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The Political Thread

Started by The Legendary Shark, 09 April, 2010, 03:59:03 PM

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JayzusB.Christ

Quote from: Tjm86 on 16 August, 2019, 07:39:33 PM
Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 16 August, 2019, 09:43:36 AM
.... Then he says he wants to buy Greenland.

D'you think it's possible he got confused because so many UK politicians are falling over themselves to flog off bits of the UK to him?

Now I'm depressed.  I'm not even from the UK but I shudder to think of the indignities in store for you.
"Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest"

Professor Bear


IndigoPrime

She's been good on Brexit in the Commons, but I've lost respect for Soubry after the Euros. Allen got it right: there is no point in acting as a spoiler in electoral systems that we use here. At most, they should have stood CHUKTIG candidates in the SE and London. Arguably, even there doing so was an error. Fortunately, number crunching on the night suggests that TIGCHUK didn't cause too much damage – one Lab that would have been LD, and possibly one BXP that could have gone LD. But now, what do they think they're going to achieve? They have no ground support. They have no brand. They have no policies that differentiate them beyond the Lib Dems. And if their main argument is "we didn't form a coalition with the Tories", some of them actually WERE Tories.

(See also: current Green leaders, who have some big decisions to make before the next GE. I fear most of them aren't Caroline Lucas, sadly.)

Professor Bear

To be fair, they took a punt on having a year or so to set up shop and there was no reason to think they wouldn't be indulged by the media and credulous centrists while that happened.  They didn't see Prime Minister Johnson being a reality within a couple of months any more than the rest of us did, and probably expected Chuka to at least pretend a little bit longer than he did that he wasn't going to join the LibDems.

I also just realised that lefties tossing milkshakes was in the media cycle longer than a white supremacist's killing spree.  Which is fine.  This is all fine.

IndigoPrime

The TIGCUKWTF lot just baffle me. I admire what they did initially, but after the local elections, they should have recognised that the Lib Dems weren't in fact an ex-party, and strategised accordingly. Instead, you had the bizarre spectacle of MEP candidates being asked why someone should vote for them over the Lib Dems and stumbling, because they had no answer (and, to a great extent, no policies). You can't just be against something in politics – that's not enough. "We hate Brexit." OK, great. What about everything else? "Well, we've not had a chat among ourselves about that yet." Fine, so how will you spread the message to doorsteps around the country, matching the Lib Dem ground army? "... Shit."

Baffling.

Still, the shitshow moves ever onwards, with threats of marshal law, the government arguing that the Yellowhammer document is irrelevant because the leak was from two weeks ago (because, clearly, all the issues surrounding severe delays to medicine are now solved), and bullshit from Patel that's now made my wife terrified to leave the country. WELL DONE, EVERYONE.

Proudhuff

It was a bit like the SDP's Gang of Four... but without the characters and people who have actually done something in politics.
DDT did a job on me

Proudhuff

As The Clash fortold: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-49390285

It was still at the stage of clubs and fists, hurrah, tala
When that well known face got beaten to bits, hurrah, tala
Your face was blue in the light of the screen
As watched the speech of an animal scream
New Party army was marchin' right over our heads


DDT did a job on me

Professor Bear

Violence against the left is self-defence.  Every true patriot knows that.

IndigoPrime

Meanwhile, on  the left, Corbyn cleverly screws up what was otherwise a decent speech by performing Ultimate Fence Sitting on a second referendum, and then going all Trumpist when a journalist asks a perfectly decent question and his braying mob try to shout him down. FFS. It really comes across like he doesn't want to be PM or even in power, because activism is his home.

IAMTHESYSTEM

It's rather grim the reported attack on the reporter Owen Jones. Some repulsive people are coming to the fore. Proudhuff might be right that we're ' Still at the stage of clubs and fists.'  A memorable song The English Civil War by the Clash and horribly prescient. Well, will Bo-Jo get his way, and throw us out of Europe since starving for Blue Passports is character building? I think the grim scheme, as far as my amateurish thinking goes, is to have Brexit then the Tories will call an immediate general election. There hoping grateful Northern voters, many of whom voted to leave the EU, will either vote for them or abstain. All this before the harsh realities of Brexit begin to kick in, of course. It's chilling in its logic and might prove 'A Bridge too Far' for Remain inclined Parties to match.
"You may live to see man-made horrors beyond your comprehension."

http://artriad.deviantart.com/
― Nikola Tesla

Professor Bear

The Jones attack happened because the right and center are increasingly conditioned to feel they shouldn't have to argue with a left they see as an illegitimate homogenous mob, best illustrated by the bastion of Sensibles in the commentariat keen to point out that they aren't condoning what happened to Jones, but he isn't really a journalist, just a "columnist" (The Guardian) or "Labour activist" (BBC News).

sheridan

Quote from: IndigoPrime on 19 August, 2019, 02:13:41 PM
going all Trumpist when a journalist asks a perfectly decent question and his braying mob try to shout him down.

I've not been able to find out what the question from the journalist was, or any report of the mob - any details?

IndigoPrime

The question was whether Corbyn would be willing to support someone else leading a temporary govt IF he couldn't command the House. The mob was Momentum types in the audience. The poor MP had to keep saying things like "may I remind you this is going out LIVE". She got the optics; no-one else did. Corbyn was grinning like an idiot for long stretches before going "*chuckle* No, no, let's let him ask the question. He's a very nice man". It was like a very British take on Trump, and pretty horrifying. (Also, while it's an out of context snippet – much of the rest was good – it's absolutely NOT the kind of shit Corbyn should be doing at this stage.

Professor Bear

Quote from: sheridan on 19 August, 2019, 05:38:36 PMI've not been able to find out what the question from the journalist was, or any report of the mob - any details?

If you Google "Momentum mob" the first result is Guido Fawkes's fair and balanced reporting on events which explains how Corbyn is directly comparable with Trump for (checks notes) remaining polite, like an absolute bastard.

Leigh S

#15959
he should have shut down the droners there, seems like he was just letting their droning buy him some time he shouldnt really need, but it was hardly Trumpish - If we had to judge politicians by their most boorish supporters, we'd have a pretty thin playing field (maybe just Rory Stewart?).  I'd be more interested in hearing what his answer was.  I do wonder if stepping aside might be a good if risky play for Corbyn - showing he is the only one there willing to do whatever it takes it get the job done, rather than play personality politics.  As the official leader of the opposition, he shouldn't really have to, and it could be more damaging in cementing the "unelectable/unsuitable" tag.