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

Reposting something that's just been modded, presumably under pre-election rules. And it won't get sorted before Monday - but I wanted to get it off my chest.

Anyway...

I've just had my first ever leaflet election from a particular party (I'll not name them, so as not to break the rules). Last time we had posters, but this time someone seems to have actually walked down the street and put it through *my* door.

I'm furious. And depressed.

My daughter showed it to me. She's been finishing off a school project on World War Two leaders. She pointed out that what the leaflet said was pretty identical to a quote she'd used from the autobiography of one of them.

I wish I'd seen the person who put it through my door. My wife is glad I didn't.




There. Is that ing opaque enough to get past the mods? No mention of anything that rhymes with 'Patsy' or the film formed by soap in hard water.

There's no question that such people exist, but do people vote for them?

Well...yes. Unbelievably. But then they did for the war leader my daughter did her project about.

The disturbing thing is that PR for the European Parliament will be wonderful for them. At the moment people simply aren't going to turn out for the respectable parties.

No Britain hasn't gone to the dogs. The scum will not get anywhere. Even on a 5live phone-in I heard earlier about MPs expenses, only one person said they'd vote for them. As angry as people are at present about the recession and MPs expenses there was no sense of wanting to fall into the arms of Fascists.

I just don't see it. And I very much they'll show their faces in my neck of the woods.

Oh, nobody *says* they'll vote for them. Actually...certainly nobody in Scotland does. At the the last election, the purpose of their posters was purely to intimidate.

But it's PR that'll do it.

Yes I'm with you there - totally against PR.

But I think its UKIP that'll do best in this hiccup...sort of cuddly fascism...apparently Norman Tebbit is advising Tories to vote for them now.

I'm depressed too. I think a mass dandelion break is called for. (See Bloom County for reference)

At the moment I'm volunteering with a group that has a simple strategy: eh-double bee-en-pee.

It's a simple strategy encouraging people to vote for parties with a full manifesto of promises, rather than just those with single issues such as halal butchery.

I remember back then in the French 2002 election, when our extreme right candidate made it to the second turn of the election (because in France, acceptable voting behaviour includes, "I'll vote for X. in the second turn, but let's vote for Y. first" )

Anyway, the next day it seemed that people in the streets, shops, pubs, everything, were looking at strangers a bit strangely, like saying "So was it *you* who....", and others looked away in an apologetic way, like saying "Leave me alone, I didn't...."

But maybe that was just a trick of the mind. It could be that everybody was just embarrassed and I over-interpreted the way they looked.



By the way Ed, I the way you restated your posting was lovely

HI I didn't know there was a group standing on the single issue of Halal butchery. But if there's one standing in my constituency...well I know who I'll be voting for then...

Actually I think I'll vote for leaf colour. But if there's one standing on the single issue of gay rights or womens' rights I may be voting otherwise.

Effers, I disagreed with you. Get over it.

Well judging by the dig in your last post I'd say you were the one who wasn't over it.

Whether you like it or not, xenophobic nationalist "parties" are using the issue of halal butchery to stoke up tensions and get more votes.

I consider any party that campaigns on such a narrow platform to be problematic as they tend to be rather opposed to those who don't share their limited views. There are, of course, exceptions, but I don't believe this to be one of them.

Now Effers, people who you don't like and who certainly don't like you* are using the exact issue you're complaining about. Either refine your objection, which you've singularly failed to do, and put some clear blue water between you and them, or expect to face opposition.

*for being liberal, tolerant, hard-working and generous. What sort of horrid person are you?

If a political party says something that goes against your Constitution, Act,( don´t know the word you use for the all the Laws that rule a country based on consensus)then it should be taken measures to remove that list from a democratic society as they don´t follow the rules.
It´s being done here with ETA political groups. However it´s not done with right wings groups that clearly have non-democratic programmes.

Maybe it´s time for European institutions to start to get a bit more concern about those issues.
Look at what is happening in Italy and other Europeans countries. Fascism isn´t over, on the contrary, this economical situation is fuelling fascist ideas on people.

Well, the UK doesn't really have a constitution and the BNP rarely breaks any laws, though it does flirt with smashing the incitement to racial hatred laws.

I think the closest analogy for ETA over here would Sinn Fein, with its close links to the IRA. But they've managed to emprace the peace process and are doing quite well out of democracy. The BNP isn't a terrorist organisation, not does it have any links to any. The problem is that it espouses opinions which most moral people find deeply unsavory.

If you want to see some truly stuff, look at the forums on the Telegraph and Argus, Bradford's local newspaper. I'm just comforted that most of them wouldn't vote if their lives depended on it

<>
more than unsavory I´d say dangerous because they have political relevance, again, look at Italy and the last Law the fascist goverment of Berlusconi has approved against immigration.


ETA loves to be compared to Sinn Fein and to Palestinian and Saharaui causes, but it has nothing to do at all with them*. They are a fascist sect.

*unless Sinn Fein has legitimated terrorism. Which I don´t know

I don't think what has happened in other European countries is appropriate to compare to the UK. We have a long tradition of disliking extremism. There is still a deep national pride in fighting the Nazis in WW2 and the whole Churchill thing.

What I absolutely do think will encourage a change in mood here though is making people feel they can't speak their mind about certain things. British people do have a tendency for bloody mindedness so I can imagine plenty thinking to themselves..'We're sick to the back teeth of all this political correctness and being fearful about criticising certain things...so damn it in the secrecy of the polling booth I shall damn well put my X here'

Yes the BNP may win one or two seats, who knows? But I absolutely believe there is no real appetite for them from the vast majority...and whipping up unneccesary fears will actually play right into their hands.

The last leaflet we got from the unmentionables got immediately shredded, and composted and fed to the worms.

>>HI I didn't know there was a group standing on the single issue of Halal butchery. But if there's one standing in my constituency...well I know who I'll be voting for then...

As far as I know, there's only one party that has ending Halal butchery in its manifesto.

Any guesses?

Oh well now that I've been made to feel like a pariah for daring to speak out on this issue elsewhere...I know where I'll be putting my X now in the secrecy of the voting booth.