You remark, almost with pride, that the population hasn’t shifted to the left – well, what exactly was your job as a political leader supposed to be about then?
I’m pretty sure, in this democracy thing, that a political leader is supposed to reflect the desires of the electorate, not mold them.
But then Neal Lawson always has been a bit of a fascist, hasn’t he?
That is hardly fair. Political leaders are supposed to lead. They are not there to be weather vanes that swing wherever the latest focus group takes them. They are there to do the right thing.
If they are totally out of touch with the public, no doubt they will not get elected. But it is the mark of a great leader, and not Fascist at all, to lead public opinion. When Churchill called for re-armament he was widely pilloried. But the public came around. Thatcher knew what she wanted to do. The public didn’t. But they trusted her.
It was not Fascist for Atticus Finch to stand up to the mob.
Good lord, they have never forgiven Blair for being electable, did they?
“The tent was too big and you spent the next 10 years trying to keep the wrong people in it: the very rich, for example. What meaningful project includes everyone?”
The stupid. It hurts. Translation: “what is Labour if it’s not about dividing, excluding, and hating the toffs?”
“You were about one thing really, Tony – winning. Winning at any cost. ”
And by showing that to win, they had to be not old, sclerotic Clause 4 socialists. Perhaps that’s why they hated him
“Not for you the challenge of reshaping the world in line with a new vision for society.”
Oooh, and there’s the fascism again…
abacab – “Oooh, and there’s the fascism again…”
But it isn’t Fascism. It is tone-deafness. They really think that if they continue to berate the public eventually they will realise the glories of Fabian socialism and all will be well.
On the other hand, if politicians did what the public wanted, Enoch Powell would have been PM. I think we would have been better off but I doubt many people here would agree with me. All that shouting has worked – people like this do control the media and the schools after all. But only up to a point.
You’ve forgotten your Burke and your FE Smith, Timmy.
People’s democracies elect delegates. We elect representatives.
Why do they consider ‘the very rich’ to be the wrong people, when so many of the Labour front bench fit that description?
“But it isn’t Fascism. It is tone-deafness. They really think that if they continue to berate the public eventually they will realise the glories of Fabian socialism and all will be well.”
fair point. It’s just not crossed their minds that people don’t want it, hence blaming Blair for the population not having moved leftwards: once the “Me grampa voted Labour so ah do too” has dissipated, England at least is just not very left-wing, and is certainly not predisposed to the Islington-type of left-wingery.
Your comment also reminds me of that Belgian chap with the bad teeth in the European parliament, who seems to think that if he berates the UK long enough and hard enough the UK will be convinced and will jump into line behind him. Rather echoing the Barack Obama school of inter-party diplomacy. Cos the way to convince people is to berate them and call them names – that always works in bringing people over to your point of view…….
Neal Lawson is chair of the pressure group Compass
Proggies and their tortured syntax. Lawson is chair, eh? Ableist cunt. Chairs have legs, which not every human being has, you insensitive, amputee-excluding bastard.
and author of the book All Consuming (Penguin).
From the Amazon reviews: “Cut down on your consumerism by not buying this book.”
He serves on the Boards of UK Feminista
What a man-fucking-gina. Kick him in the crotch to check if he still has bollocks.
and the AV Referendum Campaign
He supported AV because it would create “a new socialism”, lols.
and was previously an adviser to Gordon Brown.
The only advice I have for the one-eyed money-spunking gimp is “eat powdered bleach”.
He and Ken Spours are editors of Education for the Good Society, available at http://www.compassonline.org.uk
By “education”, they mean “socialist propaganda”: “the education system still reproduces dominant social relations and has a long way to go to reflect the agenda of equality and respect required for the Good Society”
And by “Good Society”, they mean “Communism”:
“the concept of the Good Society is rooted in equality, democracy, sustainability and well-being, providing a vision and path of transformation […] Education for the Good Society can claim to be a ‘serious utopianism’”
General Pinochet was right. Round em up and give em free skydiving lessons. We can’t live with progressives, we sure can live without them.
‘Translation: “what is Labour if it’s not about dividing, excluding, and hating the toffs?”’
That is precisely its point, isn’t it? All you have to do is replace “toffs” by “Jews” to see the nature of its appeal.
If the electorate refuses to shift to the Left, then import another one. Chuck the old one away, it’s broken.
No. Political leaders DO move the electorate. It is not “Fascist” to persuade. Worstall succumbs to a UKIP idiocy.
Sez the BluLabour stooge Jackal-heart.
With Churchill and rearmament the public did indeed “come around”, but not until it was completely fucking obvious and, of course, too late. This was a country which had voted in an overtly pacifist candidate in the Fulham by-election in 1933 and which had hardly taken a hawkish stance in the “Peace Ballot” of 1935.
Churchill’s position on rearmament, far from persuading people or moving them, was massively unpopular. Mistakenly so, but nevertheless true.
Like most articles (or laws) from our ‘betters’ in the media/gov/law it can usually be replaced with a placard that reads:
WE THINK PEOPLE ARE TOO STUPID TO THINK FOR THEMSELVES
As most people live in rational ignorance when it comes to politics and economics we do need persuasive and committed conviction politicians with ideas that they can sell to the electorate.
What we have instead is a bunch of power hungry chancers who will spout the output of the last focus group that was tested to get elected and political convictions be damned. We may as well be voting for the editorial boards of the newspapers.
On of the reasons the left hated Thatcher so much was that she did at least persuade enough people that she was on to something whereas every time the Neal Lawsons of this world show their true colours we can see real world examples of the utter failure of their proposed policies.
“It is not “Fascist” to persuade. “
Oh, if persuasion was all we had to worry about…
” Political leaders DO move the electorate.”
He’s right, that Jackart.
Just listening to Cameron inspires me to take a long & satisfying dump. Two fags & the newspaper jobbie.
Can’t get more moving than that.
“free skydiving lessons”, “import another electorate”, “inspire a long and satisfying dump”
that’s tough – I think *not* Spain wins it for me.
Then kicked him out the first chance they got during the war.
I never met anyone from that era who had much good to say about Churchill, though admittedly they were mostly lefties.
Edward – My gran was a young woman during the war, and used to tell me that Churchill got booed when he appeared in newsreels at the cinema.
She was a lifelong Labour voter though. She hated the Tories, especially Mrs T. She cried when John Smith passed away.
It used to wind her up when I told her I was heading out to vote Conservative. She always insisted I give her a lift to the polling place so she could vote Labour and cancel out my ballot.
Not that it really did, we lived in a solid Labour constituency and whichever poor bugger the Tories put up needed brass balls to go canvassing in our neighbourhood.
I think that’s one of the things that initially attracted me to the Right – economic freedom was important, but pissing off my relatives was priceless.