Bolitics The New Condem Government

[MakemineVanilla]

 

 

 

UKIP has overtaken them because there is a gap in the market for a protest party now the Lib Dems are governemt . In 12 months time on election day if the Tories have cut taxes and the economy continues to improve Farage will win **** all. They will win seats as MEPs literally no one cares enough to vote seriously.

 

 

Are the right wing nut jobs really that shallow that a tax cut, or the promise of one, will stop them putting an x alongside the extreme right wing nut jobs name.

As for those of us with morals and a social conscience then a tax cut isn't going to make up for the fact that the average person is far worse half now than they were in 2010. Most importantly though it isn't going to change the fact that the poorest and most vulnerable in society haven't just been hit the hardest in the pocket they have been hit again by having the public services they are most reliant on slashed. It is shameful how this Tory led mob have acted over the last 4 years.

 

Mark, you appear to have this idea that only people on the left can have 'morals and a social conscience'

 

I would counter that there are plenty on the left who have no such emotions, and that some that you would deem are on the right do indeed possess such qualities as you describe them.

 

Morality is most definitely not the preserve of the left, regardless of what they would like us to believe.

 

 

The problem for the Right is that they have no fundamental moral tenets to work from and it is impossible to extrapolate any from their politics.

 

The Left have their 'From each according to his ability, to each according to his need' which might be the cause of tooth-grinding rage for those who resent those who seem to go out of their way to create their need, but it can't be denied that it is a pretty solid injunction to start from, as flawed as it is.

 

In theory the Right should have a similarly easily understood basis for their ethics but in practice it looks impossible. 

 

'To each according to the effort he puts in' might be a reasonable injunction but in practice, a party named after its determination to 'conserve' the hereditary privileges of the aristocracy, and the party's advocacy of those whose wealth is completely de-linked from actual effort, must struggle to construct any sort of ethic which can survive the most cursory examination.   

 

So it is easy to see why the Left tend to preach from the moral high-ground and why the Tories are always having to attack up hill.

Edited March 6, 2014 by MakemineVanilla

[peterms]

 

Presumably it would continue to grow until loads more people were evicted, at which point they either get picked up as priority homeless and rehoused in far more expensive temporary accommodation...

Isn't there likely to be another byproduct from that, too?

Namely, that the nature of the tenancies held will then change from largely assured tenancies (or even secure ones) to starter tenancies and thereafter fixed term ones whether that be by rehousing evictees elsewhere in social housing (if they remain, or become again, eligible) or by having a completely new lot of tenants.

That's not without going on to 'affordable rent' and some of the other details introduced by Schapps in the early days of this government.

 

 

Yes, and therefore increasing the overall level of housing insecurity.

 

Then there's the cost of court cases, evictions, removals, rehousing, expenses for new tenants in furnishings and equipment, redecoration between tenancies, education disruption for evicted children, more kids taken into care, health costs of homeless people, criminal justice system clogged up with pointless cases, social work involvement, charities fundraising to cope with the problems...but hey, it all adds to GDP.

[Risso]

 

 

 

 

UKIP has overtaken them because there is a gap in the market for a protest party now the Lib Dems are governemt . In 12 months time on election day if the Tories have cut taxes and the economy continues to improve Farage will win **** all. They will win seats as MEPs literally no one cares enough to vote seriously.

 

 

Are the right wing nut jobs really that shallow that a tax cut, or the promise of one, will stop them putting an x alongside the extreme right wing nut jobs name.

As for those of us with morals and a social conscience then a tax cut isn't going to make up for the fact that the average person is far worse half now than they were in 2010. Most importantly though it isn't going to change the fact that the poorest and most vulnerable in society haven't just been hit the hardest in the pocket they have been hit again by having the public services they are most reliant on slashed. It is shameful how this Tory led mob have acted over the last 4 years.

 

Mark, you appear to have this idea that only people on the left can have 'morals and a social conscience'

 

I would counter that there are plenty on the left who have no such emotions, and that some that you would deem are on the right do indeed possess such qualities as you describe them.

