Be Excellent To Each Other

I say, chums, here's fun! Let's run a little Peter-Snow-a- Swing-a-thon and see how Beex's wide demographic of UK voters intend to vote in the forthcoming General Election and see if it matches up to the official results!

The provisos:

1) You must be a UK citizen eligible to vote in the forthcoming General Election in order to cast a vote here (can't check this... but be good )

2) You can change your vote up until election day, where this poll will close (if I've a. Calculated the end date correctly and b. the "Allow re-voting" tick-box does what I think it does.

3) I've only included the major parties or those that I think might actually take a seat or two - all other parties come under... "Other". If I've blundered badly, let me know, but it will take considerable persuasion for me to include some of the minorities.

4) Your vote is anonymous! Democracy in action! I do intend taking a screen shot every Friday of the voting (and will post here) to see how opinions change in the run up to the election.

Understand? Good! Get voting, Citizen!


[Perhaps a kind mod or other could sticky this one for ease of reference. And DEMOCRACY! Until the duration]

I'd sooner cut off my own balls than vote for them but UKIP need to be on there if you are having the BNP, Greens etc as discreet options. And the SDLP, as they've actually got three seats already.

/edit and Respect, alas.

Agree with UKIP and SDLP... but not Respect. Will fix accordingly

Actually - no more changes to voting options. I just added Govt. Yard's suggestions and it reset voting Him and his accursed bad technology vibe rubbing off on me, I reckon

Interesting idea this. Keep posting screenshots in the thread if it goes over a page as well to save me skipping back to the first page.

Mine is a strategic vote rather than an outright endorsement, but what the hell. It could still, if enough people agree, turn out for the best.

Ought to be interesting to see where this is in a few days.

*Not registered to vote
*Am not going to register.

It warms my cockles to see so many people willing to vote Lib Dem. If only the actual general public were so inclined, we wouldn't be trapped in this shitty two-party system.

We have as many as 6 7 8 Tory voters here? Good lord.

Or are Conservative Head Office Black Ops rigging this poll already?

"If you vote Lib Dem/Green/whoever then it's a wasted vote & Labour will stay in/the Tories will get in."

Fuck off you cunts, if you don't stop with that shite nothing will ever change. It's ridiculous the amount of folk I know that are feart to vote for whoever they think is best, all because of folk spouting the above shite

Seven

See also: "I'll be voting Tory because it's just time for a change".

No, that's not a sensible basis for voting for a new government. That's a basis for redecorating.

See also: “I'll be voting Tory because my parents do.”

I suspect our lot are only voting for them because of that weirdo Winchester Lib Dem MP who paid rent boys to piss over him.

However that seems to have been forgotten. Everytime I see his photo all I can imagine is the smell of piss.

I've always been a Tory supporter, and felt no guilt for that. This year? I just can't do it. I can't put a tick in the box for Cameron/Osborne.

See, my political leanings and general opinions are much in line with the Green Party, but they have some bonkers policies as well, so the LDs are my best fit, really.

Can't vote Labour because of ID cards and the DE Act, and the Tories seem only interested in the middle-classes upwards, as usual. I can't vote for a party who want to penalise couples who aren't married.

HEATHEN!

I know exactly what you mean Cras, I feel much the same way, but there again, who would you vote for in that case?
When it comes down to it, the Lib Dem economic policies are significantly to the left of Labour, tax, spend and hit the 'rich' essentially. We both know how efficacious such policies are in actual practice and I can't seriously believe that you would subscribe to this, any more than I would? However, you may well find many of their other policies outside of the economy quite attractive, as I do?

I can't say that I'm a fan of coalition government - management by committee never seems to deliver (even though the single minded, large majority government of the last 13 years hasn't exactly been a rip-roaring success either). However, the prospect of a Con/Lib pact, however unlikely, would actually be quite appealing to me. Of course, if we do find ourselves in such a position, it will be Labour, not the Conservatives that form the governing alliance with the Libs, with predictably disastrous results, just as in the late 70s.

Vote JohnCoffey !

coff coff coff Germany coff coff coff




Well, quite. Better people with experience and some modicum of success in managing the economy through a rough patch than two lads learning on the job. Especially lads who base spending commitments on the government's savings that they slated as imaginary the week before.

And what in their manifesto makes you think, hmm, that's a good idea, that'll really sort this country out. Naff all, that's what.

