Corbyn rides a commie bike!

Written By: - Date published: 9:46 am, September 16th, 2015 - 100 comments
Categories: journalism, making shit up, spin, uk politics - Tags: , ,

The subtle and not so subtle demonisation of Jeremy Corbyn by England’s establishment media is going to be something to behold. How about this yesterday in The Times?

The new Labour leader treated himself to a black cab at his home yesterday, abandoning the Chairman Mao-style bicycle his neighbours always see him riding.

A “Chairman Mao-style bicycle” – otherwise known as “a bicycle” – but Corbyn is a commie! Geddit? Do ya geddit??

EXHIBIT A:

corbyn-bicycle

100 comments on “Corbyn rides a commie bike! ”

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  1. Morrissey 1
    16 September 2015 at 9:51 am

    Keep an eye on Josie Pagani. I bet she’ll be using this trope in the next few weeks.

    • newsense 1.1
      16 September 2015 at 8:59 pm

      Snap.

      It’s a pity that Kelvin Davis was even remotely linked with Quinn, Pagani and the lot who like to pop up to cry boo at anything Labour do.

      I hope he gives them a wide berth and distances himself from them in the future as a voter and someone who has enjoyed his work on Serco.

  2. tracey 2
    16 September 2015 at 9:55 am

    If he were a Tory this would make him an ordinary bloke hankering for his boyhood days of freedom and state housing yokedom.

    Just like all those bikes you see in the Communist footholds of Oxford (note the tell-tale red seats) and Cambridge.

    http://www.baintonbikes.com/ImageFiles/BikeHire.jpg

    Cambridge
    http://www.camcycle.org.uk/cycling2020/images/insecurebikes.jpg

    • Ben Clark 2.1
      17 September 2015 at 11:13 am

      David Cameron made a big show of bicycling (as does Boris!), to try to get that common man / in touch with the environment thing going. Of course he got ridiculed for the Govt car crawling slowly along behind him with his briefcase, burning fuel…

      But I don’t think he ever got accused of riding a “Chairman Mao” style bicycle…

  3. cogito 3
    16 September 2015 at 10:05 am

    Plenty of commie bikes for sale at The Warehouse.

    Come to think of it, plenty of commie utes on our roads, and commie clothes in our shops, and commie money flooding the Auckland housing market…

  4. millsy 4
    16 September 2015 at 10:05 am

    Yes, how dare he save the British tax payer thousands in taxi chits.

  5. mac1 5
    16 September 2015 at 10:07 am

    “Labour leader shows respect for rules of the road, self-respect in wearing a helmet and cycling for his health, and respect for the environment.”

    Note the hand position with fingers close to the brake levers, as opposed to that photo of John Key cycling with his colleagues and minders, and the serious focus on the road.

    Note also the tidy clothing and polished shoes.

    The high visibility red rosette is an extra!

  6. rhinocrates 6
    16 September 2015 at 10:11 am

    There’s this too:

    http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/09/15/conservative-party-jeremy-corbyn-youtube-video-taken-down_n_8139950.html?1442327969

    The “Threat to national security” ad has been taken down due to copyright infringement, but as has been pointed out, only after it’s been seen thousands of times.

    IN CTs eyes, they haven’t botched, I’m sure. It’s increasingly common for politicians to grab copyrighted material (Key, Trump etc) without the artist’s consent. We’re going to see more and more hit and run campaigning as the norm. It won’t matter if it’s challenged, because it’s designed for immediate impact and is challenged and taken down when it’s window of effectiveness has passed anyway.

    It’s related to Lyndon Johnson’s pig fucker tactic – accuse someone of fucking pigs not because you can prove it, but because you want to see them denying it.

    Attack ads may be absurd, libellous, in breach of copyright or whatever, but those spreading them simply don’t care – in fact, the more outrageous the better because they are intended to block discussion, not advance it. Complaining about them on those terms is like complaining that water is wet.

    Proverb: Who defines the terms wins the argument.

    You need to find counters that have similarly immediate effect. A good grassroots example is the flood of ridicule that Cameron’s original tweet received, eg: a woman in a garden shed with a colander on her head saying “I’m afraid of the Labour Party. Am I safe here?”

    • tracey 6.1
      16 September 2015 at 10:14 am

      But, but, but the Right don’t do negative or attacking politics, cos it just doens’t work 😉

    • James 6.2
      16 September 2015 at 1:35 pm

      Looks like it is back up.

      https://youtu.be/_hgJokgNJHo

      • Draco T Bastard 6.2.1
        16 September 2015 at 4:35 pm

        Wonder if that would come under the new digital attack that just got passed by National. It should do as it’s pretty much designed to cause strife and damage to a person.

