Whaaattt?

Only from media reports. NatWest seems to be the most prolific user of the tactic. A number of groups supporting various causes have had their accounts frozen. There was a pensioner who lost access and they wouldn't tell him why, so he couldn't pay his various utilities and was reliant on family for money for food.

It is definitely a "thing" here.

I am thinking of decamping to Tesco. It's a drive right across town which, with all the road closures happening at the moment, is an obstacle course of diversions (I even came across a diversion of a diversion this week), but it does have quiet hrs which alone might make it worth the effort.

 

Surely if a bank freezes your account it's basically theft.

 

Glad you're ok @hailbopp - we're fine too thanks. I wasn't sure exactly how exposed your site was up there.
Like you, loads of branches off trees, although none in my own garden. One mature tree along the main road lost a sizeable bit of trunk, but fortunately, it was onto a broad bit of grass that some of those houses have between the footpath and the road, so it was quite well contained. It still has lots of other hefty trunks coming from the main one, so should be ok. The debris is still there though. I've not been on my usual travels this year, so it's hard to tell how bad it was further afield. At least you can make use of anything fallen - every cloud eh? Literally!
I'm glad I did all the repairs/renewals to one of the shared fences in spring, but my back fence will need another post fixed, and that may have been affected more by that storm. I knew I'd need to do it at some point, and I really don't want to replace the whole thing....

 

I think most people are at a greater risk at suddenly discovering their High Street has been debanked and if your lucky there's still a Post Office.

 

Trump and Putin to meet in Alaska for Ukraine talks next week
Anybody else think that this could lead to the biggest act of appeasement since the 1930s?
Somehow I don't see Donald giving away/swapping anything that is his to give away/swap.

 

Probably so.

@pete, the rules are on the side of the freezers rather than the frozen. An absolute nightmare if it happens to you. I know someone whose Paypal account was frozen and they went on to lose their business in the lengthy period it took to sort out. The effect on their health was pretty devastating too.

 

Similar to debanking, in Martha's vineyard a chap was refused service by one of the food stalls because they didn't like his political views or the people he represented, and befriended, as a lawyer. The chap in question represents Trump and has previously represented sexual predators such as Epstein and Weinstein, plus OJ Simpson. He called the Jewish owners antisemitic and got a policeman over to make them serve him. I'm not sure I would want to eat food from someone who obviously disliked me that much but supposedly he went back again the next week to buy more, only to be met with a bigger crowd of people that share a similar view to the vendor about him.

 

Watch out for those wild mushroom snacks, eh?

 

@Thevictorian, I hadn't heard about that case. Whilst one may not like the lawyer's clients, it is perfectly legal for him to represent them in the course of his work, and doing so should not prevent him accessing other goods and services, IMV.

There was another lawyer barred from entering a theatre in the US because she happened to work for a law firm which was engaged in some sort of case against the theatre's owner, although she herself was not involved in it.

Sorry to hear about your back, @Loofah. Am currently reclined on a hot water bottle myself.

 

My President will do what is best for America.

 

@ViewAhead yes denying service to someone because of their political beliefs/persuasion is discrimination, in the same way it would be for race, sexuality or religion. I'm not saying I agree with it but I think alot of people can understand where the seller was coming from and for him (the lawyer) to then play the victim is a little much.
It's interesting that the "no shoes, no shirt, no service", isn't seen as descriminatory because it applies to everyone.

 

and with respect, that's what the free world and Ukraine are worried about.

 

So maybe all lawyers who represent illegal immigrants should be banned from certain places.

Banning someone for what they stand for or agree with is the thin end of the wedge to ending up like China.