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purplecthulhu: (politics)
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Today's New Labour Talking Point...

posted by [personal profile] purplecthulhu at 09:32am on 04/05/2009
... appears to be 'if it's not us it's the BNP'.

I heard this on Today from harriet harman, and have read it from Neil Kinnock. I'm sure we'll hear it elsewhere before the day is out.

Of course this petty dualism is trying to hide the fact that there are many other alternatives. So if you don't like Labour or the Tories, think about the Lib Dems, Greens, Nationalists, independents, Raving Loonies and even UKIP before the BNP.

And does Kilroy Silk's Vanitas party still exist?
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There are 13 comments on this entry. (Reply.)
 

(no subject)

posted by [identity profile] nyecamden.livejournal.com at 09:41am on 04/05/2009
The trouble is, the BNP are really quite good at plugging into the fears and grievances of the white working class. It is wrong to underestimate their threat IMO.
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posted by [identity profile] purplecthulhu.livejournal.com at 09:47am on 04/05/2009
Which makes it all the more important that other parties - among those I've listed - fill the gap. The choice is not Labour or BNP, and people need to recognize that. If Labour is serious about defeating the BNP then they should not present themselves as the only alternative. That they do should be seen as the self-serving scare tactic that it is.
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(no subject)

posted by [identity profile] nyecamden.livejournal.com at 09:49am on 04/05/2009
Yes, I agree... but politicians do that all the time, right?
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posted by [identity profile] purplecthulhu.livejournal.com at 09:51am on 04/05/2009
Which is why people like the BNP get a look in. If politicians came together to make a principled stance they'd get more respect and more votes (and more voters in general). Self serving statements like this just play into the BNP's hands.

Frankly, the people making the statements should know better.
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posted by [identity profile] gnommi.livejournal.com at 01:01pm on 04/05/2009
If I were the BNP I would be shouting WOO FREE PRIMETIME ADVERTISING GUISE!
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posted by [identity profile] purplecthulhu.livejournal.com at 01:04pm on 04/05/2009
Quite - these statements from New Labour give them the appearance of added legitimacy, which is another reason why toady's talking point is dangerous as well as cynically self serving.

But then that's what we've come to expect.
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(no subject)

posted by [identity profile] gnommi.livejournal.com at 01:10pm on 04/05/2009
The word that springs most readily to mind with this government is usually expediency :(
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matgb: Artwork of 19th century upper class anarchist, text: MatGB (Default)

(no subject)

posted by [personal profile] matgb at 11:59am on 04/05/2009
It's also wrong to substantially overestimate them. I rarely if ever agree with Rentoul, but his psephology here is pretty much spot on:
http://johnrentoul.independentminds.livejournal.com/62107.html

To get seats in the Euro elections the BNP would have to outperform themselves substantially across an entire region, normally they only get seats in one or two wards in an area, by pouring activists in.

It's not "no chance", but it is "minimal chance" of the threat in the Euro elections coming through. Local elections this time might be different, but it's shire counties, the Metropolitan Boroughs get a year off.
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posted by [identity profile] bazzalisk.livejournal.com at 09:44am on 04/05/2009
I think that the UKIP are just as bad as the BNP -- possible worse because they can come across as more acceptable, whilst still being colossally racist.
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posted by [identity profile] purplecthulhu.livejournal.com at 09:49am on 04/05/2009
Fair comment - I know the BNP are racist bigots. I've seen less of UKIP but if they're racist bigots as well then they're not a viable alternative. But there are plenty of others (one I forgot, of course, is Respect).
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posted by [identity profile] bazzalisk.livejournal.com at 10:01am on 04/05/2009
UKIP's policies are not per se explicitly racist -- but the majority of their members seem to be -- albeit most of them are the kinds of racist who froth at the mouth about Poles more than they do about Pakistanis, for example.
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posted by [identity profile] gaspodog.livejournal.com at 01:31pm on 04/05/2009
Their frothing is definitely directed more at the EU than at the rest of the world.
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(no subject)

posted by [identity profile] inamac.livejournal.com at 10:32am on 04/05/2009
So let me get this straight - New Labour is saying that if you don't feel that you can support their policies any more, then your nearest equivalent is the BNP? While this may, indeed, be true, it doesn't say much for their respect for their own voters (or their own policies).

I could understand it if the Tories were saying this - but talk about shooting yourself in the foot!
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