Comments on: When the spin becomes ridiculous

By: Paul

Paul — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 22:43:39 +0000

I agree with you Johb; however, i don’t think the Tories can do anything to address any of these problems either.

By: emma2000

emma2000 — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 23:51:46 +0000

What can we expect, MP’s salary is only pocket money, we pay for everything else. Of course they have no idea what it is like for normal salary earning mugs.

By: Ian Evans

Ian Evans — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 15:19:08 +0000

GB’s talk of not taking the Nulabs through a second general election is not likely to lead to mid-term problems of the type TB suffered from, since his chance of getting through the coming general election with a majority is lower than my chance of winning the next lottery draw (I don’t waste my money!). He is clearly just hoping it will stop challenges before the next election. Whilst that might be good for the coming Tory majority, I would rather see a more credible PM – after all, the lack of credible opposition for much of Blair’s premiership surely exacerbated his disastrous misrule. Just so, I think Cameron et al need something better than the current shambolic government to push against and against which to hone their future leadership strategy.

By: Steven_L

Steven_L — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 14:12:39 +0000

It’s not just some politicans that are so clueless about reality, Whitehall can be just as bad if you ask me. Take the Department of Health and their consultation on more smoking restrictions. On one hand they want the government to tax cigarettes more to make them more expensive, on the other hand they want to crack down on the black market. Anyone with even a pinch of an understanding of basic economics should realise that if the price of cigarettes is fixed even higher by the government, the size of the black market will increase providing there is a less expensive supply. Seen as we can pop to Spain and back in a day, get change off Â£100 and bring home 3,200 fags without HM Customs asking any awkward questions I would suggest that the supply is so easy that most foreign fags couldn’t even be classed as ‘black market’. Then if they think local authorities are going to pay officers to sit in working mens clubs drinking John Smiths and spying on people selling rolling tobacco they have another thing coming.

Of course, Gordon Brown could help them out here. If he removed the tax on fags and told us that he wanted us all to take up smoking to solve the pensions crisis I reckon at least 20% of smokers would quit overnight and the ‘black market’ would be gone at a stroke. I know I would, but whilst they are still harping on like they are I just smoke in defiance.

By: Derek

Derek — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 13:35:09 +0000

It’s not just the politicians who are disconnected from reality. I have long thought that the political and media classes have been joined together in their own little world of spin and manipulation. The media kept suggesting Brown’s popularity was still strong long after the electorate had given up on him. So much of the commentary about speeches and policy is hot air that has no resonance with the electorate.

Many politicians of all stripes make the simple error of forgetting the public has access to the same modern communications that they do. They have mobile telephones, text messaging, blogs and, certainly younger people, keep up with university friends from geographical locations all around the country or world. At their disposal is a vast pool of anecdotal evidence about whose lost their job or what someone has sold their house for. They have become aware that the message peddled by politicians and the media is not the reality they know and increasingly question it.

Previously if you mentioned to someone the news is all propaganda, you’d get that shifty eyed look as if you’d strayed into a discussion about religion or UFOs. Not so anymore. It looks like the BBC is going to carry on trilling ‘four legs good, two legs bad’ all the way to its licence fee removal and oblivion.

David Cameron needs to be very careful as he’s tainted with this. At the moment he seems to be just disliked less than Brown. I think next time round the public will be looking for older, plain speaking more real world experienced politicians to dig us out of what will be an unholy mess. I think this goes some way to explaining Vince Cable’s recent popularity. A youthful, untested, Blair won power when the economy was strong. This won’t be so for David Cameron and a think following too similar strategy to Blair may well be a grave mistake.

By: adam

adam — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 10:25:20 +0000

If things are so great then can we have a big tax cut?
Ahhhh.
Fat chance.

Labour are the sustainable development party, they are the socialists who want to destroy consumerism because to them its wasteful and damages the planet.
I wont take any lectures on luxury from a bunch of ‘ex’ communists.

By: Cliff

Cliff — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 09:51:00 +0000

John:

Everyone knows if a Labour minister says something it must be true, after all, Nanny knows best!!

I could not believe the arrogance of the man. He should try living in the world the average working person lives in. It just shows how detatched from reality some members of the Labour government really are. I think they have started to believe their own spin and statistics. (AKA Fairy tales)

I know something that would cheer the miserable public up; Call a general election.