Eurovision Song Contest 2011

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

RE: that creative site I mentioned yesterday: I've only been registered a week, and I've been offered a job this morning, after showing some Baby Boomer samples.

All I have to do is alter the characters enough so I can transfer the copyright to someone else for these one-off drawings.

It's the style of drawing they seem to want, I just have to take my characters out and put new ones in.

[alanultron5]

Hope it goes well Rab! Been pretty ill meself and have to care for my Mom too. Don't know if that will mean much too Government! I didn't know Terry Wogan had left Eurovision as I hadn't watched it for almost seven years! He began talking over the songs which showed what he thought of them. The voting became a farce to me-so I binned it!

[tony ingram]

There's definately a lot less jobs available today though, Lew. This is fair enough if hard-working immigrants don't mind paying taxes to fund dole money to Brit's who genuinely can't find work [not spongers] because of so many more people now fighting to find work. I know loads of folk of all ages who simply can't get a job.......if immigrants taking jobs will foot the welfare bill, this is fine by me.

If they're working they're paying taxes, just like anyone else. So they are funding the welfare system. Just as, presumably, all the Brits working abroad are paying taxes in the countries where they've settled.

Problem is, they are often doing jobs which unemployed Brits could be doing instead-if they could afford to. A lot of these immigrant workers on visas are living in very cheap accomodation and spending virtually nothing while they're here, so they can afford to send the majority of the cash home even though they are doing very low paid jobs. Meanwhile, there are unemployed British citizens who could be doing those jobs if they were a bit better paid, but as it is it would not be practical for them to accept the work and come off benefits since they wouldn't cover their outgoings. Rather than welcoming cheap immigrant labour, we should be working on ways of making these jobs pay enough for our own citizens to be able to accept them.

[Lew Stringer]

Problem is, they are often doing jobs which unemployed Brits could be doing instead-if they could afford to. A lot of these immigrant workers on visas are living in very cheap accomodation and spending virtually nothing while they're here, so they can afford to send the majority of the cash home even though they are doing very low paid jobs. Meanwhile, there are unemployed British citizens who could be doing those jobs if they were a bit better paid, but as it is it would not be practical for them to accept the work and come off benefits since they wouldn't cover their outgoings. Rather than welcoming cheap immigrant labour, we should be working on ways of making these jobs pay enough for our own citizens to be able to accept them.

These are just sweeping comments as though "immigrants" were some sort of hive mind and who only work in low paid jobs. Like us, they're individuals just trying to make the best for themselves in life. Many have done well enough to aspire to better jobs. Many work together as a family to build a business. Why shouldn't they send money to their families overseas?

I understand that some people see immigrants as taking "their" jobs, but it's up to the employer who he sets on. No doubt people in other countries see the Brits as taking "their" jobs too. It's sad that such resentment still exists in the 21st Century.

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

The way I see it is, Lew, the worst-case scenario is that an immigrant is taking away from me the opportunity to wash dishes or flip burgers or something, and to be honest, they're welcome to it. It's a good excuse for me not to apply for a job like this! 800 folk looking at a vacancy for a dish-washer presumably includes members of all races, and a waste of time me applying for this job!!

If you're talking about decent jobs , if an immigrant can do the job better than I can, he deserves to get the job, not me. But that should be the only criteria.

Britain is too overpopulated without bringing more folk in,-----even here in Scotland, God knows what it's like in London or Birmingham now-----but I'm not worrying about it or even complaining about it, because there's nothing I can do about it, it's just too bad.

If problems arrive in the future, they'll just have to be sorted out then, when it's too late. Overpopulation is not a good route in my view, whatever race, even if just indiginous 'Brits'. The US has a much bigger mix of races, but they've got the room to accomodate this. Here, it's just an increasingly stuffed 'sardine tin', with standards of Health care , housing etc becoming overstrained and stretched .



What all this has got to do with the Eurovision Song Contest, I don't know!!!

[Digifiend]

We should've used or a while ago...

Anyway, lets hope it doesn't end up like China, where I hear you're not allowed a second child!

