Dale Farm

[Gavin Scott]

The site at Edinburgh's Gyle, now home of the (so far unused) Tram depot was a home for travellers for a little over a year. When they were moved on I saw some minimal detritus and the remnants of a few bonfires.

Quite honestly I've seen worse messes on Princes Street after the Fringe Cavalcade, and the same tax money goes to clean all that up.

There's always a lot of apocryphal evidence from disgruntled folks about what travellers do and don't do.

I just think that, like any group of people, some are good, some are bad.

Everyone is entitled to a view, of course, but in my lengthy spell on the planet I'm struggling to come up with any damning evidence I've seen with my own eyes.

I'm really not that ready to listen to the moaning of some who, for all I know, might think all gays are paedos too.

[WillPS]

In every case I mentioned it's been obvious flytipping of yard clearance stuff and tree trimmings, piled up. In the case of Gresham Fields (which was invaded half a dozen times in the couple of years I went to school nearby), there was human faeces left across public rights of way.

I don't believe there to be any correlation between homosexuals and paedophiles, for the record.

[Gavin Scott]

I don't believe there to be any correlation between homosexuals and paedophiles, for the record.

No, I didn't imagine so

I'm always on my hobby horse about one thing or another.

Its just that in this case I don't have much to argue about.

[Pete]

There is a small bit of land near the airport in Dundee that sometimes gets (illegally) used by travellers. The last lot left several seats out of a van on the land when they left.

I mean why would you have van seats lying around to leave?

[Gavin Scott]

There is a small bit of land near the airport in Dundee that sometimes gets (illegally) used by travellers. The last lot left several seats out of a van on the land when they left.

I mean why would you have van seats lying around to leave?

Maybe they have holes cut in them and were comfy seats upon which they can poo through.

This gives me an idea.

[all new Phil]

Where I used to work, we got quite a lot of travellers coming in on Sundays and Bank Holidays. Some of my colleagues were of the opinion that they should be barred, without exception. I always gave them the benefit of the doubt, however, as there were different groups and I don't believe a blanket ban is far, yet I ALWAYS became very pissed off that my generosity was misplaced, as there was always a problem that required them to be asked to leave. Every time. Without fail.

I don't think people object to their 'lifestyle choice' as such - it's not exactly much different to a harmless old couple living on a narrowboat. People object to their widespread lack of respect, the complete and utter underhandness of them, and mostly, the fact that they can get away with whatever they please knowing full well that jack shit will be done about it.

All this "there's good and bad in every community" malarkey - I've yet to experience the good from this one.

[Gavin Scott]

All this "there's good and bad in every community" malarkey - I've yet to experience the good from this one.

Yeh, but "bad" is easier to spot in a stranger. People who don't do the wrong thing or be rude tend to blend in, no?

I'm not perfect. My inner monologue is often very much more judgemental and bigoted than I would have people believe. But, and I wish there was a non-religious way to say it, there but for the grace of god etcetera etcetera...

[all new Phil]

But they don't blend in, at all. Trust me, I hate stereotyping and I'm the last person who'd ever judge somebody based on first impressions, but this is the experience I have.

[Gavin Scott]

But they don't blend in, at all. Trust me, I hate stereotyping and I'm the last person who'd ever judge somebody based on first impressions, but this is the experience I have.

I would guess that my opinion is shaped by the fact that the travellers in my home town were there from before me. In that sense they weren't travellers. Actually we called them gypsies. And to me they seemed ok. Worth noting that there was some playing fields to one side, a carpark to the other, and the nearest building was a bongo hall. Perhaps they would have gotten under folk's skin more if they were neighbours.

There was a very muscular and handsome one who used to spin the cars on the Waltzers.

This also shaped my opinion.

[Lorns]

I have nothing against gypsy/ travellers. Many of my closest friends are gypsies. They are hard working folks with strong family values and when doing business with them they are honest and don't believe in credit or being in debt with anyone. Maybe my sympathies with them lie with my ancestry coming from a travelling circus lineage ( my greatgrandparents/uncles/ aunts were not part of the freak show). I have just never had bad experiences with them. The Irish pikeys settle every now and then near me. They are a bit of a culture shock to many of my neighbours and they look down on them, but they have never done them an harm or misfortune.

It's interesting that not one of those arrested during the eviction were travellers, just the carereer protesters who adopted the cause were nicked.

[Sput]

Oh yes, couldn't happen to a more deserving bunch of tedious "occupation" types. I'd go as far as to say they obliterated any dignity there could have been in that situation.