FELIX

There's an amazing amount of smug superiority in this article for an earnest Jeremy Kyle viewer.

What a vile and hateful piece of writing. George you'll go far, you could be the next Richard Littlejohn!

"or the children who are born into already broken and dysfunctional families."

And what kind of family life do you think the adults whom you have berated and condemned in this piece had?

It makes me laugh when this pathetically shallow and characteristically rightwing attempt at sociological analysis (dysfunctional family!) runs into that other inherent right-wing disposition - blame the individual.

Let this be a lesson to you: if you find yourself arguing a position with which Jim Davidson would agree, you should probably cut your losses and think of something else to talk about

To the above commentators - ahhhh the hypocrisy of the liberal intelligentsia.

You're basically arguing that bears are to blame for bear-baiting...

@Slim: "And what kind of family life do you think the adults whom you have berated and condemned in this piece had?"

The reason that these people can exist is because do-gooders like yourself make excuses like that for them, therefore making it socially acceptable to behave the way they do and continuing the cycle of bad parenting.

Just because they had a poor upbringing does't mean that they should give their children one, and doesn't mean that they aren't capable of better. You do them a disservice to assume that they are not able to differ in any way from their parents.

You are another one of the liberal lot who don't mind giving these people just enough money to keep them poor and out of work, as long as you don't have to associate with them.

Oh, wonderful. I almost had nothing to rail against, frothing with rage, for next week's column. Thanks George! You classless moron, you.

^LOL. You don't even realise you have restated the same argument with the same inherent contradiction. Do they teach critical thinking at Imperial?

@Anonymous: None of us know who you are talking to. Do they teach 'reading buttons' at 'insert your university name here'? LOL.

"You are another one of the liberal lot who don't mind giving these people just enough money to keep them poor and out of work, as long as you don't have to associate with them."

*watches the poors on the Jeremy Kyle Show*

Whatever your opinions about the people who appear on Jeremy Kyle and society in general I would think that most people would be shocked and disgusted by the tone and language of this article. Phrases like " it does wonders for your ego to know that you will never be as shit a person as they are" and "he did look like a bit of a knob" indicate an astonishing absence of decency and compassion. We must remember that we only see the Jeremy Kyle guests for a few minutes: under stressful conditions and often at the lowest point in their lives. Allowances must be made.
I was frankly surprised that something like this got published in Felix. Hangman is often potentially more offensive but that section is clearly a joke and not somebody's serious opinion. I know that this piece is the writer's own opinion, not the editorial position of Felix, but it still appeared in the paper and reflects poorly on what the editorial staff think is acceptable to print. I value journalistic independence, I ...

... certainly do not think that that the College or Union should censor Felix or influence the editorial process but this does not mean that the editor should have carte blanche as to what to print. He should show some judgement as to what might negatively impact on the reputation of the paper, Union and College. The paper is, after all, fairly easy to obtain by the general public in South Kensington and this website is accessible to all.

In fact, for these reasons, I wouldn't be at all surprised if this article turned out to be some sort of joke - an attempt by the writer to see how many comments he could get and how many people he could convince that he actually holds these extreme views. At least, I hope that this is the case.

Yeah, I frankly find this disgusting and hope to never see such awful dehumanisation and hideous treatment of fellow humans in Felix again.

This article makes me almost ashamed to be at Imperial.

So let's assume that you are right, and Jeremy Kyle contestants are just more stupid, less educated and just generally worse than you or I. Surely then, as the better people, we ought to be able to rise above such smug mockery.
As has been said above, Felix is easy for members of the public to find (including this website) and articles like this can give the impression that the writer's attitude towards others more 'shit than himself' are typical throughout Imperial. The only reason I am writing here is that I feel somewhat obliged to use the comment section to help show that this is not the case.

George, If this was a first effort; don't be disheartened too much. True, the vitriol this article has created is entirely justified and you have no one to blame but yourself, but hell, it was your first article and they're never good.

You know how at the beginning of Jack-ass or Dirty Sanchez they have a disclaimer telling you not to repeat the stunts you see on the show? Well, Charlie Brooker and David Mitchell articles should carry a similar warning. Those guys are VERY talented journalists. They can mix abusive disdain and wit in such a way that the reader is on their side, and even they can go overboard sometimes (especially in Brookers case) and totally alienate their audience. You stood no chance.

For the sake of your self esteem I hope that A Geek isn't too harsh on you in print this week, for the sake of your writing skill though I hope he absolutely rips you to shred, because you can learn through observation about how to write a vitriolic article with class and wit.

/
:torysay:

"it does wonders for your ego to know that you will never be as shit a person as they are"

- That's how I feel about you George Barnett

The line "it does wonders for your ego to know that you will never be as shit a person as they are" was surely meant to be a joke, a light hearted bit of banter? Or does everything have to be take so literally?

It does come across as extremely arrogant and condescending, but could that not just be the fault of the writing style? If ever a joke went down like a lead balloon...

Oh George, you silly little boy

I hope you used a false name because your magnificent piece will stay on the internet forever, even after you're all grown up and left imperial to join the real world.

Unless the Felix editor is kind enough to remove it at your request when you realise how terrible and cliché your article is.

You're a complete moron.

Articles like this make me ashamed to have spent so many years at Imperial.

"It does wonders for your ego to know that you will never be as shit a person as they are."

Never say never. From reading this you're obviously making a sterling effort.