The taboo thread

UndercoverElephant

I remember them doing that during the World Cup, during an England match and the HD viewers missed a goal. You'd think they might learn.

rjsterry

EKE_38BPM wrote:

In the mayoral election, if a candidate wins by a tiny amount, say, just one vote after loads of recounts, how could this affect how they do their mayoral stuff.
In parliament there are seats and votes but in the mayoral election could the mayor with tiny majority do whatever they want and trust that they do such a good job that they get elected again at the end of their term?

What I'm saying is, does the size of the majority matter?

In a direct sense, no. But if, say, Boris got in by <100 votes, then he'd be nuts to say "to hell with all the other voters, I'm governing for the 29% who voted for me and them alone".

Ben6899

It's between Ken and Boris for me. And I'll vote for Ken.

I don't know who my second vote will go to. I'm sick of Paddick always bringing up the fact that he's gay and once worked for the Met Police. I went to a hustings on Monday and Jenny Jones opened by telling us all she's a feminist.

She was my firm 2nd vote, but now I'm not sure at all. I'm not keen on feminism at all. In fact I'm not keen on many -isms.

Someone from the floor asked Boris' representative (he couldn't be ar$ed to turn up) - Victoria Borwick, Assembly Candidate - to comment on junctions which are dangerous for cyclists. She said exactly what I was thinking and shot herself in the foot...

Fuck1ng buffoons left, right and centre.

il_principe

Rick Chasey wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

Polls, schmolls. Depends entirely on how the question is asked.

But yes, I'm sure that binary perception holds, and it's in both Boris and Ken's interest to let it do so. Out of interest, which area is this? Labour wouldn't get a look in down my way.

Fulham, Earls Court, South Ken, Hammersmith & Chelsea

What a massive waste of your time...

rjsterry

Rick Chasey wrote:

EKE_38BPM wrote:

Millibland is doing better now, but a trained ape could do OK against the coalition right now.
I'm really not feeling either Ken or Boris so I'll need to do more research on the other candidates.

It's STV so even if you don't like them, whichever you pick first will be the one that counts.

Unless you don't pick any of them.

Just checked this as something didn't quite ring true - it's not STV, but 'supplementary vote', which is actually a shortened version of AV. And not a great one at that: given the general move away from mainstream parties, it's very likely that neither Ken or Boris will get >50%, so we have the prospect of electing the mayor that 'most people didn't mind'.

cyclingprop

I like letting campaigners give me the schpeel, and I ask intelligent questions. Then I tell them I postal voted on Monday.

Same as exit pollers, I tell them that if they knew how I voted it would spoil the wait.

rjsterry

Il Principe wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

Polls, schmolls. Depends entirely on how the question is asked.

But yes, I'm sure that binary perception holds, and it's in both Boris and Ken's interest to let it do so. Out of interest, which area is this? Labour wouldn't get a look in down my way.

Fulham, Earls Court, South Ken, Hammersmith & Chelsea

What a massive waste of your time...

I'd certainly not have thought of those as prime Lib Dem targets. Earls Court I could understand, but South Ken and Chelsea? Further southwest (the bit of London that likes to call itself Surrey) would be the obvious target, and maybe spreading into Wandsworth/Balham/Earlsfield.

rick_chasey

Il Principe wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

Polls, schmolls. Depends entirely on how the question is asked.

But yes, I'm sure that binary perception holds, and it's in both Boris and Ken's interest to let it do so. Out of interest, which area is this? Labour wouldn't get a look in down my way.

Fulham, Earls Court, South Ken, Hammersmith & Chelsea

What a massive waste of your time...

We hold Earls Court.

rick_chasey

rjsterry wrote:

Il Principe wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

rjsterry wrote:

Polls, schmolls. Depends entirely on how the question is asked.

But yes, I'm sure that binary perception holds, and it's in both Boris and Ken's interest to let it do so. Out of interest, which area is this? Labour wouldn't get a look in down my way.

Fulham, Earls Court, South Ken, Hammersmith & Chelsea

What a massive waste of your time...

I'd certainly not have thought of those as prime Lib Dem targets. Earls Court I could understand, but South Ken and Chelsea? Further southwest (the bit of London that likes to call itself Surrey) would be the obvious target, and maybe spreading into Wandsworth/Balham/Earlsfield.

*shrugs* it's not so much we're targeting them (other than trying to hold onto Earls Court obviously). It's more that's where I live, so that's where I'll do my bit. Y'know, get involved with the local community with a few like minded people.