What I really wish the Government would come out and say would be "look, populace, you're mostly employees, right? And who is it you think the Tories will side with in any given debate over any policy or problem to do with employment or the workplace? Your employers, that's who. Vote Tory for being screwed up the arse by a Victorian mine owner".

Actually, I'm inclined to disagree - the fundamental desire for change would seem a reasonable basis for voting out the incumbent, longstanding government; people are entitled to think 'anything has got to be better than this shower', with some considerable justification. Without wanting to be too partisan here, any reasonably objective observer, with the benefit of hindsight, would surely have to conclude that New Labour could hardly have done any worse than they have these last 13 years, given the starting and finishing positions of the country.

In the UK's system there's probably a "sweet" overall majority level, where the Government has enough of lead so that the whole thing doesn't get bogged down in relentless horse trading, but not so big that they can force through whatever craziness they happen to come up with. Then you'd have a situation where groups of backbenchers could actually make a difference, along with any third parties.

I can't vote labour, because they have royally fucked this country over, just like they did the last time they were in power.

I can't vote green, because I don't agree with the plans to tax everything to high heaven to "save the planet" The planet doesn't need saving, it will be here long after we are gone. If they campaigned on "Save my cushy lifestyle, and let raise tax to pay for a never ending stream of bad science and shutting the gate, while there is not even a fence attached to it, and a whole herd of horses are stampeding past" then it would be more honest.

I can't vote lib dem, because I have no idea what they really stand for, it's just bullshit promise after bullshit promise, with no substance behind it and a constant message based on "those other two are really shit, aren't they" rather than vote for us because we really understand what the country needs.

I can't vote BNP, because i'm not a racist.

I can't vote UKIP, because i'm not a racist.

I'll vote conservative, because for me personally, they will put more money in my pocket (well, actually not take quite as much money, but same difference) and as all politicians are power crazed, lying fantasists who only care about looking after themselves, I'm taking a leaf out of their book and voting to make my personal situation a little bit less worse than it would be with the other idiots in charge.

Of all the things you've ever come out with, that ranks pretty highly amongst the most silly, chap. I'm not a Labour fan, but that is a ridiculous statement.

When Cameron/Osborne threw their weight behind the public-opinion-appeasing banking bonus taxes and the 'Robin Hood' banking taxation suggestions they clearly showed they were populists rather than free market capitalists.

Every election I can remember, Polly Toynbee in the Guardian writes a long article on why you must buck your ideas up and vote Labour to avoid the Tories getting in.

I normally read it with some amusement.
But this years one really gave me pause for thought:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree ... terrifying

She does make some good points and it is pretty depressing to me that they will probably get in. Not that I'm saying I can be convinced to vote Labour given the amount of piss they continue to take, but, y'know.

See what you think.

Hmm, well I wouldn't claim that Germany has been run as a model country over the last 13 years either, albeit things have obviously taken a significant turn for the better in economic terms under the auspices of Angela Merkel, Germany's 'Maggie'. I'm happy to concede that they've made a far better fist of it than ourselves, though, albeit that isn't too great an achievement!

That is at least refreshingly honest! I'm not sure everyone would agree that they'll actually put more money in your pocket than the current lot though.

I agree with Cavey, so it must be ridiculous

Thank fuck Labour got us out of the Boom and Bust cycle, just as Gordon said he had...

To be fair though Cras, surely the events of the last two years teach us this: Unfettered, free market capitalism doesn't work, any more than socialism does?

It's a hard lesson for the likes of you and I, but constraint and regulation within the financial sector, just as in other market sectors, is surely essential.

You say that like it would be a good thing....



Perhaps he's a member of one of the richest 3000 families in the UK who will be the only beneficiaries of the Tories' IHT reform, and for which the rest of us will be paying.

Very true, everyone is not me, I'm talking about my own pocket, your own pockets may differ depending on your situation.
You can all keep your grubby little hands out of my pockets, and stick them in your own...

How so old chap?

I well know that ridicule and myself are no strangers to be sure, but you've rather lost me on this one.

Meh! Good for you old son, 'bout time I had some backup around here. Have a cigar!

They could have done a fucking hell of a lot worse, for one, and to imply that the Labour government has done no good over the last 13 years is to be wilfully blind to what even the Tory party has accepted on occasion.

Lib Dem; as they are the closest party to my thoughts.

