PROBLEMS MAINTAINING AN ELECTION?
We have a general election here in the UK in just over a week I’m not really very excited about it. In fact I am not really very interested in it at all! So I wonder, am I too comfortable, too lazy, or is modern British politics just plain boring?
I honestly have no idea who to vote for on May 6th. I don’t like any of the parties because I simply don’t trust suit wearing, smugly smiling, hand shaking, baby holding, campaign stomping politicians. Underneath their party colors they’re all much the same if you ask me.
By the very nature politicians play political games. They look after themselves first, the people who keep them in power second, then somewhere after all of their other interests and activities they might look out for the interests of the people.
The recent parliamentary expenses scandals were of no real surprise. I wasn’t shocked to find out that political figures do questionable things and take advantage of their privileged positions.
In all honesty I almost don’t blame the politicians for taking advantage of the expenses system in the way they did. I can’t criticize them that harshly because I suspect that if I were in the same position as they were I might very well have been guilty of similar questionable application of the rules. Maybe that doesn’t reflect well on me, but I’m not perfect and I don’t expect politicians to be perfect either.
I suppose that’s the thing really. I’ve lost faith in political figures because I don’t really relate to their political personas. I’m tired of the carefully crafted statements and the overly wordy noise pollution they give off when saying nothing at all. They just don’t seem that real. They’re just part of a big ugly machine called government that moves slowly and often in the wrong direction.
Maybe I should be paying closer attention. Maybe I should have watched the three party leaders in their recent television debates. But frankly, I have better things to spend my time on than listening to three boring men argue with one another over stuff that will make very little real difference.
If I’ve got that wrong, please tell me. I’m serious, if you think there is something important I should know then I really would appreciate your insight. Because from where I am sitting I think we’re basically a wealthy country gripped by the same problems all wealthy countries have. Our liberty is being encroached upon by an increasingly intrusive security state that is happy most people mistake consumerism for freedom.
I’ve got my ‘hot button’ issues that I feel strongly about, but none of the ‘big three’ political parties are particularly talking about them because evidently they’re not considered that ‘hot’ to the rest of the country.
So help me out; is this really a boring election where we’re all just going to vote the current lot out with more conviction than we vote another lot in? Help me please, the election is just days away and in the absence of a ‘none of the above’ option I don’t know what box to cross on voting day.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 7:10 am
Bro – I know exactly what you mean, and until last week I felt exactly the same way. Exactly. Then I accidently watched the news.
I gave up watching the news a couple of years ago. It’s just too darn depressing and I figured, hey, if the world ends someone will tell me about it. But one evening I sat down with my dinner, switched on the tv and found myself watching channel 4’s news programme.
Before I could switch over I was stunned to learn that for the first time in years the polls were showing all three main parties parties neck and neck. All THREE!
That made my head boggle. It’s not just you and me Bro, nobody can tell them apart any more. No one knows who to vote for. And yet, judging by the sheer number of parties on my voting slip (seven I think – yes, I’ve voted already) there are plenty of people who feel strongly about “the issues”.
The really interesting thing is that if people vote as the polls predict then we might end up with a hung parliament – no clear winner. Two parties might have to form a coalition. Cooperation amongst politicitians? Fancy that!
I truly believe that a hung parliament might shake things up a bit. I did watch the last debate and whilst it was mostly boring pontificating and point scoring, Gordon Brown looked genuinely terrified that he might not get into power, David Cameron a little desperate, and Nick Whatisface a little stunned that he might be the first Lib Dem prime minister in a hundred years. I love seeing politicians unhappy and uncomfortable. Long may it last.
So, brother of mine. Go vote. Vote for someone you like, or vote tactically, but go cast your vote and maybe, just maybe, something good will come out of this.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 9:35 am
Crumbs Simon,if you find out the answer please pass it on! I don’t feel I want my vote attached to any party I don’t trust and sadly, I don’t trust any of them any longer. I know I am not alone in this ~ friends of mine feel exactly the same and I suspect it is very widespread. Hot air is better used for a balloon with a nice wicker basket :)
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 11:57 am
I’m with you Simon, I also have no idea who I should vote for but I’m going to vote because I feel strongly that women fought for the right to vote and I feel it would be a disrespect to them for me not to use mine.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 12:32 pm
“Our liberty is being encroached upon by an increasingly intrusive security state that is happy most people mistake consumerism for freedom.”
So true. I agree with this post and I think it applies here in the US, too.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 1:06 pm
Simon, you’re not alone and that’s why the polls are putting the three (serious) contenders all roughly neck and neck.
You might like to check out this website.
https://www.10downingtweets.co.uk
Really nice illustrations, great way of getting Tweeters into politics!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 1:48 pm
Is it just me or do others find it not only unpatriotic, but also unhelpful to refer to British society as broken (especially coming from the bloody Tories!)
Britain is not broken.
Society is not broken.
David Cameron is arguing Britain is not as nice as it used to be and only the Conservatives can make Britain Great again by embracing what he calls the Big Society.
I accept Britain has serious problems with anti-social behaviour etc…, but lets not forget where the majority of today’s problems in Britain started, it started with Margaret Thatcher who believed there was no British society!!!
Yes, a Tory PM actually said there is no British society, what sort of message does that send to the young of a country, what does that do to communities?
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 2:33 pm
Issues (in no particular order) to think about Simon.
NHS and Healthcare
Education
National Security
The War(s)
The Economy
Unemployment
Anti Social Behaviour
Civil Liberties
The Banks
The Environment
Immigration
Take your pick mate!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 3:59 pm
I’m not voting for Cameron or any of the parties, none of them are decent enough to run this country. British politics needs an overhaul, no more robbing the poor to give to the rich, the people of Britain are united and have had enough of the political system. Many people are choosing to write NO SUITABLE CANDIDATE on thier ballot paper this year.
https://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=303249406678
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 4:32 pm
“Our liberty is being encroached upon by an increasingly intrusive security state that is happy most people mistake consumerism for freedom.”
Well said sir!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 5:07 pm
I will vote BNP if I had the chance, but because they do not have a candidate where I live I will vote UKIP instead. There are many differences between the parties but what they do have in common is that they want the UK out of Europe. Thats is why I will be voting for UKIP.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 6:38 pm
I also would like to BNP, (but also no candidate) seems to be the only party speaking the truth. Did you see the News Night interview? (check youtube) Nick Griffin really put Paxman in his place, I think would make a great PM.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 9:09 pm
Simon, please do not waste a vote on the Liberal Democrats.
This will only cause there to be a hung parliment, and give them power to enforce thier outrageous tax and social policies. They want to super tax almost everyone in the country.
I can remember the last time they had a coalition and it was a disaster. I will guarentee that there will be another election within 6 months wasting time effort and a great deal of money.
I will vote Conservative as a Labour run Britain is not working. Gordon Brown is a joke and would never have been elected, he snuck in the back door.
Its labour policies that have us in the durrent banking and financial shambles.
They also impose stupid european laws on us that none of the other major member states comply with.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 11:10 pm
after watching the first two live debates, opinion polls surged in favour of the lib dems and conservatives. but seriously how could anybody even think of wasting their one vote on either of them? no substance in either of their manifestos, on specific points neither would give a credible answers.
Mr brown doesnt always come across as good talker, but who cares? its his policies that do the talking. looking and talking good for the cameras is one thing, running the country is another.thers only one credible vote from the main three parties, and thats labour by a country mile!!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 28, 2010 at 11:52 pm
I will vote for Labour. They have had alot of trouble to deal with like wars and a bombing of the homeland which people seem to forget.
Please if you have an ounce of sense VOTE Labour and dont waste a vote on one of the smaller parties that will have no effect other than proberly leading to a hung parliament.
Labour has put the pride back into being an English man, if you love and respect your country then use your brain and let Labour carry on with the job that they are trying to do instead of turning back the hands of time and undoing all the good work they have done by voting for inferior parties.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 12:26 am
I’d always intended to vote BNP and found to my delight that Dundee West, where I live, had a BNP candidate (according to the BBC website and the local press). Now I find that the candidate has suddenly disappeared from the list. What’s going on? Everyone I know here wants to vote BNP but we are not being given the chance.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 4:50 am
You want real change? Then don’t vote. That’s the only sure way to provoke any real change for the majority. Unfortunatley the majority has to stand together and do it.
Otherwise you are just playing their political game. The official political parties are all just front organizations for the real power which flows from a small elite group of the richest people who control the money supply through banks and financial organisations.
In the UK’s case the head of this financial cartel is whoever controls the B of E, which has been the same family since the battle of Waterloo.
Remember the B of E is just the same as the federal reserve in the US…it is a Private entity serving narrow private interests and is not a sovereign national organisation. Think about that, check up on it and you will see that is were all policy and political decision making ultimately stem from.
The bummer is, those narrow private interests tend to center around things detrimental to the majority of the countries inhabitants.
Unless the people of a country control the issuance, creation and management of its own money supply, then the people of that country will have no control at all of how things run. Many politicians have said as much, even Thomas Jefferson and Kennedy warned people about the problem.
So, when you understand this mechanism you may realize that the main political doctrines of the present and last century, such as communism and fascism, were financed and created to further the interests of the same financial elites who really do make the big decisions.
When Gordon Brown goes to meet the chairman of the B of E, he ain’t telling the chairman what to do, he’s getting his policy orders straight from the private interests which could collapse his country into the dark ages with the stroke of a pen or press of a button.
