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Should slick media skills and competence matter more than policy?

The UK Labour Party is massively behind in the polls and has a leader who is widely seen as nice but unfit to be Prime Minister. To be fair is like more like your favourite doddering uncle than an international statesman. In other words he is very much not like Tony Blair and lets start from that thought and work outwards.

I support a politician who does boring speeches and makes strategic errors on the Andrew Marr show. He also has a crap beard. Why should I give a flying f**k? Its policy and personal integrity that matter to me.

This George Monbiot article sums up everything I think:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/apr/25/vote-labour-jeremy-corbyn-theresa-may
Picklebobble2 · 56-60, M
Interesting article. Passionate but i fear unconvincing.
I AM a Labour supporter. And i rather like Jeremy Corbyn !
Certainly a breath of fresh air from all that middle-class university educated; faux-Tory b/s of the Blair years.
But Corbyn has a starting point of just a 35% vote share if you take the last two elections into account !
That's just 35% of the entire voting country who will vote Labour because they are Labour supporters.
And this time around there are few unions to back him. Except maybe UNITE if they can stop bickering amongst themselves long enough to cast a vote!
Public service and health unions are under massive stress to perform miracles where they used to be employed in a caring career. It will be interesting to see if they support his post Europe ideas and ideals.....Of which we haven't heard much !
It's a tough time to challenge for the crown. And i'm not altogether convinced folk trust Theresa May any more than they do Corbyn.
And THAT's the danger !
I fear fewer folk will turn out to vote.
66% turnout in 2015.
65% turnout in 2010
61% in 2005
All stats quoted from www.politicsresources.net
And then you get government by proxy !!
Come on Mr. Corbyn !
CONVINCE US !!
thatscottishguy · 26-30, M
I thought it was bad in England, I'm just realising a good number of people up here are so stupid that they don't associate the Scottish Tories with the rest of the party. People hate English Tory policy but like Ruth because she seems to believe in the shite she peddles (somehow can't grasp it's the same shite). She seems confident, she seems like a leader, she sits on tanks and the media love her. That's what matters unfortunately.
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@MartinII: He said her policies were shite. I see worse language than that on most posts.
MartinII · 70-79, M
@Burnley123: True, but I still dislike the language. So unnecessary, in my opinion. And counter-productive, because I have no idea what he thinks is "shite" about the policies.
thatscottishguy · 26-30, M
What's shite about the policies wasn't the point of what I said though.
Northwest · M
Of course not, but I don't think a competent public servant can make it, if he/she lacks media skills. It's a bitter pill to swallow for the smart people, who think they should win based on merit, but they all try or fail. Look at Hillary, she was even trained on how to smile, and not insult less intelligent people, while on the campaign trail :-)
MartinII · 70-79, M
I sympathise with your philosophy, but I don't think it applies to Corbyn. I don't think he is nice and I don't think he has much integrity. I held that view even when I was a supporter of the Labour Party in the 1980s, when Corbyn was already one of the most hated members of the parliamentary party.
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@MartinII: Its interesting that his manifesto these days would put him on the right of the party then. For all the attempts to paint him as extreme, most of his policies are popular.
MartinII · 70-79, M
@Burnley123: Perhaps true of the Labour Party's policies, but not I think of Corbyn's. He of course only advocates those policies he agrees with, irrespective of party policy. That's my objection to him - cynical, ruthless and disloyal in my opinion, far from the image of the cuddly dodderer. And remarkably effective, by his own lights, so far.
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@MartinII: Well the policies have changed a lot since he came on and both sides are compromised. I see him as consistent and blame the problems largely on PLP right who are against him.
RodionRomanovitch · 56-60, M
As much as it pains me to say it , the Labour Party needs another slick centrist like Blair before it has any chance of taking power again. Pie in the sky left wing policies will never cut it with the UK electorate.
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@pezzza: Would that even work though? It made electoral sense in 97 but at the expense of slow disintration of the Labour base. That is not to say the left don't have massive problems. I see it as a long term struggle and a necessary one.
Steve42 · 56-60, M
I thought you were talking about Trump and was going to state he had neither then I read the rest your blog and was surprised it wasn't about Trump.
Burnley123 · 41-45, M
@24601a: Different country, opposite politics.
Cierzo · M
Sadly it seems so. Look at France with the clean-cut, sterile, perfect son-in-law Macron.

 
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