[Politics] Lib Dem leadership contest.

[beorhthelm]

So why aren't they? Have they effectively been derailed by dark forces?

not really, they just cant find a clear ideal to focus around, except not being the others.

 

[Gwylan]

It was organised, then postponed , then re-organised because of the pandemic.

That doesn't wash. Tthey had a head start on Labour, whose leader didn't resign till nearly a month later. And yet Labour managed to run a far bigger election in just three months, despite the pandemic,

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Don't know. Don't care. Didn't know there was one.

A political party so far removed from its potential supporters by ridiculous policies and mind numbing dumb candidates.

Vince Cable being the only LD I could listen to.

Some day dreamer with unrealistic policies, a very dangerous and extreme party imho

Comedy gold. Mind numbing dumb candidates or dangerous and extreme,

 

[GT49er]

I'm amazed that a thread on something even more irrelevant than honey badgers has got past twenty posts!

 

[Monkey Man]

There are all kinds of reasons why the Lib Dems have waned as a political force. The confusing thing is that, at a time when so many voters were repelled by both the Brexit-crazed Tories and a Corbyn-led Labour, they still didn't make the breakthrough.

Why is that?

One of the most convincing arguments is that a lot of moderate voters were worried that a Lib Dem vote would effectively help Corbyn into power, so either abstained, or held their noses and voted Tory, because they saw it as the lesser of two evils.

A lot of people have argued that the last election represented a massive rejection of centre-party politics. I'm not inclined to see it that way – I think it's more likely that our bizarre electoral system simply exaggerated and polarised the two extremes.

I think the Lib Dems actually have a huge natural supporter base. But when you vote for them in a first-past-the-post Parliamentary election, you know that the mathematics are still all about the likelihood of a Tory or Labour government.

 

[Lenny Rider]

Wasn't Farron part of the God Squad?

I seem to recall his beliefs getting in the way of his politics, which is a shame really because I thought he was half sensible up against the others.

 

[Gwylan]

Wasn't Farron part of the God Squad?

I seem to recall his beliefs getting in the way of his politics, which is a shame really because I thought he was half sensible up against the others.

Interestingly, the two most blatantly religious PMs in my lifetime - Thatcher and Blair - are the two who have won the most elections.

 

[zefarelly]

A decent centrist party would clean up in the country, exactly what we all need.

The fact we have nothing even remotely viable says more about the lazy apathetic population and the general state of politics, which has caused the apathetic attitude.

the sooner the big two parties whither and die the better, dinosours are not the way forward.

 

[Lenny Rider]

A decent centrist party would clean up in the country, exactly what we all need.

The fact we have nothing even remotely viable says more about the lazy apathetic population and the general state of politics, which has caused the apathetic attitude.

the sooner the big two parties whither and die the better, dinosours are not the way forward.

Out of interest what do you think their core policies would be in order to clean up?

 

[Thunder Bolt]

A decent centrist party would clean up in the country, exactly what we all need.

The fact we have nothing even remotely viable says more about the lazy apathetic population and the general state of politics, which has caused the apathetic attitude.

the sooner the big two parties whither and die the better, dinosours are not the way forward.

Funnily enough, although I didn't like the man, Corbyn's policies are considered mainstream in the Scandinavian countries. It's amazing what the media can do to make the populutation think.

https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/ca...rbyn-mainstream-scandinavian-social-democrat/

 

[Wellesley]

Layla Moran. She is awful..........but I like her!

 

[Gwylan]

A decent centrist party would clean up in the country, exactly what we all need.

The fact we have nothing even remotely viable says more about the lazy apathetic population

That's a bit contradictory. If the electorate is apathetic about a centrist party, then they're not likely to "clean up"

We don't have a population that's apathetic about voting - we have a pretty healthy turnout for elections - but they're not very interested in centrist parties

 

[zefarelly]

Out of interest what do you think their core policies would be in order to clean up?

a lot like the labour party without the unions, and some more practicable business sense.

A tinsy bit like the conservatives but with some compassion and without the dodgy ***** crooks and devious slef interests. ( those last bits kind of wipes most of them out )

a bit like the green party but with something realistically feasible.

priority on the UK, (persoanlly prefereably the EU too) non war mongering for money/oil, nationalisation of core utilities and infrastructure. guarantees and improvements as a priority for NHS, Education, and the environment. Concerted investment in national industry and manufacturing.

