As unemployment hits 2.5 million, the Tories are blaming the unemployed on benefit for our economic woes, rather than the bankers at Goldman Sachs who have an average salary of £520,000 per year. The Tories are going back to their nastiest base instincts to try to pull off an election win.
The sad thing, of course, is that you could replace Cameron in that photo with James Purnell, Hazell Blears or Tessa Jowell without having to change the slogan.
The benefit system already is onerous and humiliating to those who want to work and feel, wrongly, ashamed to be unemployed. Many entitled and unemployed, normally hard working, people drop out of benefits, and into terrible trouble, because of the routine degradation heaped on them by the New Labour “New Deal” system, which Cameron seeks to reinforce.
Strangely the brass-necked benefit cheats, who do exist, are the ones who are not discouraged by the endless appointments, interrogations and form filling and continue to thrive on the counter-productive system.
But if anyone doubts the real nastiness of the Tories, or that the Lib Dems are seen as a real threat to the established order by the corporate media and their paymasters, should look at the absolutely vicious anti-Clegg headlines on the front pages of every single Tory newspaper today. I have not seen anything like this concerted a Tory media campaign since the Falklands War. The only parallel at election time was the vilification of Kinnock, but even that did not have every other front page vying with the Sun in extremity.
http://www1.politicalbetting.com/index.php/archives/2010/04/22/tabloids-cover-lib-dems-sensation/
The Mail’s Clegg Nazi front page headline wins first prize for tenedentiousness, The Telegraph “expenses scandal” is not about taxpayers’ money but private and declared donations (and has been saved up for nine months for this moment), the Financial Times warns the City won’t accept anything but a clear Tory win, the Sun is apoplectic at the idea that for once Murdoch may not be able to nominate his Prime Minister, and the Daily Express warns that Clegg will flood the country with black people.
The Tories are truly vicious when rattled. This has become a campaign about who democracy is for – the people or the press barons. Anybody who opposes corporate and City power and its ownership of democracy through the mass media, needs now to fall in line behind the Liberal Democrats to resist this.
UPDATE
I take my hat off to Iain Dale for his excellent article on the subject.
http://iaindale.blogspot.com/2010/04/these-shameful-attacks-on-clegg-will.html
I attack Iain from time to time because it is part of the blogosphere game; but I have always had a high opinion of him. He seems to have wandered into the wrong political party by mistake – if you look at the typical Tory commenter on the political betting first link above, Iain has nothing in common with these vicious people.
I’ll gladly fall in line if you can get a few members of the corporate elite to pay £250 per month into my bank account for “staffing” costs.
Brian,
But unlike you, Clegg did actually have some staff to pay. Private donations to fund political activity are perfectly normal. In fact how else would political activity happen? I received some for my campaigns. Is that wrong?
Given what we know now about the goings on in the recently dissolved parliament I think it is wrong and I’d be amazed if any politician would enter into a similar arrangement in the future.
My gut feeling about NC is that he is an honest “kinda guy”, but I think this episode does show that perhaps he’s not quite the new broom he’s trying to portray himself as.
The bottom line with Clegg though is that the Conservative party could put in a transfer request for him tomorrow and come saturday afternoon it is all too easy to see him scoring goals for the tories and kissing the badge on his blue shirt.
Done over by Labour and maybe soon done over by the Conservatives…the poor do not appear represented. Why should people pay and feel the pain when lack of regulation and oversight on their behalf cause the effects. I don’t want to pay more, why can’t the govenment be sued to prevent them raising taxes to pay for the badly done bailout. Look at the Chinese effort. One would hope you are right about the LD, but what if they obtain power and carry on as other parties have done.
No one has mentioned David Mundell, a tory and a dirty little horrific man. Giving this tit milk to squirt at the under represented will hurt those least able to defend themselves very badly.
Brian
Clegg is certainly not on the radical side of the Lib Dems. But I think he is far from being a Tory – if what you said is true, then the Tory media wouldn’t be getting so hysterical against him.