 

Morality is most definitely not the preserve of the left, regardless of what they would like us to believe.

 

 

The problem for the Right is that they have no fundamental moral tenets to work from and it is impossible to extrapolate any from their politics.

 

The Left have their 'From each according to his ability, to each according to his need' which might be the cause of tooth-grinding rage for those who resent those who seem to go out of their way to create their need, but it can't be denied that it is a pretty solid injunction to start from, as flawed as it is.

 

In theory the Right should have a similarly easily understood basis for their ethics but in practice it looks impossible. 

 

'To each according to the effort he puts in' might be a reasonable injunction but in practice, a party named after its determination to 'conserve' the hereditary privileges of the aristocracy, and the party's advocacy of those whose wealth is completely de-linked from actual effort, must struggle to construct any sort of ethic which can survive the most cursory examination.   

 

So it is easy to see why the Left tend to preach from the moral high-ground and why the Tories are always having to attack up hill.

 

 

"Every individual... neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it... he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention."

 

After peterms, the greatest ever Scotsman.

[mockingbird_franklin]

Hmmm, vince Cable really fits in well with his Tory counterparts

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/vince-cable-teachers-know-absolutely-nothing-about-the-world-of-work-9171019.html

[CarewsEyebrowDesigner]

 

Edited March 6, 2014 by CarewsEyebrowDesigner

[peterms]

 

"Every individual... neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it... he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention."

Frequently misunderstood, especially in neoclassical college economics textbooks.

...The name of Adam Smith is invoked to give prestige to an interpretation of the “invisible hand” which has nothing to do with how he himself used this metaphor. Whereas modern economic theory claims that selfish behavior leads to economic welfare, Adam Smith gave several examples of how selfish behavior harms society in his classic Wealth of Nations...

[snowychap]

After peterms, the greatest ever Scotsman.

And like great men throughout the ages destined to have his legacy trodden in to the dirt by those that come after.

With apologies to Peter, this comment is about Smith.

[Kingfisher]

After years of getting an inexplicably large amount of airtime on the TV Ofcom have decided to rubber stamp it by declaring UKIP a major party in next years general election. So we'll be getting more of women being called sluts, more gay weather and more bongo bongo land. Yet the Green Party, who actually have a democratically elected MP in Westminster are by comparison an irrelevance??

**** joke.

[bickster]

After years of getting an inexplicably large amount of airtime on the TV Ofcom have decided to rubber stamp it by declaring UKIP a major party in next years general election. So we'll be getting more of women being called sluts, more gay weather and more bongo bongo land. Yet the Green Party, who actually have a democratically elected MP in Westminster are by comparison an irrelevance??

**** joke.

[mockingbird_franklin]

This guy seems to have a real problem playing with a straight bat doesn't he

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/03/06/iain-duncan-smith-dwp-numbers_n_4911277.html

[Rovers13]

This is fun to read. I think id probably side with labour, or whatever kingfishers party is, but since I don't know a lot about British politics, it's interesting to look at

[Amsterdam_Neil_D]

How do you try to convey "statesmanship" when your subject is a jumped-up little weasel with no gravitas whatever?  Show him engaged in Meaningful Conversations With World Leaders.

 

But it's becoming a meme...

 

 

 

You just know it's the speaking clock (doing a David Brent  ),  he is just embarrassing himself.  (Might be on the to Brooks,  or the porn down loader or maybe Coulson ?)

 

Does he realise what he looks like or does he actually get told what to do by PR people and he is just to weak to say no ? Well lets see what this leader does when a country gets invaded.  People vote for this bloke 

[mockingbird_franklin]

I'm sure whoever thought up the bedroom Tax, really thought it through and considered all the factors and was sure in their own mind they had considered all the factors, so I'm surprised to read articles like this.

