The Labour Party have a conference. This is the last big moment before the General Election in May 2015 for Ed Milliband to make play for being the next Prime Minister. What a choice, Ed or Dave. At the last election I was given the choice of six candidates, and the Tory always wins with eighty percent of the vote here, and I didn't want any of them! Worse still I knew almost nothing of most, and what I did know was not inspiring. I always vote and this year I am hoping the Monster Raving Loony Party will stand, I will vote for him! The UKIP candidate, more dotty than the Tories, will put on a good show this time and cut the Tory boy's majority by half, but he will still win. Democracy, don't ya love it?
What did Ed say? Does it matter, really....?
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As I stuffed my healthy salad and veg with a slice of expensive meat (going cheap) and similar cheese for lunch I watched the ham histrionics of Prime Ministers question Time. This in theory is an opportunity for back bench MP's to bring relevant questions to the PM direct. Naturally the leader of the Opposition has six questions he can ask and this means the whole pantomime turns on their performance, and performance this is! Backbenchers do ask a lot of questions, often 'suggested' by the front bench leaders, and occasionally the House falls quiet when an MP actually brings a relevant and often serious question to the PM. Mostly however this is an act and an act which rises in intensity as an election is in the offing next year. Order papers are waved, loud cheers roar as their man rises to ask or answer a question, the 'Yaboo' cries continue throughout, mocking laughter, attempts to put off the questioner if it annoys one side or another, 'Order! Order!' cries from the speaker as he demands silence for the question. All this rings out for thirty minutes at noon on every Wednesday the House sits. A sign of democracy in action, or possibly a need for a strong dictator I'm not sure.
The interesting thing is what happens when the speaker brings the session to an end. The House empties, it is lunch time, the next minister takes his position and a near silence descends on proceedings. Today such as this occurred after PMQ's finished except that the PM remained in his place to report to the House on his recent meetings with the G87. Instead of order paper waving and yells the place remained quiet, little noise followed the short report and this continued when Milliband rose to reply. The cameras of the BBC Parliament channel remained on to inform the nation of proceedings but the News reporters were now in the Lobby talking to leading MP's to find out what really was going on. The normal business of democracy was now in action, quiet, slow, ponderous and often very uninteresting but very much better than that in many other places in this world.
I have been struck by how much the Labour Party no longer represents the 'workers' of this country. To be elected in England you must appeal to 'Middle England,' and that well off type care little for the lower end of society, indeed blaming them for their misfortune. Add to this the nature of those now selected as candidates for the Labour Party and we find most as from the 'Oxbridge Set.' Middle class liberals who have been through Oxford or Cambridge, have the right outlook, look the part the Party requires and have never done an honest days work in their lives!
The Lib-Dems are a dying party but Labour indeed now represent the Liberal outlook, not the workers.
You will doubtless be aware that my care for 'art' and 'celebrities' does not make any important mark in my humble existence. Such as these do cross my paths on occasion but it is a sad thing in my view that I am not driving a bus at the time. This musing arises because of one Gwyneth Paltrow and her bloke whatsisname? Suddenly, while searching for a missing plane and the 230 occupants, discussing the economy and whether Chancellor George Osborne actually plays Bingo or not we find acres of print given over to this women dumping her man. It appears many get very excited when some broken women, and from what I can gather this is a very broken and confused woman, get married quite regularly and publicly, are pictured in days of bliss, and when there is no news to speak off inform the world he's been kicked out the door. You will note I imply she is the one making the decisions here. I ask, why do men marry such as she? Why does she marry such as he? Why is the broken life of a mere film star so important to so many? I recall the reaction, though I was not around at the time, when Rudolph Valentino died, women committed suicide because of this. From what I can gather he was not someone worth bothering about too much either. It is all very sad and reflects a need for a leading light in our lives.
We all do this. We identify with someone because he or she is a footballer, musician, film star or whatever we fancy. Women have a terrible tendency to fall for a hunk in a film in a manner men don't manage I am glad to say, women also identify with a woman and her struggles also. Note the absurd reaction to the death of Diana? So many women who chose to live their lives through an image of someone they saw on TV and in magazines. Someone who did not live out the life her admirers were living through her. We do tend to follow 'role models,' and we often pick absurd ones. However who would follow Paltrow as a 'role model?' Feel sympathy, wish to help, suggest keeping out of the public eye and find a life, yes all this, but copy her ways to find satisfaction, I wonder who would do this? It's a funny old world.
I should add I never managed to be another Jim Cruickshank, he caught the ball better than I.
You will like this!
News headlines gathered from many of the local papers, and one or two more reliable sources, that will make you laugh! How do you sell a paper, by the huge headline that grabs attention. Read the efforts of those men seeking to reach the top in journalism, or maybe, maybe those who failed to get there and are now just holding on.....just.
Click this link.
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Cameron is at it again I see. With UKIP folk making a fool of themselves in 'Bongo Bongo land' the PR man has spent much of his holiday in PR stunts attempting to win back the favour of his lost voters. The Conservative Party has apparently shed thousands of members during his time. He has turned up in the paper almost daily spouting 'vows' and 'promises,' each one assuring that 'he will...' or that 'something is done.' Lies, all lies. He is very into 'Fracking' today so I suspect he is suffering 'dropsy' of some sort, a terrible disease. Asking people in the south of England to think of the 'good of the country,' and accept his friends 'fracking' is pushing it I say. I understand the councillors who allowed this project in the south to go ahead may have connections with the company involved, allegedly. Cameron of course lives in the Cotswolds, far away from the work.
Those phone in programmes dominated by the lonely, the desperate and members of parliament seeking attention have also drawn him in. He has called in to earnestly support gays in Russia, yet would not withdraw from the athletics there obviously, rebuke Spain and spout about any subject of the day. Did it make a difference? Only to his party members, or at least to those in his office. The Norwegian PM took to driving a taxi to meet the people, I canny see Dave following suit, he would get a fair idea of what the public really think. I suspect they would be less genteel than the friendly Norwegians! Today the PR was attacking the weakest once again. Ian Duncan Smith, that cretinous worm of a man, once again wishes to point out that all the welfare budget goes on scroungers! He does this by finding 4000 who he claims are earning £23, 000 a year from handouts and he will end this, his figures are of course disputable. Total baloney but the Daily mail reader is happy enough. He claims his policies have saved million from the welfare budget but does not show how, nothing new for IDS that. He still claims all the expenses he can doesn't he? IDS once claimed a £39 breakfast on expenses, and a £9 cocktail while still in opposition. Sadly this was rejected!
All this is to win back the Tories ready to defect to UKIP, the party the Tories claim is full of 'swivel eyed loons.' While they are not wrong they are not really in a position to criticise are they? I suppose it stops questions arising re tax dodging friends and the latest news that the recession (is it called this?) will last at least three more years or until 750,000 are taken from the dole queues. Fabulous! By the time so many have got jobs or retired there will be a million more on the dole, the futures bright eh?
Where are the opposition while this is going on? Not to be seen anywhere! One Labour female, who got her job because of her sex, waffled on about something the other day but I cannot remember what she said. She will go far in the Labour Party. Ed Milliband is writing his speech for the conference which follows the holidays. It is make or break time for him. If he fails to deliver he may well be ejected, and that will be no loss, but what will replace him? There is nothing left in Labour's box, merely a collection of middle class Oxbridge types with less idea of what the world requires than Cameron has. The future is indeed bright, but not here. What a mess we are in and no-one knows what to do. The truth however, is out there!
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