Monday 26 October 2015

Another Labour Purge?

Over the weekend, Ken Livingston backed plans to deselect MPs who are criticising the new leader, Jeremy Corbyn.

He told BBC's Sunday Politics that:

"If your local MP is undermining Jeremy Corbyn, opposing the policies, opposing the anti-austerity measures that we want, people should have the right to say "Well, I'd like to have an MP who reflects my views," it should be a job for life."

It's incredibly hypocritical after Jeremy Corbyn himself has spent a lifetime of opposing ex Labour leaders such as Blair, and Brown, and has been commended for doing so.

What makes it worse, they begged, and practically forced those moderate MPs, who either backed Yvette Cooper or Andy Burnham, to give Jeremy Corbyn their endorsement so he could stand for the Labour leadership to "widen the debate."

Now these MPs are sticking to what they believe, like Jeremy Corbyn did as a back bencher for years, they might be purged for doing so.

Because the far left don't agree with the centrists of the party, they are therefore no longer wanted, or needed, unless you're called Andy Burnham, and will change your beliefs just so you can have a little power.

Is this what Corbyn meant by a "new, gentler politics"? Is this what his supporters meant by widening the debate?

Mike Gapes, Labour MP for Ilford South, recently disagreed on Twitter, and Corbyn's supporters and trolls quickly came out to blast him for it, saying he should leave the Labour Party, that he was no longer welcome.

How kind!


Wednesday 14 October 2015

Calamity Corbyn

It's fair to say Corbyn has not had a easy ride in his first month as Labour leader.

Who's to blame? No one but Corbyn himself.

Yes, yesterday he had a pretty good Prime Ministers Questions, he held his own, and had follow up questions, but as Dan Hodges (of the Telegraph) tweeted.

"We have now reached the point where the leader of the opposition actually managing to ask a follow up question merits praise."

It's not a great start.

But this isn't Corbyn's only calamity.

He and his Shadow Chancellor, John McDonnell, have managed to upset majority of the Labour MPs by u-turning on the Chancellor's fiscal chart.

At the conference, McDonnell said they would back Osborne's fiscal chart, only to tell his MP's during a Parliamentary Labour Party meeting, that they are would now NOT be backing the Chancellor.

This angered some MPs to storm out, one claiming the meeting was a "total f*cking shambles."

Another claimed, "huge joke."

Not a good start their either.

Some of the Corbynista's were perplexed as to why the MPs were so enraged by this sudden change of heart.

Now, it's not because he u-turned, it's how he did it, last minute dotcom, not consulting anyone before hand that their might be a change of heart, just one meeting, telling them what to do.

16 MP's abstained, 37 failed to turn up, the rest voted against in vain, George Osborne had a comfortable win, and the fiscal chart has been past through the House of Commons with a majority of 62.

Corbyn also has had to deal with his past, closely linked with the IRA, and friend's with the IRA's ex leader Gerry Adams.

Again, Corbynista's try to make it come across as he was talking to them for peace talks, because we're going to believe that?

Also, his words have come back to bite him, inviting members of Hamas and Hezbollah, known terrorist groups, to talk in the House of Commons, and calling them "friends."

Not only has been Corbyn who's had his own words come and haunt him, McDonnell has his fair share too.

Saying if he could go back in time, he'd have assassinated Thatcher, and said that those actions of the IRA merited awards.

All this in less than a year, makes Ed Miliband look quite competent.

Calamity Corbyn is Labour's future? Oh dear oh dear.




Monday 5 October 2015

#CPC15 Protests

It's odd, but when I saw some of same protestors from yesterday, this morning, I had a little respect for them.

They were obviously that passionate about whatever they were shouting about, they came back a second day........ this respect was quickly diminished.

Firstly yesterdays incident where a protestor spat in a journalists face. Why? What did you achieve by doing this? What was gained from you spitting in someones face?

Nothing.

Today, as I left the main area to be somewhere else, a protestor decided to follow me down the road a bit, his face half covered, his eyes bulging wide, shouting in my face:

"Get out Tory scum. This isn't your city. You are not welcome here. Now fuck off Tory scum."

Firstly, no, I won't fuck off, but please feel free to do so yourself any time.

Secondly, what did you achieve by getting in my face? Are you proud that you intimidated me? 

The answer is, yes he probably is proud. They say they care, but that only means to the ones who agree with them, not those who have differing opinions.

God forbid we live in a society where people are allowed to have their own opinions.

They say they have their right to protest, which they do, but I'm not allowed to disagree with what they're protesting against (is what I was told yesterday).

I was also told that because I didn't march with them, that made everyone who did march a kinder person.

What did the march achieve? No one can actually answer me.

When I said how many lives have they managed to actually help and turn around, no one can answer, instead I get, "You don't have to be poor to stand up for them."

Absolutely not, but how many lives have you helped? None is normally the answer.

See, I can say I been part of a process which has helped quite a few people. In the small company I work for, I've seen people join as boys, who are not academic, a few have even found it difficult to spell their own name, but with our help, they've earned money, got a skill, gained experience, and achieved a qualification.

A private company, who apparently only cares for profits, has helped at least 15 young men turn their lives around.

Paid for their education, and paid them whilst they're learning.

The state had all but abandoned them when it was obvious they were not academics, and was more than ready to take them on, and keep paying out the dole.

How many of these protestors can say they've managed to help someone like my company?

How many protestors have seen people join as boys, and watch them grow into men?

How many protestors have given someone that chance to turn their life around?