Monday 20 April 2015

Voting Thoughts

Bit of a personal post, but I'm looking at all my options, and here's my current thinking:-

Greens: right out. completely hatstand (except CI and a couple of other things)
UKIP: out. A complete mess of policies including things like anti-Greenbelt building and turnover tax. They've even softened their views on smoking in pubs to "smoking rooms".
Lib Dems: Mostly, not too bad. Bit too much of the state expansion, bit too pro-European for my liking. Bit not much chance in my seat.
Labour: In many ways, a competent manifesto. Good on house building, mansion tax, but all this "bankers bonuses" and "tobacco levy" is nonsense. Plus, I'm not at all keen on 16 year olds voting (especially at the same time that we have put restrictions on the choices that 16 year olds can make regarding work).
Conservative: Generally think they may be more competent than any party on economy, but too pro-homey and spending.

I'm almost tempted not to vote, the choices are so weak. So, it's really coming down to the SNP. Labour will have to deal with them, and they won't be that much of a junior partner. If this means they get another referendum and I thought the Scots would do the right thing, I'll vote Labour. But I think they'll still vote to stay in the union, and we'll have a bunch of even higher spending types pushing Labour leftwards.

Any thoughts?

18 comments:

Lola said...

It's not a 'choice' is it? We are being offered a set of authoritarian gits. When what we want is liberty.

Steven_L said...

In my Scots constituency I have a choice of SNP, Tory, Labour and Lib Dem. Only SNP and Tory are in it and the SNP will win easily.

I minded to vote for the 23 year old Lib Dem. But that seems like a waste.

I'm short June gilt futures, so in that respect maybe I should vote SNP. But I don't particularly want to vote for Nicola and her lot and they don't need my vote so I doubt I will.

That leaves the tories and labour. The tory is the only unionist candidate that can win. But they are too obsessed with home-ownersip and house prices for me to want to vote for them.

And I aint voting for labour, so I'll probably either not vote or vote for the 23 year old Lib Dem guy.

mombers said...

I'm in a pretty safe Tory seat (Chipping Barnet) so I'm tempted to spoil my ballot. Will see if I can find a local poll to see if there's an outside chance that Labour will win. But I can't bring myself to vote for them so it's genitals on the faces of every single candidate I reckon.
TS, I think 16 year olds should definitely be allowed to vote. Look at the terrible bribes being handed out to coffin dodgers that will have to be paid for by young people. Also, the recent voting registration change has disenfranchised so many young people, it makes sense to get them on the ballot before they leave school.
The IPPR had an interesting proposal - compulsory voting at the first election after you turn 18. A 'none of the above' option would be available. Not sure how it could be done in a reasonably efficient way though. A fine would be futile and a bureaucratic nightmare. Maybe automatic registration when you get your national insurance number and a £3.50 bung off your first PAYE bill when you vote?

Lola said...

Cards on the table. My reasoning as follows. Bearing mind that I live in an area which would vote in a monkey with a blue rosette.

You cannot vote Labour, because socialism is a philosophy of moral and economic bankruptcy. That kicks out Labour, The Greens, The libdems and every other lefty fruitcake. This leaves you with the God awful rent seeking Tories (they can no longer be considered 'conservatives' under Cameron). Or UKIP. UKIP has a largely reasonable manifesto but they have gone off reservation on homeownerism. And anyway voting for them might let in some form of socialism. Now, there are some conservatives in the Tory party that we should quite like - Steve Baker for example. And overall you are more likely to get to liberty with him than you would ever be with any socialist. However there are some Labour people I quite like, George Mudie, Kate Hoey who are also for Liberty. So I think tactical voting is called for. I.E. I still don't have a bloody clue.

Tim Almond said...

mombers,

The bribes are being offered because they vote. If the 18-35 year olds got off their arses and walked into polling booths a bit more, old people wouldn't be getting money splurged on them. It used to be the case that 18-35 year olds voted a bit less than the over 65s but the difference is huge now.

I'm not in favour of compulsory voting, because it doesn't really address the problem of why people don't vote (many of which are about our voting system, I think).

Mark Wadsworth said...

I do not have these worries, I shall vote for the YPP candidate (who happens to be me).

Tim Almond said...

Lola,

When the Conservative leader announces something like 3 days leave for people working in large businesses to go off volunteering, I can't help but see him as a socialist of the worst sort. That reminds me of the sort of happy clappy collectivism and anti-specialisation of the Greens.

And yes, the Conservatives have a few good people. I forget his name, but I quite like the northern MP that used to be a betting shop manager. I quite like Justin Tomlinson, the North Swindon MP, who's a former local businessman.

My other strategy is based on replacing Cameron - if he does badly enough, maybe the party will elect a capable leader like Philip Hammond. But I suspect in reality that we'll get Boris or Teresa May or George Osborne instead.

