Brown welcomes Thatcher - 5 comments
What a nauseating sight. I can't imagine any remotely plausible political strategy behind the event, so I suspect it means nothing: a photo-opportunity arranged by a starry-eyed flunky to make their politician look well-travelled and a 'heavyweight', or, as Thatcher's former private secretary claims, 'a nice gesture' (one pays one's peers). Either way, a sign that senior politicians are a class apart from rest of the population, whatever their country, whatever their politics. Embarrassing? Sure. A sign of future policy direction? Not necessarily.
The thought, however, that this might have been designed for a political purpose, or that Brown believes being a 'conviction politician' is at all worthy in itself, or is a characteristic around which politicians ought to come together, is too horrible to contemplate. So, all in all, I can't agree with Adrian here: the prize of crushing Cameron isn't worth sacrificing anyone's soul.
Labels: class consciousness, Gordon Brown, media, Politicians, Thatcher
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5 comments so far...
I don't think chatting to the old witch is any kind of soul-sacrifice... though adopting more of her policies certainly would be...
I've always respected Thatcher for the sheer power with which she put in place and fixed her reprehensible politics. If only there existed someone with some actual good ideas who could do that for us. Dennis Skinner is certainly right about that one.
I'm 49 years old. Thatcher won when I was 23 and about to leave university. There followed 18 years of misery.Not for graduates like me, who were still able to scrabble for jobs, but for the low=paid, unemployed, trade unionists, peace activists, and, er Labour Party members. But I'll tell you something. Bad though it was, at least then the Labour Party had a soul, and integrity. To see Brown creeping round Thatcher in some nausesting spectacle of political spin is indefensible, unforgivable, and most importantly, completely UNNECESSARY. From Day One of becoming Leader, he has courted the Tories.New Labour (if you're that way inclined) has plenty of positives to wax lyrical about. The left hasd always acknowledged that and to do otherwise would be extremely foolish..... Northern ireland, Surestart, minimum wage, civil patnerships, social enterprise, etc etc Yet brown has chosen to deliberately, wilfully, lurch to the right. As labour is already ahead in the opinion polls, one has toask whether he has lost the plot. This has enraged peop,le inthe Party right across the spectrum. Quite rightly.
He's NOT creeping round her. He's just being civil to a defeated enemy who may perhaps be considered a politicians' politician.
As Tom says no souls are being sold here. But really seeling a few souls to defeat Toryism and unmitigated selfishness and runaway capitalism for ever WOULD be worth a few souls. New Labour souls ... ten a penny.
As Grim recounts, the eighties and a bit less less so the nineties were appalling.
"Never again" would be a very fine reason to have a scone and a cup of tea with the old girl and consign her party and her junglist ideas to the dustbin.
It is the Thatcher in power doing her professional worst that I hate, not this one.
Actually she did something in power that was genuine and long-lasting and solid, regardless of whether you liked her or not, or even voted for her or not, millions of other people did. For you to be saying this now when you have all let us down badly in office with Gordon (I defected to Howard's Tories in 2004 and might have come back if GB was doing any better - I am looking for someone who can actually govern rather than spin his way in and out of power like Cameron Chameleon) is sad. Perhaps you should take a few leaves out of her book and put policies into practice, and you might go up in the polls again, because sure as Hell exists Cameron is not going to win the next election on spin alone but if Gordon doesn't get his thinking cap on he will fall victim to someone else in charge of the Tories (and I think I know who; George Osborne has been having talks with Tory donors but I suspect there are others queuing up to get in there even quicker).
Labour has always tried to govern well but Gordon has a real chance to show that he can unite both left and right. I am surprised he has not really done very much and hugely disappointed that the alternative is a spin-fest run by the Chameleon. I don't think the next election will be Gordon v Dave, but to make it so you need to act now. The Tories are very flexible when they need to be - look at 2003 - so don't take anything for granted.
"I defected to Howard's Tories in 2004"
nuff said really!I've know of a few misguided souls who defected to the Lib Dems thinking they were moving to 'the left'(they all moved on after a short spell naturally) but I've never heard of anyone openly admitting joining 'Howard's Tories'.Howard even scared me enough to get out on the knocker in 2005!!
As for Brown/Thatcher-turns my stomach.What's new?
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