Anything Political

[Brew 5,429]

Noted... will do..

Being a clumsy bugger I keep losing text typing a reply directly, so use Word then copy/paste.

Must try harder, though note I don't always disagree, but I sometimes propose an altenative view. 

[Brew 5,429]

Is it me or do we have the most useless parliament in history? Claims of misogyny, harassment, lawbreaking, tax fiddles, lies, lies and damn lies all around - and not just Tories. The PFM crowd must orgasmic at the moment.

Where's guy Fawkes when you want him?

[philmayfield 6,206]

Parliament appears to be a microcosm of society in general. ‘The representatives of the people’. We should expect parliamentarians to maintain high ethical standards but they’re just a bunch of riff raff.

[Alpha 176]

Not the type of people you mix with, of course. Phil!

[philmayfield 6,206]

I do actually. I’ve just been to Morrison’s in Netherfield!

[DJ360 6,738]

Not rising to the bait at present, as I'm about to hit the sack.. but I don't think it's unreasonable to assert that Tory MPs don't see being MPs so much as a job..but as a Business Opportunity.

 

These people continue to allow Johnson to 'lead', the current shambles. They are therefore equally culpable.

 

Worst, most anti democratic and corrupt bunch of bent bastards ever to rule this country. I hated Thatcher with every fibre of my being, but even she had some principles...

 

This lot have none...

 

 

[Brew 5,429]

3 hours ago, DJ360 said:

Not rising to the bait at present, as I'm about to hit the sack.. but I don't think it's unreasonable to assert that Tory MPs don't see being MPs so much as a job..but as a Business Opportunity.

Post corrected, you can thank me later...  

[DJ360 6,738]

It won't wash Jim.

Even with almost the entire print media behind them, and the broadcast media at best, not challenging them, and at worst blatantly failing to highlight their devious anti democratic moves re: protest, voting rights, 'politicisation' of the Electoral Commission etc....

.......This bunch of crooks are still in a position to choose which scandal to acknowledge, and allow a fuss about, so as to distract from their deeper and more dangerous agenda.

 

So..they'll let 'Partygate' rumble on, they'll feign 'disgust' over the treatment of Angela Raynor and they'll even turn 'Porngate', into an act of self flagellation as a method of trying to convince the dozy electorate that they are really, at heart, a very decent and morally upstanding bunch of chaps.

 

Meanwhile, it seems that the full might of the Tories' tame media, despite their best efforts, can't find enough on the opposition, to provide a distraction from the Tories' own abundant supply of distractions..

[Brew 5,429]

I don't disagree.

But my original premise was non-politically selective. I used the term 'parliament' to include the whole unsavoury lot of them. Cherry picking Tory faults does not preclude Labours lies or indiscretions. One lie or a dozen makes no difference, a lie is a lie, therefore the teller of such is a liar and cannot be trusted.

[DJ360 6,738]

For the first time I can recall, I will not be voting on Thursday.  When I got the date for a funeral I'm attending on Thursday, it was too late to arrange either a postal, proxy etc... vote.

 

So, if Western Civilisation collapses from Thursday onwards, you'll all have to blame me and Mrs Col.

[Oztalgian 3,343]

14 hours ago, DJ360 said:

For the first time I can recall, I will not be voting on Thursday. 

We are so over voting and political campaigns here. In SA we voted in March for the State election and had a change in government from conservative to labor. We get to vote in a Federal election in May and I sincerely hope we have a change in the same direction. During the last few years under the conservative government the divide between have and have nots has grown significantly. Blatant pork-barreling had become the norm and projects were awarded on the basis of the way the seat voted not on the basis of need. The Covid crisis resulted in mates of the government doing very well yet a total failure of all aspects of supplies of PPE and vaccines was the norm. Wages have remained low yet company profits have grown. I am not advocating full blown socialism aka Corbyn but some meaningful restoration of equality. By the way it is compulsory to attend a polling place and get your name crossed off. It is then your choice as to whether you cast a ballot at all or vote informally. Interestingly many young people are not even bothering to register to vote. If voting were not compulsory I don't think that any more than 40% would bother turning out on Saturday 21st May.

