Earlier on we reminded you of the minging face of New Labour. Now look how manky a future under the Tories would look.1. Strikes and social unrest
History shows that when the Tories are in power they tend to antagonise whole categories of workers. When they governed between 1979 and 1997, Britain experienced an unprecedented number of major strikes with tens of millions of hours lost to industrial actions, way more than post-1997.
The Tory years were also packed with riots and social unrest. Brixton, St Pauls, Moss Side, Toxteth, Handsworth, the Miners' Strike, the Poll Tax... The list is a scarily long one. Are you sure you want that again?
2. Economy and welfare
David Cameron's priority is not to recoup the billions lost each year through tax dodging or to reign in the greedy banks. No. It's all about pleasing the tabloids with the trite anti-scrounger rhetoric, even though Cameron's speech on benefits today suggests that their policies will remain very similar to those of Labour. The party is bankrolled by multimillionaire donors. Of course their priority will be to help them and not you. Even a kid could figure that out.
3. Marriage tax breaks
Again. The Tories excel at arbitrarily singling out groups. Their proposal to give married people an extra £3 a week to reward "marriage" is financially useless but discriminatory in practice. It penalises or rewards certain people on the basis of circumstances, good or bad luck.
4. Etonian politicians
Labour is packed with ivory-tower think-tank professionals, but "David Cameron has more Etonians around him than any leader since Macmillan". Hence the inept remarks about "chicken feed","no class division", or the "whingeing" Cadbury workforce. These people will pass legislation on your working conditions, hours, public services, bills and tax without genuinely having a clue about the living standards of most ordinary people.
5. Reform
How can the Tories market themselves as the "party of change" when they don't even want to discuss constitutional reform? The Tories don't care that increasing numbers of votes (millions and millions) are wasted at each election and that apathy towards the Big Two Parties is at an all-time high. To quote Matthew Norman in today's Independent, David Cameron's slogan should be "Change By Keeping The Old Crap That Drove us To This Desperate Need For Change".
6. More money for the rich
The Tories oppose the LibDems' proposal to lift 4 million low paid out of taxation. The Tories think that a better policy is to cut inheritance tax for the super rich. They know it's electorally repulsive so they never elaborate on it when questioned in public. A Tory government will increase inequality without even pretending that they're trying to do otherwise. If you're an ordinary worker and you're planning to give your vote to a millionaire Prime Minister, then you're probably a masochist.
Click here to read "Six reasons not to vote Labour".
3. Marriage tax breaks
Again. The Tories excel at arbitrarily singling out groups. Their proposal to give married people an extra £3 a week to reward "marriage" is financially useless but discriminatory in practice. It penalises or rewards certain people on the basis of circumstances, good or bad luck.
4. Etonian politicians
Labour is packed with ivory-tower think-tank professionals, but "David Cameron has more Etonians around him than any leader since Macmillan". Hence the inept remarks about "chicken feed","no class division", or the "whingeing" Cadbury workforce. These people will pass legislation on your working conditions, hours, public services, bills and tax without genuinely having a clue about the living standards of most ordinary people.
5. Reform
How can the Tories market themselves as the "party of change" when they don't even want to discuss constitutional reform? The Tories don't care that increasing numbers of votes (millions and millions) are wasted at each election and that apathy towards the Big Two Parties is at an all-time high. To quote Matthew Norman in today's Independent, David Cameron's slogan should be "Change By Keeping The Old Crap That Drove us To This Desperate Need For Change".
6. More money for the rich
The Tories oppose the LibDems' proposal to lift 4 million low paid out of taxation. The Tories think that a better policy is to cut inheritance tax for the super rich. They know it's electorally repulsive so they never elaborate on it when questioned in public. A Tory government will increase inequality without even pretending that they're trying to do otherwise. If you're an ordinary worker and you're planning to give your vote to a millionaire Prime Minister, then you're probably a masochist.
Click here to read "Six reasons not to vote Labour".
10 comments:
You missed one...
Because they are shit.
Good posts on Labour and Conservatives. Are you going to dissect the Lib Dems or the Greens as well? Who’s next on the hit list? This election is proving to be a real anomaly so far certainly can't remember another one like it.
No, I'm not going to do the same post about the Lib Dems or the Greens because the pair of them have not been handed power yet and cannot be blamed for the current state of things.
I meanwhy on earth would you wish the Greens any harm? YOu may not agree with them, fair enough, but the Greens have never had an MP and obviously mean well. You may think they're a bit utopian or unrealistic, but they certainly mean well and deserve your vote wherever they're in with a chance.
As for the Lib Dems, they are our biggest, most realistic hope of electoral reform (meaning, serious & factual change in the future) and - at least- they are newer and less fucked up than both Labour and the Conservatives.
