Eagle vs Window Pane

Written By: - Date published: 5:14 pm, July 10th, 2016 - 81 comments
Categories: International, Jeremy Corbyn, labour, Media, newspapers, spin, uk politics - Tags: , , , ,

I get a picture of Angela Eagle, cruising along like her avian namesake, keeping an eye on the ground for any potential morsel, and completely missing the great big bloody obvious and transparent reality that’s right in front of her.

To date, bar thin and transparent lines that don’t bear being held up to reality, there have been no good reasons given for challenging Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of UK Labour.

Let’s assume there are no shenanigans to keep Corbyn off the leadership ballot paper (that being a huge assumption) and that a head to head contest between Corbyn and Eagle unfolds. What can we expect?

Well The Guardian, true to type, will act as stenographer for the out of touch and essentially pro-establishment contingent of the parliamentary Labour Party – ie, Eagle and her team.

So, expect the anti-Semitic stuff to keep rumbling and of course, expect some new, and as equally manufactured piece of tripe to pop up too. Expect to hear multiple sources cited on how Jeremy is a nice guy, but how he just can’t win an election – expect that to be repeated ad-nauseum. Expect to read reports that seek to throw up mountains from mole hills – spinning any mis-spoken word, demanding clarity over simple statements that’ve had ambiguity awkwardly hammered into them by those very same people who are demanding clarity. Expect any organised support for Corbyn within the general membership to be characterised as ‘hard left’, under Jeremy’s direct control, and also potentially violent. (Call them off Jeremy. Call them off!)

In other words, expect more of what we’ve witnessed these past 10 months or more.

Even away from the mainstream, expect a desperate rag tag army of dim-wits and authoritarians to uncritically regurgitate the lines and faux concerns of the reactionary section of the UK Parliamentary Labour Party too. As MPs incessantly yell ‘Broken!’ off the back of some stupid belief that no-one can see they’re brandishing crow bars and holding lump hammers aloft, expect dimwits and authoritarians to uphold the illusion that ‘there’s nothing to see here’…and then watch as those people ‘get in behind’ who-ever winds up winning.

Don’t expect any reasonable critique or analysis of what it is that the UK Labour Party’s membership wants or supports. Don’t expect reality (such as increasing membership or an increased share of the vote at by elections) to get in the way of a good take-down.

And seriously, don’t expect a bad word to be spoken of soaring, majestic Angela… or any mention of the fact that she’s just gone splat.

81 comments on “Eagle vs Window Pane ”

  1. Paul 1

    Once Corbyn wins, these traitors must be deselected by their local constituencies.

    • RedBaronCV 1.1

      One of the media outlets interviewed some of the Constituency Labour Party Chairs whose comments where less than happy about the MP’s behaviour.
      It also suggested that the reason the MP’s wanted a secret ballot when they voted to oust Jezza was to prevent their constituents knowing how they had voted to prevent deselection.
      Meanwhile I see Jezza saying very sensibly that Brexit is too important to leave just to the Tories. Quite right! Perhaps the Labour MP’s need to concentrate on the enemy without . The only “good” that seems to be coming out of all this is that political involvement seems to be going up.

      • Sanctuary 1.1.1

        I think the die is now cast. The Blairites cannot wait for the party conference, where if Corbyn is still in chagre he’ll lead a populist revolution designed to bring the PLP to heal. Both the momentum wing and the hard line Blairites are heading for a show down where psychologically they are prepared to take the plunge and split the party. Labour is heading for a crisis similar to when the traitor Ramsay MacDonald went with the conservatives in 1931.

        The Blairite plan is to take as many MPs as they can if they lose, and rely on millionaire donors like this guy http://www.leftfutures.org/2015/09/assem-allam-dont-let-the-door-hit-you-on-the-way-out/ to fund them. They’ll probably even go to court to try and steal the Labour name. They will be the very essense of an establishment elite cadre party, that only exists to manipulate the FPP system to ensure real change cannot occur. They’ll be walking, talking symbol of the utter disfunctional decadence of Westminster politics and the collapse of representative democracy in the UK.

