General Chat

OFiTG I totally agree John Smith,was in my book too the last statesman in British politics.

I think Farage missed an opportunity he could have seized.

Instead of crowing after the election (there are plenty of photographs of him pulling silly faces and in daft poses) he could have capitalised on his perceived popularity.

If UKIP wish to be taken seriously and be considered a genuine alternative then they have to realise that it is not a game played in the dorm or refectory.

The trouble with today's political leaders is summed up in one word, that word is "TRUST" and a very large number of those people eligible to vote, just do not trust today's politicians.

They say they will do one thing and do the opposite, they say they have taken on board people's concerns and will address them - but ignore them. they say they understand how the cost of living affects peoples lives - when they themselves have never had a problem funding their own life style.

Personally I believe that the last political leader that the people of this country had any faith in, one they felt they could trust, and one they believed could change the politics of greed and self-importance, was John Smith, he was in my book, the last statesman in British politics.

Absolutely :)

it's the way of the world sadly - people blaming others for their own failings

Precisely.

It is always a good idea to have a scapegoat or someone you can blame your own failures, inadequacies and shortcomings on.

But not clever, forward thinking move on the part of the Liberal Democrats :-D

It could be argued that the coalition was quite a clever, forward thinking move on the part of the Conservative party.

Although UKIP’s success in the recent elections has delivered a sharp kick up the backside to the three main political parties, I don’t think for one minute that this will mean, that the three main parties will get the message that the electorate wants to see changes.

I would not place a bet on any of the current three main political parties changing direction, well except during the period running up to the general election, the Conservatives will try to show they are a caring party by dishing out sweetners, Labour will promise perpetual sunshine, and the Liberal Democrats will try to show they are still a powerful force and true to their core beliefs.

Whatever party wins the General Election, the moment the winner is announced, it will be back to business as usual, I say that because, as interviews with numerous senior politicians after the recent elections show, senior politicians of all three main political parties have their heads - stuffed full of their own egotistical views, so far up their backsides, none of them could distinguish daylight from darkness.

You're right Ann. In previous elections the Lib Dem party might have attracted protest votes. Now that they form part of the government coalition, they are not an option.

Lets remember that the turn-out was, according to the BBC on line, only 34.19%. Probably 90% of the people who did bother get their information from flyers or the media. Its unlikely that any one party will get 100% support from its voters for all of its policies. As members of the electorate we have to decide which Party ticks most of our boxes.

In this instance UKIP's highlighted policies appealed to a lot of people. Although I didn't vote for them, I was sorely tempted.

But why a fly in the ointment?
The result wasn't totally unexpected and it is interesting to note that the other parties are holding their hands up in horror because they didn't do as well as they misguidedly thought they might. As is often the case in modern society, they are too quick to blame others instead of looking at, and evaluating, themselves.
We live in a democratic society with democratic elections. That's surely the whole point. The people voted for the parties they wanted to vote for.
To describe UKIP as a "fly in the ointment" is somewhat unjust - look at the results across Europe!

PS glad to see my posts have been reinstated.

I maintain they are a fly in the ointment - they've made the other parties sit up and take notice at long last

Thanks for that JoonieCloonie - will watch it later.
Incidentally, I shall be in St Austell soon.

Paula - I think many people do not read manifestos before voting.

AnnCardiff - hardly a "fly in the ointment" when you consider the results ! lolol

UKIP have been a very useful "fly in the ointment"

Yes I agree. It's certainly been a wake up call and hopefully politicians of all persuasions will take this on board, and actually work together and not continue with the stupid mind games and party political bun fights.

Whether it's a protest or genuine vote the outcome seems to have rattled a few cages. So well and good.

It seems that Europe' voters have turned towards the far right parties, surly there is a message I personally like so many am among the disillusioned and dissatisfied.

Paula, it doesn't matter whether people genuinely voted for UKIP or it was a protest vote it has shaken the main parties which can only be a good thing.

Manifestos are usually laughable and only serve to sway voters with promises that aren't or cannot be delivered. They evolve during the lifetime of the party in power and quite honestly I don't trust any one of them.

I personally dislike Farage's public persona but I do appreciate that he provides a great contrast to the status quo :-D

There has been so much political rhetoric over that past few weeks. I wonder how many who voted UKIP actually read the manifesto (before Nigel ripped it up I am reminded of a quote "Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later". Og Mandio

Errol Sheep

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTKn1aSOyOs

(warning, the humour is very black but the sentiment about Nazis is very serious ... the world 'owes' them many very bad things ... but uses their accomplishments nonetheless)

reputable scientists the world over agree that 'Nazi research' should never be cited or used

but imagine if everyone said we could not use the Autobahn ...


btw Tom Lehrer is ethnically Jewish

and his song offers an unusual tribute from the US to the British victims of WWII which is something people in the US know all too little about

That is very often the view of older people who have lived through WWII because they cannot take an unbiased viewpoint for obvious reasons.

However, there are actually a great many good things that we should consider (just to stress that I in no way support nor condone the attrocities carried out during WWII by all nations).

Again, I am reminded of Monty Python's Life Of Brian...

What did the "Nazis" ever do for us?

The Autobahn.

Oh yeah, yeah they gave us that. Yeah. That's true.

And the welfare programmes!

Oh yes... welfare programmes, you remember what the country used to be like.

All right, I'll grant you that the Autobahns and welfare reform are two things that the Nazis have done...

And space exploration...

Well yes obviously space exploration... space exploration goes without saying. But apart from the Autobahn, welfare reform and space exploration...

VW Beetles... innovations in film... medical leaps forward... Doc Marten boots

AnnCardiff ... even a stopped clock and all that :-)

good things can be done by bad people, and even for bad reasons

we could probably even think of something good Margaret Thatcher did sometime ...

Errol Sheep, yes, and the left-right division is set at politicalcompass by British standards ... which confuse people in the US mightily, whose idea of the political 'centre' for instance is not where most people in the world measure political things by and people in most places would call very right-wing!

at least, though, it makes an effort to separate the economic 'left-right' aspects from the personal freedom aspects, which is another confusion that arises particularly in the US as well

like Naziism, the BNP would fall to the 'left' of most other parties economically, but rank very high on the 'authoritarian' scale

in fact ...

http://politicalcompass.org/ukparties2010

'Similarly, the extreme left identifies a strong degree of state economic control, which may also be accompanied by liberal or authoritarian social policies. It's muddled thinking to simply describe the likes of the British National Party as "extreme right". The truth is that on issues like health, transport, housing, protectionism and globalisation, their economics are left of Labour, let alone the Conservatives. It's in areas like police power, military power, school discipline, law and order, race and nationalism that the BNP's real extremism - as authoritarians - is clear. It's easy to see how the term national socialism came into being. The uncomfortable reality is that much of their support comes from former Labour voters.'

there they have it :-)

edit, I should add they also say:

'The UK Independence Party might be described as BNP Lite, with a more well-heeled social base of generally older hardline Tories unhappy with their former party's drift in a more socially liberal, Europe-friendly direction. Like the BNP, UKIP is sympathetic to the reintroduction of capital punishment. UKIP's economics, however, are well to the right.'