General Election

[Monsta®]

the general election is coming and you have a choice of labour, CONservative, lib dem(or as i like to call them "the third place party") or waste your vote on one of the little parties like the greens, monster looneys or the bnp. the thing is the lib,lab, CON parties all have very similiar polices so wheres the choice?

i would vote ukip if that loon farage wasn't incharge!

[Andy Millne]

Have to agree. Too much mud slinging to wade through to get to any substance. Not that there is any.

[threegee]

Well we have the TV debates, and Monsta's take on them, to look forward to.

To keep them from getting into too many bad habits I'm inclined to only vote UKIP at the Euro elections, and toss a coin (without Mad Gordon's head on it) at national and local elections.

More than two terms of any of them has never been good. We probably wouldn't be in quite the mess we are in now if Teflon Tony hadn't lied about serving a full third term. That's apart from his "little fibs" that got us into two very expensive wars against people who never set a foot on any of our land!

I remember a pit wife near the raas telling young me that Winston Churchill was an "old war monger". This was puzzling as I knew he'd got us out of one, but I still don't know of any he got us into. After a while I straightened this out in my mind: she wasn't really an Old Labour supporter at all; she was a Nazi parachutist in drag!

[Malcolm Robinson]

I think we might see some of the small discounted parties actually getting a seat or three in the forthcoming election. I think the main parties haven't quite realised how angry the electorate are with them and because of the smoozhing that has gone on with the economy in the run up, the financial consequences might well be ignored in favour of belting someone on the nose!

[Malcolm Robinson]

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/21/20100311/tuk-mps-and-peer-deny-expenses-fraud-6323e80.html

[threegee]

The system is heavily weighed against small parties, and I think quite deliberately, to stop any new movements from getting off the ground.

The arguments against PR are greatly overstated. The present system has disenfranchised large sections of the population for decades. I don't see anything wrong in drawing a government from across party boundaries either. No one party has a monopoly on good ideas.

OK, so the PM loses a lot of his rights to act like a dictator that have simply been appropriated over the last fifty or so years, but that's all to the good. I also think that five years in power without any real answerability is too long these days. Probably the US has it about right at four years.

But, how does a system reform itself when it's against the self-interest of those in power to reform? A looming revolution, or mass civil unrest, has been the only way that has worked in the past. All we are seeing at the moment is the worst examples of abuse by individuals being dealt with, and a bit of trimming of the rules. Instead of real reform the system is, as always, just doing the bare minimum to protect itself.

There needs to be a way for ordinary individuals to bring about change to the system without the explicit approval of the system itself. Maybe a real people's chamber which can only deliberate on constitutional matters and heavily relies on IT for its mandate? Could be the best ever reason to ask their lordships to find somewhere else to have their afternoon nap!

[Malcolm Robinson]

I agree with most of that GGG but the electorate don't actually vote for a prime minister. We vote for a 'local' representative and if they are in the winning party then a select few vote for a leader. I do think traditional party politics has had its day or is very close to having it. Maybe it is time to vote for a leader and let them form their own executive out of whoever else is elected?

The reliance on the party vote really just dumbs down the electorate as there is now so much common ground between them these days. I would like to see each candidate hold a public meeting in the community centre and debate the issues we feel concerned about, both local and national. If they are truly representatives of the people when was the last time one asked how we would like them to vote on any subject? We have been subjected to a quasi feudal democratic structure for way too long.

Last election Labour got in with about 22% of the possible vote and went on to say it held a popular mandate????? Over 25 million people voted and they got 9 million odd so they didn't even get a majority of the votes cast. Seems a crazy system when we consider the ethos behind the word, democracy. So we have a government who didn't get as many people voting for it than those who regularly watch Coronation Street! It is unbelievable!

As for their Lordships.........a few times it has been good that they were there, a bit like the European courts, but by and large a democracy cannot flourish with an unelected executive only there by grace and favour!

[Monsta®]

lets face it we got the choice of dumb, dumber and dumby!

[Malcolm Robinson]

Gives new meaning to the term 'hung' parliament!

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20100314/tuk-uk-britain-libdems-porn-fa6b408.html

[Malcolm Robinson]

Just watched Ken Clark on the Andrew Mars show yesterday morning and like Vince Cable what came over was a sensible option, even at the expense of support from the more extreme party faithfuls. These two have to be in treasury positions whoever gets in!

Cameron and Clegg are little more then fags whilst Gideon (Osborn) is fagging to the fags!

Survivalist extraordinaire, Gordon Brown, must be wondering how on earth he is still in his position after several halfarsed failed attempts to get rid of him by his own party. He is there because they deemed it better to go with him at this time rather than let Milliband reorganise everything at the eleventh hour. I think it is odds on that if Gordo pulls it off and wins the election he will be replaced soon after and consign the country to yet another PM by default.

[Merlin]

Just watched Ken Clark on the Andrew Mars show yesterday morning and like Vince Cable what came over was a sensible option, even at the expense of support from the more extreme party faithfuls. These two have to be in treasury positions whoever gets in!

Cameron and Clegg are little more then fags whilst Gideon (Osborn) is fagging to the fags!

Survivalist extraordinaire, Gordon Brown, must be wondering how on earth he is still in his position after several halfarsed failed attempts to get rid of him by his own party. He is there because they deemed it better to go with him at this time rather than let Milliband reorganise everything at the eleventh hour. I think it is odds on that if Gordo pulls it off and wins the election he will be replaced soon after and consign the country to yet another PM by default.

That's probably why the Cons are pushing for a general election as soon as a party changes PM by default. But like I keep saying 'You've got to be careful what you wish for'