I agree entirely that the Lib Dems are the best chance for electoral reform. Sadly they have at least one serious fly in the ointment with Jenny Tonge.
http://amodernlibertarian.blogspot.com/2010/04/quick-look-at-lib-dems-part-2-their.html
I accept your point about both parties never having been in power. I accept that arguably Greens mean well (except when they share a platform with Hezbollah as Caroline Lucas did, that does send a different message)but their policies would IMO give too much power to an already bloated state. Liberty which is virtually in a coma already in this country, would be dead and buried. Replaced with a monstrous, all encompassing state. Forget the idea of freedom of movement with such restrictions on motor and air travel for instance plus massive taxation. Then again you're right they are utopian they should be heard. History though does seem to suggest that when Utopian ideologies form the basis of governments the result is tyranny, look at the USSR, Communist China, N Korea, Nazism etc. The Greens are mostly decent folks of course. However their ideology is one rooted in the benign (to them) use of state power.
And, Paul, you're perfectly entitled to think that. Don't like The Greens? Vote for the LibDems? Still too left-wing? Then vote UKIP, it's only fair they get an MP or two or three.
Still I maintain the point is: Vote for anyone but Labour & Tories.
Anything as long as the two dinosaurs understand that the country no longer accepts an obsolete system with just two old parties.
A ridiculosuly low turnout in 2005 wasn't enough to get Labour and Tony Blair to register the urgent need for reform. To them it was business as usual. But when you start seeing that the combined Labour/Tory vote is not even 50% of what people voted for, electoral reform will be inevitable.
As for flies in the ointment, it must be said that, following her inept remarks, Jenny Tonge was SACKED by the Lib Dems, which means the party as a whole found her views unacceptable. You can't fault that.
Look at this.
But when it comes to "flies in the ointment", no-one is immune. The UKIP has got a fair few skeletons in the ointment too as do the Green Party.
But none of them are going to win the elections. So let's just give them a chance. They're cleaner than Labour or the Tories, for sure.
I agree with what you say with regards to Labour and the Tories. I would like to see electoral reform and I'm sure we'd all accept that a few dingbats would be represented in Parliament as the price for PR. Matters not I suppose so long as parliament is then fairly representative.
I am slightly concerned about your overall stance though to some extent. I mean we all agree the BNP are horrid that's only reasonable. But Claude you must know what Hezbollah for instance are like? What they say and what they have done. Now if some right of centre party shared a platform with them, or say UKIP supporters marched with banners saying 'we are all Hamas now' what would the response be? Rightly it would be forthright condemnation. Yet when leftists do so they face considerably less opprobrium. Tonge was sacked (not before time) but she retains the Liberal Democrat whip.
Paul, what do you want me to say?
I despise Hamas and I think marching with banners saying "We're all Hezbollah now" is wrong and stupid and blind. Full stop.
Incidentally, back in 2003 that's what radically put me off the Stop the War Coalition and marches straightaway (chaps a-la Galloway, for example).
But if you start analysing all parties, you find that, at some point or other, at least one of their senior members or MPs did or said something inappropriate or was photographed with some bastard or other.
But then look at UKIP's mates in their European Parliament group, i.e. the vile super racist Northern League from Italy (it seriously makes the BNP look moderate by comparison and I'm not joking). I wouldn't sit with them if you paid me.
But what's the point in starting the old trite game of "condemn-a-thon", "you also did this" and "you also said that".
I really can't see where it can lead, apart from total apathy.
Hey Paul,
how are you?
I am slightly concerned about your overall stance though to some extent.
David Cameron joined the Tories in the 1980s, right at the time when the Party as a whole (not a lone MP) was throwing its weight behind racist apartheid-driven South Africa and Margaret Thatcher called Nelson Mandela a "terrorist".
Paul, you must know how appalling apartheid South Africa was like?
'Thatcher called Nelson Mandela a "terrorist".
Paul, you must know how appalling apartheid South Africa was like?'
Well I'm not a Tory and have never voted for them. Stan how has this got onto South Africa?
I'll admit I wanted to vote Tory in 2001, I was ill in hospital with a fever. My mother bless her voted on my behalf for the Lib Dems anyway as she hated the tories! This appalling electoral malpractice has always irked me, although as a student at the time I needed somewhere to raid the fridge and get my washing done so had to put up with it.
Stan how has this got onto South Africa?
For the same reason you started mentioning Hamas and Hezbollah as a comment to an article called "Six reasons not to vote Conservatives".
I agree with Claude: no party is in any position to criticise the others', i.e. unfortunate photo opps with some war criminal or MPs holding the wrong banner or dropping a clanger in interviews.
So what do you think about the Lib Dems this year then? Is Jenny Tonge's opinions enough to put you off them?
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