UK General Discussion:The Rt. Hon Alex Boris de Pfeffel Johnson, Populist Hero

[CumbrianLefty]

I saw someone say in all seriousness that they knocked a door where the resident said they stopped voting Labour because Ramsay McDonald formed the national Government.

What a horrifically quaint country. I actually cannot think of a comparable example for the US.

Many people there still vote how they do, ultimately, because of a civil war in the mid 19th century

[Blair]

There’s a rather yikes poll in the Times from Yougov. Usual caveats but first Labour lead since March?

Prepare the usual ‘Tory MPs get mobbed by geriatric association members at village fete’ pieces in the Telegraph.

https://mobile.twitter.com/Steven_Swinford/status/1436076040128974854

[Filuwaúrdjan]

35/33? Party like it's 2005 everyone.

[Vosem]

I saw someone say in all seriousness that they knocked a door where the resident said they stopped voting Labour because Ramsay McDonald formed the national Government.

What a horrifically quaint country. I actually cannot think of a comparable example for the US.

There are still plenty of rural areas where the Republican vote is greater than background because these areas were strongly Unionist (anti-Confederate) in the 1860s; as recently as the 1990s there were many states, particularly Texas, where the explanations for why certain counties voted in certain ways was that they had been settled by Unionist or Confederate veterans. Among African-American Republicans, "Lincoln freed the slaves" remains a common-ish justification, and reading through historical campaign accounts you'll learn that it was actually very common as recently as the 1970s.

I think this sort of thing is much more widespread in the United States, because 'Democrat' and 'Republican' are much older identity categories!

[Boobs]

You all are much too smart to compare the American Civil War to … Ramsay MacDonald’s coalition government. Unless I am missing how central Labour Party historiography is to the United Kingdom’s national historical identity.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

As recently as 2001, Mr Tony left out all mention of Margaret Bondfield (an important figure in the early Labour Party and the first female cabinet minister) in a speech commemorating the party's centenary because she was insufficiently hostile towards MacDonald after the formation of the National Government, despite the fact that she did not join it or MacDonald's splinter party.

[Blair]

David Owen, Nigel Farage and Laurence Fox walk into a pub…

https://mobile.twitter.com/calvinrobinson/status/1436256529058082817

[CumbrianLefty]

There are far lefties who say the same about Galloway, Loach and Williamson

[NewYorkExpress]

According to a palace representative, Elizabeth II supports Black Lives Matter.

Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family support Black Lives Matter (BLM), a senior representative has told UK broadcaster Channel 4.

Ken Olisa, the first black Lord-Lieutenant for London, said that the issue of race is a "hot conversation topic" in the royal household, in an interview which will be aired Friday, reports PA Media.

The royal family's attitude to race has been in the spotlight recently following allegations of racism from Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and the revelation that ethnic minority immigrants and foreigners were banned from clerical positions until at least the late 1960s.

However Olisa suggested that the family are open to talking about racism.

"I have discussed with the royal household this whole issue of race, particularly in the last 12 months since the George Floyd incident," he said.

"It's a hot conversation topic. The question is what more can we do to bind society to remove these barriers. They [the royals] care passionately about making this one nation bound by the same values."

Olisa was also asked whether the royal family support BLM. "The answer is easily yes," he said.

[Pericles]

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/sep/11/labour-leadership-boris-johnson-liar-

I thought this article was interesting, for how silly it is. John McDonnell is the wrong person to lecture Labour on how to win political fights. Furthermore, I don't trust his basic diagnosis, Johnson's achilles heel is competence, people aren't under illusions that he's a morally upstanding person. And I doubt that it's a wise move for the opposition to be coming into an election with a bulky, complicated platform, regardless of how early they signal it. One of the silliest things comes at the end though, when he says that "My fear is that, if the Labour leadership continues on this path, people will increasingly see a party divided and fail to know what it stands for." Writing articles criticising the party leadership certainly doesn't scream party unity.

[CumbrianLefty]

The rabid right within the party need reining in somehow, though.

They are now actively driving people away.

[Frodo]

Prince William (the future King William V, if he chooses that name) could be the last monarch that Britain will ever have if Hilary Mantel is right:

British monarchy could be gone in two generations, says novelist Mantel

Still, it has been a good run.  The British monarchy will have lasted for more than a thousand years, if you count King Æthelstan as the first true king of England when he conquered Northumbria in 927 AD.  

