I used to hate low level letterboxes when delivering newspapers. They were never big enough, chewed up the paper and all too often had a really annoying yappy dog on the other side of it trying to get your fingers. Sign me up for that one.
Anyone who has ever done party leafletting would sign up for that in a flash!
Can we not just ban all political junk mail? Mine go straight into the recycling. Does anyone actually read this dismal propaganda?
It is not junk mail. It is political literature, fundamental to any healthy democracy.
Whether people read it or not depends on the area. Prosperous retireds? Oh yes. Working 30 or 40 somethings? Almost never.
It’s utter bullshit that causes waste. Mostly lies and of zero entertainment value. Email me and save everyone the trouble recycling it.
I used to hate low level letterboxes when delivering newspapers. They were never big enough, chewed up the paper and all too often had a really annoying yappy dog on the other side of it trying to get your fingers. Sign me up for that one.
Anyone who has ever done party leafletting would sign up for that in a flash!
Can we not just ban all political junk mail? Mine go straight into the recycling. Does anyone actually read this dismal propaganda?
It is not junk mail. It is political literature, fundamental to any healthy democracy.
Whether people read it or not depends on the area. Prosperous retireds? Oh yes. Working 30 or 40 somethings? Almost never.
It’s utter bullshit that causes waste. Mostly lies and of zero entertainment value. Email me and save everyone the trouble recycling it.
I think the most sensible thing Theresa May could do is hold a series of indicative votes, asking the children whether they want:
- To leave with no deal - To revoke Article 50 - To hold a Revoke vs Deal referendum. - Or whether they'd prefer the deal after all.
Those are the options. It's already ridiculously late to be be arguing about them, they need to choose one.
I think we'd need several goes around the block. Let's go full Papal Conclave: We should just lock all MPs in the Wesrninster Hall on bread and water rations until a winner finally emerges.
Nah: lots of tea, heating up high and no access to the loo. That should do it.
Assuming that the Withdrawal Agreement goes down to a heavy defeat, but also that the Prime Minister refuses to abandon it, the Brexit process, and her flat opposition to a second referendum, then this all comes down to what the pro-EU MPs - especially the Tory Hard Remainers - are prepared to do next.
One of the main criticisms of the Brexiteers over the last couple of years has concerned their inability to agree upon a common plan for leaving. It would therefore be a supreme irony if the much-ridiculed ERG checkmated the Remainers, and we left with no deal in place on March 29th, simply because they couldn't agree upon a common plan for staying.
Rule out No Deal - and you rule out ANY chance of the EU blinking frst.
Which is why negotaition by House of Commons is stupid. In a commercial negotaition, you have a small team undertaking that negotiation, reporting to the Board (Cabinet). Ultimately the CEO (PM) will carry the can if that fails . But what you can NEVER have is not just every member of the Board giving direction - but every shareholder (MP) too.
In a commercial negotiation, the negotiators are given a clear set of objectives and constraints. Our negotiators have no clue what the end position is because our government has no clue.
The last two years have been a total waste of everyone's time. Whatever we settle on will be caused by force of circumstance rather than achieving what we wanted.
The end position is immaterial, the EU are refusing to negotiate on that until we are a third party.
I was referring to the Withdrawal Agreement. I suspect we also have not got the faintest idea about the next stage either and we will send another bunch of uninformed unfortunates to sit in Brussels to face a well-prepared EU team.
Frankly, I am getting to the point were I am amazed that those in govt can actually manage to write their names without help.
Why haven't we set up our party yet? I mean: we could wipe the floor with the numpties in government. We have cats and other animals and your bacon rind all ready to take on their Cabinet jobs. What is stopping us?
I know, I know: we have a life and too much common-sense etc. Oh well, back to shoes: I have found a new website selling some utterly delightful ones and they are most diligent in sending me enticing looking emails. I have enough shoes left for the rest of my life - but, still.......
I used to hate low level letterboxes when delivering newspapers. They were never big enough, chewed up the paper and all too often had a really annoying yappy dog on the other side of it trying to get your fingers. Sign me up for that one.