At least he’s not a war criminal, unlike the New Labour leadership.
“This has become a campaign about who democracy is for” That’s utter crap Craig.
Sorry,
“This has become a campaign about who democracy is for” That’s utter crap Craig.
Hmm…2 possible slogans spring to mind:
VOTE CLEGG: AT LEAST HE’S NOT A WAR CRIMINAL
or
VOTE CLEGG: THE BEST CHANCE THE WAR CRIMINALS HAVE OF RETAINING POWER
both true but sort of contradictory, funny old world.
Craig,
I don’t know if you caught Radio4 this morning (I know your a fan) but there was an interesting piece on the today programme with someone whose name escapes me from the Indie and Trevor Kavanagh from the Sun. The hack at the Indie said that yesterday James Murdoch and Rebecca Brooks from News International turned up at the Indie unannounced and marched up to Simon Kelners desk.
Apparently upset by the new Indie Poster ‘ “Rupert Murdoch won’t decide this election. You will,”
Says it all really.
Trevor Kavanagh was outraged at having being invited on to talk about Clegg and been asked for comment on something he didn’t know had taken place. Whoops.
-Control
lwtc247,
What is crap is to claim that a chance to break the two party system after a hundred years is meaningless.
or
VOTE CLEGG: TO BECOME FURTHER ENMESHED IN EU CORRUPTION
or
VOTE CLEGG: LABOUR FIDDLED THEIR EXPENSES MORE THAN WE DID, HONEST
or
VOTE CLEGG: WE PROMISE NOT TO USE MONEY STOLEN FROM FRAUD VICTIMS FROM NOW ON
or
Don’t vote Labour:
– they took us into the Iraq war
– they let the gap between the rich and poor expand
– they care more about business than the majority of hard working people
– they fiddled their expenses
– the are not to be trusted
– they failed to reform the House of Lords (I mean Alan Sugar as a Lord, wtf is that!?)
– Gordon Brown
or
VOTE CLEGG: THE WEALTHY BANKER FAMILY ELITE KNOW WHAT’S GOOD FOR YOU PLEBS
brian,
we get the you don’t like Nick Clegg bit. So who will you vote for?
“What is crap is to claim that a chance to break the two party system after a hundred years is meaningless.”
You REALLY believe the LibDems will step outside the bicentennial crap that’s been fragging at will?
You REALLY think the much needed political revolution will stem from the LibDems.
That’s just laughable Craig.
I supported you last time because I think you and many more independents could offer that, but it certainly isn’t going to come from the LibDems.
Look forward to you writing about the LibDem Friends of Israel.
The reality is, not matter how less nasty then the (always smarmy)Tories or the NeoLabour NeoTraitors will be, the LibDems will not make any meaningful change.
The ncessary change goes much deeper than that. As for the ‘leader debates’, what the hell is all that about? President bLiar’s legacy solidifying it seems.
These are dark times. The day after no matter who wins, they will still be dark days.
I’m a LD voter and we’re running the Tories close second in my constituency so it’s easy for me to say this – but my slogan would be:
“Vote for whoever has the best chance of kicking out Gordon Brown and his party of greedy liars.”
To many voters considering voting for liberals, Nick Clegg is a relatively unknown player in this election. There is concern that Nick Clegg may turn out to be a deceitful dud like Blair and Obama, a slick performer who will renege on his promises.
He needs to categorically state his position on key issues which are of major concern to the public such as their Policies on getting people back to work, Trident, Restoring Habeas Corpus and having an ethical foreign policy. Charles Kennedy took the moral high ground by opposing the invasion of Iraq. We know where Nu Labour and conservatives stand on these and Nick Clegg should bury them in their own slime in tonights debate .
p.s. Who was it that made this claim?…
“What is crap is to claim that a chance to break the two party system after a hundred years is meaningless.”
Agree, had never seen anything like the anti-Libdem headline frenzy this morning. Obviously not coincidental that the second debate is tonight, but this was so OTT you’d have to expect it to backfire.