Ultimately it keeps me busy, I get to know the area I live in better, and I get to meet people.

I figured the amount I whine about politics I should go out there and do my bit. I genuinely believe there is a better way to govern, so it'd be a bit hypocritical if I didn't do something about it.

notsoblue

Campaigners I've encountered in Sheen are funny. They tend to be well meaning old ladies who have a shockingly xenophobic world view, and want to socially cleanse their little bit of the UK. At the last election I had one try to win me over by going on about how immigration must be stopped and the NHS must be reformed. Reasons being that foreigners are bad and nurses are lazy. I explained that my father is an immigrant, and that my sister is a nurse, and she basically ran out of arguments to vote tory. She was quite friendly really, but like most of the tory faithful her political views seemed to be pretty myopic and ignorant.

RC - What do you do when you doorstep someone like this as a campaigner?

il_principe

notsoblue wrote:

like most party faithful, her political views seemed to be pretty myopic and ignorant.

FTFY

rick_chasey

notsoblue wrote:

Campaigners I've encountered in Sheen are funny. They tend to be well meaning old ladies who have a shockingly xenophobic world view, and want to socially cleanse their little bit of the UK. At the last election I had one try to win me over by going on about how immigration must be stopped and the NHS must be reformed. Reasons being that foreigners are bad and nurses are lazy. I explained that my father is an immigrant, and that my sister is a nurse, and she basically ran out of arguments to vote tory. She was quite friendly really, but like most of the tory faithful her political views seemed to be pretty myopic and ignorant.

RC - What do you do when you doorstep someone like this as a campaigner?

Haven't come across many where I live to be honest.

Usually you have a name from the electoral register - "hello Mrs. So & So, we're campaiging for blah" or whatever.

"Will you be voting in the upcoming Elections?" "who will you be voting for?"

By their answer you get a good idea whether it's worth the effort or not. If there's a chance, you ask them what the key issues are for them and listen . If you can remember your candidate's policies relating to said issue, let them know what they are.

I like to make it clear at all times that it's up to them. I just try let them know what the Lib Dems / Brian Paddick would do for the issues they care about. Be as polite as you can.

If they don't intend to vote, it's a short conversation. I'm not going to persuade them to vote. That's their call.

Edit: It's pretty similar to my job to be honest. It's just face-to-face.

EKE_38BPM

notsoblue wrote:

RC - What do you do when you doorstep someone like this as a campaigner?

Kick 'em in the shins, nick their handbag and run off!

notsoblue

Il Principe wrote:

notsoblue wrote:

like most party faithful, her political views seemed to be pretty myopic and ignorant.

FTFY

Yeah, you're probably right. But I've not experienced it to the same extent in non-tory areas.

greg66_tri_v2.0

Rick Chasey wrote:

notsoblue wrote:

Campaigners I've encountered in Sheen are funny. They tend to be well meaning old ladies who have a shockingly xenophobic world view, and want to socially cleanse their little bit of the UK. At the last election I had one try to win me over by going on about how immigration must be stopped and the NHS must be reformed. Reasons being that foreigners are bad and nurses are lazy. I explained that my father is an immigrant, and that my sister is a nurse, and she basically ran out of arguments to vote tory. She was quite friendly really, but like most of the tory faithful her political views seemed to be pretty myopic and ignorant.

RC - What do you do when you doorstep someone like this as a campaigner?

Haven't come across many where I live to be honest.

Usually you have a name from the electoral register - "hello Mrs. So & So, we're campaiging for blah" or whatever.

"Will you be voting in the upcoming Elections?" "who will you be voting for?"

By their answer you get a good idea whether it's worth the effort or not. If there's a chance, you ask them what the key issues are for them and listen . If you can remember your candidate's policies relating to said issue, let them know what they are.

I like to make it clear at all times that it's up to them. I just try let them know what the Lib Dems / Brian Paddick would do for the issues they care about. Be as polite as you can.

If they don't intend to vote, it's a short conversation. I'm not going to persuade them to vote. That's their call.

Edit: It's pretty similar to my job to be honest. It's just face-to-face.

Surely some of them must suggest that it is a bit early for Bob-a-Job week, no?

rick_chasey

Also, the Lib Dems often do quite OK in heavy Tory areas.

There are 24 Lib Dem Councillors in Richmond compared to 30 Tories for example, and the seat itself was Lib Dem untill the last election.

rick_chasey

Greg66 wrote:

Surely some of them must suggest that it is a bit early for Bob-a-Job week, no?

