I think that graph falls in line with what most people would expect. It does look like environmental concerns could feasibly overtake immigration in years to come, though rather than saying 'we now need to concentrate on this instead' those issues could intertwine in interesting ways.

If environment extremes leads to all hands to the pumps, prioritising that would likely lead to immigration being curtailed, due to the potential mass chaos that may be happening in other nations for the same reason. Being an island nation would be a distinct advantage in a panic situation.

Politically too, it could lead to a more rational view of both issues through direct necessity rather than political opinion.

Interesting viewpoint.

'Who are you and how did you get in here? I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.' (Leslie Nielsen)

RoArquette Diary Entry - 8th Aug

Remove mirrors. Turn sun bed to max. Breathe

You can decide that for yourself but if you see any insult in it then maybe you ought to reflect for a while on your own objectivity.

Mine is quite secure. No worries there. I always ask myself questions about my attitudes to check if I am being honest with my opinions and addressing the issue and not my emotions.

I do agree though that many of us won't be around to witness the outcome, not that I would ever be so petty as to say "I told you so". Scoring points is what idiots like Trump thinks passes for "winning". This isn't a game. It's ensuring decent futures for our children, grandchildren and ALL their fellow citizens wherever they are born.

As I though plan to be here for a good time yet (at 75 I think I have reached around half way) I hope to see a great deal more.

Edited by Wisbech Eagle (08 Aug 2019 9.44am)

For the avoidance of doubt any comments in response to a previous post are directed to its ideas and not at any, or all, posters personally.

Noting that 18% also state "terrorism" as their primary concern it's not beyond the realms to think that many of those would also state immigration as very high on their list (although obviously that view would be somehow racist).

You could also argue that the economic situation is exacerbated by mass immigration, it's making the debt mountain much bigger due to the huge cost of social care and climate change is certainly not being helped by moving huge numbers of people from a 3rd to first world carbon footprint. Then you are pretty much covering everything on that list.

But then again people will either deliberately or automatically conflate "blaming the immigrants" with "blaming immigration" and we go back to square one.

The thing that most people seem to be unaware of is the extent to which capitalism (even with all it's clear faults that need reforming) and the products and technology it has produced are dragging the world out of poverty. Very few seem to understand this hence the push for socialism in the west. Under socialism the whole world will suffer.

Yes, the article is a reach to be generous. But that's the problem, for left and right, with this idea that people simply value 'truth'. There isn't some big list of facts and truths and then that's it. There is a perspective, a vantage point. An environmentalist could reasonably come from an angle where that's 'the' pressing issue and much of what they centre on relates to that, from language to policy. Others, black and white, may come from an angle like that but with race, with that feeding their take on how society should be and what their priorities are. That is why some get drawn into very niche language usage and online cultures and news sites that are detached from the society they live in. We see it on here, and we see it with that laughable 'I'm sorry I was born white', nonsense by Rosanna Arquette.

Now America clearly is more racially polarised with attitudes on all sides and a particular history, so this article is more in fitting with that society. In the UK though, you're not laughing it up in a pub with mates talking about how you prefer your own race, or how white supremacy isn't real, or comparing it to the civil rights movement. These are attitudes out of sync with the vast majority of people. Detached self indulgent musings of the stay-at-home. And that's the key issue here. If people don't bother to have that linked-in reciprocal social aspect to their character, they may well in their droves drift from society and become susceptible to taking on half baked worldviews from cultures that aren't their own. Indeed contortions and caricatured views from those places, since as is typical with most media, much of what is presented is designed to nudge people in one direction or another. The actual allegiance to country can then play second fiddle to the sad yet satisfying reality of something you can buy into with no real push back due to the non conversational nature of how this content is absorbed. We see this process repeat across all hues, as well as religious and political outlooks.

HOL is rather tribal in its approach though, so it's well served to mollycoddle cliched and more full on political takes. In essence people make less balanced arguments now but are more excited by a tribal identity, the very nature of which involves elimination of various truths and nuances. The result is often more like a competition than a meaningful discussion.

Edited by dollardays (08 Aug 2019 11.29am)