It was this sentence that prompted my comment. Any number of things could be different by the time an election arrives. If they still suit your "policy preferences" more than any other party at that point - fair enough. But deciding in advance with no room for change is not the best use of your vote IMHO.

Anyway, that link is interesting. Thanks.

I still intend to spoil my ballot paper in protest, I only wish more people would do the same.

As mentioned, one party fracks everything up, loses badly, and takes a few terms of office to gather enough momentum (due to the incumbents fracking up) to challenge for office again. In the meantime, the sitting goverment are in power, and remain in power, by default (lack of realistic opposition) and have carte blanche authority to do what the hell they please.

Not really a democracy is it?

Perhaps we should hold a national vote for every important decision. I'm sure it would work as awesomely here as it does in California.

On the whole I prefer the Lib Dems.

+1 The Tories won’t put the brakes on. They did sweet FA in the last recession, and caused even more economic and social depression. They didn’t want the government to intervene this time. I’m thinking that what we have is pretty mild - at least there are things being done to try to stave off the worst. Don’t trust anyone who subscribes to the Freidman economic model.



The LabCon Oligarchy has done enough damage to last a life time. Time for a serious change.

This time, as in all other elections, I'm going to vote Tory, Labour, Liberal, SNP (because I can) and anybody else that happens to be on the ballot paper Been doing this since I turned 18 but might vary my procedure this time by asking for a postal vote

Al

PS - don't like politicians

At least you go out and vote.

The thing is, we've got the government we deserve. It's a vicious circle: hate politicians, don't vote for them, losers get in and make it worse, so folk don't vote because they hate politicians.

Now, if the spoiled ballot actually made a difference, ie more spoiled ballots cast than the candidates, which should force a fresh election with new candidates (repeated until a result that suits everybody), we will continue to end up with the current circus.

Explain the alternative please?

I've yet to meet/see/hear of a single politician who actually made me want to vote for them.

Did I not? If the spoiled ballots total more than the candidates, then the election is null and void and must be rerun with new candidates.

I've never voted for *a* politician, either. I always vote for the party and its policies. I honestly can't name the local candidates for my preferred party. In fact, for all of my voting career I've voted for various flavours of Liberal, SDP and Lib-Dem. If things pan out, perhaps next time I can vote for me. At least that's one vote I can count on!

No governments are perfect and they all screw up. What I look at is whats good has been acheived in their term(s) e.g. Labour has.....

NHS
opened over 100 new hospital schemes since 1997 to replace ageing and unsuitable infrastructure – two years ahead of schedule
over 40,000 more doctors and over 83,000 more nurses since Labour came to power
built over 90 new NHS walk-in centres and over 650 one-stop primary care centres
investment in the NHS has nearly trebled since 1997

Animal Welfare
Banned fox hunting, hare coursing, hare hunting and stag hunting
Banned driftnet fishing which helps protect dolphins, turtles, sea birds and other animals
Introduced pet passports allowing you to take your pet abroad in the EU without the need for quarantine

Crime
Since 1997 overall crime is down 39 per cent
Police numbers up by more than 14,000 since 1997
The risk of becoming a victim of crime is at historically low levels, down from its peak in 1995

Early Years
the biggest expansion in early years education since 1945; investing £25 billion since 1997
Every three and four year old has the right to a free nursery place, which we will extend from 12.5 hours a week to 15 hours by next year

Environment
Our CO2 emissions fell by 10.8 million tonnes last year and our greenhouse gas emissions were 66 million tonnes lower than in 1997
Recycling has quadrupled since 1997

This is just a small sample and I'm sure the points would be argued against by the opposition parties but it cant be all bad can it. I still dont know who's going to get my vote though.

Of course there are a lot of bad points, such as the destruction of civil liberties, the abhorrent waste of public money, lies, damned lies and spin doctors, hospitals and schools that are still failing etc etc.

But on the plus side we managed to bring democracy and peace to Iraq and Afghanistan.. oh wait a minute.

Then there is all that investment into education which the costs can be suddenly cut by £2 Billion.. so over the last 12 years that equates to umm £24 billion that could of been better spent..

not forgeting all the infrastructure built by the PFI iniative the cost of which is just a staggering £124 billion and rising.

Then of course theres the £5 billion pound a year theft from everyone who has a pension not funded by the government, thus leading to the virtual end of the "final salary scheme"

I kind of wonder if that’s a fool’s errand anyway. Culturally, is democracy what those areas respond to and work best with? Clearly it’s failed dramatically in Afghanistan. I wonder if all the lives lost were worth it. I wonder at times if forcing our particular flavour of mob rule onto other cultures is an attempt to benefit us more than them.

I don't think it's benefited us at all.

While the Taliban had control, opium harvests were virtually nil. Since the West piled in to "save Afghans from the Taliban", they've had record opium harvests.

Go figure.

Looking at the good points....... those of us working way back then got a day off when Prince Charles got married (the first time)

Al

Is that "Hung" as in "Hung by the neck until dead"

Democracy in this country is a joke anyway when one party can get in by winning just 30% of the total votes.