Town Centre, social media and people

For some strange reason I use Facebook.

- I don't like it
- I absolutely hate how it seems to be the go to place for forums
- it's slow
- it doesn't easily show stuff in date order
- if something does catch your eye, you scroll past it, you often can't find what it was again.
- duplication of groups

However, I keep it because I like to keep in touch with old friends and colleagues and often it's nice place to see things about random subjects (but I would prefer a forum/BBS like this for ALL subjects).

That aside, I'm on "Barnsley, I Remember when"
At this point, I won't complaint about posts when someone says along the lines of "Remember fidgit spinners" with a smily face and a stand out background and 104 replies saying they had one, what I wanted to do i say look at the comments on other things.

The post I am referring to is about the pub on Midland St. that is being knocked down. It's not been a pub since before it was a chippy and it hasn't been a chippy for years. It's not a particularly nice building, and I suspect it would be better knock it down personally if not possible to do up (as is likely due to numerous owners not doing so in the recent past). but the comments, oh my god, the comments.

I know this place can be bad with arguments about the council, and I am all for a good debate but these people ... anyone on there on there? Am I alone in my feelings?

Some comments
> Disgraceful. Show me another flat iron building in Barnsley.
But its not important.

Reply - Prince of Wales 200 yards away


> It's a crying shame that this iconic building is being demolished.. It's built for the site and could have been refurbished..

Well, the pubs and the chippy didn't, and is it iconic really?

> Shocking! Were not going to have any history left before long!!!

It's on building. Which isn't very nice. Which will make it easier for access to new buildings.

>money money money
No, it would cost more to restore.

Reply to above from herself - "so true isn't it"

> "The developers are morons!! If they can't come up with a better idea they should be sacked. As for the council what the hell are you on!!"
No reasoning

>Sick, this pub holds a ton of memories for me,some great,some bad ,but why knock down such a unique building, money grabbing council again!!

How are they money grabbing?

> Nobody gives a any more, knock it down attitude and build that won’t last half as long.
This is derelict pal.

>Disgraceful.....what's coming down next?? Town hall???
One building. The replies that follow got me though.

>Teletubbies was my reaction to our colourful but horrible bus station. Too many idiots congregating around there just glad I learnt to drive!
Did you see the old bus station? Did you use the older (1960s before my time) bus station (as much have people have fond memories, it couldn't be used today).


> Not nice at all and they wonder why we don't use public transport!
Replying to self.

Its the best bus station in SY. You'd be **** scared of Doncaster and Rotherham under a car park due to the doom and gloom feel.

>Thought originally Council acquired it to preserve it that was their master plan wait a while and then flatten it and build another white elephant
Followed by
> ..one of many LIES that have been told during their master plans around Barnsley

Now, I might be wrong on this, but I thought they bought it to knock it down for access. However, plans change and there is a difference between a lie and a change of plan.

> Why don't ya just leve the tarn how it wa ya have ruined it,,it wa loads better in the old days all tha money ya wasted Barnsley council ar **** bags ,,,nar put tha in ya pipe un smoke it ya set off lovely people


I liked the old town, but if it was like it was in the 80s, nobody would visit. And the Metropolitan Centre wasn't exactly iconic.

Reply to above..
> well said young man
No it wasn't.You can call some a set of lovely people if you don't know them and then say, "well said"


> A lot of these comments are blinkered based on nostalgia. Unfortunately nostalgia dosent support the use of a building in terms of market forces. If no one can commercially make it work so its boarded up most times something has to be done. And bmbc have levered in grant money for the benefit of the town. Move on everyone
Two laughing likes and a reply saying your option despite it being right.

And finally this

"Another quality building gone to line the pockets of this moneygrabbing labour run council hang your heads in shame Barnsley council were watching and wont forget next election"
Please explain.

Apart from a rant that really doesn't matter, what gets me is

- a it's the councils fault whatever they do.
- who do you vote for if you don't vote labour? You know it could be a lot worse don't you?
- the money comments? This is best value.
- Do they/anyone know how councils work?
- Do these people actually vote at election time?
- Should these people actually vote at election time
- Down and outs don't hang out by the bus station, teenagers do.

Sorry, I just needed to rant. I am so tempted to reply with a fake account to all the stupid replies and posts made. I really don't want the abuse I know I'll get if I did it with my own account.
Oh and the worst thing, even if I could prove beyond all doubt that they are wrong, on whatever reason, and provide logic to why a certain decision (right or wrong) has been made, I am fairly sure I (or you) still couldn't
convince people that they were wrong. When I say wrong, I don't mean about the building itself, that is subjective, I mean the reason behind the comments, the money, the contracts, the better how it used to be etc.


