Russell Brand.........

[Herr Tubthumper]

Just so I understand.

You're not allowed to criticise rich people unless you're poor.

If you're main "skill" is being famous, you can't use that as a way to highlight inequality.

If you've previously taken drugs or made a prank call (that wasn't funny) you are not at any point in the future meant to try and do something worthwhile.

Oh and the banking sector isn't obsessed about making money at all costs.. (it is btw, I used to work in it)


Which means only a poor person with no access to mainstream media, who's never done anything wrong is able to highlight inequality and point out that there's mismanagement and fraud in the banking system. Basically we have to wait for Jesus to show up.


hmmmm......

Yup, you got it.

 

[Guinness Boy]

Just so I understand.

You're not allowed to criticise rich people unless you're poor.

If you're main "skill" is being famous, you can't use that as a way to highlight inequality.

If you've previously taken drugs or made a prank call (that wasn't funny) you are not at any point in the future meant to try and do something worthwhile.

Oh and the banking sector isn't obsessed about making money at all costs.. (it is btw, I used to work in it)


Which means only a poor person with no access to mainstream media, who's never done anything wrong is able to highlight inequality and point out that there's mismanagement and fraud in the banking system. Basically we have to wait for Jesus to show up.


hmmmm......

Socialist nonsense is still socialist nonsense whoever is spouting it and I say that as an ex-Labour voter. People, Brand included, need to ask themselves how much worse off the poor and disabled of this country would be if the economy had been allowed to collapse further a la the 1930s, and yes, NOT bailing the banks out would have led to exactly that. But, yes, the moment Brand pulled the Andrew Sachs stunt he showed he'd do anything for publicity. Kind of invalidates his future arguments, as does his refusal to stand for parliament when challenged, ironically, by one the disabled he constantly invokes.

 

[Mellotron]

But, yes, the moment Brand pulled the Andrew Sachs stunt he showed he'd do anything for publicity.

You've clearly never listened to his radio show and have no idea of the context. But do carry on.

 

[Guinness Boy]

You've clearly never listened to his radio show and have no idea of the context. But do carry on.

You're right of course, I'd have been furious to hear such a message on my answer phone about my own daughter, UNLESS I'd been listening to every show and understood the context in which case I'd have found it hilarious. I might even have taken him for a pint.

I'm guessing you don't have a daughter?

 

[1234andcounting]

Russell Brand is a ****.

Thanks for sharing. I look forward to reading your witty, erudite and informative book on the subject.

 

[Tooting Gull]

The treatment Brand gets from some media (and especially the Daily Mail) is exactly the same union leaders have had to put up with for decades - basically 24/7 smear campaigns.

People like Bob Crow represented sometimes north of a million members and were rightly paid a decent salary, but still many times less than a chief exec in the private sector with responsibilities on a similar scale.

Yet all they got was some low-life following them on a holiday (how dare they have a holiday) and writing shitty stories about it. And unfortunately people are influenced by such things.

This is mainly because the status quo suits plenty of wealthy people at the top just fine, and they are more than happy to fight a little dirty to keep it that way.

It was interesting to see some of the tributes paid to Crow when he died from the papers that did this, hypocrisy doesn't even start to cover it.

 

[JCL666]

Socialist nonsense is still socialist nonsense whoever is spouting it and I say that as an ex-Labour voter. People, Brand included, need to ask themselves how much worse off the poor and disabled of this country would be if the economy had been allowed to collapse further a la the 1930s, and yes, NOT bailing the banks out would have led to exactly that. But, yes, the moment Brand pulled the Andrew Sachs stunt he showed he'd do anything for publicity. Kind of invalidates his future arguments, as does his refusal to stand for parliament when challenged, ironically, by one the disabled he constantly invokes.

So he's not a great orator on political economics. From what I can make out he's basically saying;
- Inequality is shit
- The power resides with those who have money
- Those in power will do what they can to maintain the status quo
- There are elements of those who have money who manipulate the system to make more money

That's not socialist nonsense. It's not that far off the complaints I hear about the Premier League vs everyone else

As for the rest.

He SHOWS OFF for a living. Of course he does stuff for publicity.

I don't like the mainstream political parties and I have no desire to stand for parliament. That doesn't mean I'm not allowed an opinion, and the fact that the guy was disabled is irrelevant.

 

[1234andcounting]

It was interesting to see some of the tributes paid to Crow when he died from the papers that did this, hypocrisy doesn't even start to cover it.

So true. Once someone ceases to be a real threat to the established order they become a national treasure. Same happened to Tony Benn.

 

[aolstudios]

Just so I understand.

You're not allowed to criticise rich people unless you're poor.

If you're main "skill" is being famous, you can't use that as a way to highlight inequality.

If you've previously taken drugs or made a prank call (that wasn't funny) you are not at any point in the future meant to try and do something worthwhile.

Oh and the banking sector isn't obsessed about making money at all costs.. (it is btw, I used to work in it)


Which means only a poor person with no access to mainstream media, who's never done anything wrong is able to highlight inequality and point out that there's mismanagement and fraud in the banking system. Basically we have to wait for Jesus to show up.


hmmmm......

Well, exactly...

 

[aolstudios]

Socialist nonsense is still socialist nonsense whoever is spouting it and I say that as an ex-Labour voter. People, Brand included, need to ask themselves how much worse off the poor and disabled of this country would be if the economy had been allowed to collapse further a la the 1930s, and yes, NOT bailing the banks out would have led to exactly that. But, yes, the moment Brand pulled the Andrew Sachs stunt he showed he'd do anything for publicity. Kind of invalidates his future arguments, as does his refusal to stand for parliament when challenged, ironically, by one the disabled he constantly invokes.