That said watching both DEBill bullshit debates made me realise how important the MP you are voting for is. For example, Tom Watson would get my vote if he was standing in my constituency, despite being labour, because he was tremendous with the DEBill.

The DEBill made me so very close to standing as an independent MP...

Hang on, I think I said that they could hardly have done any worse, not that they did no good whatsoever - not quite the same thing. I'm certainly quite prepared to stand by the former.

I wish!

I'm just a working stiff, but I'm quite well paid and work for a London consultancy. Family is mainly Yorkshire working class, both grandfathers were factory workers, my dad spent years getting his accountancy qualifications and managed to scrape up enough to send me to uni. I've done reasonably well on the back of that and work in the IT industry in London mainly, but travel a lot for work.
I'm a single guy, I'm in the 40% tax band, own my own place (well, I have a mortgage!) and like gadgets, cars and arseing around and have a reasonable disposable income.

I'm basically the conservative marketeers dream!

In fairness Cavey, they could have started more illegal wars and, I don't know, banned cars or something.

If someone could not have done a worse job on something, then they can't have done anything well, otherwise there would be room for them to have done still worse, see?

And they most certainly could have done plenty worse. They could have royally fucked up from Northern Rock onwards and stuffed us into a Depression from which we would not recover for years, for one.

As it is they did a not too bad job with what they had to work with, and we're on our way out of the recession - albeit a little slower than some other countries, but not by much.



Those illegal wars the Tories supported, you mean?

I'd go so far as to say that about half of what I'm aware they've done is good, which is a pretty decent average.

Unfortunately they've spoilt it all with more than a few BS authoritarian policies from various departments, and the MP's pay thing which nobody is going to ignore.
The Tories will be massively worse for the vast majority of people and the country at large though, I guarantee it.

What the Hell has that got to do with anything?

The Tories could have done worse too, see.

Then, to be fair, you probably don't need the paltry bribes the tories are waving at you.

What the Hell has that got to do with anything?

It's a conversation about politics. It inevitably veered off into "Labour are shit", so it seemed fair, in the interests of balance, to point out the Tories are no better on specific things mentioned about why Labour are shit.

If there's one inevitable truth, it's that the more money people have, the less they like to give away for the benefit of others.

I am also described by Trooper's line there, apart from being married rather than single, and I would probably like to keep more of my money, to be honest. That said, if I knew that tax money was going to things that did, definitely, make things better for other people who need help, and hence make things better for society as a whole, I'd be happy with a tax rise.

Just not wars and ID cards. I'm with you!

True, but when the choice is between an imbecile that gives me nothing, and an imbecile that gives me a little something...

All the policies and promises being thrown around are worthless, when it is the same shower of shits who will implement them, regardless of the party in charge. When I say implement, I mean do whatever they think will make their personal situation better in terms of staying in power and personal gain.

Disenchanted with politics? You betcha...

I think that's being a little pedantic - obviously even I credit any elected, mainstream UK government with a bare minimum degree of competence. Yes, Brown could've turned out to be the next Hitler and instructed the RAF to carpet bomb Poland, so yeah, it could've been worse.

Back in the real world though and in the normal context of this discussion at least, it is clearly the case that things could hardly have been worse - Iraq, Afghanistan, ID cards, the economy (we're significantly the worse placed major economy which should tell you we did things that were worse than our peer nations these last 13 years), the truly disastrous unconditional love-in with the City, flogging off gold reserves at the bottom of the market, destruction of people's pension provisions, unprecedented governmental debt levels, the international standing of this country, REAL unemployment (including 10 million 'economically inactive' people who aren't even counted in the unemployment figures), countless public capital project fuckups, destruction of UK manufacturing base (FAR worse than under the Tories and I should know)... the list goes on & on. And I haven't even factored in things like the gross pissing away of massive increased spending on health and education - without reform - with predictably next to fuck all benefit, along with the Public Sector generally. (It's all having to be rescaled back now, so what little benefit we did get is about to be lost, and more still. 'Worse cuts than Thatcher' are now being promised even by Labour themselves, that's how well they've managed things).

As for the Tories supporting these illegal wars, well no doubt they were fed the same bullshit as the rest of us? NO excuse - it's the governing party that took the decisions, no-one else, and they alone were privy to ALL the information available at the time. With such power should come responsibility and culpability. Fat chance, though!