DYQ8yxpAYVsKtYAK7?g_st=ic

Going from inner Kent down to Dungeness is such a spectacle :). That and Rye Harbour are always quite nice.
GsNTeS0.jpg


Video I kind of expected, I tried to think Essex++ and well… 😂.
 
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They honestly still think they are the British Empire, they even left the EU because they thought they were still so great and could go it alone. Someone needs to wake them up to reality. The British Empire is gone. They are a small country now and need alliances like the EU to survive in a world dominated by the US and China.
You have it the wrong way around. If we had 1% of the gumption, confidence, and innovation we had during the days of empire, we wouldn't be the island full of navel gazing, apologetic, self-hating cucks that we are today.

The sixth-largest economy isn't small. We could stand on our own if we wanted. But we'd rather be stepped all over by the US under the illusion of the 'special relationship'. And the EU? JFL.
 

Porcile

Member
I went back to England for a holiday recently after years away abroad. Incredible countryside to explore with nice local towns/villages and seaside all over the place if you bother to do five minutes of research. Need a car or least a place with decent train links though. I really don't know why or how Brits became the most depressing people on planet Earth. Could just be the loser internet/Reddit crowd though to be fair. Everyone I met while back seemed happy enough.
 

Nitty_Grimes

Made a crappy phPBB forum once ... once.
I really don't know why or how Brits became the most depressing people on planet Earth.
The weather. It really has been shit all year.

We've got yet another named storm going through today / tomorrow. The wind today is only keeping the pissing down rain off until tomorrow.
 
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I went back to England for a holiday recently after years away abroad. Incredible countryside to explore with nice local towns/villages and seaside all over the place if you bother to do five minutes of research. Need a car or least a place with decent train links though. I really don't know why or how Brits became the most depressing people on planet Earth. Could just be the loser internet/Reddit crowd though to be fair. Everyone I met while back seemed happy enough.
Orwell wrote about how nobody hates the English more than the English intelligentsia does. It drives me mad.
 

Go_Ly_Dow

Member
Anywhere on the coast, towns and cities in the North and areas in certain cities are in real decline and the lockdowns have really fastrack fucked this counry. As well as the West in general now that the age of infinite growth is over and Neo liberalism has taken away all the industry.

That said, there's a lot of countryside and beautiful small towns and villages that have retained their charms as well as certain cities, Cambridge, Oxford, Bath, Edinburgh, York and parts of Central London and some others too. I'm fortunate enough to live in Cambridgeshire which is doing okay all things considered. There are many small villages near me that have beautiful churches some up 1,000 years old or there abouts and still standing. I'm not christian, but I love to explore old sites like this in the country and just imagine what it was like back then.
 
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Go_Ly_Dow

Member
The UK Pension, Social Security equivalent, is only 203gbp/week??

Seems awful to have seniors subsisting on so little in a developed Western country. They’re stuck living in run down shacks, no wonder everyone’s drinking all the time.

That's the state pension yes, which rises about 8-9% a year, but assuming you've worked for a decent chunk of your life then you'd also have a hefty private pension from your employers by the time you've retired. Also if you've been sensible like my parents then you'll have a lot of savings too. The combo of the 3, state pension, private pension, savings and your assets then you'd have a comfortable retirement.

The UK gov hates it's citizens especially the elderly, The government just want them dead.

If you're of over 65 and/or of ill health at any age in the UK the conservatives are coming for you.

The UK are behind the vast majority of developed countries for workers holidays, retirement age and pension amount.

Agree and disagree. The UK Gov cares more about GDP and tax reciepts than they do about the country, culture and communities, hence why they've willingly imported tens of millions of people rather than uplift its own citizens. To that extent I agree.

But I disagree they especially hate the elderly as that's their core voter base. For the elderly they provide a state pension that rises each year above inflation and provide free healthcare, which is a lot more than in other countries. For the youth they do fuck all.

