Main Menu

The Political Thread

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

Previous topic - Next topic

JayzusB.Christ

#16770
Quote from: Professor Bear on 08 February, 2020, 11:33:28 PM
Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 08 February, 2020, 07:26:05 PMIreland's going to the left? Are you quite sure?

Relatively so what with FG/FF being various degrees of right-wing, but marriage equality and abortion rights were all but unthinkable a decade ago, even if they were well-overdue.

Fair point; I hadn't thought of that.  Never thought I'd see an openly gay Taoiseach in fact. His policies, now, and lack thereof when they're needed, are another issue.

Tordels, looks like your predictions of a low turnout were off the mark.  It's just that nobody else is out at 8.30 on a Saturday morning, you absolute maniac.
"Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest"

TordelBack

Always pleased to be proved wrong about such things!  :P

I'm less amused by the 'all about housing and health' narrative. This past decade of my life has been about little else beyond dealing with a cumbersome uncommunicative health service and fighting to keep my family in our home, to the point that I'm a barely functional person any more, with no dreams or ambitions beyond keeping going day to day while distracting myself with SF trash, so I really do understand the focus, and the importance of change.

But there is only one issue that matters above all others, and none of the rest of it is going to mean anything soon if we don't accept that reality.

In the absence of any meaningful commitments from th main parties, 8% first preferences for the Greens (who are no great shakes, but a useful benchmark) just isn't enough to show anyone is taking this seriously. We're going to carry on arguing about budget overruns and rent pressure zones while everything dies around us.

JOE SOAP

#16772
The fact that we need to vote green is nonsensical. They should be a permanent government department, not a party. People only need to look at this morning's weather to get a hint of the future.

JayzusB.Christ

Quote from: JOE SOAP on 09 February, 2020, 10:27:02 AM
The fact that we need to vote green is nonsensical. They should be a permanent government department, not a party. People only need to look at this morning's weather to get a hint of the future.

I absolutely agree. Greens got my number 1 though, and will always do so till either other parties start waking up to the horrible truth, or we all asphyxiate.
"Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest"

TordelBack

#16774
Exactly. I was really looking for a genuine, serious commitment from parties this year, what with the Dáil declaring a climate emergency and all, but no, nothing.

Given the unimaginable pain and upheaval that seriously tackling climate and dealing with the legacy of not doing so to date, is going to cause, we somehow need to separate it from the fecking Santa list that electoral politics represents.

Telling people that entire traditional sectors if the economy are effectively over, and established ways of life have to change, is never going to be on anyone's manifesto.

TordelBack

Just 6% polled saw climate as the most important issue influencing their vote. We're unequivocally fucked.

On the other hand, only 1% gave a shite about immigration, and our homegrown racists and womb-controllers have overwhelmingly been ignored by the electorate.

JayzusB.Christ

Quote from: TordelBack on 09 February, 2020, 05:12:43 PM
Just 6% polled saw climate as the most important issue influencing their vote. We're unequivocally fucked.

On the other hand, only 1% gave a shite about immigration, and our homegrown racists and womb-controllers have overwhelmingly been ignored by the electorate.

Swings and roundabouts, I suppose.  If only the roundabouts weren't the extinction of life on earth.
"Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest"

JayzusB.Christ

Quote from: TordelBack on 09 February, 2020, 05:12:43 PMnequivocally fucked.

On the other hand, only 1% gave a shite about immigration, and our homegrown racists ..

I just checked the twitter feed of our own little reality-show bigot Peter Casey. He was mad to have his vote tally emailed to him, but it was done publicly as a twitter response instead. Last count: Less than 500. Snigger!
"Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest"

TordelBack

Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 09 February, 2020, 03:39:45 AM
Tordels, looks like your predictions of a low turnout were off the mark.  It's just that nobody else is out at 8.30 on a Saturday morning, you absolute maniac.

I withdraw my earlier concession speech. It was the 4th lowest turnout in the history of the State.

And fecking Aontú got a seat.

JayzusB.Christ

#16779
Quote from: TordelBack on 10 February, 2020, 01:35:43 AM
Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 09 February, 2020, 03:39:45 AM
Tordels, looks like your predictions of a low turnout were off the mark.  It's just that nobody else is out at 8.30 on a Saturday morning, you absolute maniac.

I withdraw my earlier concession speech. It was the 4th lowest turnout in the history of the State.

And fecking Aontú got a seat.

And I humbly withdraw my contradiction of your even earlier speech.  I'd thought that a Saturday election might mop up that all-important young people's vote, and maybe it did,  but not enough people give two fucks, apparently. 