Not just because beating up on the little guy is not generally good politics, but because only a week ago it was all “we agree with, Nick” and the about turn isn’t going to fool many people.
Assuming he’d give us the promised(?) vote on EU membership I think Clegg just takes it for me from the three main parties.
“As unemployment hits 2.5 million, the Tories are blaming the unemployed on benefit for our economic woes, rather than the bankers at Goldman Sachs who have an average salary of £520,000 per year. The Tories are going back to their nastiest base instincts to try to pull off an election win.”…
“In politics, absurdity is not a handicap.”
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769 – 1821)
All this at a time when a study shows that the rich-poor gap is the widest it’s ever been since the days of slavery.
Tory’s will give tax breaks to the rich and the poor suffer.
social mobility….my arse.
http://hotterthanapileofcurry.wordpress.com/2010/04/22/londons-rich-poor-gap-widest-divide-since-the-days-of-slavery/
lwtc247’s blogroll contains numerous links to reptilians, anti-Christ mysticism and the like. I wouldn’t take that crazy person seriously.
lwtc247
Well I tink we would get a better voting system for one. And I do think the civil liberties situation would greatly improve.
lwtc247,
you seem to be thinking only in terms of the LibDems gaining power. To me, this is more about breaking the stranglehold of Labour and Conservative, and under the current voting system, voting LibDem (in most constituencies) gives the best chance of that.
Craig.
I hope you are right, but I know you’re not.
And Larry, if people don’t take me seriously then there will be too.
OK Brian – slag Nick but remember this:
Lib Dems did not vote for an illegal ‘war’
that dismembered and burned to death Iraqi children sitting at breakfast tables as dawn broke in March 2003, when their country was smashed and their parents massacred on lies.
An illegal ‘war’ that ‘Murdering Murdoch’ said would “give us cheap oil.”
Every morally decent thinking Brit across ALL walks of life in this country that I and others have spoken to, regret this dreadful period in their lives, when we witnessed death and destruction on an enormous scale. A ‘holocaust’ that Labour and the Conservative Party voted for, on misinformation lies, media support and ignorance.
We have the opportunity to cleanse our minds and souls by voting for an decent man and a party of good people (I have witnessed many informed Lib Dems physically distressed and weep when told the true scale of devastation and despair in Iraq) who agree the Iraq war was indeed ILLEGAL.
Let it be said, if the Conservatives seize power, then goodbye Iraq inquiry, goodbye redemption and goodbye atonement.
Goodbye to pressure for the relief of suffering in Gaza and the Middle East, goodbye to civil liberties, goodbye to a caring government and goodbye to a strong, consolidated and meaningful health service for all.
We are sick of ‘war and terror’ sick of corruption, sick of powerful corporations calling the shots; sick of corporate media influencing, prodding, cajoling, over-riding and disrupting our lives, our children’s lives and inevitably their children’s future world.
Strangely enough, Larry forgot to point out that the two main articles on my blogs front-page cover the fact of a US execution squad, sorry, special forces as Larry would likely call them, that assassinated 8 schoolboys in Ghazi Kang, Afghanistan 2009. I also have a clip of the “Collateral Damage” 2007 wonderful examples of human beings, that spat death from an Apache helicopter, err, I mean reptilians, anti-Christ mysticism
“US execution squad”
http://tinyurl.com/29s4lma
“Dundee University”…
tinyurl.com/23f5xgn
@lwtc247 – I agree with your position that a win for the LDs is not exactly a radical ‘for the people’ vote. But in a three-horse race, I would still agree with Craig that it is better than the other two. And it is true that the newspaper owners generally are trying to influence the outcome of the election, and much more so towards the Tories than towards any other party.
Personally, my instincts lie with the Greens, but in my Birmingham Labour constituency, only the LDs have a cat-in-hells chance of knocking Labour off the top spot. The Tories don’t stand a chance in a working class area like mine, and most of the voter’s have hardly heard of the Greens, or incorrectly believe that the Greens are only interested in environmentalism.