So 'Old Labour' became unelectable and re-invented itself as 'New Labour' which then became unelectable and now we have 'New Old Labour' which is already unelectable
Finally! A Labour Leader who actually represents the labour ideals! One that will actually talk to the youth and get them activized. One that isn't afraid to be labelled things by the Media, one that wants to unit Scotland and Wales, one that wants to fight for equality, fight for this planet! The Cons have made it perfectly clear that they don't give 2 ****s about anyone and that they will go back on their words at the drop of a hat. Corbyn doesn't strike me as a person that would renege on his ideals in any situation! Passion and commitment to a set of morales and ideals can carry anyone a long way.
Well considering Left wing liberalism is hugely on the rise, to me, it makes sense. Look at America, where it's almost entirely right wing politics and they have a socialist who is likely to get close, if not actually win, the Democratic candidacy. Opinions are changing! Just because you are happy to sit in your own little world and pretend like everything is hunky dorey, doesn't mean everyone is. You said on here recently that people around the world have it far worse so we should appreciate living in this country. It actually makes me feel pretty ****ty that I live in a country that has billionaires and people in poverty and that's ok. That we are currently taking in the fewest refugees of the European countries and still it is a huge issue (Purely due to the influence of the media). I appreciate that I have grown up in a country that allows me to learn about the world, make my own opinions. I don't appreciate a country that supports rampant inequality at the expense of our humanity. I don't think "Many have it far worse" is much of an endorsement for a place anyway. Just shows that there isn't really anything great about this country any more.
I have lived in countries which are genuinely poor and cannot afford to look after all of their citizens (Vietnam and Indonesia) and I think it is disgusting that rich countries like the UK and the US have the levels of poverty that they have. Yes, maybe the Labour party have just committed suicide, but I think that is far more commendable than trying to imitate the Tories like Blair and his acolytes who were only interested in getting on the gravy train and feathering their own nests. I have to admit I'm in a minority and most English people (and I mean English, not British) are much happier sucking up to the establishment who run our country and bleed it dry whilst blaming immigrants for all of our problems instead of their looking at their own selfishness and greed. The England that I knew as a child, that actually cared about its citizens and tried to be fair to everyone, is totally dead, and the country is a rotten little dump that imagines it's still a first-world nation and a beacon of democracy to which the rest of the world aspires. I've stayed clear of this thread deliberately because of the strength of my feelings on this issue. Rant over.
So the confirmed line-up is Corbyn, Watson and Khan. It will be interesting to see what develops from here in the coming months as some MP's appear to have already said that they would not serve in a Corbyn cabinet and that is before the Honeymoon period. Interesting times but it is worrying that the two main parties are so far apart, it is not good for the cohesion of the Country as a whole.
I'd never heard of Jamie Reed until he made a big drama of his resignation today. I will probably have forgotten about him in a few weeks. Every major party has those who don't get on with the leadership, it's hardly unique to Corbyn.
Depends partially on choice of shadow cabinet- but he also has a massive mandate from all levels of Labour Party including my vote -
I'd have been seriously concerned if it had gone through three rounds and Corbyn had just edged it on second or third preferences. That would have suggested some real divides in the party. But he's absolutely cruised with an overwhelming display of support from 60% of the party (in the end those Tories who signed up for £3 to vote made little or no difference overall with fully paid up members going for him just as much). And you'd have to think that most of Cooper's voters would put him second. So it's clear to me that this is a huge shout of unity other than the dregs of the Blairites. The key thing is that this will mean true, left wing style policies will be back in the agenda and there will be proper debates. The Tories have, if I'm being honest quite impressively, managed to strangle everything to make it seem as though only centre-right can win, but they've been hugely helped by the voice of the left being silenced by the left themselves. Besides, when you actually take a look at Corbyn's policies, if you're not looking at it through an American political lens, his policies are mostly reasonably centrist in European terms.
Yes, but I think the majority of English (not British) voters would much rather be the 51st state (or 52nd or whatever it is these days) than actually accept that they are part of Europe.
If it's a majority, it's very narrow. I don't think there is as much support, but the UKIP types are much more shouty. The problem is that Labour under Blair fought a tired and confused Conservative party in the midst of a strengthening economy and beat them with their own policies. That makes it look like you need to use their own policies to win, whereas actually the reasons for Blair's victories were much, much more complex. As soon as the Tories got organised, they beat Labour at their own game because they always will when I organised properly. But let's not exaggerate - this Tory government only just won an election that realistically they should have cruised and similarly in 2010. Of course they're going to paint it as they're unbeatable, but the reality suggests their position is pretty precarious.
Any of those former shadow cabinet members who have resigned should go the whole hog and sign up to the Conservative Party monday morning.
Labour's voting stats beg to differ. All the Tories crowing about it should know they've only lined the Party's pockets as their votes did not change the result at all!
I doubt that the three quid will do any more than cover the cost of processing their vote. The next by election will be interesting. If Corbyn doesn't change his stance on unlimited immigration Labour will get wiped out.
I know I was joking about the £3, it just amused me I don't think our country is quite as racist and xenophobic as that. The UKIP bubble has almost burst. The swell of support and sympathy for refugees is part and parcel of that. And also one single issue like immigration doesn't make such a diffenrence - it's only big issues like the economy that can be decisive