      • seeker 6.2.2
        16 September 2015 at 6:01 pm

        Conservatives: all too often a threat to human existence…..

      • newsense 6.2.3
        16 September 2015 at 9:01 pm

        wow. that was weak. I thought that it would be stronger.

    • BLiP 6.3
      16 September 2015 at 7:08 pm

      . . . It won’t matter if it’s challenged, because it’s designed for immediate impact and is challenged and taken down when it’s window of effectiveness has passed anyway . . .

      With Crosby/Textor the publicity surrounding the take-down of such material is part of why its done in the first place. Very often, the take-down material perpetuates the meme being injected into public consciousness.

  7. Sabine 7
    16 September 2015 at 10:12 am

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwvWtZl2ICY

    I want to ride my bycycle
    I want to ride my bike……..

    such a British thing to do 🙂

  8. dukeofurl 8
    16 September 2015 at 10:29 am

    There is the “Flying Pigeon ” brand bicycles which originated in the Mao era, not sure if Corbyn is using one.
    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Pigeon

  9. save NZ 9
    16 September 2015 at 10:31 am

    Judging from his weight I guess he is even more communist and actually walks too! How dare he mingle with the people and not be charging the tax payer for stomach stapling operations which are so popular for MP’s!

  10. Sanctuary 10
    16 September 2015 at 10:32 am

    Coming up: How Jeremy Corbyn rides a bike built by child slave labour.

  11. vto 11
    16 September 2015 at 10:37 am

    Corbyn rides commie bike.

    Cameron sells bombs to ISIS

    take your pick

    • Atiawa 11.1
      16 September 2015 at 3:32 pm

      If the people are influenced by what is written about his mode of transport or it’s place of origin or who it may or may not depict then they deserve everything neo-liberalism has to offer. Would left leaning voters in this country be persuaded to vote for John Key if it was common for him to commute to work in a self driven 20 year old Toyota corolla? Would Green party supporters call for a place on the treasury benches if he powered his home & motor vehicle using solar energy? Do we really lack that much faith in our fellow man & woman? Do we place that much current day faith in the persuasion of the pen’s headline?
      It will be Corbyn and his parties ability to take people with them as a result of the message he conveys and whether he and his party have policies and the credibility to resonate with those they crave to represent. Sweet fuck all else will matter.

  12. James 12
    16 September 2015 at 10:40 am

    As someone who thinks Corbyn is a joke – Even I think this bike thing is stupid.

  13. Gabby 13
    16 September 2015 at 10:43 am

    David Hameron’s slave-made bike is far preferable.

  14. BM 14
    16 September 2015 at 10:43 am

    Definitely looks like a bike Mao would ride.

    Is that a little red book in his shirt pocket?

  15. maui 15
    16 September 2015 at 10:47 am

    Commie bikes have bar ends on the handle bars reflecting the shape of the sickle, it’s widespread knowledge.

    On another note, he looks far more natural/efficient on a bike than Key and Bridges do when they open cycleways.

  16. Tiger Mountain 16
    16 September 2015 at 10:52 am

    I haven’t ridden a bike since school days but still manage to maintain a marxist world view

    on yer commie bike indeed Corbyn–heh! the tabloids are barrel scraping already, whats not to like about a reasonably fit good example for other politicians? don’t pom MPs regularly get caught out for various signs of affluence–moat maintenance, coke snorting, gluttony and sex “rings”?

  17. Sanctuary 17
    16 September 2015 at 10:54 am

    I Googled “communist bicycle” and got this –

    http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y164/wteach/IAYS/the_streets_5100062_zpsd7a6e06e.jpg

    Give me some communism or give me my death, I say!

  18. tracey 18
    16 September 2015 at 10:58 am

    Funny how it is ok to use Commie as a slur, notwithstanding the suggestion of Stalinesque brutality, but suggest a rightie is a facist and…..

  20. The lost sheep 20
    16 September 2015 at 11:03 am

    The revolution is away. At bicycle speed.

    Labour has slightly narrowed the gap between its poll rating and that of the Conservatives, a new poll shows.
    The ICM survey for the Guardian newspaper shows a six-point lead for the Tories, down from nine points in the previous survey conducted last month.
    The opposition party’s rating increased by one per cent, with the Conservatives themselves down two per cent.

    http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-closes-gap-with-tories-by-three-points-new-poll-finds-10501432.html

  21. Macro 21
    16 September 2015 at 11:03 am

    Nothing new here – they did it to Harold Wilson as well.
    http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2006/mar/15/comment.labour1

    • Draco T Bastard 21.1
      16 September 2015 at 4:46 pm

      The conservatives seem to do it to everyone all the time. And then they claim that they’re the party that doesn’t attack people.

