|
Election 39 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom. I've compiled a chronological record of my thoughts (minus the links) contained in the Election blog. On glancing through it, I have to say I'm rather proud of how prescient some of it was.
0 Comments
Election 38 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom. History in the making....... http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/8675265.stm Election 37 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom. Almost as soon as the results had been declared, someone (he knows who he is) commented on Twitter, "Now we have positive confirmation that the Labour party must be re-built on its original basis of principle, and not expediency." As it may have become obvious as this blog has developed, my own opinion, for what it's worth, is that - accepting the fact that there is liitle doubt that allowing expediency to replace principle may be the least of their sins - demolition might be a more appropriate course of action for New Labour. After all, young Mr. Clegg has reminded the Great British public that the time may have come for the original party of reform in the UK to be given the opportunity to provide a credible opposition to the Tories. If forming an unlikely alliance might be the first step in that direction, who am I to discourage it? Election 36 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom. Here is the noose: It's a hung parliament. Election 35 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom. Now that electoral reform is all the rage, perhaps the first step should be to find a way to get rid of that tawdry little man who sits in the Speaker's chair as a testament to the vindictiveness of a group of shabby New Labour MPs. By the way, I suspect the only reason the UKIP guy's plane hit the ground is that it was trying to get down to an altitude where the little s**t could read the writing......... http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/election_2010/8666202.stm Election 34 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom. I suppose, there's a certain irony, having spent some time putting this little blog together over the past two or three weeks, that when it came to 'the compression point' - i.e. Election Night - I should be visited by a dose of the trots (the non-political kind) which sent me to bed at about the same time that the polling stations were being closed. Anyway, when I woke up this morning and had a quick gander at how the election had gone, it seemed to me that there were an awful lot of another kind of trots who had been invited to carry out an exit strategy. I can't wait to see what happens. All of these shenanigans (and those which are bound to follow) only serve to make me wish I had a better command of language than that with which I've been endowed. For example, I'm sure something could be made of the scenario where the effluent are trying to get rid of the affluent - or, vice versa. More later........ Election 33 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom Well, that's it. I've cast my vote. Not, however, because I felt compelled to show my support for one party or another - but because I firmly believe anyone who chooses not to vote doesn't deserve to be able to express an opinion after the election. Interestingly, although I left home with a pretty good idea of who I was going to vote for, I changed my mind at the very last moment - but, more of that later...... When I went to bed last night, in line with a theme which had been developing as this blog progressed, I had decided to vote for the Liberal Democrats. Not because I was especially enchanted with their manifesto or those who presented it - but, rather more as a means of demonstrating my reluctance to support either of the other two main parties. I wouldn't deny that, given a straightforward choice between a left or a right-wing political party, my natural inclination would be to support the one on the right - i.e. the Conservative party. This, by the way, isn't because I'm especially fond of them or what they represent - but, it's because, in my experience, the Tories deliver what it says on their tin. Speaking of 'what's on the tin', as this election campaign has progressed it has been a source of absolute bewilderment to me how many people seem to be deciding who they'll vote for on the basis of events which occurred the best part of thirty years ago. I mean, of course, Margaret Thatcher's regime. Putting aside the rights and wrongs of what she did (and there are many), the fact remains that she achieved what she had promised to do. The same, however, cannot be said of the socialists - and, in particular, Tony Blair's New Labour. In addition to abandoning long-held working-class principles and adopting (some might say, stealing) Conservative policies, they certainly have not delivered what they promised - a referendum on the European common market, for example. Anyway, returning to this morning......... In line with what I had already decided, voting for Labour wasn't on my agenda. Furthermore, since I see characteristics in David Cameron's behaviour with which I'm not entirely comfortable (he reminds me just a little bit too much of Tony Blair) that counted the Conservatives out, too. So, I set off to vote comfortable with my conclusion that the Great British public deserve a hung parliament - and voting for the Liberal Democrat might achieve that end. Unfortunately, however, when I arrived at the polling station, I discovered that my candidate was the only one who lived outside the constituency. So, I changed my mind and voted for someone else. Here's a clue . Election 32 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom So, how would I sum up tomorrow's election? Well, despite the vitriol emenating from the left, the fact remains that there will always be an element within the UK who would hope to preserve the traditional values of the right. Accordingly, the Conservative party will still be a force to be reckoned with when this - and many more elections are over and done with. The same, however, might not be said of the Labour party - not with the same conviction, at any rate. Already changed beyond any recognition of what they were before the 1997 election, they continue to abandon their working-class heritage in an effort to appeal to 'middle England'. Furthermore, somewhat alarmingly, there are signs that their star might be in decline. Even before a single vote has been cast, there are elements within the party who are taking steps to elect a new leader. In the meantime, to an extent beyond even their own wildest dreams, the Liberal Democrats find themselves in a position to regain their historic role in providing the radical alternative to the Tories. As a by-product of their resurgence, would it be too much to suggest that the electorate have been presented with a unique opportunity to restore a genuine two-party system of government to the UK by casting Labour aside altogether? Maybe - but, I can dream. In any event, whichever party ends up governing the country for the next five years (or so) they might grow to consider it to have been a poisoned chalice - because the steps required to resolve the current situation will be hard to bear and whomsoever has to administer them might not end up 'the winners'. Election 31 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom. It's said that 'actions speak louder than words', and - tomorrow - talk will become meaningless. Nevertheless, talk about tactical voting seems to be all the rage, at the moment. The reason I'm mentioning this is that, from my own point of view, voting tactically is unlikely to have any effect whatsoever because I live in a rural area where the prospect of the Tory MP being unseated is extremely unlikely. Interestingly, however, the house next to where I live happens also to be in the next constituency. What's more, that particular constituency includes a significant urban area and, as a consequence, has been represented by both Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs for the past few elections. Not surprisingly, I envy my neighbours because it seems that they have the opportunity to cast a rather more 'meaningful' vote than my own. What's more, although I make no claim to understand what is meant by 'Proportional Representation' (in its many forms), if it went some way towards getting rid of what seems to be inequities within the current system - I'm all for it! Election 30 Reminder: Latest blog at top of page. Earlier posts towards the bottom. Who needs enemies with candidates like this? http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/may/04/gordon-brown-worst-candidate-says?CMP=twt_gu |
Categories:
All
|
