I think LittleJohn in the Daily Mail had it right. He wrote something like that's the problem with intellectuals they have no common sense.
I think LittleJohn in the Daily Mail had it right. He wrote something like that's the problem with intellectuals they have no common sense.
I wasn't overly impressed with Cummings' reason for driving to Barnard Castle. I think the Durham police got it about right in this instance when they said he may have committed a minor breach of lockdown rules. If you're asking me what's worse, driving to Barnard Castle or deciding not to comply with a request to self isolate having been told you've come into contact with a known infected person, then clearly it is the latter.
If you'd read my posts properly, you would notice that I don't agree with what Cummings did. Before his press conference I said he had questions to answer and afterwards I said that I was not convinced that he'd done the right thing. Many people would think such an option had not been available to them. Yesterday I said that he did self-isolate but that I thought driving 260 miles to Durham to do so was pushing it.
So I can see, why normal people and not just left-wing nutjobs are angry with Cummings, and Boris for not sacking him. In my opinion, if he didn't break the rules he definitely bent them. There is a danger that his actions may cause some people to use them as an excuse to do what they want.
I wouldn't put what Cummings did in the same category as Neil Ferguson, or Catherine Calderwood, the Scottish medical officer. Cummings was motivated by a desire to protect his four year old son and did after all self-isolate, while the other two had not such reason to flout the lockdown rules. So it is quite galling to see the SNP being so vocal against Cummings when Sturgeon initially tried very hard to keep Calderwood, despite her actions being less justified.
I suppose Cummings gets my sympathy because there is clearly a politically motivated witch hunt against him and there is a lot of double standards going on. Plus the abuse he and his family are getting at their home from the usual left wing half-wits is deplorable.
This is probably why my view of the situation is more nuanced than some.
A subtle and sophisticated response.
Which of us in extremis has not acted in a way we later regret - and when cognitive dissonance kicks in not tried to justify our actions? Or if you prefer ...He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone...
And if I were PM I would choose who I damn well liked to be part of my team - and would not be diverted by pusillanimous, pontificating, poisonous pygmys.
Last edited by Graham Breeze; 29-05-2020 at 10:43 AM.
"...as dry as the Atacama desert".
Strange thing about Cummings, no one knows him. I certainly don't. Adam Boulton introduced Darren Grimes as a friend of Cummings the other day, and it turned out he'd only met Cummings a couple of times and they both worked on the Leave campaign.
He's a guy who works behind the scenes, so while many know the name, there's very little of him out there to judge what makes him tick, other than he's known as a disruptor and I think we need someone in the mix who's going to challenge the orthodox opinion.
If you had been following the forum avidly for the last couple of months you might have seen that my position is bugger all to do with Cummings. I was a staunch defender of Stephen Kinnock when he visited his Dad.
From March 23rd (maybe earlier) we had the "stay home" brigade even on here, questioning the length of time spent exercising and whether a car could be used to travel for exercise.
It wasn't helped by Derbyshire Police of course.
Some of us looked at the guidance and pointed out that we were allowed to drive for exercise and that there was no limit.
We were vindicated when the CPS issued advise around a week later.
So for me it isn't about Cummings, it's about the mob, the mob that have spent two months complaining that the guidelines were unclear, who are now so confident they are clear.
The mob who published lies on Saturday and then reprinted them after they already knew they were lies.
The same mob are now changing words embedded in the Durham Police statement yesterday, such as "might" to "did" to try and justify their witch hunt.
It's appalling and regardless of the personality involved, I'm surprised you are so tolerant of deceitful journalism, attempted mob rule and door-stepping a civil servants family daily in an attempt to have someone fired, who according to Durham Police at worst "might have" gone beyond the guidance when he made his trip to Barnard Castle.
Richard Taylor
"William Tell could take an apple off your head. Taylor could take out a processed pea."
Sid Waddell
Hardly. I see cummings as I see others. People who make their fair share of poor judgements. As do the journalists in the media scrum at his door, breaking letter and spirit of the law, but the police do nothing why? What cumminghs did is not a hanging offence, and anyone who puts their families safety ahead of rule taking for the sake of it is to me a better person for it, provided they are not harming others when they do it. Whatever the letter of the law, the spirit of it is social distance.
Most of cummings accusers are completely ignoring the greater offences of a myriad of journalists in media scrums who have also driven to Durham AND barnard castle, and are not even distancing when they get there!!!
ALSo other politicians who chose to break rules. Like that odious tw*t from the SNP driving to skye unnecessarily. A labour MP going to a birthday party! Or Corbyn running garden parties for his family, going on mass bike rides, and taking his wife into the commons in total breach of her right to leave home.
All of which proves the journalism has nothing to do with COVID and all to do with taking out cummings, a brexiteer they hate.
Rules need to be seen in a spirit.
I see the teaching unions hiding behind the same rules for their own advantage and actually harming the ones they are supposed to be teaching - also harming many who cannot go to work because they have to look after their own kids when the teachers decide they wont. Teachers are doing damage for life to those kids! Their hard line will mysteriously relent on the first day of the holidays. If the food industry took the same attitude as the teaching profession, the lot of us would have starved long ago. Why are they not the story, or the butt of contempt for journalists?
Last edited by Oracle; 29-05-2020 at 02:28 PM.
When the weather breaks, work beckons.
Not long till my 3 weeks in Turkey, flying on easyjet.
My Mum, 71yr old lifelong resident in northern Italy, had Covid for like 2-weeks.
Amazing she never had any flu-like symptoms, only minor unwell at stomach and back so when to the Dr told her she almost didn't believe it.
Never had anything serious, symptoms wise, more weird/surreal than anything.
Clear now. Phew...