& entirely coincidentally, I'm sure. The brother of a ukip MEP...

 

[Mellotron]

You're right of course, I'd have been furious to hear such a message on my answer phone about my own daughter, UNLESS I'd been listening to every show and understood the context in which case I'd have found it hilarious. I might even have taken him for a pint.

I'm guessing you don't have a daughter?

*woooosh* my point is the way you've painted it is completely NOT how it happened.

I wouldn't have a strong opinion on something unless I knew the context. Millions of people took a view on "sachsgate" without having the first clue what had actually happened.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I'm guessing you don't have a daughter?

You're pulling all the cliches out of the bag today....I dont like to talk about my charitable stuff but......do you have kids? There's a couple of more to go. Please carry on.

 

[Czechmate]

Everybody has their own views on him and to me he is the biggest **** ever , not even funny in the slightest . Being a c--t is the way he see's as being the way to keeping his career going and to sell himself .

Going to work dressed as Osama Bin Laden after the September 11th attacks really sums up his warped mind .

 

[Soulman]

Everybody has their own views on him and to me he is the biggest **** ever , not even funny in the slightest . Being a c--t is the way he see's as being the way to keeping his career going and to sell himself .

Going to work dressed as Osama Bin Laden after the September 11th attacks really sums up his warped mind .

Yep.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

The treatment Brand gets from some media (and especially the Daily Mail) is exactly the same union leaders have had to put up with for decades - basically 24/7 smear campaigns.

People like Bob Crow represented sometimes north of a million members and were rightly paid a decent salary, but still many times less than a chief exec in the private sector with responsibilities on a similar scale.

Yet all they got was some low-life following them on a holiday (how dare they have a holiday) and writing shitty stories about it. And unfortunately people are influenced by such things.

This is mainly because the status quo suits plenty of wealthy people at the top just fine, and they are more than happy to fight a little dirty to keep it that way.It was interesting to see some of the tributes paid to Crow when he died from the papers that did this, hypocrisy doesn't even start to cover it.

I think it also suits the mddle classes to have a little snipe at someone who is better off than them but who is able to have a pop at the establishment. Probably because they are envious as they are too ****ing scared to speak out about anything incase it affects their own crappy little career or their dull friends think they're a radical or something.

 

[JCL666]

You're right of course, I'd have been furious to hear such a message on my answer phone about my own daughter, UNLESS I'd been listening to every show and understood the context in which case I'd have found it hilarious. I might even have taken him for a pint.

I'm guessing you don't have a daughter?

If you read this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Russell_Brand_Show_prank_telephone_calls_row

And then consider the scale of what happened... it is ridiculous.

BTW I have a daughter, two actually. Does that mean my opinion on this is worth TWICE as much?

If it had been my daughter, I think my reaction would have been "Oh FFS you slept with Russell Brand? I hope you used protection".

 

[aolstudios]

I think it also suits the mddle classes to have a little snipe at someone who is better off than them but who is able to have a pop at the establishment. Probably because they are envious as they are too ****ing scared to speak out about anything incase it affects their own crappy little career or their dull friends think they're a radical or something.

Spot on.
& if that person dared come from the working class, even more so

 

[aolstudios]

By the way, I did hear Sachsgate at the time & found it cringeworthy & frankly unforgiveable, although I felt Ross was far more to blame & pushed an initially very reluctant Brand over the edge.
This doesn't affect the fact he is now ruffling some very powerful & sinister feathers, feeling the full force & taking it on. Which I have to respect

 

[Mellotron]

Agreed that Sachsgate was poor even with full context, however the blame is massively with Ross (who, you'll notice DIDN'T resign while Brand was the bigger man and stepped down).

 

[Buzzer]

Agree that there are very blatant attempts to smear him but I do think the underlying points made are valid ones. The man is calling for a revolution, I've read some of his books and they're full of diatribes about the powerful exploiting the man. He does talk the talk for sure, but he's certainly not walking it...not in my eyes.

If you really, really, really believe in the equality that Brand talks of I simply can't see how he can reconcile it with his own lifestyle. Rather ironically, it's some sort of corporate revolution that he aspires to with his actions. There's no personal responsibility: the money he wants to re-distribute is never his money. It all smacks of that comment about Geldof where, when asked what he was giving, the reply was his time. As The Spanish has said, Brand's love of shiny things and his superficial nature is well-documented by his mates.

I think a big part of him means well but revolutions aren't easy and take great moral courage and discipline. If he wants to lead this, as clearly he does then he needs to lead by example. At the moment he's got the best of both worlds, he's got the media attention but there's no personal responsibility to muddy his hands in the day-to-day work of changing this place for the better [sorry, but long words and Youtube rants don't quite cut it - run for Mayor of London with a clear and practical manifesto of reform]. Other outsiders have done precisely this in Italy and Iceland.

In doing so, I think he might gain a bit more respect from those of us cynical of his actions. He might also realise how morally dubious, some of his chums such as Mo Ansar really are. I've no doubt at all that the incredibly inaccurate and offensive attack on the Australian Prime Minister after the Sydney shootings was led from that lying scuzzball, Ansar.

Until that time, I'm struggling to take him seriously.