It’s because conservative politicians have been more adept at exploiting the deep cross-currents than progressive rivals, made easier by a first-past-the-post voting system. The young are concentrated in cities, while the elderly are segregated and in smaller towns so their votes count in more constituencies and many more vote.
Doesn’t that just seal Willy Hutton’s validity as a political commentator?
Urban constituencies tend to have a smaller number of voters in them. That’s what the Boundary Commission changes are all about, the urban seats tend to lose population over time. Thus, at any particular time, given the historic nature of the information used to set boundaries, there are fewer voters in each urban const than in rural.
So, da youf’s vote is worth more than those of the crocks, not less.
I must admit I hadn’t read a Hutton piece in full in years even though I know he’s a bete noire of yours Tim so I thought I’d give it a try. Jesus – incredible there’s someone still wishing to fund this guy’s output. Distinguishable from Richard Murphy by being literate and having typos checked but otherwise on the same level. I think it’s the sanctimoniousness that really grates. A hundred million dead and these f&£)ers seem to have no shame or regret.
Well IMHO the members of the Handsworth Massif are unlikely to vote at all as they have bigger fish to fry, drugs to sell, other gangs to fight etc
Anyone seen a study on yoof turnout in urban areas blessed with Caribbean diversideee?
I’m pretty sure it’s been the left stoking up division between generations, not the right.
Yep, it wasn’t the right who wanted Brexit-voting grannies to die ASAP.
Van Patten is right, Hutton is like Spud with a spellchecker, just as thick and dishonest.
There was something written by someone else on this point though, which is not so much about the concentration, but how there are parts of cities with massive Labour majorities. With FPTP, it’s better to win lots of seats with small majorities (and it had some supporting data).
That said, you can argue that Labour have very much pitched at certain groups that are concentrated in cities at the expense of the general population. Although I’m not sure how Labour pitch a Blairite position when Boris is so close to that already.
conservative politicians have been more adept at exploiting the deep cross-currents than progressive rivals,
Maybe so, but the left are much better at exploiting postal votes.
@Bloke on M4:
That said, you can argue that Labour have very much pitched at certain groups that are concentrated in cities at the expense of the general population.
As I’ve said on here before, Labour has become the anti-English party.
Of course, the other parties don’t care for the English either, it’s just that Labour are more explicit about it.
“As I’ve said on here before, Labour has become the anti-English party.”
The thing with Labour is that after the unions collapsed they went looking around for anyone they could get to be supporters. Gays, radical feminists, ethnic/religious activists, pedos, marxists and they gradually took over the party machine. Blair attracted more normies, but when that went to shit, they quit and all that was left were the rubbish.
Personally, I think they’re finished as a party. I think the Conservatives are drifting left and someone else will take over on the right. Most of the Conservative Party activists and MPs do not really care about shrinking government.
That sounds about right. Labour becomes the party of nutters/dies, the Tories become the Blair Party and a new party emerges on the right, because that’s where there is most room.
Hopefully…
Bloke on M4, Labour have become, in Steve Sailer’s phrase, a ‘Coalition of the Fringes’ in other words an attempt to outvote the majority population by trying to appeal to all the different minorities. Now, if you’re the Democrats in America and you can import sufficient ‘New Americans’ to vote for you, it’s a solid tactic, but Labour haven’t managed to do it so far in the UK and I think English people are waking up to what Labour are trying to do.
Oh and let’s not forget the collapse of Labour support in Scotland, which has deprived them of dozens of MPs, making them even less likely to form a Government, except in a coalition of some sort.
Bloke on M4, I’m agreeing with you BTW.
I wouldn’t presume Hutton’s stupid. It’s quite possible to create a counter factual narrative world. The Guardian effectively is one. Within that world, all sorts of things a valid bgecause they agree with the narrative. And they can be well populated by people who believe the narrative coincides with reality. The crop yield story down the page is part of one. Doesn’t have to be true. But it supports a particular environmental narrative so it’s true in that context.
Murphy’s created his own little narrative world. Its population not only contains his blog readers but the people fund him & parts of the media.
Narrative is how people view the world. They like the story to make internal sense. What we perceive as the “real world” is only a narrative. Just one that’s close to reality. People are inclined to think things have “purpose”. It’s very hard for people to accept there is no purpose. Whole religious narratives are constructed around that.
We just finished up the decennial census over here and are starting the reapportionment process. Trump tried, but failed, to exclude illegal aliens from the process. Democrats are whining that red states got more seats in the House of Representatives.
Seats are apportioned by population, excepting that each state gets one Representative regardless of population. The interesting part comes as the state legislatures gerrymander the House districts.
The census results also redistribute Electoral College votes based on population. Expect additional whining from the progressives come the next presidential election.
The noisy student activists mean everyone thinks there’s this massive motivated youth vote to tap into, but the reality is most of them aren’t that bothered and even amongst the students most of the guys are in it following the women.
As Wyclef Jean says it in Election Time
“ But the kids like
We’re okay
As long as we got music, we gon’ party all day”