      They are, of course, liars.

      • Macro 21.1.1
        16 September 2015 at 6:51 pm

        The attack on Harold Wilson was particularly nasty and lead to his forced resignation – Mountbatten and others were involved right to the very top! They are despicable and we are now seeing it already with Corbyn.
        The BBC 90 min docu-drama done in 2006 is work a look:

  22. The Real Matthew 22
    16 September 2015 at 11:05 am

    It must be hard for you guys coming from a New Zealand media base to deal with opinion media that questions left wing ideals.

    The New Zealand Herald and Fairfax wouldn’t know journalistic independence if it smacked them in the face. By contracting a bevvy of left wing reporters they have compromised the integrity of their publications, becoming little more than mouthpieces for the left.

    When was the last time you say an article critiquing a Green Party policy or a NZ First policy?

    I guess it’s hard to find room when your editorials constantly bash the current government and when you run selective Letters to the Editor that consistently contain factual errors. But hey who cares when they suit the narrative of the newspaper.

    • tracey 22.1
      16 September 2015 at 11:17 am

      Feel better?

    • Stuart Munro 22.2
      16 September 2015 at 11:21 am

      Yes indeed, getting rid of the moderate centre right Dita De Boni for the notorious commie troll Hosking was the end for the Herald – it’s a red rag now.

      • McFlock 22.2.1
        16 September 2015 at 11:41 am

        hush.
        Matthew’s an oppressed mass.

        Matthew is the only one who can see that the Herald’s the sort of commie propaganda that leftists like Ghengiz Khan would approve of.

        • greywarshark 22.2.1.1
          16 September 2015 at 12:01 pm

          The Real Matthew
          An oppressed mass? Is he an Ironed Man?

          • McFlock 22.2.1.1.1
            16 September 2015 at 12:11 pm

            Indeed. He’s fed up with being mescalated and castorated by all this leftist PC nonsense. There’s violence inherent in the system, but he doesn’t get to dole out any of it, poor puppy.

        • Stuart Munro 22.2.1.2
          16 September 2015 at 3:53 pm

          According to http://www.amazon.com/Genghis-Khan-Making-Modern-World/dp/0609610627 , Genghis was unusually democratic – though his heirs were not. He toppled monarchs, but absorbed the huddled masses – sort of like Jeremy Corbyn on an Adyu 😉

          • McFlock 22.2.1.2.1
            16 September 2015 at 5:03 pm

            lol feel free to pick a more appropriate benchmark, just try to avoid a Godwin 🙂

            • Stuart Munro 22.2.1.2.1.1
              16 September 2015 at 7:12 pm

              Marcus Crassus is the archetypal tighty righty – clever with the shekels but managed to lose his head to the Parthians – an E team that lost to Rome as regularly as West Coast or frankly The Blues lose to Canterbury…
              Eponymous for the combination of insensitivity and stupidity, Crassus is the original model for hosers like Talley, Murdoch, Trump, and Brownlee.

    • Gabby 22.3
      16 September 2015 at 11:28 am

      Are they Faybeeyuns, realmatthew?

    • weka 22.4
      16 September 2015 at 11:52 am

      ha ha ha, very funny. The anonymous editorials writers at the Herald are really communists.

    • newsense 22.6
      16 September 2015 at 9:04 pm

      when was the time they wrote any thing about any policy- instead about Max Key and how the Australian leadership spill is a great thing for Key Snr….it’s the noveau royalty they’re all about

  23. Peter 23
    16 September 2015 at 11:25 am

    …. the real concern is how MSM NZ employs similar tactics from the same playbook as The Times

  24. Peter 24
    16 September 2015 at 11:25 am

    …. the real concern is how MSM NZ employs similar tactics from the same playbook as The Times

  25. Adrian 25
    16 September 2015 at 11:35 am

    Bugger me, even Jeremy Clarkson rides a bike in London. Maybe he’s a closet communist. How clever a cover is that!.

  26. greywarshark 26
    16 September 2015 at 11:39 am

    How to use loaded, emotional, cryptic-meaning-laden language!
    Corbyn ‘treated’ himself to a black cab (why the emphasis on black)?
    And the Chairman Mao-like-bike. Who remembers who Chairman Mao is amongst the chattering classes, and what sort of bike, if any, he or his compatriots rode.

    As you say Anthony – very interesting. What a fine choice of words. Is there a workshop, held regularly, teaching how to write this laden-language at journalism school? Do they go to school at all these days to ‘larn that there jornalism’ or is it larned in-house? Is there a special thesaurus giving right-wing politicised versions of our everyday words.

