. In fact, as this thread and plenty others previously, travellers are the one group (outisde heterosexual, white middle class, smoking males) about whom people can say whatever they want with relative impunity for many pages.

You missed the religious and fat people.

Fair do’s, I hadn’t seen some of the subsequent entries when I posted that.

living in a caravan and shitting in the bushes makes you an ethnic group?

Been done before so CBA to find the links etc. but yes, defined and ruled on, European courts, human rights, blah, blah, yes Gypsies / Travellers (of both the Irish and Romany extraction) are defined ethnic groups entitled to the same protections from discrimination etc. as all the others.

Although, in reality they’re not, I doubt you’d get away with stereotyping Bangladeshis, Pakistanis, women or gay people as offensively as that (above), but for Gypsies and Travellers it’s different, isn’t it?

You missed the religious and fat people.

Point taken. 🙂

I did distinctly make the proviso that if someone can furnish me with anything positive to say about them, then I’ll revise my opinion. But I won’t hold my breath for that.

The ones I ride my bike past regularly on a little (official, approved, legal) site on the corner of a local industrial estate always return my cheery ‘good morning’,

So… they’re not actually travellers then, are they?

The last time they turned up, they came in the pub run by my mate. Being a decent bloke, he wasn’t displaying any prejudice, he served them and sat chatting with them at the bar. After a few beers they left. After they’d gone he noticed that the window locks had been levered off the back windows of the pub. Obviously by one of them, as he nipped to the bog, ready for a return visit after closing time. Though not using the front door this time.

He reported it to the police. Who came round, and with a weary sigh said that thefts from outbuildings had gone through the roof in the last 24 hours

Still… I’m sure that isn’t remotely representative either, and it was the one bad apple that gets the rest of them a bad name eh?

I’ll admit to being wary of travellers, based on my experience and that of others. That’s a bit different from deciding they are all thieving scumbags.

I’ll give you a little tip Grum. Whilst I appreciate your open mindedness….I’d be more than a little wary of them, I would steer well clear of them if I were you. It would only end in tears!

I did distinctly make the proviso that if someone can furnish me with anything positive to say about them, then I’ll revise my opinion. But I won’t hold my breath for that.

Yunki already did. Easy to ignore stuff that doesn’t fit your prejudices eh? (this isn’t a dig, it’s a basic fact of human nature)

I did distinctly make the proviso that if someone can furnish me with anything positive to say about them, then I’ll revise my opinion find some faint reason to remain as prejudiced as I am, thanks very much. But I won’t hold my breath for that.

yeah we met some bad elements whilst on the road.. had to pull off a lovely site one night as a ‘bad lot’ had turned up that the fellas we were with wanted to steer clear of..

maybe that was the same group that caused the trouble in your anecdote binners?

I dunno, you’re quite unclear in your post about who ‘they’ are.. is it the same ‘they’ that the conspiracy theorists think are out to get us?

Meh! I’m just recounting my own experiences, as thats generally how I form my opinions, rather than what I’ve read in the Daily Mail, as you seem to be implying. And this thread is full of people who’ve experienced pretty much the same, or worse.

To counter this I’ve heard that ‘they’ sometimes return a cheery good morning

Apparently, according to the knee-jerk hand-wringers, arriving at my perfectly logical attitude, makes me the very worst sort of small-minded bigot

* Just to be clear, I’m referring to Pikeys

Maybe Pikeys are a bit like spiders or snakes or football fans then?

* Just to be clear, I’m referring to Pikeys

I know I’ve done this before (more than once) but would you feel as comfortable stereotyping other ethnic groups* and using similar sounding offensive words to describe them?

*Just to be clear, I’m referring to ****.

binbins, y’know if you buy a bag of pistachios? You start eating them, but find there’s one that hasn’t opened during the roasting and salting…so you try to open it. You break a few fingernails. But you get there, pop it in your mouth only to find it wasn’t that nice anyway. No salty taste. No roasted goodness. You realised that getting that pistachio to open up just wasn’t worth the effort because it was so horrible anyway.

You’re like one of those pistachios.

This thread is going badly… however dd’s analogy was pretty good. I’m stealing it.

Although, in reality they’re not, I doubt you’d get away with stereotyping Bangladeshis, Pakistanis, women or gay people as offensively as that (above), but for Gypsies and Travellers it’s different, isn’t it?

There is a council run traveller facility here. it’s hardly used. meanwhile, not very far away, private ground has been broken into so illegal encampments can be set up. they’re then abandoned with human excrement, used bedding and caravans dumped for the council to clean up. As far as I’m aware Bangladeshis, Pakistanis, women or gay people do not indulge in behaviour as offensive as this. Don’t want to be treated like animals? try not behaving like animals.

Bravissimo – I’m going to European Court of Human Rights to get bald fat blokes reclassified as an ethnic group, then if you criticise me, you’re a bigot.

No matter what I do then, you have no right to impede my lifestyle choices, and my ethnic traditions. Even if I decide I’m not going to conform with the norms of society and use a toilet any more. Every time I need a poo, I’m going to come and do it on your lawn. And empty my bin there while I’m at it. Then nick the lead off your roof 😛

and you’re ashamed of where you live? these are my neighbours:

http://www.channel5.com/shows/benefits-britain-life-on-the-dole/clips/episode-2-clip

I live in a very nice little house and pay alot of rent and the neighbourhood is generally quite nice, and I have the best riding around on my doorstep. But I have this lot next door

I dunno, you’re quite unclear in your post about who ‘they’ are.. is it the same ‘they’ that the conspiracy theorists think are out to get us?

Hang on. Are you saying gypsies shot JFK, brought down the twin towers and are the leaders of the new world order???

Every time I need a poo, I’m going to come and do it on your lawn.

#strangest 😕

Are you saying gypsies shot JFK, brought down the twin towers and are the leaders of the new world order???

Chief Gypsy

You’re not supposed to eat the nuts that don’t open.

Thought this one had died. Quick update then, travellers moved on the next day as the local residents had blocked any further people from arriving by using their cars as barriers and then stayed up all night doing some kind of pitchfork vigil.

They moved a mile or so down the road to social network cheers. My favorite comment was from someone at their new location who was convinced they had broken into his garden and eaten his pet rabbit.

One of my colleagues is the young gay lad who appeared in that ‘Big Fat Gypsy Wedding’ programme on Channel 4 a while back.
He’s from one of the most notorious of the local families.
Lovely person, as are the other members of his immediate family I’ve met.

Oh and I’ve met one bloke who used to be a regular on here but doesn’t participate anymore, purely due to the attitudes displayed in some of these threads.

Yep, we’ve had trouble when some travellers moved in locally.
But equally, we’ve had quite a few that have caused no trouble at all.

I find it all a bit sad really.

I’m going to European Court of Human Rights to get bald fat blokes reclassified as an ethnic group

Lip up, fatty.

And it was me who eat his rabbit. I can’t let ‘them’ take the rap for that one

I’ve never met a copper I could trust, that’s for sure. Then again, I’ve never met a gypsy I could trust either.

But I’d rather be a gypsy than a copper.