03 May 2008

The 'Message' Is Clear: Ditch Brown Or We're Stuffed.

In fact it isn't quite as simple as that - we need some...
clear populist policies as well -preferably with Labour roots to them. There is still no real appetite for the Tories but we do need to act quickly if we are to stand any chance of going down fighting at the next election. People want to see a Labour party standing by its principles and none of this macho 'please the Daily Mail' stuff. The atmosphere is perfect for the real Labour party to stand up and be counted. We may still lose - like Livingstone did in London - but at least we would go down fighting and standing for something worthwhile - rather than just heading for clueless anihilation as we are at present.

Those who say we cannot get rid of Brown because 'it will only make things worse' are beginning to look even more laughable by the minute.

The rumour from Alex at LabourHome is that Straw and Miliband fancy a go. I doubt Straw could muster the support, but I think Miliband has played the game very cleverly. His 'we must support the leader' chant from last week sounds more and more like the 'vote of confidence' chairman give their football managers who are soon sacked and we all know this faux loyalty plays well to the crowd when jostling for the leadership position.

I doubt Brown will go quietly, but he is now so unpopular that his protests might actually boost Labour support. Some doubt Labour MPs have the stomach to remove the leader - but I think any more of this sort of Labour collapse and inept leadership - and even they won't fancy the sort of 1997 meltdown the Tories faced.

Anybody in the Labour party who feels sympathy for Brown or who feels he deserves more time, should remember how Brown arrogantly denied us a leadership election in the first place. These tactics may work well in becoming leader of the Labour party - but real PMs have to be able to win elections not avoid them. Only a real open leadership election will demonstrate to us who has what it takes to cause the Tories some grief.

Maybe Miliband is the sort of image we need - I certainly think he cannot do worse than Brown as leader. Maybe someone like Denham can come through the ranks. But we shouldn't just utter the 'there is no alternative' cliche and give up. Of course there is an alternative- almost any Minister could do better than Brown currently is doing.

Another reason for removing Brown is that he has failed to deliver on his promise to be 'real' Labour. We all thought that although Brown hasn't got the patter and style of Blair, at least he is from a proper Labour background. However Brown has shown himself even more in awe of the right-wing press than Blair. He has betrayed us on so many levels - he certainly does not deserve our respect and voters will not respect the Labour party if we let this guy continue to lead us. We have to offer the electorate something clear - not just policies but real direction and Labour direction - i.e genuine redistribution not short term offerings to Tories who will not vote for us.

Even if we have only got two years left we might as well spend it doing something worthwhile rather than trying to pander to the Tory press who will not give us any leeway in their daily bombardment of criticism - especially not now they sense blood. We need a strong Labour government not a weak one and Brown has proved himself incapable of courage.

I suggest we do things we have shied away from for too long - grasp the nettle and I think it would win us votes in the long term. We should do the decent and overdue things - reband council tax, truly ensure a free press not controlled by a few oligarchs, real devolution to local government and fair votes to ensure competition not inept and corrupt governance on a minority of the vote. There are lots of others and if we approach this honestly, we could make a difference for generations. If Labour blows this chance, the Tories might not give us another. Like in the US, we are facing the destruction of media impartiality when the broadcast laws are scrapped and the destruction of democracy when the boundary commission rules are changed. Both of these things are in the Tory's revealed plans. We have been warned. We have little time. I am fed up of being a stuck record on this - but what else is there to say. The future of our democracy is at stake. This might be the end of a hope of democracy for generations at least, maybe forever.

8 comments:

  1. "should remember how Brown arrogantly denied us a leadership election in the first place."

    The one who wanted to challenge could not muster enough support.

    Stop kicking the leader when hes down and take the fight to the Tories.

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  2. "we need some clear populist policies as well -preferably with Labour roots to them"

    Unbelievable!!