Oh, of course they all ready did that last year, didn’t they. And now you are going to vote for one of their parties. Which will help ratify the Lisbon Treaty, and then you won’t really need to vote ever again.
You see, while you are all bounced around the political arena worrying about immigration or whatever, you are being bounced in the exact direction they want you to go. Don’t matter who you vote for, you will get the same crap.
And once you have the Lisbon Treaty you just have the European constitution by another name and you really will have foreign politicians controlling you. Europe will overide everything at parliament level. You won’t be consulted about anything – all future voting will be obsolete, completely.
Don’t get trapped watching the dog and pony show, that is all it is. Send a clear message and DO NOT VOTE!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 8:13 am
I think it is time for some tactical voting. All the minority parties would have a greater say if there was a proportional voting system. The liberal democrats will give us this. The lib dems are on the brink. If all the minority voters vote lib dem it is likely to be enough to bring proportional voting for future elections. The fairest system for multi party politics.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 10:19 am
In response to the comment by PL, not voting woon’t change anything – it will just mean that the extremists will win and we will end up with the same old faces.
If you really want a change – vote for the outsiders or better still stand for election yourself!
Doing nothing never changed anything.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 12:24 pm
Voting for any party is pointless, and in fact, immoral.
By voting, you are ligitimising a system which kills literally millions. 4,000 children starve every hour to sustain our lifestyle. People justify this by ignoring it, pretending it doesn’t exist, that it’s not important because it happens far away.
But that’s not true. Every one of those Children has a mother, just like your mother. Every one had a life just as important as your own, but because of the falacy of Capitalism, they die whilst you live.
So you decide to do something about it. You try to buy fairtrade. You avoid Israeli goods. You might even sign the occasional petition on street corners, all to combat that vague feeling of guilt in your gut. Because you know it’s your fault.
It’s your fault. Its our fault, as a nation, as a group of states. It is the fault of so called “developed countries” like the UK. You have blood on your hands.
And only we can do something about it. Don’t think voting’s going to help, though. Every single party in the UK has the excluse aim of getting into power. Power provides wealth and status, the ultimate aims of our capitalist society.
So the only option left to us, the odinary people, is to revolt. WE hold the power to change the world. There are billions of us, and so, so few of them. Vote with your feet, with your fists. Take action against a system with a vested interest in the continued deaths of millions through war, starvation and climate change!
(ps, not a communist. I hate the USSR as much as I hate all other states)
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 12:52 pm
Well there are certainly some interesting comments here, and even a token ‘take up arms’ call (Until the revolution my dear Anna!), but as yet nobody seems to have really addressed the issues. It all just seems like a lot of talk which, don’t get me wrong, is fine and good to see, but I think the fact that a theme issue hasn’t arisen shows something. It [this entire election battle] still feels like a huge pointless conversation that amounts to nothing.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 2:03 pm
I’m voting for the Pirate Party!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 3:07 pm
I won’t vote for any of them, I’m going to spoil my paper. You should all do the same, they are all venal, self-serving hypocrites: just look at the expenses scandal. It is high time our democracy was altered to reflect the views of an informed electorate in the information age.
I can vote for None of the Above here, why is that option not on my ballot paper?
Spoil your paper, spoil your paper!!!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 5:30 pm
If you don’t vote, you don’t have the right to ever complain about politics ever again.
I’d like to vote LibDem but don’t agree with their nuclear policy :-/
To be honest, we have it pretty good in the UK and not much will change regardless of which party gets in.
If one of the parties was promising to remove all the CCTV, scrap the ID card scheme and repeal the 100’s of laws that labour have introduced which have stripped away our rights, I’d vote for them, but nobody is talking about that.
One last point, if you vote BNP you are an ignorant bigot, pure and simple, no need for a complex argument on the matter, you’re too stupid to enter into a meaningful debate on anything, you probably have difficulty sitting the right way round on the toilet.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 5:35 pm
Someone has to have a sense of humour in all of this!
https://mydavidcameron.com/
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 7:25 pm
There is a choice to be made at the next election, and people who say ‘they’re all the same’ or ‘nobody’s qaulified to run this country’ are ruining their opportunity to have a say but not finding out the facts for themselves. Are some MPs in it for themselves? Yes. Are some politicians immoral? Yes. Rather like the general population, some of them are undesirable. However I genuinely think that some people go into politics to make a difference and speak up for what they believe in, and we need to use our vote to make an informed choice.
We are very slowly coming out of a global recession. We have things like the minimum wage. As an NHS worker I can say first hand that the NHS has come on leaps and bounds since 1997 and waiting times have reduced massively. I don’t think this recession has been as painful as the one in the 80s because there haven’t been as many repossessions or mass unmeplyment, and we have come out if it much better than other European countries. Labour have tried to help unlike the Tories in the 80s who stood by and watched and appeared not to care less. That is why I will vote Labour at the election. Not because I think this party is perfect, but because I think they best represent the interests of normal people.