I have no idea what that is.

I'm guessing it makes your comment both hilarious and pithy .

rjsterry

notsoblue wrote:

Campaigners I've encountered in Sheen are funny. They tend to be well meaning old ladies who have a shockingly xenophobic world view, and want to socially cleanse their little bit of the UK. At the last election I had one try to win me over by going on about how immigration must be stopped and the NHS must be reformed. Reasons being that foreigners are bad and nurses are lazy. I explained that my father is an immigrant, and that my sister is a nurse, and she basically ran out of arguments to vote tory. She was quite friendly really, but like most of the tory faithful her political views seemed to be pretty myopic and ignorant.

RC - What do you do when you doorstep someone like this as a campaigner?

I sometimes wonder why someone hasn't made more of the comedic potential of the wildly xenophobic, butter-wouldn't-melt little old lady.

rjsterry

Rick Chasey wrote:

Greg66 wrote:

Surely some of them must suggest that it is a bit early for Bob-a-Job week, no?

I have no idea what that is.

I'm guessing it makes your comment both hilarious and pithy .

He's really showing his age. It was a fundraising scheme for the Scouts: knock on door and offer to do odd jobs for a donation (the bob bit - old slang for a shilling).

rick_chasey

When you're balding like I am, being confused for a boy-scout is not really an issue.

greg66_tri_v2.0

Rick Chasey wrote:

When you're balding like I am, being confused for a boy-scout is not really an issue.

Hmm.

Chemo-boy goes Bob-a-Jobbing.

You'd have probably done quite well out of that.

rjsterry

Ben6899 wrote:

It's between Ken and Boris for me. And I'll vote for Ken.

I don't know who my second vote will go to. I'm sick of Paddick always bringing up the fact that he's gay and once worked for the Met Police. I went to a hustings on Monday and Jenny Jones opened by telling us all she's a feminist.

She was my firm 2nd vote, but now I'm not sure at all. I'm not keen on feminism at all. In fact I'm not keen on many -isms.

Someone from the floor asked Boris' representative (he couldn't be ar$ed to turn up) - Victoria Borwick, Assembly Candidate - to comment on junctions which are dangerous for cyclists. She said exactly what I was thinking and shot herself in the foot...

Fuck1ng buffoons left, right and centre.

I'd genuinely forgotten that he is gay, so he can't have been bringing it up that much. In any case, it's no different from Ken repeatedly bringing up his 'working class roots'.

rick_chasey

Ben6899 wrote:

I went to a hustings on Monday and Jenny Jones opened by telling us all she's a feminist.

She was my firm 2nd vote, but now I'm not sure at all. I'm not keen on feminism at all. In fact I'm not keen on many -isms.

This makes me sad .

ga02clr

The mayoral election coverage has been interesting this year by the shear incompetence of some of the candidates and the press. With the lead that Labour have in the national poles they would have been better off having a candidate that said nothing and they would win comfortably.
Ken has throughout the entire thing told lie after lie. He made a big thing about tax and then has been found out to be the only one playing the system and still refuses to post his full accounts including the company he sends his earnings though to avoid paying as much tax.
While I have limited moral issues with minimising your tax bill legally the issue I have is the hypocrisy of making a big think about tax avoiders ‘they shouldn’t get a vote’ was his quote and then turning out to be one yourself.
His promise on fairs, we have heard before and he has never managed to keep them. I just don’t trust him at all and really struggle to understand how anyone can.
Many in Labour also despise him and that’s before you even look at his dubious connections with groups doing dodgy postal votes, those encouraging terrorist acts and his TV work for Iran. Oh and he was the moron that brought in the bendy bus the most ridiculous idea for central London for a cyclist point of view I can think of. Such a backward step.
That’s disappointment number One that Labour failed to put up a half decent candidate.
Boris is far from perfect but in general what he says is what you get (yes with the usual pinch of salt). I am disappointed he hasn’t done more for cyclists seeing as he rides himself but I trust him a whole heap more than Ken.
Brian Paddock has impressed me in the debates. He seems to talk sense and is certainly not afraid to point out when Ken is telling fragrant lies. It’s a pity that the national party has again given him such a poor starting point. I really struggle to see the Lid Dems retaining many seats at the next General Election.
With Siobhan Benita it’s interesting to see an independent candidate. I have read her website but in general all I seem to hear from her is why she is not included in the debates. This is something that makes me really angry. She and most importantly UKIP should have been included. If you are going to have these they need to give a full airing to candidates. UKIP have been poling far higher nationally and I believe in London than the Green’s so how on earth Jenny got on and UKIP didn’t I have no idea!
Yes that would mean including the BNP candidate but the point of politics is to debate and if between the other parties they cannot rip holes in his ideas then there is something very wrong with the quality of candidates.
Some of Siobhan’s policies, while well-meaning are either very woolly or just not possible. The thought of using GLA land to build houses and then selling them off to deserving candidates is very nice in theory but having experience in the field how are they going to build them without massive further subsidies? Who is going to build them as the home building firms are going to want to make their profit and these things are not cheap to build. I assume that she is going to conveniently avoid playing the S106 costs and infrastructure levies that developments usually attract so Schools, roads etc nearby will not be improved? Believe it or not a lot of developments that would be proposed just don’t add up finically so they don’t happen.
My understanding is that a lot of council land is currently in use be that playing fields etc or being used for something else that generates revenue or avoids additional costs. It’s not like we have a swathes of vacant land sites owned by the council. Those that are vacant have usually been compulsorily purchased by the council of a pre-defined reason.