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/exclusive-bedroom-tax-is-a-hasty-shambles-says-poverty-group-9163875.html

 

before we get into an arguement over it's name, yes it is a Tax to all intents and purposes, no matter what fancy convoluted thinking process is applied to give it a fancy convoluted name, after all if they renamed income Tax, the fractional removal charge of spare income, would that suddenly stop being a tax, It's just a very stupid, selective, unfair and punitive one in it's current form and present circumstances,

Edited March 7, 2014 by mockingbird_franklin

[MakemineVanilla]

The real disturbing thing about the pictures of Cameron getting on the Bat-phone, is that it, and other such publicity shots, shows how the role of Prime Minister (originally an ironic jibe) is drifting towards that of a President, and therefore a reduction in the power and influence of the cabinet.

 

The constant image management, which requires the PM to be always the most animated in a photo, and to be seen to run when most people would walk, is not charismatic, or statesmanlike, it is crass, manipulative, meretricious BS.

 

Once again we are catching something nasty from America. 

[colhint]

That;s some leap from a picture of someone on the phone

[mockingbird_franklin]

That;s some leap from a picture of someone on the phone

Which, the pictures on twitter or MakemineVanilla's insightful interpretation of a clearing in the woods posing with a phone in his increasingly ludicrous and transparent attempts to look the serious in control statesman in his never ending quest be taken serious and be respected, without actually doing anything of substance or worth to earn the respect, rather because well, he's serious about stuff isn't he. Just look at my serious face as I tell you I'm a serious man who likes to get serious about shit.

[colhint]

like I said, some leap

[mockingbird_franklin]

 

How do you try to convey "statesmanship" when your subject is a jumped-up little weasel with no gravitas whatever?  Show him engaged in Meaningful Conversations With World Leaders.

 

But it's becoming a meme...

 

 

 

You just know it's the speaking clock (doing a David Brent  ),  he is just embarrassing himself.  (Might be on the to Brooks,  or the porn down loader or maybe Coulson ?)

 

Does he realise what he looks like or does he actually get told what to do by PR people and he is just to weak to say no ? Well lets see what this leader does when a country gets invaded.  People vote for this bloke 

 

When you are ridiculous, you tend to be ridiculed,

[colhint]

Oh he's fair game to be ridiculed, any public figure is, but that's not what was said.

[snowychap]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/exclusive-bedroom-tax-is-a-hasty-shambles-says-poverty-group-9163875.html

Excerpt:

Central London is suffering from the biggest sell-off of small homes. In Camden, 81 per cent of properties sold since 2010 had two bedrooms or fewer, and 49 per cent had one bedroom. Figures for Hammersmith and Fulham show that 77 per cent of sales were of small properties.

In Southwark, 74 per cent of those sold were small, with 32 per cent one-bedroom properties, and in Lambeth, 74 per cent of its right-to-buy sales were of the smallest homes.

Brighton and Hove council has sold 111 properties since 2010, of which 74 per cent had one or two bedrooms. Although Bournemouth council sold just 20 homes, all of them were small.

The analysis of 125 council areas found that of 14,616 properties sold across England, 45 per cent had one or two bedrooms. About 61 per cent of England’s total social housing stock is made up of one- or two-bedroom properties, suggesting that some councils appear to be selling off a disproportionate number of smaller homes.

Unless I've read this wrongly, they've compared individual council's housing stock with the overall national numbers and relative proportions of one and two bed homes, haven't they?

What were the proportions of one and two bed homes in Camden, Hammersmith and Fulham, Southwark, Lambeth, &c.?

It's fair enough to point out the difficulties of councils/HAs not being able to make the running on right to buy (i.e. that they can't really control their housing stock, at least in the short term) and where this can cause problems with the bedroom tax policy and its fall out (a severe shortage of smaller council homes across the country is being exacerbated by the right-to-buy scheme – leaving many victims of the bedroom tax with no choice but to accept reduced benefits) but they ought to leave it there.

Edited slightly.

Edited March 7, 2014 by snowychap