[Suburbia]

Prince William (the future King William V, if he chooses that name) could be the last monarch that Britain will ever have if Hilary Mantel is right:

British monarchy could be gone in two generations, says novelist Mantel

The British monarchy is an institution that was about duty and will now be about celebrity and tourist attractions......period.....

William V would be the last in a changing Britain--demographically speaking---Enoch Powell's nightmare and the current England men's football team's reality----most of the English players are immigrants or are Afro-British, British-Irish (Kane, Rice), etc.

[Suburbia]

Britain had it's "own" 9/11, on July 7, 2005.....

Do you think Britain learned from 9/11 in the U.S. and 7/7?

Obviously immigration and national security was beefed up in the Blair and Brown ministries....

Tories run on immigration and national security every day..

[CumbrianLefty]

They "run on it" rather more than they actually do anything about it, though.

[Suburbia]

They "run on it" rather more than they actually do anything about it, though.

Well, most conservative parties around the world, like the GOP, the Canadian Tories and the British Tories have no other choice but to run on immigration and crime because it benefits them, basically.....

With Boris Johnson eyeing 10 more years in power, it is possible.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/boris-johnson-eyes-another-decade-in-power-jp0chz9xl

Labor needs to get it's act together, Blair 2005 was the last victory for them and Blair is reviled in the party, they need to win in 2024 or 2029....

[Blair]

IRC Blair is actually more popular than JC among Labour party members now.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

IRC Blair is actually more popular than JC among Labour party members now.

There's been a very large turnover of members: many have left, but many have joined (and a lot of these are returning members). And this is not the first time that this has happened. It's always useful for people to remember that the membership body of a political party is not a constant thing.

[Silent Hunter]

Also, some of them have died since Blair left the scene.

[Geoffrey Howe]

The FT makes a good point: "The UK’s problem has long been its desire to have European levels of public services with US levels of taxation."

[CumbrianLefty]

They "run on it" rather more than they actually do anything about it, though.

Well, most conservative parties around the world, like the GOP, the Canadian Tories and the British Tories have no other choice but to run on immigration and crime because it benefits them, basically.....

With Boris Johnson eyeing 10 more years in power, it is possible.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/boris-johnson-eyes-another-decade-in-power-jp0chz9xl

Labor needs to get it's act together, Blair 2005 was the last victory for them and Blair is reviled in the party, they need to win in 2024 or 2029....

Why do you believe this, more than literally anything else he says?

And what is more, all the previous "in the know" accounts emphasise that he doesn't particularly like being PM and resents that it doesn't pay more.

I can think of some other "Johnson" close to him who likes being in Number 10 very much, though.

Maybe they were the actual "source" on this occasion

[Geoffrey Howe]

Andrew Neil has resigned from GB News.

[cp]

IRC Blair is actually more popular than JC among Labour party members now.

It's a bit of a consolation prize as far as popularity contests go. He's got, like, a +7 favourable/unfavourable rating compared to Corbyn's +5 (roughly), and both of those numbers are because of *huge* numbers on either side of the question. Everyone else is +15 or more.*

In any case, Blair seems to be doing his level best to alienate the next generation of the party. Lining up against BLM and trans rights is going to age about as well as his Iraq War rationalizations.

*EDIT: I was basing this on my notoriously bad memory. When I went back to check I couldn't find the relevant poll. Sorry if this is incorrect.

[Silent Hunter]

What's he said against BLM and trans rights?

[Suburbia]

What's he said against BLM and trans rights?

“‘Defund the police’ may be the left’s most damaging political slogan since ‘the dictatorship of the proletariat’. It leaves the right with an economic message which seems more practical and a powerful cultural message around defending flag, family and fireside traditional values.”

https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe/progressive-politics-is-facing-extinction-tony-blair-20210512-p57rek.html

Blair is a centrist, like Bill and Hillary, Joe Manchin, etc. Centrists worldwide are worried about the global Black Lives Matter movement's defund the police talk. It's driving up turnout in Western countries where conservatives like that talk...

Blair is unpopular, but he does make some sense. He and Bush have to live with their decisions regarding Iraq, Afghanistan and war....