Now it gets interesting
There’s a deep, fatalistic belief among Brits that the leadership will inevitably ping-pong between the Tories and Labour whenever there’s a major shift in government. It’s been considered an iron certainty (and polling supports it) that Labour will take control at the general election July 4. Even though their leadership is awful.
The ‘Conservatives’ have been that bad.
Britain is no stranger to extra parties in recent times. The Lib Dems (founded 1988) are the largest of these and they have managed a few seats in government over the years. I honestly don’t know the difference between them and Labour. The Greens (founded 1985 replacing the Ecology Party) almost never win anything, but all their policies get adopted anyway because the ruling class is crazy.
UKIP (founded 1991) wasn’t going anywhere until Nigel Farage took over. Then it managed to win two seats in Parliament and a majority of the seats in the British delegation to the EU. It was almost certainly instrumental in making Brexit happen. This is an extraordinary outcome for a new party.
After the Brexit vote, Nigel threw his weight behind the Brexit Party (2018) which later became the Reform Party (2020), but without him at the helm. It wasn’t going anywhere.
Now Farage has taken the helm of Reform and it’s a kick up the ass. I mean, it almost certainly will split the conservative vote and Labour will get in even more handily, but Labour was going to get in anyway. The Tories have been such absolute shit that a significant number of natural Conservative voters feel they need to be not just voted out but punished. And Farage could pick off a significant chunk of the disaffected working class Left too.
His personality is nothing like Trump’s, but he’s Trumpian in that normies rally to him and the elite hate him with an irrational passion. This could get interesting.
Posted: June 4th, 2024 under politics.
Comments: 4
Comments
Comment from Anonymous
Time: June 4, 2024, 9:04 pm
Do you suppose that this:
The Greens…almost never win anything, but all their policies get adopted anyway because the ruling class is crazy.
has anything to do with this:
The Tories have been such absolute shit that a significant number of natural Conservative voters feel they need to be not just voted out but punished.
?
Here on this side of the big lake, there’s a similar strong desire to punish the craven, defeat-loving Republican Party establishment, but the lunatic nation-destroying Democratic Party is just too awfully awful to contemplate when deciding whom to vote against.
Yes, it is to be sure interesting. I just hope it doesn’t get interesting in the same way the Hutus and Tutsis got interesting. Or the Turks and Armenians got interesting. Or the Chinese and the Uyghurs. Or the Naz… I’ll stop now.
Comment from Subotai Bahadur
Time: June 4, 2024, 10:54 pm
Indeed, it might get interesting. Saw something this morning. Apparently Nigel Farage was the target of an assault-by-milkshake [apparently a McDonald’s Banana Shake] this morning.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6pp7yg0y3po
I’m told that it is not the first time such has happened to him as something similar happened about 5 years ago. I do wonder as to the political loyalties of the Shakethrower, but it bids fair to be a strange campaign.
Subotai Bahadur
Comment from Drake Walker
Time: June 4, 2024, 11:39 pm
I do agree with all the ideas you have introduced on your post. They are very convincing and will definitely work. Still, the posts are very short for newbies. May just you please prolong them a little from subsequent time? Thank you for the post.
Comment from durnedyankee
Time: June 5, 2024, 12:54 am
I’m in favor of the Subsequent Time party.
I used to be a member of CamTim, (Campaign for Real Time) but the idea of just getting up at a different time of day instead of being driven by clock time adjustments during various times of year is crazy.
Clearly Subsequent Time somehow prolongs time periods, and who hasn’t wished, when things are going swell, that you could spend more time doing the swell things and shortchange the times when things are absolute shit?
Like making being 23 years old longer, and making being old and arthritic shorter by taking time away from being old and spending it being young?
Vote for me and I’ll see that happens!
2 pots in every chicken! A boot in every car!
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