Bayard said...

"if he does badly enough, maybe the party will elect a capable leader like Philip Hammond"

He does have the advantage that he isn't very well known. Of which leader of the Tory party have you not asked "WTF is he" his the name was announced, from John Major onwards? Thankfully this rules out Boris and George and I can't see the Tories having another woman leading them until everyone who remembers Mrs T is dead.

I'm stuck with the usual suspects where I am and with an incumbent Tory who's likely to get back in. He's not a bad MP, but he's a Tory and that rules him out AFAIAC, him not being Philip Davies. I suppose I shall end up voting for the Lib Dems, like I said I wouldn't ever again.

Unknown said...

There's a handful of good policies out there spread across all of the parties pretty much. And a whole load of meh, or bonkers, or blatantly pandering. Many of which will be forgotten the minute the party gets power and the media will let them get away with it.
I think the non-vote should be given consideration - a low turnout tells the political class that their policies are bollocks, so time to get some new ones such as say a Land-Tax.
So, not sure if there's a YPP candidate round these parts Mid-Sussex? Also, um, if you're not really young - what happens there?
Nicholas Soames is the local MP and has been for 4 parliaments so it's time to consider other options. It's a pretty safe seat as I discovered when I voted Lib-Dem and she got nowhere. So UKIP is probably an option.
Their policies are OK-ish, but there's some overly-reactionary stuff too. It really is pretty depressing. Still the internet has opened up a lot of things in truth and we may start to see some changes...
Also, there's two local elections on at the same time - what's that all about - how can that be democratic - who's gonna bother checking out all the different policies.
So, I

Lola said...

TS. I said Mrs L when the Tories chose Cameron over David Davies that it was a mistake. But I was forgetting that they're 'Tories' at heart. 'conservatives' don't get a look in in the Tory party any more. They just brand them 'Thatcherites'. Which is silly.
And FWIW I am way to the left of the Tories, but then I am also way to the right of Labour.
YPP for me...

Mark Wadsworth said...

@ SV, YPP has just over twenty members and only three of us are standing this time.

So if you want to vote YPP, you have to stand yourself. You don't need to be young either, any more that Green party candidates are literally green.

Shiney said...

Here in rural Somerset we're looking at LibDem vs Tories - incumbent is Tessa Munt the LibDem. She stole it off the Tories after Heathcoat-Amory bought manure (or something) on expenses.

I won't vote for the Tories as they are just Blue-Socialists (to coin MWs phrase) and as L says socialism is morally bankrupt... so that rules out all the others as well.

Can't vote YPP, obviously, even though I'm a (recent) member.

The 'liberal' part of the LibDem's manifesto appeals and Tessa is a very good local MP so I'll have to hold my nose and vote for her I think.

Shiney said...

PS - agree with Lola about David Davies.

Rich Tee said...

Safe Labour seat for me, but the majority has halved since high point in 1997. It is the seat of Rachel Reeves, who is in the media a lot, so it would be fun to see her lose her seat.

UKIP scored 33 per cent of vote in my ward last year, so looks like they are only ones who could depose her. But the UKIP leaflet I received yesterday has glaring spelling mistake in it. (Do they do this deliberately?)

Can't vote Conservative for many reasons. Cameron bombing Libya and causing migrant crisis is latest of many reasons.

None of them will do anything significant about house prices, which is my personal grievance, so I am leaning towards not voting.

Tim Almond said...

Bayard,
Hammond has prior experience running a business in a competitive sector. He's also not put a foot wrong in any of his government jobs, to the point of obscurity.

Sean Vosper,
No. Not voting doesn't work. Spoiling your paper with the policy you want might. But not voting sends no signal at all. No-one knows what it means. The strongest signal non-voting sends is contentment - that you're not really too scared of the other party getting in. Look at the turnout in 1983 - 72% lots of people really didn't want the terrifying Foot/Benn getting into power.

Lola,
Not conservatives - classic liberals. Cameron is a conservative. Thatcher was a classic liberal who had moved into the Conservative party along with many classic liberals after the liberal party drifted leftwards. And David Davies is closer to that "classic liberal" mould (they nearly all came from the working or middle classes).

Lola said...

TS. re classical liberal - indeed.

L fairfax said...

Regarding this
"Plus, I'm not at all keen on 16 year olds voting (especially at the same time that we have put restrictions on the choices that 16 year olds can make regarding work)."
Isn't it the worse type of hypocrite that takes rights away from 16 years olds because they are not adults but gives them the vote because they think more of them will vote for them. Although it says something about Labour that it thinks children are likely to vote for them

Lola said...

On top of that, have you actually 'listened' to Milliband? Not only does he talk bollocks he sounds like he's talking with his bollocks in his gob. I admit I am no Richard Burton on the elocution front, but really, could anyone sound any more dire?