Boris Johnson: a genuine concern...

[Marmora Man]

lozzyloz Wrote:

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> To meet Boris is to believe he is a genuinely

> caring person.

>

> I'm sure his wife thought differently when she

> discovered his affair.

>

> I've not met either of them but at the end of the

> day they're both politicians so not 100%

> trustworthy. There's not much between them even if

> their ideology is different.

>

> On drink and drugs: Ken-Likes a Whisky, Boris

> prefers Cocaine

> On political cohesion: Ken was kicked out off

> Labour's National Executive for being radical,

> Boris was sacked from the Tory front bench for

> lying

> On misquotes: Ken misquoted on the 'Nazi' affair

> and Boris on the 'Water Melons and Piccannini'

> speech

> On love life: Ken has kids out of wedlock, Boris

> got caught

>

> The only major difference I can see is that Ken

> (who was born and brought up around the corner)

> has run London, pretty well IMO and Boris has no

> track record and was born in the US and educated

> in Brussels.

Neat analysis - but I believe Ken has done little for London and, if re-elected, would be for the worse.

I'm too tired of this thread to argue - I'm clearly in a minority, so I'll just cast my vote for Boris late tonight and we'll all see in a few months time whether Boris is failing or succeeding. Of course there's a real possibility that the Mayoral position has far less power than Ken claims* and we'll see very little difference at all.

* EG: Ken claiming that his policies have attracted business and capital to London - they were here well before Ken and they'll be here long after, unless the ever increasing congestion charges / zones and Labour's Non Dom policy (stolen I'd agree from Conservatives but given an inevitable level of added complexity and bureaucracy by New Labour) drive them out .

[Brendan]

I don?t trust either of them and don?t think either is a viable opposition to the other. So I have voted for that other guy, wottsitsname.

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

Bwyan? He's not the mayor, he's just a very naughty boy.

[SeanMacGabhann]

It can be disheartening can't it? I think a few of us have been in that position on certain threads before.. I like a challenge tho.

[bignumber5]

To meet Boris ... To meet Ken (which I haven't done

A fair trial? Not your usual standard of debate, MM - I might almost never agree with you on politics but I usually have to conceed that you argue a good case... this one is the same priciple employed by Northerners slating the South ;-)

[Marmora Man]

bignumber5 Wrote:

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> To meet Boris ... To meet Ken (which I haven't

> done

>

> A fair trial? Not your usual standard of debate,

> MM

I know I'm too tired to argue politics today. Try my other thread- it's more fun.

[bignumber5]

just been there - much more fun than this politics nonsense, well thread-ed!

[dc]

mockney piers Wrote:

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> Gits have moved my polling station without

> mentioning it to anyone on the estate.

> And you try looking on here for where your polling

> station is.

>

> http://www.londonelects.org.uk/

>

> You hunt around, find a place to put your postcode

> and it takes me to the southwark page. No shit

> sherlock!!, not to mention that my new polling

> station (having phoned up the electoral services

> commission, all a little bit late for my vote

> though) appears to be in Lambeth!!

The London Elects site is working now for checking polling station locations.

[Asset]

not looking good for today's result

[Marmora Man]

Looks good to me.

[JesusCappuccino]

.............

[Marmora Man]

Rather pleased actually! Not a narrow win - a marked one.

[annaj]

I'm sure you are Mamora Man, but in Southwark at least you're in a minority.

48% Ken 29% Boris in Southwark and Lambeth.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/elections/london/08/html/10.stm

Small comfort for those of us who still believe Boris to be very bad news.

[Asset]

Indeed. And what is possibly more concerning is that the BNP canditate came 5th with 69,000 votes

[Marmora Man]

annaj Wrote:

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> I'm sure you are Mamora Man, but in Southwark at

> least you're in a minority.

> 48% Ken 29% Boris in Southwark and Lambeth.

>

> http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/elections/lo

> ndon/08/html/10.stm

>

> Small comfort for those of us who still believe

> Boris to be very bad news.