The retirement age is rising across the world and isn't UK specific. As for holidays 22-28 days annual leave + 8-9 public holidays + state mandated sick leave policies is very good. I've been in the US, have friends in Canada, New Zealand, have worked in Japan and I'd say this is better than what they get. Worker rights here are good and universal. Some other countries should take note.

The UK is a country in decline.







The West is in decline.



They honestly still think they are the British Empire, they even left the EU because they thought they were still so great and could go it alone. Someone needs to wake them up to reality. The British Empire is gone. They are a small country now and need alliances like the EU to survive in a world dominated by the US and China.

This is something you've just made up. No one here reminisces about the empire. Anyone who'd remember it is dead. It's taboo to champion the empire and the Government also doesn't talk about it.

People voted to leave because they wanted to be an independent country as the EU was no longer an economic pact, but became a blob that could dictate which currency your country has, its immigration policies and basically any law. So it was about soverignity.

Yes countries need alliances, but they can still form them without being part of the union.

The UK economy is performing ahead of some major European countries post brexit (but is still stagnant along with Europe).


"The upshot of this is that instead of under-performing the economies of France and Germany since the pandemic (and Brexit, which took effect six weeks before the lockdowns began), the UK economy has now outperformed it. This was not, of course, supposed to happen. It was confidently forecast by the Treasury and by endless pro-remain think tanks that Brexit would damage the UK economy and leave us the laggard of Europe – as initial GDP figures suggested."

They left because of immigration policies, which imho is what is the biggest issue with the EU. Importing people that hate our values and then try to pander to them.

Also that town still looks better than 90% of shithole Russia.
(y)
I disagree. I didn't vote Leave because I thought the UK still ruled half the world. I did so because I wanted my country to be independent.

Anyway, these towns were deprived well before we left the EU. I know that because I was born and raised in one.
(y)
I went back to England for a holiday recently after years away abroad. Incredible countryside to explore with nice local towns/villages and seaside all over the place if you bother to do five minutes of research. Need a car or least a place with decent train links though. I really don't know why or how Brits became the most depressing people on planet Earth. Could just be the loser internet/Reddit crowd though to be fair. Everyone I met while back seemed happy enough.
Honestly I think it's a lack of perspective and maybe gratitude for winning lifes lottery of being born in a relatively stable country. Before I lived abroad I didn't care much for this country. Living abroad taught me a lot about the perks of living in England and to also appreciate its long history which is very rich. So when I returned I embraced what it has to offer.
 
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winjer

Gold Member
The UK is still one of the major world hubs for finance services.
But for the rest of economic activities, it's in a very bad situation.
Being so big in finance, distorts the "average" values for the country.
In reality, there is an increasing number of people in poor situation, while a few rich people are extremely rich.
Brexit just made things even worse. For the financial sector it was good, as they got more freedom away from EU regulations. But for small and medium size companies, they lost direct access to their nearest market.

 

FunkMiller

Member
The UK Pension, Social Security equivalent, is only 203gbp/week??

Seems awful to have seniors subsisting on so little in a developed Western country. They’re stuck living in run down shacks, no wonder everyone’s drinking all the time.

They do all get free healthcare though, where they can’t get an appointment to see a doctor for four weeks, because of the way the government have fucked up the NHS, so…. Yay?
 
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Nitty_Grimes

Made a crappy phPBB forum once ... once.
Successive governments of both stripes have thrown more and more cash at the NHS for decades. The NHS has caused its own problems.
Head of Department - HR Manager - Policy Manager - Inclusion and Diversity Manager - their Manager - that persons manager - the manager of all the departments put together - then the manager for that manager - then probably a doctor and a nurse.
 

Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
Successive governments of both stripes have thrown more and more cash at the NHS for decades. The NHS has caused its own problems.

I don't want to fall foul of discussing politics, but this is incorrect. The NHS the Conservatives inherited was a world class health system, as soon as the Conservatives took over, they reduced spending on the NHS. Since then, patient outcomes have worsened, waiting lists have increased and privatisation has increased, often with companies that Conservative MPs have a stake in being given the contract.
 

Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
Head of Department - HR Manager - Policy Manager - Inclusion and Diversity Manager - their Manager - that persons manager - the manager of all the departments put together - then the manager for that manager - then probably a doctor and a nurse.

The thing is, if you don't have an HR manager, then how do you hire people? Do the doctors and nurses stop treating patients so they can sort it out?
 

Nitty_Grimes

Made a crappy phPBB forum once ... once.
To be fair I think like you said in your earlier post - the thread has gone off from its original scope and has turned into a fuck the tories thread. I'm going to politely refrain now from now on.
 
I don't want to fall foul of discussing politics, but this is incorrect. The NHS the Conservatives inherited was a world class health system, as soon as the Conservatives took over, they reduced spending on the NHS. Since then, patient outcomes have worsened, waiting lists have increased and privatisation has increased, often with companies that Conservative MPs have a stake in being given the contract.
The level of increases has varied with different governments but spending has still gone up every year. The NHS has never been world class. It is middling-to-great, depending on the issue you have.
Privatisation isn't inherently good or bad so it's not a useful metric. Waiting times and outcomes are all that need to be counted.
 

Cyberpunkd

Gold Member
People voted to leave because they wanted to be an independent country as the EU was no longer an economic pact, but became a blob that could dictate which currency your country has, its immigration policies and basically any law. So it was about soverignity.
The EU was never an economic pact first and foremost. It was a solution not to let Europe fall to proxy politics of USA and USSR after WW2. Which is why de Gaulle veto'ed first UK application to join the nascent EU in 1963 - he (correctly) thought that UK sees the EU as a trading block and nothing more.

How is Brexit working out for ya?
 

Mr Reasonable

Completely Unreasonable
The level of increases has varied with different governments but spending has still gone up every year. The NHS has never been world class. It is middling-to-great, depending on the issue you have.
Privatisation isn't inherently good or bad so it's not a useful metric. Waiting times and outcomes are all that need to be counted.

The NHS absolutely was world class, it was ranked number one in the world by various measurements.

Privatisation is kinda inherently bad if you have to take cost into account. If money were not part of the equation, then all outcomes would improve. But there's a limit.

What we've ended up with in some places is the NHS having departments or services being closed and then private businesses offering the service, or reductions in service leading to longer waiting lists. The punchline is that the NHS must provide those services so they then have to pay the private business to either reduce wait times, or even to offer services they no longer can. So, the question is, why can't the NHS, who aren't run for profit, just be given the money to provide the services instead of pay businesses who are run for profit? If a business can do it and make a profit, why can't the NHS.

If you compare the spending per capita, the NHS is below that of other developed nations, and increasing spending year on year is the right thing to do to bring things into line, in order to improve patient outcomes. The UK is one of the world's biggest economies. We should be able to afford it.

Also, spending has not increased every year. Guess what happened the year the Tories took over?
 

Go_Ly_Dow

Member
The EU was never an economic pact first and foremost. It was a solution not to let Europe fall to proxy politics of USA and USSR after WW2. Which is why de Gaulle veto'ed first UK application to join the nascent EU in 1963 - he (correctly) thought that UK sees the EU as a trading block and nothing more.

How is Brexit working out for ya?
Not too bad thanks all things considered with the UK economy outperforming Germany and France thus far, when remainers said the opposite would happen. Also nice to now at least have a shot of full indepence, depending on what the people of this country vote for in the future. With Europe now largely trending towards right wing populsm, I think this will play out over here eventually so happy to wait for it. Also a good chance of leaving the ECHR, keeping the pound, working towards more secure borders, whilst the rest of the European countries can forever be lost in the neo-liberal technocratic blob project known as the EU.
 
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The NHS absolutely was world class, it was ranked number one in the world by various measurements.

Privatisation is kinda inherently bad if you have to take cost into account. If money were not part of the equation, then all outcomes would improve. But there's a limit.

