Travellers are wonderful people.....stop press

[R1Geezer]

I've just been watching the BBC's latest propaganda film from last night and it seems that we've been unfairly maligning our itinerant brothers. Jolly bunch honest hard working just handing down their "culture". The ones I saw were a lovely friendly bunch living off the land and scavenging, helping us really, recycling, hunting hare etc. So can we now shed this ridiculous notion that they are trespassing, cr&p leaving scum who'd steal anything that isn't nailed down?

I feel that the BBC have converted me on the road to damascus!

[R1Geezer]

C0bblers kromo, I have seen and dealt with at least 50 sets of travellers, never found an honest good one between them. That's a world of experience compared to your encounter with one group of the fluffy bunny variety, well I'd like to see some of them! "precisely the same" does not apply to me and you, I've had to file paper work and attend court for this lowlife scum, there's no comparison between our experiences

[Kromovaracun]

You're confusing intensiveness with extensiveness. The fact that you've dealt with 50 sets of travellers qualifies to talk about just that - 50 sets. If that was what your argument was, then I wouldn't have any problems with it. But the fact that you've boldly stated that all travellers are exactly like the ones you've dealt with is quite patently wrong considering that other people have had other experiences. As I've said on AB several times before, this is the intrinsic problem with relying on personal experience as the basis for your views.

Another clarifying point: I repeat that I have absolutely no idea what the proportion of 'ordinary' travellers is, because I have nothing more than my experience to judge it on. You've not convinced me that the same doesn't apply to you.

[R1Geezer]

sorry part 2 of you question, no I have no way of knowing if I have met any and not realised it but if it's true then congrats they've joined the human race.

Generally I don't judge a book by the cover but in the case of itinerants experience has taught me that you usually can.

[Kromovaracun]

"Generally I don't judge a book by the cover but in the case of itinerants experience has taught me that you usually can."

No disrespect, but I think it's taught you incorrectly. And if you admit that some of them can appear ordinary and 'join the human race', then unless I'm mistaken, you've implicitly admitted that not all of them can possibly be as you've described them.

[R1Geezer]

So the fluffy bunny wonder pikies never come to Bournemouth then eh Kromo? don't talk rot. By your logic you have to experience 100% of something before your opinion is valid. I've had more experience than most and believe me I've never met a good one. I have even tried to help a couple of them from time to time, always got sh&t on, always, not an ounce of honour between them.

[boxtops]

They have amongst themselves, though, R1G, if the Big Fat Gipsy Weddings series was anything to go by. They guard their own.

[R1Geezer]

if they exist kromo and I've met them, then fair enough, I very much doubt it.

[Kromovaracun]

"By your logic you have to experience 100% of something before your opinion is valid."

No, you just have to use other evidence than what you've directly experienced. In the case of travellers, there isn't much - so we have to accept that we can't know things.

"So the fluffy bunny wonder pikies never come to Bournemouth then eh Kromo? don't talk rot."

You've already admitted to me that it's possible you may have encountered some without knowing it. The likelihood of this happening really depends on what the proportion of 'ordinary' travellers are - which as I've said several times we can't know because we don't have any evidence for.

[Kromovaracun]

What all this does amount to, though, is that your opening gambit that 'all travellers are like this' cannot be true.

[R1Geezer]

tell you what when I meet and honest one I'll come on here and eat some humble ok?

[welshlibranr]

For some reason, a family of tinkers moved into a house opposite my sister, a housing association owned property, they stayed around 4 months, they wrecked the house and garden, left loads of rubbish, and left!......thousands of pounds worth of damage!..........the neighbours are relieved that they have gone, but the mess they left was unreal!..........

[Kromovaracun]

As I said above, and you yourself admitted, it's entirely possible that you may have done so already and not known it.

You do, however, have evidence that they exist - because I and others have testified that they do. If these testimonies are true (and I'm sure that mine is at the very least), then travellers can't all be as you've described them. Unfortunately, because travellers aren't especially well-documented, we can't be sure of much more than that....

[Postdog]

They're scum. End of.

[NiceCupOfTea]

Scum? Too many non-travellers have made it into the news for scummy offences. I can't be bothered tarring with a stick. The travellers I know are from music sessions. They are all brilliant musicians, really friendly and I am happy to know them.

[bunkmoreland]

It was common for me to believe that travellers were bad people,from local perception. I grew up with that. I preferred to see for myself how my life worked out with any connection i had with them. My father in law a local unemployed man,who believed in social democracy, agreed to work with the site and the council,he soon realised that all bets were off and that any agreement had to be on the travellers's terms,but,seen to be on the council's. He was totally disillusioned!! While i acknowledge other posters' experiences,the havoc and distruction to property, that he witnessed and that there would never be consequences for, completely shocked him. He gave up his work shortly after. He was still friendly with a few of the men,in a general way,but they all knew the line that could not be crossed.