[tony ingram]

Problem is, they are often doing jobs which unemployed Brits could be doing instead-if they could afford to. A lot of these immigrant workers on visas are living in very cheap accomodation and spending virtually nothing while they're here, so they can afford to send the majority of the cash home even though they are doing very low paid jobs. Meanwhile, there are unemployed British citizens who could be doing those jobs if they were a bit better paid, but as it is it would not be practical for them to accept the work and come off benefits since they wouldn't cover their outgoings. Rather than welcoming cheap immigrant labour, we should be working on ways of making these jobs pay enough for our own citizens to be able to accept them.

These are just sweeping comments as though "immigrants" were some sort of hive mind and who only work in low paid jobs. Like us, they're individuals just trying to make the best for themselves in life. Many have done well enough to aspire to better jobs. Many work together as a family to build a business. Why shouldn't they send money to their families overseas?

I understand that some people see immigrants as taking "their" jobs, but it's up to the employer who he sets on. No doubt people in other countries see the Brits as taking "their" jobs too. It's sad that such resentment still exists in the 21st Century.

Resentment doesn't come into it, Lew. What I'm saying is that it's ridiculous that we have a situation where it doesn't pay our own citizens to apply for jobs because they'rre better off on benefits. We should be prioritizing making it worthwhile for our own unemployed to apply for these jobs and keeping money in the country. We aren't currently doing that.

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

Looks like one of the most controversial threads yet seen on here, guys....but it's been handled very well. A relevant problem has been addressed carefully by all all parties, without any offence given to anyone.

[Lew Stringer]

Resentment doesn't come into it, Lew. What I'm saying is that it's ridiculous that we have a situation where it doesn't pay our own citizens to apply for jobs because they'rre better off on benefits. We should be prioritizing making it worthwhile for our own unemployed to apply for these jobs and keeping money in the country. We aren't currently doing that.

My point is that when people from overseas settle in this country they become "our own" too. The distinction that some have between "us" and "them" is the resentment.

[alanultron5]

My Mom was recruited by English Factory (1946) that sent agents to Eire to recruit workers because they couldn't fill the posts with UK personnel. She and her fellow irish `workers` got some resentment at first-but it soon faded away.

[tony ingram]

Resentment doesn't come into it, Lew. What I'm saying is that it's ridiculous that we have a situation where it doesn't pay our own citizens to apply for jobs because they'rre better off on benefits. We should be prioritizing making it worthwhile for our own unemployed to apply for these jobs and keeping money in the country. We aren't currently doing that.

My point is that when people from overseas settle in this country they become "our own" too. The distinction that some have between "us" and "them" is the resentment.

I think there needs to be a distinction here between immigrants who settle in Britain intending to become permanent residents and economic migrants who intend to make money, send much of it out of the country, then leave. I have no issue with the former, but I don't think the latter are ultimately helping our economy much in the long term, particularly if they're doing jobs which could be done by permanent residents. Though I do think the situation is not helped by some British citizens who could apply for jobs without it adversely affecting them financially not doing so because they think those jobs are beneath them. Making those sort of jobs pay better might help to eliminate that attitude.

[alanultron5]

For my sins - my favourite UK entry was "Knock, Knock, Whos'e There" By Mary Hopkin. Favourite winning song was the 1964 winner-which I can't spell! oops!

[tony ingram]

Bucks Fizz. 1981. 'Nuff said.

[alanultron5]

Bucks Fizz was OK by me Tony! I do recall it was said at the time it had been `styled` along the lines of a Top 10 hit called "The Hucklebuck" Can't for the life of me recall who did that though!

I quite liked Urdo Jurgens "Merci Cherie" Winner 1966. Urdo also did the original "Walk Away" in 1964 I think which Matt Monro released a fine version of!

[tony ingram]

Bucks Fizz was OK by me Tony! I do recall it was said at the time it had been `styled` along the lines of a Top 10 hit called "The Hucklebuck" Can't for the life of me recall who did that though!

I think it was an Irish guy, but I can't recall his name.