Her idea of opening the tubes an hour later is a nice idea but again the Unions would ensure strikes to get massive additional pay for this to happen. How that would be funded who knows if she is committing to no ticket rises.
From what I can see her experience is all in the Whitehall and if anyone knows anything about creating waste it seems to be Senior Civil Servants.
In essence I am very disappointed. Disappointed with the media for failing to cover all the candidates and when choosing picking one who is currently poling very low (ok todays pole is better for her but she has had loads of air time) and most of all disappointed with the candidates for allowing this to be who lies least.
I would vote for just about (Not BNP) anyone to avoid having Ken in again. He really is just a hypocritical nasty piece of work who has been found to just lie over and over again (and just about admits to it in his book)! So while I am unsure where my first vote will go the second will be for Boris in the hope that we don’t end up with Ken again.

DonDaddyD

I just read Siobhan Benita's policies. Yep, she gets my vote.

Also London needs the freedom of an independent Mayor to help it thrive and not be bound or driven by the Tory/Labour/Lib war going on at the moment.

DonDaddyD

Greg66 wrote:

y. It was, for a second or two, one of those moments where you expect the next thing you hear to be "We interrupt our coverage of the football to bring you breaking news: the Prime Minister has resigned".

When that thought first popped into your head did you get teary eyed and sad?

greg66_tri_v2.0

DonDaddyD wrote:

Greg66 wrote:

y. It was, for a second or two, one of those moments where you expect the next thing you hear to be "We interrupt our coverage of the football to bring you breaking news: the Prime Minister has resigned".

When that thought first popped into your head did you get teary eyed and sad?

In order:
1. I screamed at the TV so as to blank out the sound, just in case.
2. I became alarmed at the sh!t that the usual suspects on here would be forcing feeding us right-thinking types today.
3. I started to weep tears of joy that it was a glitch.
4. I stabbed the small clay models I keep at home of my various nemeses. Repeatedly. "And this one's for Dave", I may have said.
5. I returned to watching the football (in which I have no interest), as if waking from a dreadful nightmare.
6. I opened another bottle of Bollinger, and finished off the oysters.

A fairly normal Wednesday night, in many ways.

Ben6899

Rick Chasey wrote:

Ben6899 wrote:

I went to a hustings on Monday and Jenny Jones opened by telling us all she's a feminist.

She was my firm 2nd vote, but now I'm not sure at all. I'm not keen on feminism at all. In fact I'm not keen on many -isms.

This makes me sad .

How so?

il_principe

ga02clr wrote:

Brian Paddock has impressed me in the debates. He seems to talk sense and is certainly not afraid to point out when Ken is telling fragrant lies.

Sorry, but

rick_chasey

Ben6899 wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Ben6899 wrote:

I went to a hustings on Monday and Jenny Jones opened by telling us all she's a feminist.

She was my firm 2nd vote, but now I'm not sure at all. I'm not keen on feminism at all. In fact I'm not keen on many -isms.

This makes me sad .

How so?

I'm very pro feminism - I guess that makes me a feminist. I think the genders are still not equal and that needs to change. I think perceptions of what feminism is, and what feminists are is holding back the cause for gender equality.

It makes me sad that someone claiming they're feminist would put you off!