Comments on: A Challenge to the Politicians.

By: Letters From A Tory

Letters From A Tory — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:15:04 +0000

Politely inquisitive? Moi? I’m only polite because I think it’s only fair that I adhere to my own ‘no swearing’ policy!

Personally, I think that this poster was a big mistake. The Conservatives need to show the public they are a serious outfit, not a bunch of populist pricks.

By: miss mink

miss mink — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 01:04:57 +0000

Dabs – it’s not true that all ‘blog readers’ votes are a forgone conclusion.
I think politicians won’t comment on blogs because they have no opinions of their own and there fore couldn’t afford to write anything. Westminster village think that because they are all air heads, the public must be too.

By: What The Papers Never Say

What The Papers Never Say — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 22:28:55 +0000

I thought the Labour take on the twins Jedwood depicting a spoof complete with daft hairstyle of Cameron and Osbourn and saying “You Wont Be Laughing If they Win” was actually excellent, funny and put a powerful point across.
However, this Tory spoof is quite frankly daft, it is a Johnny Come Lately, the Tories missed the boat and the punch line is stupid and boring and the deadwood bit has been done to death so – “Same Old Tories” not an original thought among them. They will have to do much better than this, especially as they are now sliding.

By: john ward

john ward — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 22:23:40 +0000

‘they are not alone in holding views their neighbours don’t begin to comprehend’
This is the problem: I see little sign that Old Holborn has a higher IQ than them – just that he has more sense of civic responsibility. They fail to comprehend not because they are thick, but because they have accepted the sorely tempting free-market shilling: ‘you keep making me smile at folks with odd haircuts who can’t sing, and I’ll let you do what the f**k you want’.
There are long-dead self-improving workers who are spinning in their graves about this.
The answer is not to deny the vote to the opiate-dulled people – that’s playing into the Mandelson/Harman grubby hands. The solution is to restore educational breadth, aims and standards to the level they were at when oiks like me were able to jump two social classes on the strength of them.
YM x

By: Dabs

Dabs — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:44:40 +0000

May I suggest Anna, that the overwhelming mass of the readers of political blogs are likely to have chosen who they are going to vote for already. I would expect higher than average membership of political parties amongst readers than in the general population too. So apart from arousing interest in the MSM, there isn’t much to be gained by a politician engaging in debate on these blogs. Nobody is sitting here getting informed about who to vote for. In order to be elected they are playing a game of x-factor. Its those voters who think its about “voting for who you think is going to win” that are going to decide the election. Opinion poll swings are all, policies are irrelevant.

Now if it was a system where your right to vote was conditional on you knowing what you were doing, then blogs would be important, but its not. Anyone can vote. Even now members of the Lords and the feeble minded. So its not in a politicians interest to tell it like it really is.

I suppose the power of blogs is that sites like OH are becoming sort of proto-networking sites, where people are learning that they are not alone in holding views their neighbours don’t begin to comprehend. That is a danger for politicians in the future. A block of informed voters, unmanipulated by the tame spoon fed media, may well one day resist their traditional ability to ride roughshod over us all. I can indeed see a lot of people going for a walk on 5th November some day.

By: Constantly Furious

Constantly Furious — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:45:39 +0000

Not long after you posted this, one Gawain Towler appeared in the comments over at Constantly Furious.

Not an MP, I grant you, but the UKIP PPC for North Dorset.

He rocked up to announce the UKIP were getting involved in the Paul Clarke case, hitherto very much a blogosphere/Twitterland exercise.

Guess you shamed him into it

By: Sabot

Sabot — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:57:37 +0000

I think a hung parliament might be quite good fun. At least, from this side of The Channel.

I can’t go to England this year due to being broke due to the exchange rate. So there is a God after all, and every cloud does have silver lining.

By: The Dean

The Dean — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:37:49 +0000

UKIP spotted a good opportunity this week. Brown’s speech to the CBI included two important observations:

1 – that the EU needs the UK as a trading partner
2 – that the UK should look to increase trade with newly-emerging markets such as China and India.

UKIP’s website seized on this – they have been saying precisely that for years.

Would you like a UKIP membership application form, Gordon?

By: Jill Pearson

Jill Pearson — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 11:44:15 +0000

This time I am actually looking forward to the politicians knocking on my door. I have so much to say to them, they may regret it!

By: Blink

Blink — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 09:19:18 +0000

Good morning, Anna, hope you are well

“Both parties are showing a marked preference for fighting out this election in 140 character soundbites, and lightweight trivia, sidestepping any intelligent analytical debate.”

I can do better than this. P**S O*F T*E L*T OF TH*M 6 words, succinct, analytical, overwhemingly anarchic and true!
The only hung parliament I want to see is all of them, from lamp posts, in Westminster, in alphabetical order.