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I used to be really interested in politics and argued long and hard with people on here about the rights and wrongs of this that and the other. Never, ever dreaming that the system was actually as bent as it is.
I feel that the country is in a state of shock over what has transpired over the past few weeks, where you have law lords offering to change the law for £300K and politicians helping themselves to wedges of the tax payers money, while sending off our young people to die in the desert.
It makes me think that it really doesn’t matter who you vote for .. these euro elections as well as being a waste of time could probably turn out to be the biggest protest vote ever seen.
Should we make a protest vote?
It is probably important to make a protest vote, imo. I reckon Brown will start sacking a few crooks if we protest if not, it’ll be business as usual. Leaving us all feeling ripped off and shat upon.
I don’t know who I will vote for yet, but it won’t be any of the big parties.
What about you lot?
Depends what you mean by a protest vote; a few people have said to me that they are planning to vote for the BNP, and I’m not sure what that is a protest against, other than decency and tolerance. So my protest vote shall be Lib Dem or possibly Green.
With my well documented views on the EU it will be no surprise that I am voting UKIP in the Europeans.
Fortunately I am spared the farcical local elections this time round.
If you don’t wish to vote for any of the candidates/parties then the best way to make a protest vote is to spoil your ballot paper. Write ‘Politicians are a bunch of ****s’ or whatever on the ballot paper. A few hundred thousand of those and the problem is likely to be recognised.
In case anyone doubts the effect of a significant rise in the number of spoiled votes they need only look at the fuss following the last Scottish Election. A more complicated voting system sorted out the less mentally gifted and caused a huge rise the number of spoiled votes.
Anyone who can’t get their backside down to the polling station is in no position to moan at any of the discussions made by politicians, either here or in Europe.
As to corruption. It’s a sad comment, but I’d be pretty sure the 646 sat in the House Of Commons are no worse in working the system than would a sample of the same number taken from the general population and put into a similar situation. Politicians merely reflect the society we land ourselves with.
Rob
My meaning was that I could not understand the people who I spoke to voting for the BNP as a protest against corrupt polititians.
Speaking personally, if I went into a new job and found that I was allowed to claim for mortgage payments, refurbishment and all manner of other things and that it was all perfectly legal, I’d have to say I’d take full advantage. Credit to those who can say that they wouldn’t.
As for the BNP, the only protest you are making if you put your X next to that mob of criminals, thugs and bigots is a protest against intelligence.
As has been shown ALL of the major parties have been complicit in allowing the expenses gravy train to rumble on.Even if they haven’t indulged personally there is no excuse for not making it their business to get their house in order.
Therefore IMO none of those parties are worthy of a vote…anybody who has been in parliament probably for the last 30 years can claim to be innocent of at least allowing it to happen.
As for being no worse than any group of people would be in the same situation,speak for yourself and that is no kind of excuse ever.Honesty does exist and where it doesn’t systems should be in place to uphold it.
What we need to know is how long this national disgrace has been going on for.
The next issue for me is that the European parliament will prove to be even worse IMO and how do we get to the situation whereby every country in the union gets the opportunity to find out how corrupt their politicians are before making sure that the whole lot of them are forced out in disgrace ASAP ahead of a fresh look at how Europe is governed or whether it needs a parliament at all.
Its too late this time obviously but hopefully this will be the last time that we have to elect this nameless shower of moneywasting self serving bureaucrats.
Not quite sure why the Euro elections are getting the coverage they’re getting. The electorate in this country doesn’t give a damn about them and they never have done. The turnout for the last one was 25% ffs.
The results of this won’t change anything and Brown will still be here come April next year. Thank god he won’t be in May. Tbh I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Tories hit 40%, Labour falling down to the mid-20s and quite a few independents being voted in.
If you don’t wish to vote for any of the candidates/parties then the best way to make a protest vote is to spoil your ballot paper. Write ‘Politicians are a bunch of ****s’ or whatever on the ballot paper. A few hundred thousand of those and the problem is likely to be recognised.
I did not quite use the same phraseology as you suggest but in the last General Election I could not bring myself to vote for any of the candidates so I just wrote "None Of The Above" on my ballot paper.
I think it is a good way of registering a protest without giving credence to those parties who want to take away our freedoms and restrict our liberties – like the BNP, labour etc
I couldn’t not vote – I argue if you don’t bother turning out to take part in the process then you lose the moral right to criticise.
It really annoys me when people moan about the Government (at any level) yet if you ask them if they voted they then reply "no I don’t bother"
Fine if you don’t want to vote that is your right in a democratic society but don’t then complain if you don’t like what is happening.
Agree with Paul
Vote should really be taken seriously and used for whats best for europe.Protest is fine in some ways but the alternatives (inc UKIP) are abit ludicrous IMO
Labour deserves to be hammered for the expenses but in reality that should be a general election issue…and will be… i thinkn they will be hammered myself
Before anyone states that the tories have been as culpable, it has largely been abused under Labours watch and worse still, the dismal attempts to suppress the inevitable disclosure was mismanagement of the highest order
… I very much agree with Paul, if you don’t vote you lose the right to complain, not voting is the same as voting for ‘No Change’.
As far as protest voting is concerned, I think it does matter.
It’s funny reading some of the comments on here about the BNP. I fail to see how voting for them will change anything. Strange how propaganda can make rational people believe something that isn’t true. It reminds me of Harry Enfield’s ‘L is for Labour’ video.
I’m going vote UKIP on Thursday .. it won’t make any difference but at least I will have had my say.
I couldn’t not vote – I argue if you don’t bother turning out to take part in the process then you lose the moral right to criticise.
It really annoys me when people moan about the Government (at any level) yet if you ask them if they voted they then reply "no I don’t bother"
Fine if you don’t want to vote that is your right in a democratic society but don’t then complain if you don’t like what is happening.
On this much we agree.
I’d venture further that British Government & Politics, which was offered only as an A-Level subsidiary at my comprehensive, would be a credible addition to the permanent school curriculum from GCSE level onwards. Genuine engagement with the political process is best engendered through familiarity with it from an appropriate age.
Now, Paul, do you realise you accidentally spelt LibDem "UKIP" earlier on?
gc
Jeremy Grayson. Son of immigrant. Adoptive father of two. Metadata librarian. Freelance point-to-point / horse racing writer, analyst and commentator wonk. Loves music, buses, cats, the BBC Micro, ale. Advocate of CBT, PACE and therapeutic parenting. Aspergers.
Dave, presumably you’ll be voting UKIP because of their European policies, rather than as a protest against corruption, bearing in mind that the leader of that party admitted to claiming £2million of taxpayers money in expenses on top of his salary?
Not voting in a free and fair democratic process is a perfectly legitimate option, it couldn’t be anything other.
The idea that either voting for someone you do not wish to be represented by or spoiling the ballot paper gives a person a exclusive ‘moral’ right to enter into the political process I find rather strange.
Not voting in a free and fair democratic process is a perfectly legitimate option, it couldn’t be anything other.
The idea that either voting for someone you do not wish to be represented by or spoiling the ballot paper gives a person a exclusive ‘moral’ right to enter into the political process I find rather strange.
I totally agree not voting is a legitimate option in a democracy – however I cannt see how, by choosing not to take part in the process of the election, anyone can then start complaining about the outcome if they did not like the result. Or complain if the government is not doing what they wanted.
By actually taking part in the process, albeit by voting for a no hoper party or making a positive statement, you are registering your discontent. By not turning up to vote, you are not really making a point – you could equally be not voting out of apathy rather than as a protest.
Of course it could also be argued that our "democratic system" is actually nothing of the sort but that is another debate.
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