h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

""Something will turn up...
It's the calm before the storm...
I do keep telling myself these things like I did through the Thatcher years. ""

and look what turned up after the Thatcher years.....Tony Blair!!!!?????

I think we are going to get 50 years of Tory rule anyway.

FB

We still have the Welsh Labours

Actually to be serious..I feel a bit cut up about it..I don't want you to go...

""it doesn't take into account that Scotland wouldn't be spending billions on foreign wars or funding other nation's nuclear arsenals and space programmes. ""

just funding the NEDs and the new state of "Buckfast"

Free Scotland...No Dole

No worries everyone we will get through this...

Rule Britannia

>>Um no, I do think the general pubelic have stuck 2 fingers up to
Nick Clegg and voted no in the AV vote and voted against the Lid
Dems generally<<

I was referring to the media (BBC) reporting. I suppose it is
difficulty for some to grapple with impersonal matters, hence the
need to personalise. The AV - FPTP debate is then not a debate about
constituency democracy but a question of supporting or not supporting
what Nick Clegg wants.

Not to depress you any more FB..this indeedy is the future,

http://bit.ly/j4AwOT

I am a git for all the self promotion but my slightly more considered take on things after being pretty low last night:-

http://lunchtimelegend.co.uk/2011/05/a-few-reflections-on-the-results-yesterday/



FB

I'm not sure you're right about the issue being buried for the next two terms of office. I've just spoken to someone who thought it was 'just' a local election this week and if they knew there was a referendum about the voting system they would have voted 'yes'. It seems the 'keep it low key and bury it under the wedding' attitude might have backfired slightly, if there are similarly annoyed people out there.

Apparently, they thought this because they had only received one voting card

And they didn&#39;t read it?

It seems the Lib Dems have really mishandled things. Why were we voting on AV when we should have been votong on PR? Now they've squandered the one chance they're going to have to achieve proper democracy in the UK, basically by being weak, first in not sticking to their promises about tuition fees and so angering many people, and then by agreeing to a referendum about AV instead of PR.

Keep on posting links to your blogs FB, I enjoy reading them.

Too much to think about to respond directly to any of your points. And yesterday's results are all too fresh at present to really know what the meaty implications are in terms of real change...or just really samo samo.

I have a funny feeling not much has really changed. I don't think the Scots will vote that way in a General Election..and they might just have scared themselves a little.

My opinion of Clegg has now gone up. I hope they don't ditch him cos I now think the Tories are itching for a General Election to get an overall majority.

(Minor trivial point. I said to HI that I think the Tories will now get an overall majority, despite what the polls say, even before these results. I challenged him to a bet on it..we'll see if he'll take me up on it).

Effers, if an election is called before the end of the year and the Tories win, I'll pay out. We didn't say how much, so shall we say 20 quid?

Unless an election is actually called, we can't do much about the bet.

And yeah winnings go to new h2g2, providing we can buy it?

I'll buy you one of those nice t-shirts the consortium have started selling? Or you buy me one?

""It seems the Lib Dems have really mishandled things. Why were we voting on AV when we should have been votong on PR? Now they've squandered the one chance they're going to have to achieve proper democracy in the UK, basically by being weak, first in not sticking to their promises about tuition fees and so angering many people, and then by agreeing to a referendum about AV instead of PR. ""

why are people banging on about tuition fees still??

the lib-dems made a promise if elected........

they were not elected

they were invited to a co-alition, and in the horse trading in setting up the coalition the tories said

if you back our tuition fees, we will give you a referendum on AV

it was a compramise......thats what happens in coalition

the lib-dems could have rejected that and tried to form a coalition with red Gordy and his mates, but would have been seen as stoogers propping up a faild dying govt.

is everybody blind to the fact that a coalition is give and take and all previous bets are off

http://www.nextleft.org/2011/05/so-where-did-it-all-go-wrong-for-av.html

FB

>>Why were we voting on AV when we should have been votong on PR? <<

Gordon Brown resigned; the right to govern was passed from the Prime Minister prior to the poll to the leader of the largest party after it.
Any hope of brinkmanship for further substantive concessions from the Tories ended when Brown handed power to the Tories.