Debanking

[Mussels]

Just to remind everyone, at no point was Farage not going to have a bank account, he was just downgraded from a prestige account to a normal one. Happens to normal people all the time.

I thought the offer of a downgraded account only came after the bad publicity started?

[DefTrap]

It didn't matter what he ended up with, he could have ended up with a dead fish, the point is that banks shouldn't be allowed to do what they did - and he ensured that they didn't, they were forced to be accountable, forced to get rid of their CEO and a board member and be forced to apologise.

'A bank', not 'all banks'. If the banking world at large had decided unanimously that this bad egg was not worthy of these services (services that we all agree that in this modern world are virtually a human right) then all joshing aside I'd be happy to agree that even the likes of Farage maybe doesn't even deserve that sort of treatment.

But they didn't. What actually happened is just a slight rung higher and slightly more inconvenient and embarassing than a pub landlord determining that he's not going to serve you because he doesn't like your haircut or gender (it's happened, a local landlord was notorious for it). There are bigger fish to fry - if this is the best the modern conspirator can get his teeth into, then tbh that's what I expected.

[DefTrap]

It's obviously the thin end of the wedge, but how far do you want to turn a blind eye to what banks get up to? All the way until it includes you?

Certainly a bit higher than the handful reported so far. And certainly where the impact is effectively zero - he could pop down the TSB, they'd be happy to sort him out with minimum inconvenience, and probably drop him a ton as a thankyou. That must be at least a week's worth of his Benson&Hedges.

[Taipan]

[Mr. Dazzle]

He makes a fair point, but red busses and black kettles also spring to mind

[DefTrap]

Making an unchallenged statement on your own show must be right up there in the boo-hoo-look-at-me-stakes. Any interview worth his salt would have pointed out what a massive hypocrite he is and asked him to stick to the point.

[Yorick]

Just to remind everyone, at no point was Farage not going to have a bank account, he was just downgraded from a prestige account to a normal one. Happens to normal people all the time.

No, no. Don't stop the experts telling us we're all idiots

No ones saying that you're an idiot Yorick, it's just that you don't have much luck when thinking is involved

I cant argue with Little Man Syndrome so I'll leave you to it and you can pretend you've won.

[JamJar]

Just to remind everyone, at no point was Farage not going to have a bank account, he was just downgraded from a prestige account to a normal one. Happens to normal people all the time.

I thought the offer of a downgraded account only came after the bad publicity started?

As far as I understood it he was always offered the downgraded account.

[JamJar]

As far as I understood it he was always offered the downgraded account.

He was, but he decided to make a point of principle and he was demonstrably right to do so.
I genuinely wish that the protagonist was some hard left fundamentalist that you really like because even though I'd dislike them at least as much as Farage, it would mean that I wouldn't have to keep trying to get people to see the point and not the man that made it.

I couldn't give a monkeys if Farage self immolates and disappears in a puff of smoke, but what he's done here is call a powerful financial institution to account and held them up to the light. In any sort of democracy this is what should be happening.

It has nothing to do with left or right, he wasn't debanked, he was downgraded from a prestige account to a normal account.

[Mr. Dazzle]

So far as I remember, he wasn't even that...he was just put on a exit path? Here's the document which caused all the fuss!

https://www.documentcloud.org/documents ... e-redacted

I'm still not really clear what they've apologised to him for. From what I see it doesn't actually seem like they've apologised for kicking him out, just the way it was communicated/handled. "Sorry you're upset"

[DefTrap]

I genuinely wish that the protagonist was some hard left fundamentalist that you really like because even though I'd dislike them at least as much as Farage, it would mean that I wouldn't have to keep trying to get people to see the point and not the man that made it.

Give us an example of a "hard left fundamentalist" that I might "really like". But to be honest it wouldn't matter if it was the most worthy, most uncontroversial person in the world - I'd still be saying tough luck and pointing them to the nearest TSB.

If you want to know what really gets my goat about Farage, and people like him, it's his effing arrogance and faux-martyrdom built upon a platform of being 'of the people' when he's anything but.

[Taipan]

I like Farage, quite a lot really. Mainly cos he doesn't feel the need to bank with the co-op to achieve (woke) public approval. He's a man of wealth that fights more for working people than the likes of SKS will ever do.

[JackyJoll]

Yeah but he’s horrible!

[Taipan]

S'weird, as he doesn't trigger me at all. I find him quite sincere and admirably focused on his beliefs. I tend to like people who are good at what they do though.

[Pirahna]

Like all politicians he's a proven liar, big whopping lies about things like the EU and immigration. Personally I think he's an odious, frog faced tosser and wholewheat approved of anything that causes him any inconvenience.

[JackyJoll]

Bet he had to buy that pint himself!

[Mussels]

Bet he had to buy that pint himself!

If I was him I'd have made a point of paying for it from my own pocket, otherwise someone would turn it into a moan.

[Count Steer]

S'weird, as he doesn't trigger me at all. I find him quite sincere and admirably focused on his beliefs. I tend to like people who are good at what they do though.

Sincere? Beliefs? He's about as sincere and belief-y as Rupert Murdoch and his mighty organ, The Sun or Robert Maxwell and The Mirror. They're all miners for profit from the diamonds of ignorance, prejudice and general knuckle-dragging stupidity.

I'll agree that he's good at what he does though.

[Dodgy69]

Some folk believe what they read... some folk believe what they hear...but the sensible folk, they believe what they see.

[Taipan]

S'weird, as he doesn't trigger me at all. I find him quite sincere and admirably focused on his beliefs. I tend to like people who are good at what they do though.

Sincere? Beliefs? He's about as sincere and belief-y as Rupert Murdoch and his mighty organ, The Sun or Robert Maxwell and The Mirror. They're all miners for profit from the diamonds of ignorance, prejudice and general knuckle-dragging stupidity.

I'll agree that he's good at what he does though.

Yes, I believe he is sincere in pursuing his goals and beliefs and resolute with his objective, and doesn't change his narrative, unlike the political parties and their people-pleasing ways.