Taxation reforms particularly at the higher levels. If the likes of amazon/paypal/starbucks all offshore, kick em off shore permanently, no one needs them.

A no dickheads policy.

 

[Peteinblack]

Funnily enough, although I didn't like the man, Corbyn's policies are considered mainstream in the Scandinavian countries. It's amazing what the media can do to make the populutation think.

https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/ca...rbyn-mainstream-scandinavian-social-democrat/

This ^

I always maintained that even though Corbyn was an incompetent and unappealing leader, many of his policies would be considered mainstream centre-Left in much of Europe - some nationalisation, slightly higher tax on the rich, and a couple of workers on the boards of companies to have a small say in the decisions (which affect them) and improve democracy in the workplace.

Germany has a state-owned railway and worker-directors, for example, yet their leader, Merkel, is a Conservative (Christian Democrat).

The fact that these policies were portrayed as Communist in Britain shows have far to the Right we have moved, certainly on economic issues. It also shows just how powerful much of the press is in defining what is 'acceptable' or 'extremist': the extent to which so many people take their political cues and views from rabidly pro-Conservative papers like the Daily Mail, Daily Express, The Sun, Daily Telegraph, and The Times is astonishing and depressing - and then (without any irony) they'll complain about Left-wing bias in the media and people being indoctrinated or brainwashed!

Most of our national newspapers are owned by billionaire business-men who are naturally hostile to any form of socialism, and so they convince their readers that any policies to tackle poverty, clamp-down on corporate tax-dodging, stop the selling-off of public services to private firms (who are often donors to the Conservative party), tackle homelessness and unaffordable housing, and slightly improve workers' rights or democracy in the workplace, are the work of the Devil, and will turn us into a basket-case like North Korea.

 

[Pretty pink fairy]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpbnBvlbPkA
the silent majority have their say
regards
DF

 

[Thunder Bolt]

the silent majority have their say

Dear fairy

If the silent majority have their say, they aren't silent.

 

[zefarelly]

That's a bit contradictory. If the electorate is apathetic about a centrist party, then they're not likely to "clean up"

We don't have a population that's apathetic about voting - we have a pretty healthy turnout for elections - but they're not very interested in centrist parties

voting should be compulsory IMO . . .turnout is average, quite justifiably as a lot of people consider their vote to be worthless, its also very much dependant on where you live.

I think they would be interested in parties iof THEY WERE ANY GOOD . . . brainwashing by the press doesn't help, but generations of ill educated minions has seen to that. . . .

 

[zefarelly]

This ^

I always maintained that even though Corbyn was an incompetent and unappealing leader, many of his policies would be considered mainstream centre-Left in much of Europe - some nationalisation, slightly higher tax on the rich, and a couple of workers on the boards of companies to have a small say in the decisions (which affect them) and improve democracy in the workplace.

Germany has a state-owned railway and worker-directors, for example, yet their leader, Merkel, is a Conservative (Christian Democrat).

The fact that these policies were portrayed as Communist in Britain shows have far to the Right we have moved, certainly on economic issues. It also shows just how powerful much of the press is in defining what is 'acceptable' or 'extremist': the extent to which so many people take their political cues and views from rabidly pro-Conservative papers like the Daily Mail, Daily Express, The Sun, Daily Telegraph, and The Times is astonishing and depressing - and then (without any irony) they'll complain about Left-wing bias in the media and people being indoctrinated r brainwashed!

Most of our national newspapers are owned by billionaire business-men who are naturally hostile to any form of socialism, and so they convince their readers that any policies to tackle poverty, clamp-down on corporate tax-dodging, stop the selling-off of public services to private firms (who are often donors to the Conservative party), tackle homelessness and unaffordable housing, and slightly improve workers' rights or democracy in the workplace, are the work of the Devil, and will turn us into a basket-case like North Korea.

Well said sir . . . .

 

[Guinness Boy]

Dear fairy

If the silent majority have their say, they aren't silent.

The Brexiteers on here certainly aren't silent. One of them even started this thread. Like anyone cares who a Brexit Party voter who occasionally uses the Labour movement he despises to get more money at the expense of commuters wants as Lib Dem leader

 

[Pretty pink fairy]

Dear fairy

If the silent majority have their say, they aren't silent.

only when it matters how are you getting on with that application form
regards
DF