This Once Great Movement Of Ours

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While I will probably start voting Labour again, I doubt I will rejoin the party. I've moved on.

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That one was, basically, a fluke. Labour's electoral performance outside that under Corbyn was dire.

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In terms of popular vote, May and Johnson got the highest vote share for the Tories since Thatcher.

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Interesting discussion on the antisemitism report in the latest Private Eye; one lawyer thinks Labour could be facing 40 lawsuits over the leak and £2.5 million payouts even if they were to settle at first opportunity.

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I didn't even know Desmond was Jewish myself.

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If your sabre rattles, it needs fixing.

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It's called Left Out: The Inside Story of Labour Under Corbyn, if you're interested.

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Pogrund has posted the MRP memo suggesting exactly that, mind.

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The reaction from Corbynites to that article has often been along the lines of "Blue Labour, ugh". A sentiment I would not actually disagree with, were it true. I think the reality is more hopeful, however.

I agree, Blue Labour and Starmer's politics (as described in the article) seem to have very different priorities. To put it crudely, I felt like the former prioritised social conservatism as an end in itself, while the latter seems rooted in more 'traditional' labour movement priorities (as Al describes).

For me, the giveaway with Blue Labour was the "family, faith, flag" slogan - the middle one especially. Even amongst the fabled working class voters of the now almost totally mythologised "red wall" - how many of them do you think go to church regularly, actually?

You can still have faith without attending church regularly; attendance arguably helps, but it's not compulsory.

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Sir Keir, mind, presided over big cuts to the CPS budget when he was in charge.

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Well, the economy was doing pretty well and Labour was only five years away from the recession.

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Gogglebox is the best argument for returning the electorate to its pre-1832 size. Irrelevant nonsense.

Enjoyable nonsense with a big audience who would otherwise see little of politics.

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Apparently out Thursday.

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There are critics of Israel and then there are anti-Semites. The division is fairly thin at times.

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Whataboutery is something Labour really needs to stop doing.

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I doubt the public at large cares about Tony Blair these days.

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Jews in Britain are what might be termed "white-passing"... but once people know a particular person is Jewish, they will be subjected to racism.

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That was good enough for Biden, but he had past experience as VP.

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I think Labour should abstain myself. I want a deal rather than a no deal.

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They're obsessing over the deal or lack thereof as well.

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Only since about Friday evening, before then it was all "but what will Labour do??"

As if that was *the* most important thing.

Moaning about media coverage is useless without trying to change it. Labour could be doing a lot more here. Perhaps it could promise a Ukraine-style Association Agreement?

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Corbyn's leadership not only ignored the media, it was handing them ammunition with unforced errors and gaffes.

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Starmer may not repel people, but doesn't excite them either.

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At some point, Labour has to realise that it cannot change society to fit itself. This pandemic has exposed a rotten core in much of Western society and it will need a lot of work to fix.

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Leadership ratings have often been good indications of election results. Of course, it is still too early for that.