Jump to content

Oldham East and Saddleworth By-election


Who would you vote for?  

45 members have voted

  1. 1. The electorate have been usurped by two out-of-touch judges, resulting in a by-election and other injustices. How do you vote?

    • Labour (Debbie Abrahams)
      24
    • "Liberal" "Democrat" (Crybaby Catman Watkins)
      2
    • Conservative (Kashif "Floats like a bee and stings like a butterfly" Ali)
      3
    • BNP (Nick "Not Gay At All" Griffin)
      9
    • Libertarian (Gregg "2Gs" Beaman)
      3
    • UKIP (Paul "Nuts" Nuttall)
      4


Recommended Posts

  • Replies 285
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Didn't know that a Libertarian candidate was standing. I know nothing of him, although shall enquire. Seems like a worthwhile alternative to people sick of the norm but who don't want to vote for a homophobic gay Nazi or whoever Respect turn out. Although as an unofficial libertarian I might be biased.

 

http://abriefencounter.blogspot.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting selection by the local Labour party. A woman from outside the borough when the other two candidates were experienced Oldham local politicians who are, rather awkwardly given the nature of Woolas's campaign, Asian.

 

If the shoe were on another foot, I'm sure someone round here would be accusing the party of institutionalised racism.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting selection by the local Labour party. A woman from outside the borough when the other two candidates were experienced Oldham local politicians who are, rather awkwardly given the nature of Woolas's campaign, Asian.

 

If the shoe were on another foot, I'm sure someone round here would be accusing the party of institutionalised racism.

 

I only accuse the Liberals of institutional racism because they don't have any BME MPs. Zero. Zilch. None whatsoever. I also can't remember when they last had one, and I don't think they put many BME candidates up in winnable seats, whereas the Tories and Labour do (The Tories!). It looks bad because it is bad.

 

What else do you call it when all the white people get the senior jobs in an organisation?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I find an organisation that has the courage to appoint the best people to the top positions whatever their colour (or gender, religion, sexual persuasion) without the need to meddle with the process if they all turn out to be white men more trustworthy than one that embarks on positive descrimination to tick a few equal opportunities boxes at the expense of talented individuals who don't "fit the criteria".

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I find an organisation that has the courage to appoint the best people to the top positions whatever their colour (or gender, religion, sexual persuasion) without the need to meddle with the process if they all turn out to be white men more trustworthy than one that embarks on positive descrimination to tick a few equal opportunities boxes at the expense of talented individuals who don't "fit the criteria".

 

Are you saying that some Lib Dem BME members don't have the competencies to be a candidate and then an MP? Fair enough. The choice for you is absolutely clear. Griffin or Watkins.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Liberals will lose in Oldham East and Saddleworth by at least 5,000. How's that for ya?

There's a fair chance that the majority might have gone for a Labour candidate, but maybe they wouldn't. The end outcome is going to be a Labour MP who isn't Weusal-man, which is the main thing. Maybe the stink of his race-hate politics will have left the constituency by the time the next election comes around, or maybe the people his antics have invited in will still be there. Who knows?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There's a fair chance that the majority might have gone for a Labour candidate, but maybe they wouldn't. The end outcome is going to be a Labour MP who isn't Weusal-man, which is the main thing. Maybe the stink of his race-hate politics will have left the constituency by the time the next election comes around, or maybe the people his antics have invited in will still be there. Who knows?

 

Let it go.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What is going to happen is that Oldham is going to be dragged through the mud yet again as the political commentators pour into the Borough and muckrake. This will be setup as a referendum on the coalition and the cuts..etc.. and every psephologist available will be asked to comment.

 

Whilst I would love this to be a resounding Labour victory this election has to be treated in isolation due to the reasons why it is being held. If the sitting MP had died or vacated the seat through normal means and we had a bog-standard by-election things would be different but as things stand I don't think much can be read into the result however it goes.

 

I would be surprised at a Lib Dem victory but it is not outside of the realms of possibility, a tory win would probably be hilarious for a few moments but as long as Griffin loses his deposit we will be spared the BNP decamping back into Oldham.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Right - going to be a bit contraversial here. The thing i can't understand about this is that, given the population of saddleworth, why the hell are the conservatives putting up the same candidate as last time who failed dismally because (a) he isn't local - just shipped in from Bolton and (B) he is coloured.(no- before you all jump on the racial bus - I'm not ethnic bias one way or the other) but knowing the majority of people in saddleworth a local white conservative candidate would win the seat easily.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Right - going to be a bit contraversial here. The thing i can't understand about this is that, given the population of saddleworth, why the hell are the conservatives putting up the same candidate as last time who failed dismally because (a) he isn't local - just shipped in from Bolton and (B) he is coloured.(no- before you all jump on the racial bus - I'm not ethnic bias one way or the other) but knowing the majority of people in saddleworth a local white conservative candidate would win the seat easily.

 

 

If they could stick a Yorkie up even Catman would throw the towel in.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Labour will be straight back in. Even people in Saddleworth don't like voting Conservative and I presume the lib dems will have lost a lot of support in recent months.

 

Someone like UKIP might find themselves picking up a few votes though with people being unhappy with the current condem government and being unhappy with what Woolly did representing labour. You may find a lot of votes moving outside of the top three.

 

No one who voted Labour in the past had a kind word for flipper they voted for the party rather than the man which I think is true in most cases.