What we've ended up with in some places is the NHS having departments or services being closed and then private businesses offering the service, or reductions in service leading to longer waiting lists. The punchline is that the NHS must provide those services so they then have to pay the private business to either reduce wait times, or even to offer services they no longer can. So, the question is, why can't the NHS, who aren't run for profit, just be given the money to provide the services instead of pay businesses who are run for profit? If a business can do it and make a profit, why can't the NHS.

If you compare the spending per capita, the NHS is below that of other developed nations, and increasing spending year on year is the right thing to do to bring things into line, in order to improve patient outcomes. The UK is one of the world's biggest economies. We should be able to afford it.

Also, spending has not increased every year. Guess what happened the year the Tories took over?
I'm on a super tight deadline today so I can't give a detailed reply but to be clear: I am for increasing spending and I have nothing against how the NHS is funded. I have lived in countries where privatised healthcare worked very well, however. I believe spending increases have dipped to a low of 2.8% under the tories. I believe blaming the tories is lazy. I think there is zero incentive for many people at the NHS to improve things. IMO it has been captured by ideologues, and I hate how it is a sacred cow, almost a religion.
 
The EU was never an economic pact first and foremost. It was a solution not to let Europe fall to proxy politics of USA and USSR after WW2. Which is why de Gaulle veto'ed first UK application to join the nascent EU in 1963 - he (correctly) thought that UK sees the EU as a trading block and nothing more.

How is Brexit working out for ya?
Well we ain't arguing about debt to GDP ratios :)
 

Go_Ly_Dow

Member
Immigration has got worse since Brexit though *shrugs* how are we over 3 years into "taking back our borders" and in an even worse state than before?
Because the Tories are worthless. If the people in the next 5, 10 or 20 years want less immigration then they'll vote for whatever party is offering that with Brexit now enabling the laws to be created in this country and not forced upon it by an outside force, aka the EU. At least there's a choice now which is worth a heck of a lot more than remaining part of a blob just for some cheap labour. (y) No more from me on the matter.
 
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Tams

Member
They honestly still think they are the British Empire, they even left the EU because they thought they were still so great and could go it alone. Someone needs to wake them up to reality. The British Empire is gone. They are a small country now and need alliances like the EU to survive in a world dominated by the US and China.

How we left was and is stupid.

But the EU is idiotic on some issues, particularly immigration. The very recent agreement still has countries with few immigration problems not helping the border countries with them enough.

I was listening to an EU official on Radio 4 say they don't have detention centres but 'holding camps' or something. And to then give an utter non-answer as to where the unwanted immigrants will go.

I'll stop there as it's getting very political.
 
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Dural

Member
This came up on my recommended list a couple days ago. My wife has a friend that lives in Hartlepool that she talks to pretty much daily so I'm guessing that's why it showed up. Reminds me of some places in West Virginia and Kentucky that Peter Santenello recently covered. You won't see many places on the coast in the US look like that though. Those tiny homes are like some mobile home parks here in the US.
 

Bitmap Frogs

Mr. Community
How we left was and is stupid.

But the EU is idiotic on some issues, particularly immigration. The very recent agreement still has countries with few immigration problems not helping the border countries with them enough.

I was listening to an EU official on Radio 4 say they don't have detention centres but 'holding camps' or something. And to then give an utter non-answer as to where the unwanted immigrants will go.

I'll stop there as it's getting very political.

Immigration is unstoppable. There are no amounts of walls or guards that can prevent it for entities as large as America or the EU.

But as you said the EU is handling this horrendously letting the border countries take the brunt. And thus camps have become the solution.
 

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
Immigration is unstoppable. There are no amounts of walls or guards that can prevent it for entities as large as America or the EU.

But as you said the EU is handling this horrendously letting the border countries take the brunt. And thus camps have become the solution.
Statistics have proven that you can manage the flow in a more reasonable manner vs. bad actors in government sanctioned trafficking.
 
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