    I have a book produced by Ronald Searle taking a potshot at feminists and their close analysis of the extent of male gender control of language. This seems to be a flowering of the political mania to downgrade the dread Left.

    One word that brought forth Searle’s inspiration was Himalayas becoming Heralayas which was completed with a hairy Sherpa. Mangy became Womangy, Manhandle – Womanhandle, Manhole – Womanhole (which became a shapely pavement metal artwork, instead of a prosaic circle or square).

    I think there is a light-hearted book in the political flights of fancy. Can we please add to this post and use it to pass on each one we hear or read to this collection? And then they can be published as a satirical and amusing milestone of RW villainy and human mendaciousness that Kafka would have enjoyed in his lighter moments.
    edited

  27. McFlock 27
    16 September 2015 at 11:42 am

    Damned if I can google an image of Mao riding a bike. Lots of bikes, lots of Mao, none with the two together.

  28. Adrian 28
    16 September 2015 at 11:58 am

    About bikes in London. You can virtually get a free 2000 quid bike in London, it’s a scheme where the Gummint, the London Council ( I think ) and your employer and a bit of money out of your wages all chip in so long as you ride it often enough to work.
    And not just a commo Jezza model either, I really fancied a flash Pinarello with all the kit.

  29. McFlock 29
    16 September 2015 at 12:00 pm

    wow – just had a look at the Telegraph website, and it was absolutely insane. They talked about a speech being a shambles because he skipped a few lines about Thatcher that had been in the released text, and were hysterical that he didn’t sing along to god save the queen.

    But the cherry on top was a thumbnail pic on the front page of Corbyn giving a straight-arm naz1 salute – looked funnyweird, possibly photoshopped, but more likely him in mid-wave. A dick move straight from “A Very British Coup” (the link is to a quick shot of a clip showing what I’m talking about, but the entire youtube clip is an interesting summary of the show if you haven’t seen it).

    They’re completely rabid.

    lol – Waterford Whispers News (an irish satire site) has a similar headline: 5 Reasons Why Jeremy Corbyn Is The Antichrist 🙂

    • Draco T Bastard 29.1
      16 September 2015 at 6:10 pm

      5) Never watched Downton Abbey. Not once. Not fucking once did he watch the beloved ITV drama. Corbyn has no idea what Anna and Mr. Bates have been through. What a bastard.

      😆 😈

      • lprent 29.1.1
        16 September 2015 at 7:36 pm

        Hah! Please don’t taunt me. It is the latest soap going through the TV.
        Makes me enjoy cooking. And the idea of a bit of class revolt….

        (I have never seen it before and never wish to again. Makes me realise that I should figure out how to hack the Netflix menu. It needs a hide/ban these routine)

  30. ianmac 30
    16 September 2015 at 12:03 pm

    And note the upright posture from those upright handlebars. Unfortunately most bikes these days are designed for speedy crouch. Wish my bike allowed me to watch the world go by like that.

    • Sanctuary 30.1
      16 September 2015 at 12:16 pm

      Apparently that is British style of cycling, unattractively called “sit up and beg”, presumably because you look like an expectant Labrador when cycling that way.

      • Phil 30.1.1
        16 September 2015 at 12:36 pm

        It also gives cyclists the ability to physically, as well as metaphorically, smugly look down on motorists as they pass by, weaving in and out of traffic, breaking every road rule known to man.

        • maui 30.1.1.1
          16 September 2015 at 1:57 pm

          And rightly so, if drivers are too lazy to move their bodies anywhere, be a part of the physical world and would rather just sit around going nowhere for long periods.

          • Phil 30.1.1.1.1
            16 September 2015 at 2:24 pm

            Yes, because we live in a world where the only opportunity for physical exercise is during our commute to and from work, and it could never possibly be the case that driving to work is the best option for an individual.

            *eyeroll*

            • maui 30.1.1.1.1.1
              16 September 2015 at 2:41 pm

              100 years ago we were fitter, healthier, less polluting, less lazy and more aware of our environs due to not being able to drive. All good reasons to look down on driving. Most of our driving is unneccessary.

        • Sanctuary 30.1.1.2
          16 September 2015 at 3:33 pm

          I cycle like that, I only interact with motorists when they too close, and too slow to avoid a boot in the door.

        • Draco T Bastard 30.1.1.3
          16 September 2015 at 6:12 pm

          1. There’s no laws broken
          2. If you’re too stupid to get on your bike and thus get in our way, well, that’s your own fault.