 

The vast majority of voters will see nothing in it for them but putting your support behind a bunch of liars and stay at home watching man v food.

Edited by Roger Ritchie
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I had an interesting chat with a seasoned campaigner during the general election about the Conservative candidate. It's true that in the old days of the Littleboro and Saddleworth constituency, a local (white) Tory could pretty much rely on it (Geoffrey Dickens held the seat though a good few elections). However, since Labour's gerrymandering to punt Littleboro into Rochdale and include the working class Labour heatlands of east Oldham the split is much less clear.

 

Maybe the Tories thought they could rely on a certain number of votes in Saddleworth and would try to appeal to Asian communities in East Oldham. Or maybe, unlike Labour this time round, they just went for the best local man for the job irrespective of colour in the naive belief it wouldn't put anyone off.

 

As for the by-election, Lib Dems will inevitably suffer a bit of a backlash, more in favour of the Tory candidate than Labour, Tories will do better but I'm not sure they can gain enough to win the seat, and Labour - as is always the case when they stand - will lose votes to the BNP.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

An independent boundary commission drew up the new constituencies, but never mind. So if you punt Tory Littleborough into Liberal Rochdale, how do you end up with a Labour MP?

 

Anyway. I reckon the fringe parties will get squeezed this time. I reckon Gordon Brown's absence could be worth 1,000 votes to Labour, and a few others might turn out now they don't have to vote for Woolas. And a few more because they hate Catman's crybaby antics. I can't imagine any traditional Labour voter staying away for any reason.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Labour will be straight back in. Even people in Saddleworth don't like voting Conservative and I presume the lib dems will have lost a lot of support in recent months.

 

Someone like UKIP might find themselves picking up a few votes though with people being unhappy with the current condem government and being unhappy with what Woolly did representing labour. You may find a lot of votes moving outside of the top three.

 

No one who voted Labour in the past had a kind word for flipper they voted for the party rather than the man which I think is true in most cases.

 

The vast majority of voters will see nothing in it for them but putting your support behind a bunch of liars and stay at home watching man v food.

I can't imagine a more natural Tory voter than Saddleworth Man.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Exccept for the racists who'll vote BNP. Unless Labour runa successful campaign to convince them Griffin is gay. And Turkish.

 

You're clinging to the hope that Debbie Abrahams will walk in the footsteps of Woolas, and that a judge will decide that she's duped the voters, giving Catman another chance, and on into infinity, or until he actually wins a popular plebiscite (we all know which will come soonest).

 

Catman seems to be resting his hopes on people's sympathy, but the world has moved on since May and even since the court case, and sympathy ain't a vote winner in the rough and ready world of the coalition's vicious and spiteful cuts, in which the Liberals, Catman and all, are fully implicated.

 

The Liberals have also put it abroad that you can promise whatever you like in opposition and it doesn't count for anything if you chance upon government, which is a total inversion of the democratic process (more gobsmacking hypocrisy).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Who would anyone want to vote for either of two parties (Cons and Dems) that have U-Turned and gone back on very large chunks of what they said before the election ? (oh yeah, because they didn't know how bad things where while telling us for nearly a year how bad it apparently was)

 

I accept Labour did the same in 97 and the Tories did it in the past... but the level of U-Turn considering the election was only months ago is shocking... Its like the election campaigning never happened....

 

Tution Fees up

EMA scrapped

Child Benefit cut

Cuts to front line services

Less money for schools

 

and that is without giving it much effort. All this was denied by the Libs and Tory :censored:ers and have all happened. No wonder people cant be arsed with politics.

Edited by oafc0000
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Who would anyone want to vote for either of two parties (Cons and Dems) that have U-Turned and gone back on very large chunks of what they said before the election ? (oh yeah, because they didn't know how bad things where while telling us for nearly a year how bad it apparently was)

 

I accept Labour did the same in 97 and the Tories did it in the past... but the level of U-Turn considering the election was only months ago is shocking... Its like the election campaigning never happened....

 

Tution Fees up

EMA scrapped

Child Benefit cut

Cuts to front line services

Less money for schools

 

and that is without giving it much effort. All this was denied by the Libs and Tory :censored:ers and have all happened. No wonder people cant be arsed with politics.

Five reasons there for you :wink:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Who would anyone want to vote for either of two parties (Cons and Dems) that have U-Turned and gone back on very large chunks of what they said before the election ? (oh yeah, because they didn't know how bad things where while telling us for nearly a year how bad it apparently was)

 

I accept Labour did the same in 97 and the Tories did it in the past... but the level of U-Turn considering the election was only months ago is shocking... Its like the election campaigning never happened....

 

Tution Fees up

EMA scrapped

Child Benefit cut

Cuts to front line services

Less money for schools

 

and that is without giving it much effort. All this was denied by the Libs and Tory :censored:ers and have all happened. No wonder people cant be arsed with politics.

 

 

Is this the Tories U-Turning? Did they say they wouldn't do most of these in their manifesto?

 

The Tories are quite fair that way. They say they are going to screw you and do. Whereas the LibLab bunch throw away the vasoline to prove they aren't going to screw you. Then do.

 

 

(The main one I can think of for the Tories backtracking is the knifecrime one, and that sure as hell is down to the coalition and funds as they'd like nothing more than to throw away the key).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


×
×
  • Create New...