Practical experience, rather than beliefs and prejudice, will now tell - Boris has four years to prove me right and others wrong, or perhaps the other way around.

I agree I was in a minority, but I'm sticking to my guns. Boris Johnson and conservative policies will benefit London more than Ken and his divisive ideology.

Some left of centre commentators seem to pursuing an air of "this can't be right, the right is wrong so how can the electorate be so wrong headed as to vote for the Tories". It happens, many Tories felt the same in '97. Local elections are not a great guide to how the electorate will vote in a General Election but they do indicate a major change of opinion.

The New Labour "Emperor's Clothes" are beginning to be revealed as nothing more than an illusion. Power for power's sake (the Third Way?) is not enough - politicians must do something with their power.

I would argue that 11 (and ultimately 13) years of New Labour has achieved far less than the the previous 18 years of Conservative government. Like many I was fed up with the last conservative administration, it had grown old and tired. Despite this I cavassed for the Tories in '92 and '97 as I had no expectation of anything good from a Kinnock led Labour Party nor of a Blair led one. Neverthless, when Blair won in '97 I hoped that New Labour would take its opportunity to make a real difference, it could have done deals with public sector unions (including the Royal Colleges and similar professional bodies) that would have been impossible for a Tory government and might have truly transformed the NHS, education and social services. They failed - merely throwing buckets of money at them without reform. The quote "the new money was more like a tsunami than irrigation" was an apt description.

[lozzyloz]

I'm sorry to see Ken go, I think he built the position of Mayor of London into a pivotal position for London and the whole country. I'd like to see Boris succeed (party colours to one side) because this city deserves all the help it can get to make it a better place to live in. Let's hope he really can have a positive impact on crime and our clogged up transport infrastructure over the next 4 years.

[JohnL]

They (the BNP) have an assembly member too :(

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/london-assemblyresults.do?=44

[woodie]

aaagh!

[Marmora Man]

See new thread Boris Watch

[bignumber5]

Mortified.

Tory voters must be feeling the momentary pride of Dr.Frankenstein watching his creation come to life, before realising what unspeakable things it would come to do.

MM - right you are, it's effectively a 4 year trial now, tho I suspect the next thread about Boris wont be that far away!

[SeanMacGabhann]

I wonder if some Republicans had the same moments of optimism when Bush was *cough* elected in 2000

"he's an intelligent guy, give him a chance"

[Mark]

z

[SteveT]

Asset wrote: Indeed. And what is possibly more concerning is that the BNP canditate came 5th with 69,000 votes

I doubt it becoming an earth shattering force in my lifetime, 69,000 out of eight million is less than 1% I suspect you will be retiring long before the bnp scrape in to the top three.

Asset you will have moved to your retirement farm in Tuscany and it will have little bearing on the quality of your life and pizza's.

[dc]

SteveT Wrote:

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> Asset wrote: Indeed. And what is possibly more

> concerning is that the BNP canditate came 5th with

> 69,000 votes

>

> I doubt it becoming an earth shattering force in

> my lifetime, 69,000 out of eight million is less

> than 1% I suspect you will be retiring long before

> the bnp scrape in to the top three.

>

> Asset you will have moved to your retirement farm

> in Tuscany and it will have little bearing on the

> quality of your life and pizza's.

What is concerning - and has become apparent since Asset first mentioned the figures that just related to the Mayoral contest - is that the BNP polled 130,714 votes in the London-wide poll (5.3%) and have secured a place on the Greater London Assembly.

For what it's worth (and I think that it provides a sliver of solace) the BNP vote in Lambeth and Southwark (4945) was the third lowest in London (out of 14) and accounted for just 3.8% of their total vote across the Capital. To put it in context, the average constituency vote for the BNP was 9337 votes.

[Asset]

and SteveT, I will give you the benefit of the doubt, but I find your tone a tad patronising. Whether it has a direct bearing on my life or not doesn't mean I should not be concerned.