      • greywarshark 30.1.2
        16 September 2015 at 3:19 pm

        Expectant for food I take it. And if I did, the dog might bite! So might JC?

    • McFlock 30.2
      16 September 2015 at 1:48 pm

      That posture and his use of normal clothes makes him look like less of a complete arse than many cyclists in NZ.

      The hlemets still need to be improved, though.

  31. Papa tuanuku 31
    16 September 2015 at 12:32 pm

    Finding these gems should be turned into a game or competition with prizes for the most outrageous

  32. half crown 32
    16 September 2015 at 12:37 pm

    We all know he’s a commie, as he a nose bleed the other day and HIS BLOOD WAS RED.
    Not blue blooded like the Tories

  33. TeWhareWhero 33
    16 September 2015 at 12:47 pm

    This sort of stuff risks turning off some of the people it’s aimed at. Sensible people on the right – and yes there are a few – get a tad edgy when the propaganda starts sounding as risible as a CIA plot to assassinate Castro with an exploding cigar.

    The ability of the media to get away with blatant character assassination and outright lies has been lessened because lies can be countered (and mocked) quickly via social media. They could tell outright lies during the miners’ strike about Scargill stealing union money because by the time the voices of reason could be heard, the damage had been done. These days not so much.

    So let them carry on being as perfidious, deranged and mendacious as they like – it shows them up for what they are.

  34. The Gormless Fool formerly known as Oleolebiscuitbarrell 34
    16 September 2015 at 1:10 pm

    Forget about communist. The principal objection to bicycle riding is that it is undignified.

    • Grant 34.1
      16 September 2015 at 1:38 pm

      “The principal objection to bicycle riding is that it is undignified.”

      Says commenter sporting the extremely dignified handle, ‘Gormless Fool formerly known as Oleolebiscuitbarrell’, whilst donning his Sunday-best clown shoes and propeller cap.

    • gnomic 34.2
      17 September 2015 at 11:01 pm

      Riding a bicycle undignified? Dare one hope this is an attempt at being whimsical?

      The great H.G. Wells reputedly once wrote “Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race.”

  35. greywarshark 35
    16 September 2015 at 3:16 pm

    In case you haven’t seen this somewhere else – more shock schlock about JC.
    http://waterfordwhispersnews.com/2015/09/15/5-reasons-why-jeremy-corbyn-is-the-antichrist/

  36. Coaster 36
    16 September 2015 at 4:06 pm

    Ffs, its an older style bike. Whats wrong with riding a bike?,at least he hasnt got cycle pants and fluro lycra on.

  37. Adrian 37
    16 September 2015 at 4:51 pm

    Coaster, thats what everybody rides in Britian and the Netherlands, you don’t want your head down and arse up in all the traffic and you can’t go that fast anyway. You see the road/race bikes on the weekend out in the country. Best one I saw was a very elegant madame ( about late 60s-70, French of course ) blythly cycling straight through the Place de la Concorde on a Commo Jezza model, 7 lanes all doing mad laps looking for their exit, and she was paid the utmost respect.

  38. NickS 38
    16 September 2015 at 5:30 pm

    lolwut? That’s just a normal city bike, using bog standard aluminum frame and frame geometry + mid range, solid components.

    The sort of thing you can buy in any shop that stocks push bikes if you want something reliable to get around town really cheaply.

  40. KeepLeft 40
    16 September 2015 at 7:20 pm

    Just wait until private transport is banned. Then you’ll see more comrades riding bikes like they should. Great stuff!!!

    • The Gormless Fool formerly known as Oleolebiscuitbarrell 40.1
      16 September 2015 at 7:42 pm

      Year zero! Can’t wait to have them take my cutlery and send me to the countryside for cultural cleansing.

  41. BenM 41
    16 September 2015 at 8:39 pm

    Wait, isn’t Boris Johnson a keen cyclist? The darling of the Tories is a closet communist!

  42. AlanBStard 42
    17 September 2015 at 8:08 am

    Best transport he can afford!

    (Sent from iPad Pro while riding in the back of my Rolls on the way to a million pound deal).

  43. johnm 43
    17 September 2015 at 10:52 am

    Corbyn is a threat to Britain’s national security don’t you know?
    That is the 1%, the corporations, the city of London, the bankster financialisation parasitism, the U$ economic and foreign policy hegemony, the corporate msm, just about anyone who counts!

    he’s dangerous he’s mobilised some of the proles to join the labour Party for pete’s sake! What happened to their manufactured apathy?
    What has fuhrer cameron got to say?

  44. rhinocrates 44
    17 September 2015 at 1:01 pm

    He should have this bike: