General election results 2015

[MrGongGong]

Sad to see the scum from the anarchist-left can't accept the result of a democratic election. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2015-32678518 Perhaps we could give them a one-way ticket to ISIS ?

Surely you mean a subscription?

http://isismagazine.org.uk

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Surely you mean a subscription?

http://isismagazine.org.uk

I thought it meant an Egyptian god.

[MrGongGong]

I thought it meant an Egyptian god.

Or a posh river?

Can you be both an "anarchist" and "left" ?
surely anarchism is a rejection of that paradigm?

[french frank]

Nicola Sturgeon is ex-Labour, but the trend evolved over a period of 20 years or so.

That was my feeling. I never thought of Salmond as anything but rather right-wing.

It's become a, in my view, glib mantra to say that right and left 'no longer applies', since it was only ever a figurative meaning anyway, a shorthand.

But if you don't perceive any distinct differences between the general way Tories rule the country and the way other parties would, let's just accept the election result as one that is irrelevant to all our lives and stop making a fuss. It really doesn't matter who wins. If there are perceptible differences, we can convey that by talking of left and right. Or blue and red. Or good and evil.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

It's become a, in my view, glib mantra to say that right and left 'no longer applies', since it was only ever a figurative meaning anyway, a shorthand.

But if you don't perceive any distinct differences between the general way Tories rule the country and the way other parties would, let's just accept the election result as one that is irrelevant to all our lives and stop making a fuss. It really doesn't matter who wins. If there are perceptible differences, we can convey that by talking of left and right. Or blue and red. Or good and evil.

I think it's become fuzzier by the tendency of political parties to move further to the right. We saw that with New Labour, which even made some Conservatives squeal. And then with the Lib Dems, when they moved towards being a tax-cutting party. The problem with "moderation" of this kind is that the parties of the right move further to the right.

So society becomes more selfish.

[jean]

And here come Mandelson and Blair, telling us that Labour lost because they'd moved too far to the left...

Can't say I'd noticed.

One of the worst problems for any sort of progressive politics is the unquestioned acceptance that austerity is the only possible apporoach. And if you accept that, then clearly the Tories are best at austerity. No wonder they won.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Austerity only seems to apply to the less well off.

[eighthobstruction]

One of the worst problems for any sort of progressive politics is the unquestioned acceptance that austerity is the only possible apporoach. And if you accept that, then clearly the Tories are best at austerity. No wonder they won.

....Yes job done....3 million orange jump suits on order....

[Serial_Apologist]

Or a posh river?

Can you be both an "anarchist" and "left" ?
surely anarchism is a rejection of that paradigm?

Well in the good ole days both anarchists and socialists were aiming to bring about socialism: the differences were that anarchists thought this could come about by changes in people's heads leading to ditto in their relationships and thence by accretion aided by selective terrorist acts to the eventual transformation, governments being an irrelevancy or at best in the way and inclined to impose power which = repression; whereas socialists thought it required government of a new kind with grass-roots back up from the real wealth creators, as opposed the capitalists employing them, and could only take place either through changing or replacing the state apparatus.

ABC of politics. But you knew that really, GG, I believe.

[french frank]

Austerity only seems to apply to the less well off.

That's axiomatic. The less well-off are the ones who cost public money: the better off can buy themselves out of it.

[James Wonnacott]

I think it's become fuzzier by the tendency of political parties to move further to the right. We saw that with New Labour, which even made some Conservatives squeal. And then with the Lib Dems, when they moved towards being a tax-cutting party. The problem with "moderation" of this kind is that the parties of the right move further to the right.

So society becomes more selfish.

Odd, in my view they've all moved to the left.

[jean]

If only...

[MrGongGong]

If only...

Going on mrW's previous pronouncements I think Genghis Khan is a bit too leftie for him!

[Serial_Apologist]

I've just checked:

Helen Hayes, our Labour candidate, got elected in this constituency on 54% of the vote.
Resham Kotecha, Conservative, came second, on 23%
LibDems and Greens got 10% and 9% respectively.

I was impressed with Ms Hayes the moment I met her canvassing on my doorstep: we spent 10 minutes talking about the party's problems, and mainly on the strength of an 88 vote difference between her well-known predecessor (Tessa Jowell) and the Tories in 2010, I decided to switch from the Greens.

If such a result can be attained in a leafy, middle-class aspirant district such as this, with good sympathetic candidates rather than party machine merchants standing it should have been achievable anywhere.

[vinteuil]

I've just checked:

Helen Hayes, our Labour candidate, got elected in this constituency on 54% of the vote.
Resham Kotecha, Conservative, came second, on 23%
LibDems and Greens got 10% and 9% respectively.

I was impressed with Ms Hayes the moment I met her canvassing on my doorstep: we spent 10 minutes talking about the party's problems, and mainly on the strength of an 88 vote difference between her well-known predecessor (Tessa Jowell) and the Tories in 2010, I decided to switch from the Greens.

If such a result can be attained in a leafy, middle-class aspirant district such as this, with good sympathetic candidates rather than party machine merchants standing it should have been achievable anywhere.

... and I've just checked here:

Andy Slaughter, our Labour candidate, got elected on 50% share of the total vote (+6.1% change in share of the votes)
Charlie Dewhirst, Conservative, came second with 36%

Lib Dems and Greens got 4.6% and 4.4% respectively.

Not particularly leafy here, but certainly includes 'middle class aspirant' - and a good sympathetic candidate...