Consider the following:
those Labour and those Northern Ireland Members of Parliament who voted against either or both of the welfare cap and the retroactive legalisation of workfare;
those Labour and those Northern Ireland Members of Parliament who voted against either or both of the welfare cap and the retroactive legalisation of workfare;
those Labour, those
Liberal Democrat and those seat-taking Northern Ireland Members of Parliament
who voted against Second or Third Reading of the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples)
Bill, or who did not vote in either of those divisions;
those Labour and those
Northern Ireland Members of Parliament who voted against the House of Lords
Reform Bill;
those Labour, those
Liberal Democrat and those Northern Ireland Members of Parliament who voted in
favour of the European Union (Referendum) Bill;
those Labour and those
Northern Ireland Members of Parliament who voted against military intervention
in Libya; and
those Conservative,
those Liberal Democrat and those seat-taking Northern Ireland Members of
Parliament who did not vote in favour of military intervention in Syria.
Even taking into account the several crossovers, and the fact that there have been a couple of deaths, we are talking about around 100 MPs. One sixth of the House, or thereabouts.
Leave aside the specific issues and ponder that these are undeniably MPs with minds of their own and with things to say.
Now, look up the Division Lists, which are readily available. Read over the above, and ask yourself of how many of them even quite a well-informed member of the public might be expected to have heard.
When was almost any of them last on the radio, or on television, or published on the opinion pages of a national newspaper, or the author of a post on one of the agenda-setting websites?
When have most of them ever been on the radio, or on television, or published on the opinion pages of a national newspaper, or the author of a post on one of the agenda-setting websites?
Comedians, reality television stars and the relatives of celebrities are all citizens, of course. But come on.
Imagine a comment website that gave posting rights to as many of the above as chose to take them up, together with two others chosen by each of them, of whom at least one would have to be a constituent.
That would still not be the airwaves, especially the BBC. Nor would it be that ultimate mark of membership of the recognised commentariat, a place in what used to be Fleet Street. But it would at least be something.
So what, you may say? No one would pay any attention to such a site.
The only solution that I can envisage there would be if a really big media name were its editor, and possibly even had his or her name in the title, recalling the days of things like G.K.'s Weekly.
But who?
Even taking into account the several crossovers, and the fact that there have been a couple of deaths, we are talking about around 100 MPs. One sixth of the House, or thereabouts.
Leave aside the specific issues and ponder that these are undeniably MPs with minds of their own and with things to say.
Now, look up the Division Lists, which are readily available. Read over the above, and ask yourself of how many of them even quite a well-informed member of the public might be expected to have heard.
When was almost any of them last on the radio, or on television, or published on the opinion pages of a national newspaper, or the author of a post on one of the agenda-setting websites?
When have most of them ever been on the radio, or on television, or published on the opinion pages of a national newspaper, or the author of a post on one of the agenda-setting websites?
Comedians, reality television stars and the relatives of celebrities are all citizens, of course. But come on.
Imagine a comment website that gave posting rights to as many of the above as chose to take them up, together with two others chosen by each of them, of whom at least one would have to be a constituent.
That would still not be the airwaves, especially the BBC. Nor would it be that ultimate mark of membership of the recognised commentariat, a place in what used to be Fleet Street. But it would at least be something.
So what, you may say? No one would pay any attention to such a site.
The only solution that I can envisage there would be if a really big media name were its editor, and possibly even had his or her name in the title, recalling the days of things like G.K.'s Weekly.
But who?
The Labour MPs listed here are the ones who could have nominated you for Leader. It should have been you. I am not kidding. I know the MP this seat got after that fishwife and instead of her spiteful little pet troglodyte is a good MP, but she is never going to be Leader. You could have been. You should have been. The fishwife and the troglodyte have deprived the party and the country of that.
ReplyDeleteOne more thing, however good Pat Glass might be, she does not appear on any of these Labour lists.
ReplyDeleteShe did not vote against either or both of the welfare cap and the retroactive legalisation of workfare. She only abstained on the welfare cap because she was at a funeral.
She did not vote against Second Reading of the Marriage (Same-Sex Couples) Bill. She voted in favour of Third Reading.
She did not vote against the House of Lords Reform Bill.
She did not vote in favour of the European Union (Referendum) Bill.
She voted in favour of military intervention in Libya.
You know it should be you. Everyone knows it should be you.
I should love to see the looks on their faces if they were asked what "troglodyte" meant.
ReplyDeleteBut water under the bridge. On topic, please.