Am I going to become a Tory?

[almostwitty]

David Davies' recent decision to resign as an MP to force a by-election and debate on the erosion of UK civil liberties (you can now be arrested for 42 days without charge, there are CCTV cameras for every 14 people, the biggest DNA database in the world in percentage terms) has attracted a lot of scorn from media and politicians, but it does seem to have had the side effect of suddenly making the Tories look almost electable. Which is one hell of a neat trick, but a bit of a reflection of a growing trend where people now seem ready to come out of the Tory closet.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, when Margaret Thatcher and then Tony Blair were in charge, nobody in my circle of friends would even countenance the idea of voting Tory. Thatcher's ghost still loomed large, and Blair seemed to be doing a damn good job.

Then suddenly came the Iraq war, withdrawal of student grants, ID cards, the rise of management consultants everywhere, and now Labour are starting to look bloody authoritarian - which, when coupled with civil servants' transparent disdain for actually securing peopele's personal data - is not a good combo.

Hell, during the recent London mayoral elections, some friends of mine were openly declaring their support for the Tories and Boris. And that would never have happened in the 1980s and 1990s (notwithstanding the fact that there weren't any mayoral elections then...)

So in about three years, Labour have gone from being seemingly invincible to throwing away the next general election. and thus letting the Tories back in. Who, to be fair, would probably have also said yes to a 42-day detention, a war with Iraq etc.

Oh dear.

Comments

[rarahursty.livejournal.com]

Labour really have made a mess for themselves and Gordon Brown just keeps making things worse.

[choirgrrl.livejournal.com]

Is everyone around the world dissatisfied with their current government? Did all of these troubles begin with the war, or just escalate?
About 8 years ago, we were doing pretty well over here... then the war began and we now find ourselves with $4+/per gallon gas and a recession that is not looming (as the government claims) but straight up humping our legs with a smile!

[grahamwest.livejournal.com]

If the Lib Dems hadn't let the party go to rack and ruin they could've been in power. I've never supported Labour and I hate what they've done to the country under Blair. He's a smiling scumbag Palpatine.

I should come back and take over the Lib Dems. I'd make a fucking brilliant Prime Minister. All the current lot are so crap that before long someone charismatic but thoroughly evil will sweep to power. It makes me furious when politicians get all arrogant about people voting for the BNP - it's because you're all lousy, you don't have a right to people's votes you fucking fools!

[grahamwest.livejournal.com]

The $4 gas is because demand is exceeding supply (~86.8mil bbl/day demand, ~86.6mil bbl/day supply). China and India are just relentlessly consuming as their economies grow.

[choirgrrl.livejournal.com]

I've been complaining about this for some time. If more people would limit their fuel intake (cut back on vacations, car pool, etc.) perhaps the big wig companies would try to cut back prices. (There's no point in having a product if no one is buying, right?)

At the same time, I feel that the demand-exceeding-supply is a great excuse they've created to give us less reason to complain about the prices in the first place. Then again, I'm a huge conspiracy theorist, what do I know? :)

[almostwitty]

I personally wish people would stop protesting shouting screaming about rising oil prices (its $15 per gallon in the uk btw!) and instead concentrate on finding more sustainable ways to get around. Walk. Use a bike. The era of cheap oil has led to wars environmental devastation. Get used to it and plan around it.

[almostwitty]

People are always dissatisfied with their governments when they feel their job or economy is under threat. As clinton is alleged to have said: "its the economy stupid"

[choirgrrl.livejournal.com]

I agree about finding better methods of travel that don't require gas. I also think, on that note, that more cities/etc. need to help put some of these options in place. In my city, summer is the most grueling time of year, as temperatures reach about 110F+ daily. 130F is not uncommon- but very unbearable. To walk/ride a bike is almost impossible in the heat, and many people in our area have died from heat exhaustion while trying to do so. (Not to mention the hot sidewalks and paved streets can easily pop bicycle tires.)
I'm sure it's the same in areas where it is very cold.
It's time for those in charge- considering that is what they were elected to do, to take the lead and build up better options for people in this time of crisis.

[almostwitty]

Of course in the same way that after hurricane Katrina, some people argued that New Orleans should be rebuilt somewhere else, it can be argued that continuing to base major centres of populations in areas where the temperature hits 130F is perhaps not a good idea ;)

[choirgrrl.livejournal.com]

Lol... ain't that the truth! (And yet, I'm still here!)

[madmosh-uk.livejournal.com]

It's a lose/lose situation with the current 2-and-a-bit party system. Labour = Tory. There's so little to choose between them apart from the colour of their ties.

LibDem did indeed lose the plot. So they're out.

Every other party is too small to take power, hence the handful of seats gained by "outsiders" in any election.

I confess I voted Labour at the last election, but *purely* due to the fact that the BNP had a strong chance in my area. I felt forced to put my vote behind the 2nd most likely candidate to help ensure the racist bastards didn't get a seat. Thankfully, at least that worked. And Labour won by a large enough margin that I don't feel guilty in tipping them just far enough to take it.

As for oil prices, demand outstrips suppy partly due to Bush's refusal to force lower emissions and better fuel economy on the people of the US. Why? Simple - he's in the oil barons' pocket. They don't *care* about anything other than the cash flowing in, and the US govt I assume charge a %age tax on fuel, same as the UK, so the more it costs, the more they make. Given the mess Bush has made of the US economy, he needs to rake in as much as he can to cover his own mistakes.

Americans can legitimately complain about the price of their fuel given it's what - 2 or 3 times what it was a year or two ago? Yet it's still around *HALF* what the UK are paying.

I've done a lot of travelling the last couple of years and believe me, very few countries are happy with their governments.