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I am someone who's a total politics junkie. I watch BBC Parliament, and not just when I'm too delusional with fever to remember how to change the channel; I follow the elections of countries I don't live in; I vote in every election in which I am eligible with a song in my heart, because isn't democracy great!
And even I greeted the announcement that there's to be a snap general election with an "...oh, for fucks's sake", shortly followed by a grumpy, Scottish "so it's not the time for indyref2, is it? I see what you did there, May."
I think the reason I was okay, although not thrilled, about the prospect of a second independence referendum was that at least there I could see the possibility of an outcome I wanted: Sottish independence. What's the best possible outcome of this new election? A slightly smaller than expected Tory landslide?
I was pleased to see people calling bullshit on May's stated reason for calling the election. The opposition are threatening to derail the brexit process? Except Labour last opposed anything about eighteen months ago, and have voted through all of your brexit legislation with nary a whimper. The Lib Dems are threatening "to grind the government to a halt". Really, are they? All eight of them? Gosh, that's impressive. And I see we're back to the tactic of using Nicola Sturgeon as some sort of tartan menace with which to frighten English voters. De-fucking-lightful.
And who to vote for? On the one hand, I couldn't agree more that Labour is fucked until they figure out how to win seats in Scotland again, on the other hand I don't want to do anything that makes them think I endorse Corbyn's continued leadership. You know, I was fucking delighted when Corbyn won the party leadership the first time, but it hasn't worked; the horse is dead, stop whipping it. I wasn't wild about Owen Smith either (oh, Angela Eagle, we hardly knew ye) but at least he wasn't Corbyn.
I kind of understand the thinking of the Corbyn wing of the party, that the message is more important than the messanger. But not when the messenger is Jeremy Corbyn. He's one of those politicians where I agree with absolutely everything he says, right up until he says it. Look at that thing where he sat on the floor of that train; even if you're not in favour of renationalising the railways, the people receptive to the argument that the trains are overcrowded, overpriced, and badly run should be you, me, and everyone who's been on a peak time train since 1994. But his stunt was so poorly stage managed that it almost made you want to side with Virgin Trains.
Maybe a sufficiently bad drubbing will finally convince Corbyn to give up the ghost, but the questions then become, 1) will there be any public services left to defend come 2022, and 2) who would replace him? Especially now that we seem to have decided that anyone who voted for the Iraq War (who are 95% of those qualified), regardless of their current position on it, is a non-starter. But if we've taken nothing else from the US elections, surely we should take the lesson that there's little point being progressive if you can't get elected and actually make progress; your moral purity might keep you warm at night, but it does fuck all for anyone else.
I used to like the Lib-Dems. And, honestly, I thought they got unfairly pilloried for the coalition with Tories. A wee bit of pillorying was certainly called for, but wiping them out and returning the Tories with a majority seemed like cutting off your nose to spite your face; and everything the Tories have done in that last two years kind of lends credence to the Lib Dem story that they were hanging on to the good side of history with their fingertips. I do like that they are an unapologetically pro EU party, but I am iffy on Farron and his prevaricating on issues like abortion and gay rights. I think to vote for them I'd have to be willing to put brexit above all else, and I'm not there.
There's also the fact that I'm apparently a Scottish Nationalist now. I wasn't always. Even during the last referendum my attitude was one of, eh, I'll be fine if it happens, but either way is cool. It wasn't even brexit that made me a full on convert to the cause of independence, although that was the start of it. It was a few weeks ago during all that posturing in the direction of Spain over Gibraltar, when I finally went: I can't take any more of this government by Daily Mail, it's embarrassing, I just want to go.
The SNP have kind of a tough hand to play because they did so well in 2015 that they could win, and handily, but if they fall short of running the table it'll be seen as a loss and a reason that Scotland should just put up and shut up. So, toddle off and vote I shall.
Oh, well, I'll take cold comfort from the hope that the bottom has fallen out of the UKIP vote; most of its base having returned to their natural home in the cold, unfeeling arms of Theresa May's Tories.