[DJ360 6,738]

Well as far as I can so far tell, two 'Independents' have got themselved elected to the District Council. One of them seems to be close to genuinely independent of any political party and does not come across as extremist. The other one is known to me personally.  His politics are infantile and simplistic and he is frankly an idsiot, who has stood for Ukip and has told me of his suort for the BNP.  This is the danger of the new trend for people labelling themselves as 'independent'.

[Brew 5,429]

Sadly, here the Tories not only held, but increased their number on the council. It was due they said to running a very positive campaign, not something we or any of our neighbours have heard of, not even the usual flurry of leaflets. My guess is most were unaware of the opposition candidates, who they were, what they proposed etc.

The LibDems for instance have not updated their site since 2019 and the local Labour web site has............   absolutely bugger all apart from a name.

 

[Brew 5,429]

Does Starmer know the outcome of the inquiry before it's published?

For a politician to nail his colours so firmly to the mast without being sure of the outcome is rare to say the least...

[Jill Sparrow 10,335]

Backhander/sweetener?  Well, we are talking politicians, aren't we?

[PeverilPeril 3,292]

On 5/9/2022 at 7:35 PM, Brew said:

Does Starmer know the outcome of the inquiry before it's published?

For a politician to nail his colours so firmly to the mast without being sure of the outcome is rare to say the least...

Well - he must be one of the best qualified to evaluate the strength of a case - plus, he must have a few contacts in the trade to sound out.

[DJ360 6,738]

Well Ahh told yer... The 'Independent' who even my Labour supporting neighbour thought was OK, and who got elected to district council..turns out to have made numerous extremely  misogynist and racist posts on facebook only a year ago. He's apologised and deleted them but nobody changes their views that quick, so hopefully he is toast.

Anybody who hides his extreme views behind 'independent' will never get my vote.

People really do need to 'wise up' to what is happening here...

[Oztalgian 3,343]

Talking of Independents, at today's Federal election in OZ it looks like the independents and greens will hold the balance of power in the lower house with Labor forming a minority government. Thankfully the people have kicked out the conservative side of politics led by Scott Morrison. The really interesting thing is that the voters have largely turned against the two main parties. Having said that, due to our preferential voting system the final result will not be known for days or even weeks.

With Labor being elected hopefully we can look forward to some balance being restored and issues with our health and aged care systems being addressed.

[DJ360 6,738]

Compare and contrast  :  

 

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/may/22/she-has-been-horribly-isolated-friends-say-sue-gray-was-deliberately-ostracised-while-investigating-partygate

 

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/partygate-boris-johnson-insists-no-10-won-e2-80-99t-block-names-appearing-in-sue-gray-e2-80-99s-report/ar-AAXwkNZ

 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10840871/So-DID-call-Partygate-meeting-War-words-breaks-Boris-Johnson-Sue-Gray.html

[radfordred 6,284]

I'm not sure anyone's bothered about this partygate malarkey, we all did it, old news. 

[DJ360 6,738]

Speak for yourself. The whole point is that we DID NOT 'all do it'...

 

That said, it's pretty obvious to me that the Govt. has calculated that having 'Partygate'..at the top of the agenda .. is a very useful diversion from the much more damaging actions and failures of this appalling bunch of crooks:

 

- Eroding the power of the Law to hold Govt. to account.

-Attacking the right to protest.

-Attacking electoral rights.

-Removing the independence of the Electoral Commission.

-Countless examples of 'dubious' awarding of public money to private companies.

-Numerous examples of alleged inappropriate/illegal behaviour by Conservative elected members, up to and including rape.

[Brew 5,429]

It was always a 'given' that there would be a flourish of articles around the Gray report claiming various levels of conspiracy and interference.

 

Col, quite surprise to see the Mail quoted given your dislike and the aspersions you've levelled at it in the past. But then again I suppose it suits the lefts' case for keeping the pot boiling.

 

The world is in flames, almost literally tearing itself apart, and all we're bothered about is whether someone had a party?

I suppose some will say it's more than that, but in the grand scheme of things - it 'aint.

 

Like Starmer and his pitbull nailing their colours to the mast, Johnson must  be reasonably sure of the outcome, or he would not have authorised it in the first place. Such arrogance may yet be the downfall of them all.

 

Gray started in January, how did she manage to spend nearly a 100,000 pounds a month writing a report? All she had to do in reality was review the police investigation. 

We could say her remit is wider than the police inquiry, but that means involving politics, backbiting and hearsay evidence, making it open to endless argument.