Thanks for reading and sorry for wasting your time.

 

"they would vote for a pantomime horse if it was under the labour banner. But times are changing people are getting fed up with the inept councillors "

The Labour thing has been done to death on here, and as others have said, it's the same in other parts of the country but the other way around. People don't grasp that. They also don't seem to grasp that it's inevitable if people have brought up a certain way by their parents, they are going to have the same beliefs generally. That's not my point though.

Please expand on why you feel the councillors are inept. Then, tell me what have you done about it? Have you ever been to a public meeting? What have you actually done except comment on FB? For all I know, you may have stood, but I'd like to know all the same.

 

All that row of buildings should have gone and been part of the new town centre, would have looked a lot better.

 

Had to chuckle to my self over them comments, the same as the Lincoln version, except every other one is “it’s the Uni fault”

 

I’m 61 and gone in Tarn drinking for more years than I care to remember, the memories I have of the Devonshire Arms pub, (Dev) are that is has always been a bit of a dump and frequented by many clientele whom I would rather not stand shoulder to shoulder at the bar with. All these comments/criticisms about the council never seem to mention the budget restrictions. ((40% cut) by Tory central Govt, which have vindictively and uncaringly been imposed. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not defending the council per se, each decision has to be taken on it’s own merit, I personally didn’t vote Labour in my ward last time, (once I was satisfied that the Independent candidate wasn’t a Tory in disguise) I am so peed off with local people that think the party that has bashed this town from pillar to post are in some way a better option than those who have constantly tried to make the best of things. Those that say don’t mix National govt with local govt when voting ask the Tory’s why they do it

 

They ruined Facebook when they changed how the timeline works, it was better when you could scroll down the most recent posts.

 

You never see anything positive about the new town centre either. All negative! I'll be honest I haven't been to Barnsley since February last year but from the photos I think it looks great.


I don't think that town centres can rely on markets/shops alone anymore - moving it to after hours use - bars/cinemas/bowling is the right way forward. Always shocked me walking through Barnsley after a game on Saturday because the town centre was dead - it was the same when I used to meet my mum after her shift at BHS in the 80's. No one was around. Liverpool one cost over a billion pounds and has been a massive success as the bars /eating places draw people in after the shops.

 

It can be embarrassing when you 'like' a post that it was ok to like when it was posted, but it's a bit weird / feels stalkerish to do it a week later.

 

I saw that post on Facebook this morning and I'm 100% with you there.

'Why have they been allowed to pull down this beautiful art deco building'

Then the same person replied to their own comment saying

'I haven't been in barnsley for 20 years because its a dump'

There was a post on the barnsley chronicle Facebook page about some schools in the Borough doing some sort of climate change conference/talk thing.

Most of the replies were just abusing greta thunberg for some reason, then 'corrupt woke council leaders' got it. and finally people complaining that the council priorities are wrong as the railings need painting on wombwell High Street.

Its bizarre.

 

A programme, The Brain by David Eaglman has shown that voting in elections is hereditary, as you say though, if Arthur Scargill stood as a Tory in Henley on Thames he's get in.

 

Genuine question (and i don't want to turn this into a council bashing thread) but do the council get the council tax or does it go to central government to be handed out?
Also, if they do receive the monies themselves, does the 40% cut take into account the extra revenue received from the countless developments there has been (and will be) over the last 10/next 5 years? Plus the additional business rates from the commercial developments (albeit these have probably been stifled due to covid)
Onto the matter at hand.. basically people hate change.. especially the older generations (not all i might add) but speaking from my personal experience, the older generations and some of the lesser educated hate any form of change.

 

Doesn’t the Tories getting seats in the ‘red wall ‘ areas disprove that theory a little?

 

No not really, that's why we have "red walls", but voting one way or the the other is not set in stone, Things like the bias media can have a massive impact & one other massive weapon, propaganda & how to use it is very powerful.

 

Yes, sorry if I didn’t make the reply clear. If it’s hereditary then a party never loses seats that we’re ‘traditionally’ theirs.

 

Also David went on to prove it with a 95% accuracy rate.

 

It’s been nice to go into Tarn lately and see people sat outside the new coffee outlets and such. I think Tarn is now changing and hopefully people will come in and support it instead of slagging it off from their keyboards

 

I've edited my reply, after a few seconds it was obvious what you meant

 

Perhaps, it may become more clearer in the next GE

 

I just don't get it. I wish people would think before they hit post [I'm now over thinking if I could have worded this better before clicking 'Post Reply'].

 

All depends on who controls the media & who can feed the most BS to the masses, not sure if that's always been the case but for me it's not about any party's mandate any more, I don't even know why the Tories even bother to have one.