Anyone who has ever done party leafletting would sign up for that in a flash!
Can we not just ban all political junk mail? Mine go straight into the recycling. Does anyone actually read this dismal propaganda?
It is not junk mail. It is political literature, fundamental to any healthy democracy.
Whether people read it or not depends on the area. Prosperous retireds? Oh yes. Working 30 or 40 somethings? Almost never.
It should be subject to proper regulation and control. All too often the stuff that gets printed is not subject to scrutiny - meaning that blatant lies/misleading exaggeration is allowed to go properly unchallenged. There is also no mechanism to force those caught lying/misrepresenting to print and distribute corrections.
I think there is a difference between setting out your own position and the sort of mud-slinging that often goes on in this sort of literature.
I know this from personal experience when, following the death of my mother, the resulting council by-election saw a leaflet from the LDs smearing her reputation in the most blatant manner. It was only because I took the time to challenge them through the local press that I got a retraction and they got a lot of bad publicity. But that was because it was personal.
Too often, it just gets a free pass.
There should be tighter regulation of the whole thing. No a ban - but something better than we have at present. No more false bar charts!
I used to hate low level letterboxes when delivering newspapers. They were never big enough, chewed up the paper and all too often had a really annoying yappy dog on the other side of it trying to get your fingers. Sign me up for that one.
Anyone who has ever done party leafletting would sign up for that in a flash!
Can we not just ban all political junk mail? Mine go straight into the recycling. Does anyone actually read this dismal propaganda?
It is not junk mail. It is political literature, fundamental to any healthy democracy.
Whether people read it or not depends on the area. Prosperous retireds? Oh yes. Working 30 or 40 somethings? Almost never.
It should be subject to proper regulation and control. All too often the stuff that gets printed is not subject to scrutiny - meaning that blatant lies/misleading exaggeration is allowed to go properly unchallenged. There is also no mechanism to force those caught lying/misrepresenting to print and distribute corrections.
I think there is a difference between setting out your own position and the sort of mud-slinging that often goes on in this sort of literature.
I know this from personal experience when, following the death of my mother, the resulting council by-election saw a leaflet from the LDs smearing her reputation in the most blatant manner. It was only because I took the time to challenge them through the local press that I got a retraction and they got a lot of bad publicity. But that was because it was personal.
Too often, it just gets a free pass.
There should be tighter regulation of the whole thing. No a ban - but something better than we have at present. No more false bar charts!
So we should have some state-controlled body that gets to decide what political parties can say? What a dreadful idea. They probably had it in East Germany.
Unfortunately this is a not uncommon when it comes to the Lib Dems. It gives Labourites and Tories something to bond over at counts.
Comments
You’re welcome
Nah: lots of tea, heating up high and no access to the loo. That should do it.
One of the main criticisms of the Brexiteers over the last couple of years has concerned their inability to agree upon a common plan for leaving. It would therefore be a supreme irony if the much-ridiculed ERG checkmated the Remainers, and we left with no deal in place on March 29th, simply because they couldn't agree upon a common plan for staying.
I know, I know: we have a life and too much common-sense etc. Oh well, back to shoes: I have found a new website selling some utterly delightful ones and they are most diligent in sending me enticing looking emails. I have enough shoes left for the rest of my life - but, still.......
I think there is a difference between setting out your own position and the sort of mud-slinging that often goes on in this sort of literature.
I know this from personal experience when, following the death of my mother, the resulting council by-election saw a leaflet from the LDs smearing her reputation in the most blatant manner. It was only because I took the time to challenge them through the local press that I got a retraction and they got a lot of bad publicity. But that was because it was personal.
Too often, it just gets a free pass.
There should be tighter regulation of the whole thing. No a ban - but something better than we have at present. No more false bar charts!
Only four amendments selected out of 14? Seems a bit restrictive.
Unfortunately this is a not uncommon when it comes to the Lib Dems. It gives Labourites and Tories something to bond over at counts.