Can I also add that there seems to have been a huge increse in whining, whinging moaners in this country who continuously talk down the UK and go on about ‘Broken Britain’, which is essentially a media driven concept. I think Britain is a lot less borken than it was in the 80s and 90s, that is my subjective opinion. I have no real idea of where you live or what your day-to-day life is like Simon, but I happen feel lucky to live in the UK, and think that although it is not perfect, it is a country I am proud of.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 29, 2010 at 9:11 pm
I will vote for anyone, but labour. Altho I would rather vote for the green party, it would be a no vote.
Labour has had 12 years to get it right, they started with a country in pretty good shape.
Has everyone forgotton the :-
the raided pensions
gold sold during a 20 year low-2 billion pounds lost
morgage relief removed
marraige allowance removed
10p tax rate removed
75% tax on fuel
tax now on insurance
higher rate of NIC
and the give aways
£185 computor
£175 veg
£250 per child
and the list go on and on…………………
I dont pay super tax, no where near, and in real terms I’m alot worst of with labour, and I’m a working man.
So if your unemployed, a single mother, an immigrant, or a banker, Labour are for you.
If your an english worker, please give your vote some thought.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 30, 2010 at 11:37 am
i jst trnd 18 nd im gna vt lk a ltry. I wl clse my i-s n jst tck wtvr bx m fngr lnds on!!!!! yehhhhhhh!!!!!!!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 30, 2010 at 1:16 pm
I’ve been a labour voter all my life, but after the appalling way they handled Iraq, my conscience really wont let me do that any more.
So I looked a little closer at the lib dem policies and they they strike me as the policies that new labour really should have been pushing all along. I’m definitely not the only disillusioned labour voter out there, If we all vote Lib dem, they’re going to have a pretty good chance.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 30, 2010 at 10:44 pm
Loto Liam, perhaps, perhaps you should learn to write in English before you vote :-)
Wrote the following comment on May 1, 2010 at 4:39 pm
We left UK last year and view with amusement at the politicians slugging it out. We strongly believe that Brown and his henchmen have ruined,life in England over the past 12 years. They allowed too many immigrants in because they are likely to be voting fodder. They blame the world’s economies for their own errors in the financial fiasco that is the banking community. Blair and his cohorts took UK into war in Iraq on completely falsified and sexed up information. They are good at getting the country into a mess but do not have a clue how to get out of it. David Cameron, with all the wrinkles shown by his 1st team, are for me. If the country votes again for the socialists, then that is all they deserve.
Wrote the following comment on May 2, 2010 at 12:46 pm
I’d like to see a ‘none of the above’ box put on the ballot paper. But lets face it, no party would want that because the chances are the ‘winner’ would always come second to that particular option and it would hard to claim a resounding victory when in fact you finished second after general dissatisfaction and distrust.
Wrote the following comment on May 2, 2010 at 3:46 pm
Simon, turns out your vote is more influential than most, Wirral South is a marginal seat and quite small.
https://www.voterpower.org.uk/wirral-south
Wrote the following comment on May 4, 2010 at 2:49 am
Well according to the Telegraph’s personal Votometer I should vote for the Labor Party! My results for a political match of my opinions came out as…
Labour Party: 50%
Green Party: 49%
Conservative Party: 47%
Liberal Democrats: 42%
Now I should say that I clicked the ‘Open Minded’ option for a number of issues, and there were certain other questions that I felt were somewhat loaded. For example, “The UK should build more prisons to cope with overcrowding within prisons.” I had to say I was open minded about this because I would rather the criminal justice system and education system address the kind of social issues that lead to crime.
I’m still undecided. In the past I have voted for the LibDems, but there pay for the miles you drive policy sounds like a bureaucratic cluster fuck in the making if you ask me, plus I don’t want to get rid of our currency in favor of the Euro.
I can’t bring myself to vote for the Conservatives because of their previous sins in the form of Maggie Thatcher and the poll tax which was widely reviled, heavily critisized, poorly executed, and violently protested against!
And while The Daily Telegraph might think I should vote Labor I rather think that they’ve wasted HUGE amounts of money introducing shit laws and stripping us of our rights for no perceivable gain of any worth what-so-ever!
Right now, I think I might vote green!
Wrote the following comment on May 4, 2010 at 2:50 am
You can try the Telegraphs votometer here…
Wrote the following comment on May 8, 2010 at 4:14 pm
I think elections are exciting and thought-provoking. Obviously, look at all of the comments you have.
I wish I hadn’t been unjustly kicked out of your country, because it would have been fun to be there. Though of course, not as fun as being in Nepal or Thailand right now. Now THAT’S crazy.