    So what you are saying is that the way to get Labour another term of office is to promote populist policies, but having their roots in Labour principles is not essential?! What is that about? Do you want Labour to be in power even if they are promoting Tory policies (which arguably they have been for the last 11 years)? Party politics is at its worst when it becomes tribal - my party right or wrong. The Labour party has lost its way, and it doesn't matter what they do to keep themselves in power - what counts is whether they can remember their roots and get back to a proper socialist base of policies. Forget middle England, and remember the most deprived in our society, that is what the Labour movement was built on. If there is no stomach for that approach from the general electorate, then it is still incumbent on the Labour Party to promote those policies that define the movement, and work to convince people that that is the only platform that has natural justice at its heart. If they can't do that, and merely seek to chase the votes with whatever neo-thatcherite programme that crosses their minds they are not worthy of the Labour tag, sinks to a PR exercise, no more. People will stay away from Labour be it Brown, Milliband, or whatever other NuLab lackey peddles the Daily Mail approach to society. We need the Labour Party to find itself again, or we will continue to be burdened with people like BoJo (under Tory or Labour flags, it makes no odds). In the meantime, what option have we got to vote for what is right? So people do it worng, and vote BNP as they can see no alternative to the failures of the main parties. Brown is wrng for Labour, but Labour is so far wrong through its core, that it doesn't have any individual who can set it right. It's a dead loss, Labour is dead as the Party of social justice, we just need to figure out where to turn for the real alternative.

    Get real Neal, your wasting your time with this shower, many of us have already figured it out, do try to keep up.

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  3. I think the problem is that the OEGK exemplifies Labour leaders all too well. Two faced, incompetent and not giving a shit about anything except grabbing and keeping hold of power.

    Good luck with the back stabbing, I think it may be better for you to find a party that A) has some principles and B) those principles that they hold are ones you agree with.

    I hold no hope of turning you to my point of view but you must be able to do better than throw your lot in with this shower.

    All the best,

    Falco

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  4. P.S. keep blogging, I don't agree with you most of the time, (because for a given value of wrong you are wrong), but I would be sad to see you give up.

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  5. "The atmosphere is perfect for the real Labour party to stand up and be counted. We may still lose - like Livingstone did in London - but at least we would go down fighting and standing for something worthwhile - rather than just heading for clueless anihilation as we are at present."

    The last Labour went beack to its grass roots principles it got hammered in what was referred to as the longest suicide not in history.

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  6. Ah, "genuine redistribution". It sounds so noble, doesn't it?

    How about I come round to your house and nick your car and telly, Neil? Maybe take the food from your fridge and cupboard? Steal your clothes? Take what I fancy from your CD and DVD collection?

    Because, dear Neil, this is what "genuine redistribution" is, only "legitimised" by having the government do it, rather than having individuals go round to the slightly better off (or perhaps not-so-better-off!) and doing it directly. Government being what it is, it's even less economically efficient than having thieves go out and do it themselves.

    My tax subsidy of the less well-off (or rather, of the troughers in parliament and the civil service) seems to have done nothing to improve the country after a decade of ZaNu Labour, but it has greatly reduced my ability to buy my own family clothes, food, gas, electricity and other pointless, neo-capitalist, advertising-led inessentials.

    I cannot believe that there are still people out there who have seen the consequences of a decade of government waste and are still prepared to support these incompetents -- do you actually believe that soundbites are achievements or what?

    A little bit of economic research will show how much structural damage to the economy has been done in the name of "Prudence" (or more accurately, "lies to make it look like Gordon was competent") -- even the Tories didn't have the balls to abuse PFI like Gordon has, leaving the UK with hundreds of billions of pounds of Enron-esque off-balance-sheet debt.

    Just wait till the economic collapse really starts to bite and you see just how much damage has been done by Labour's tax and spend profligacy. It's going to be hard for even die-hard Labourites to defend them when the smoke clears and the mirrors have all cracked.

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  7. How about I come round to your house and nick your car and telly, Neil? Maybe take the food from your fridge and cupboard? Steal your clothes? Take what I fancy from your CD and DVD collection?


    Yawn. The 'tax is theft' whine. If you really think that you can get a majority of people in the country who would sign up to that, why doesn't the Libertarian Party field some electoral candidates and see how it gets on? Surely you are not worried about losing your deposits?

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  8. "Ditch Brown or we're stuffed"

    It's diffcult to disagree with that!!

    He is not only the worst Chancellor but the worst PM ever, vote here.

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