It also baffles me that the older generation of today grew up during flower power and punk rock, but still remain intensely conservative- though I suspect the Vatican's Men In Black did quite a lot to fend off their influence in this country.
"Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest"

IndigoPrime

Baffling to see the UK media can't be arsed to understand the basics of STV, and so have been blurting out all kinds of crap from the start. And it's not like STV isn't used in the UK! (Reminds me of when 538 tried once – disastrously – to apply its standard modelling to UK elections.)

As for this:

Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 09 February, 2020, 07:50:18 PMSwings and roundabouts, I suppose.  If only the roundabouts weren't the extinction of life on earth.

Indeed. I voted Lib Dem at the last GE, primarily because I felt that as I'd been banging on about tactical voting, I had to not be hypocritical and stick with such convictions. But that's the last time at a national level. Greens from hereon out. (Lib Dems probably at local level, though, given that it's usually a straight fight between them and the Tories, occasionally with a 'spoiler' party lobbed in that has never won a seat locally, like Labour or the Greens – and won't win either.)

Good luck, Ireland. Even if your politics hasn't been refreshed, at least Irexit is looking more distant than ever (not that it was at any point remotely realistic anyway).

paddykafka

Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 09 February, 2020, 10:35:24 AM
Quote from: JOE SOAP on 09 February, 2020, 10:27:02 AM
The fact that we need to vote green is nonsensical. They should be a permanent government department, not a party. People only need to look at this morning's weather to get a hint of the future.

I absolutely agree. Greens got my number 1 though, and will always do so till either other parties start waking up to the horrible truth, or we all asphyxiate.

The story in the link below says it all as far as I'm concerned. Just how fucking dumb, brain-dead ignorant and clueless does someone have to be, to vote for the likes of turf-munching, bog-trotting Muppets like this? I have to admit, that it is at times like when I think, that the sooner the human race wipes itself out and hands over the planet to the cockroaches, the fucking better. Because if this is the kind of individual that humanity is entrusting to positions of responsibility, then it deserves what it gets.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/green-candidate-confronts-danny-healy-rae-after-his-to-hell-with-the-planet-comment-980714.html

shaolin_monkey

Quote from: paddykafka on 10 February, 2020, 11:32:10 AM
Quote from: JayzusB.Christ on 09 February, 2020, 10:35:24 AM
Quote from: JOE SOAP on 09 February, 2020, 10:27:02 AM
The fact that we need to vote green is nonsensical. They should be a permanent government department, not a party. People only need to look at this morning's weather to get a hint of the future.

I absolutely agree. Greens got my number 1 though, and will always do so till either other parties start waking up to the horrible truth, or we all asphyxiate.

The story in the link below says it all as far as I'm concerned. Just how fucking dumb, brain-dead ignorant and clueless does someone have to be, to vote for the likes of turf-munching, bog-trotting Muppets like this? I have to admit, that it is at times like when I think, that the sooner the human race wipes itself out and hands over the planet to the cockroaches, the fucking better. Because if this is the kind of individual that humanity is entrusting to positions of responsibility, then it deserves what it gets.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/green-candidate-confronts-danny-healy-rae-after-his-to-hell-with-the-planet-comment-980714.html

*Looks around, checks thread title*

I thought I'd stumbled into the 'wet/hot/cold/whatever' thread for a moment then.  :D

Totally agree that this should be a government department in EVERY COUNTRY that is unable to be divested or under resourced by whatever party (usually a right-wing fossil fuel-controlled one) gets into power, rather than a few soundbites on a manifesto, or a Green party that's never likely to get into power.

I notice Fuhrer Johnson has sacked the organiser of the COP in Glasgow in November, the person he installed in the first place, and his lack of any further action suggests the event won't be getting another organiser any time soon.  That speaks volumes re his commitment to net zero.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/04/sacked-cop-26-chair-claire-oneill-berates-boris-johnson-over-climate-record






TordelBack

The Healy-Raes are no fools, for all that they work to portray themselves as innocent toilers from the boreens of Kerry.  They know full well that the burden of climate change is going to fall heavily on the communities that keep re-electing their little tuath, and are positioning themselves (as usual) as protectors of the traditional man of the land being endlessly harried by the jet-setters and avocado-eaters of the Big Smoke (and there's some truth in that part at least). In reality the dynasty was founded in New York when Jackie married an American, their daughters are a barrister and a teacher: the whole circus is a wildly successful, utterly cynical, performance worthy of Synge or Boucicault.   

paddykafka

If the practice of Parish-Pump Politics was an Olympic event, the Healy-Raes' and their ilk would be gold medal winners.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szNLMtgI7hU&list=FLgzteLj8koHu5Gw2cSr6nzA&index=18