Hazel Blears's car smashed up while she speaks to voters

[BrilloPad]

Telegraph.




Made my day.

One should not condone violence. But I would like to buy the perpetrators a pint or two.....

[AlfredJPruffock]

This government will not take account of the electorate's views on any major issue, no matter how widespread or longstanding and I think the point of last resort has been reached and passed.

Theres the Rub.

This is the essence of British Democracy - you give the electorate the Illusion of Democracy and participation but in reality you have long ago set your poltical agenda irrespective of the masses and the electorate are at best an annoyance - perhaps to the point they become a target for your riot police.


Theres no point in asking
You'll get no reply ...
We're so pretty - pretty vacant

[EternalOptimist]

Theres the Rub.

This is the essence of British Democracy - you give the electorate the Illusion of Democracy and participation but in reality you have long ago set your poltical agenda irrespective of the masses and the electorate are at best an annoyance at worse a target for your riot police.


Theres no point in asking
You'll get no reply ...
We're so pretty - pretty vacant

It's the systems. We dont have the systems in place for a proper democracy, so we are stuck with the representitive/party setup that we have now.
Maybe in the brave new world of IT and the interweb we can get to a proper Athenian type democracy.

there's plenty to explore

[AlfredJPruffock]

I agree with you there EO - fat chance of that good idea ever being approved - Ken Livingstone wrote a book 'If Voting changed anything - they would abolish it'

Anyway I read this on a blog which I think epitomises the situ in UK Politics :

You have to be Right Wing to get elected, but being Right Wing automatically means you can't run the country properly because, as we've seen over the last 3 decades, Right Wing policies lead, as night follows day, to division and misery for the masses.


So we'll keep being messed around by the Right Wing until the electoral system changes, which it probably never will because it keeps The Right in power so they can keep doing us.

Britain, 2009AD. The choice is Right Wing or Even Righter Wing.

Don't go blaming the electorate for the government. It's not as if we have any say in it.

[ratewhore]

Right Wing policies lead, as night follows day, to division and misery for the masses

Written by a screaming lefty no doubt...

[HairyArsedBloke]

...but being Right Wing automatically means you can't run the country properly because, as we've seen over the last 3 decades, Right Wing policies lead, as night follows day, to division and misery for the masses....

Er, wot

I think I've slipped into another quantum reality again.

[AlfredJPruffock]

Er, wot

I think I've slipped into another quantum reality again.

The author of the blog did previously go to pains to show that NL are in fact a right wing party - Blair being the best Tory Prime Minister ever etc ... de-regulation of financial markets ... etc

In essence the British Political Systen offers two flavours of Right Wing Government - pretty much like the Republican and Democrat 'choices' in the US - ultimately no matter who you vote for - the Government always gets in.

There you have it.

[TinTrump]

"Maybe in the brave new world of IT and the interweb we can get to a proper Athenian type democracy." ET

Women couldn't vote in that "proper" democracy. Oh, I see...

[Peoplesoft bloke]

The author of the blog did previously go to pains to show that NL are in fact a right wing party - Blair being the best Tory Prime Minister ever etc ... de-regulation of financial markets ... etc

In essence the British Political Systen offers two flavours of Right Wing Government - pretty much like the Republican and Democrat 'choices' in the US - ultimately no matter who you vote for - the Government always gets in.

There you have it.

It's true - Thatcher smashed the post war concensus (on, for example Nationalised Industries) and replaced it with a right wing agenda that Labour has largely followed. You can't fit a fag paper between the two major parties on most issues now, but aside from the occasional blip like the minimum wage, the whole country has moved to the right. I'd have thought the Thatcher lovers would be happy about that although I can see they might wonder why bother with imitators if you could have the original?

[EternalOptimist]

"Maybe in the brave new world of IT and the interweb we can get to a proper Athenian type democracy." ET

Women couldn't vote in that "proper" democracy. Oh, I see...

I know, and they had slaves as well.

What I mean is, all those eligible to vote, get to vote on every issue in the lobby.
You wouldnt need representitives any more, or parties ,or a government. Just lawyers to draft up laws, guided by civil servants based upon decisions voted in by all the voters.