Also, um, I have some new people here (also, old people from LJ!) Hi, hello! Here is more about my political leanings than you probably ever wanted to know.
And even I greeted the announcement that there's to be a snap general election with an "...oh, for fucks's sake", shortly followed by a grumpy, Scottish "so it's not the time for indyref2, is it? I see what you did there, May."
I think the reason I was okay, although not thrilled, about the prospect of a second independence referendum was that at least there I could see the possibility of an outcome I wanted: Sottish independence. What's the best possible outcome of this new election? A slightly smaller than expected Tory landslide?
I was pleased to see people calling bullshit on May's stated reason for calling the election. The opposition are threatening to derail the brexit process? Except Labour last opposed anything about eighteen months ago, and have voted through all of your brexit legislation with nary a whimper. The Lib Dems are threatening "to grind the government to a halt". Really, are they? All eight of them? Gosh, that's impressive. And I see we're back to the tactic of using Nicola Sturgeon as some sort of tartan menace with which to frighten English voters. De-fucking-lightful.
And who to vote for? On the one hand, I couldn't agree more that Labour is fucked until they figure out how to win seats in Scotland again, on the other hand I don't want to do anything that makes them think I endorse Corbyn's continued leadership. You know, I was fucking delighted when Corbyn won the party leadership the first time, but it hasn't worked; the horse is dead, stop whipping it. I wasn't wild about Owen Smith either (oh, Angela Eagle, we hardly knew ye) but at least he wasn't Corbyn.
I kind of understand the thinking of the Corbyn wing of the party, that the message is more important than the messanger. But not when the messenger is Jeremy Corbyn. He's one of those politicians where I agree with absolutely everything he says, right up until he says it. Look at that thing where he sat on the floor of that train; even if you're not in favour of renationalising the railways, the people receptive to the argument that the trains are overcrowded, overpriced, and badly run should be you, me, and everyone who's been on a peak time train since 1994. But his stunt was so poorly stage managed that it almost made you want to side with Virgin Trains.
Maybe a sufficiently bad drubbing will finally convince Corbyn to give up the ghost, but the questions then become, 1) will there be any public services left to defend come 2022, and 2) who would replace him? Especially now that we seem to have decided that anyone who voted for the Iraq War (who are 95% of those qualified), regardless of their current position on it, is a non-starter. But if we've taken nothing else from the US elections, surely we should take the lesson that there's little point being progressive if you can't get elected and actually make progress; your moral purity might keep you warm at night, but it does fuck all for anyone else.
I used to like the Lib-Dems. And, honestly, I thought they got unfairly pilloried for the coalition with Tories. A wee bit of pillorying was certainly called for, but wiping them out and returning the Tories with a majority seemed like cutting off your nose to spite your face; and everything the Tories have done in that last two years kind of lends credence to the Lib Dem story that they were hanging on to the good side of history with their fingertips. I do like that they are an unapologetically pro EU party, but I am iffy on Farron and his prevaricating on issues like abortion and gay rights. I think to vote for them I'd have to be willing to put brexit above all else, and I'm not there.
There's also the fact that I'm apparently a Scottish Nationalist now. I wasn't always. Even during the last referendum my attitude was one of, eh, I'll be fine if it happens, but either way is cool. It wasn't even brexit that made me a full on convert to the cause of independence, although that was the start of it. It was a few weeks ago during all that posturing in the direction of Spain over Gibraltar, when I finally went: I can't take any more of this government by Daily Mail, it's embarrassing, I just want to go.
The SNP have kind of a tough hand to play because they did so well in 2015 that they could win, and handily, but if they fall short of running the table it'll be seen as a loss and a reason that Scotland should just put up and shut up. So, toddle off and vote I shall.
Oh, well, I'll take cold comfort from the hope that the bottom has fallen out of the UKIP vote; most of its base having returned to their natural home in the cold, unfeeling arms of Theresa May's Tories.
Also, um, I have some new people here (also, old people from LJ!) Hi, hello! Here is more about my political leanings than you probably ever wanted to know.