Will Starmer now engage her to look into beergate?

 

At the end of the day none of them are trustworthy

 

 

[DJ360 6,738]

1 hour ago, Brew said:

It was always a 'given' that there would be a flourish of articles around the Gray report claiming various levels of conspiracy and interference.

 

Col, quite surprise to see the Mail quoted given your dislike and the aspersions you've levelled at it in the past. But then again I suppose it suits the lefts' case for keeping the pot boiling.

 

To your first paragraph. Of course..

To your second.. I included the Mail, to avoid allegations of biased references to the press.  I would also have included the Times and the Torygraph, but they are both 'paywalled'.

 

As for the left 'keeping the pot boiling'.  Surely you can see the qualitative and quantitative difference between the allegations of wholesale partying by Johnson and Co, and a single example of Starmer and Co working into the night and having a curry and a beer to sustain them?

 

The bigger difference of course is that Starmer has never denied what took place on the single occasion in question, whereas Johnson originally denied everything, then denied being there, then denied knowing they were parties.. etc.. Ad Nauseam.

 

1 hour ago, Brew said:

The world is in flames, almost literally tearing itself apart, and all we're bothered about is whether someone had a party?

I suppose some will say it's more than that, but in the grand scheme of things - it 'aint.

 

I'm bothered because the parties, and even more so the way that the details have had to be extracted, kicking and screaming against a wall of denial, obfuscation etc.. say a lot about the rotten leadership,  the 'Cavalier' culture and general disregard for the views and feelings of the electorate which have been displayed by this lot, as they hide behind their Parliamentary majority.  They really are a very nasty lot.

 

As for the wider situation in the World. Much of that is a direct result of the rise of the far right in many countries, notably the US, Turkey, Russia and its puppets..and here in the UK. That is precisely why although Partygate matters, it is also a relatively safe  (from his perspective) topic for Johnson to allow and encourage us to focus on, as a diversion from his own much darker deeds.

 

1 hour ago, Brew said:

Gray started in January, how did she manage to spend nearly a 100,000 pounds a month writing a report? All she had to do in reality was review the police investigation. 

We could say her remit is wider than the police inquiry, but that means involving politics, backbiting and hearsay evidence, making it open to endless argument.

Will Starmer now engage her to look into beergate?

 

She has a small staff, who are presumably paid... as is she.  Otherwise I have no idea what the enquiry cost and why, but I'd be surprised if a Civil Servant tasked with looking into what amounts to essentially Misconduct in Public Office, would be so careless as to lay herself open to criticism of misuse of public funds.

 

Starmer doesn't need to engage Gray. He has described what happened and denied nothing. He is also not in office, so therefore not 'supported' by the Civil Service. That is in stark contrast to Johnson et.al., as I outlined above.

[Brew 5,429]

 

2 hours ago, DJ360 said:

Starmer doesn't need to engage Gray. He has described what happened and denied nothing. He is also not in office, so therefore not 'supported' by the Civil Service. That is in stark contrast to Johnson et.al., as I outlined above.

 

Actually he has. Claiming beergate was a business meeting is a denial in itself, and Raynor told at least one whopper about being there.

Johnson denied events took place, then admitted they did, but claimed he stayed within the law at all times - difference? - it's minimal.

 

The latter proved to be a lie, the former is yet to be tested

 

 

2 hours ago, DJ360 said:

Misconduct in Public Office, would be so careless as to lay herself open to criticism of misuse of public funds.

Never even hinted at it, it just struck me that it's an enormous amount of money for so little work, and why did the accused (Johnson) get to appoint his judge? 

 

Just read the report, not an earthquake in sight it seems. No names, no pack drill, nothing Johnson will not easliy ride through.

 

 

2 hours ago, DJ360 said:

I'm bothered because the parties, and even more so the way that the details have had to be extracted, kicking and screaming against a wall of denial, obfuscation etc.

 Not a new phenomenon in government, Labour has had its share of such things in the past. Politics is the art of telling a lie with a straight face.

[letsavagoo 964]

Boris Johnson is changing the rules to let ministers avoid resigning if they break the ministerial code, allowing them to apologise or temporarily lose their pay instead.

The prime minister, who is facing claims of breaching the code, published a policy statement on Friday saying it is “disproportionate to expect that any breach, however minor, should lead automatically to resignation or dismissal”.