        There is no ground swell for a SDP part II in the UK. Politics in the UK is polarising. The breakaway parties leaders probably know it won’t survive a general election, it deliberately will want simply to split the vote and allow dozens of extra UKIP and Tory MPs to be elected. The survivng revanchists, having postponed democratic change for another 5 to 10 years, will then seamlessly merge in the liberal democrats or Tories or into well paying jobs in the political establishment.

        Of course, the right wing is completely out of touch with Labour voters. Their script is a spin doctored up piece of political unreality. Remember, there is no real demand for a new centrist party in the UK. The Guardian and the rest of the liberal intelligensia are hopelesssly out of touch with British public opinion. The alternative scenario, which is at least as likely and supported by more empirical evidence, is by throwing out the traitors a united Labour recovers ground and (as absolutely every actual election held so far has shown) the Blairites are wiped out by the electoral efforts of a wholly mobilised base. And remember my reference to the huge crisis of 1931 in the UK Labour party? Remember that they then won a crushing electoral mandate for real, radical change under Attlee in just the second British election since MacDonald’s defection, some 14 years later.

        We can only hope!

    • Gosman 1.2

      I love a good left wing purge of non true believers. Reminds me of Post Revolutionary Russia.

      • Sanctuary 1.2.1

        Why? We’re you there?

      • Bill 1.2.2

        Democratically driven processes of de-selection aren’t in any way like a purge.

        And people looking to be better represented is absolutely nothing like the top down ideological purges that happened in the aftermath of the Bolshevik’s grab for power.

        On reflection, a relatively small cadre of the Party within the PLP looking to grab power might be reasonable if ironically viewed as a bit Bolshy mind.

      • Anno1701 1.2.3

        “Reminds me of Post Revolutionary Russia.”

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBecM3CQVD8

  2. Peter Swift 2

    Good, glad Corbyn has been challenged. If Eagle wins, maybe there’s a hope for UK labour after all.
    I’m hoping Corbyn has to get nominated by the plp to run. That will cut off at the knees the $6 temp members distorting the process.

    Popcorn time. 🙂

    • Colonial Viper 2.1

      Oh look, yet another Labour establishment loyalist backing disloyal MPs against the Leader and against the general party membership. What a surprise.

      • Peter Swift 2.1.1

        I’m not scared of your amateur framing attempts, so bang on as much as you like.

        • Colonial Viper 2.1.1.1

          people just need to read your comments to come to the same conclusion. Thorndon bubble type who thinks himself superior and smarter than the general membership of the party.

          • Peter Swift 2.1.1.1.1

            I’m still not scared of your amateur framing attempts, so bang on as much as you like with as much pointless abuse as Bill allows in his thread. 😉

            • Colonial Viper 2.1.1.1.1.1

              the Labour Party, here and in the UK, has been taken over by a rather narrow set of Parliamentary careerists and courtiers to those careerists.

              These are people who regard the general membership of the party as being too left, and too naive.

              While they themselves, have adopted the very same “born to rule” mentality that they accuse the Tories of.

            • Bill 2.1.1.1.1.2

              There’s no abuse coming from me – pointless or otherwise. There are people wedded to notions of authoritarianism. They exhibit peculiar and predictable habits. All I’ve pointed out, is that by your comments on this thread, you’ve placed yourself within a working framework of authoritarianism as laid out in the post.

            • One Two 2.1.1.1.1.3

              Hypocritical comment given your tendancy to stalk others

              Some comments are entertainment value, if nothing else

              For mine, your comments don’t even add up to , nothing else

          • Bill 2.1.1.1.2

            I’d disagree on the ‘Thorndon Bubble’ take. That suggests a certain demographic and a certain geographical location. But authoritarians can live anywhere and be of any demographic.

            That their opinions merely echo those they would see as being the ones to follow is what marks them. And the ones to follow are always those most embedded in establishment or tradition.

    • Sanctuary 2.2

      Yes, because if you can’t win an election democratically then jacking the system to deny the popular will of the membership is a REALLY REALLY REALLY good idea. /sarc/ You are a tit, Peter Swift. Please deselct yourself.

      • Peter Swift 2.2.1

        I want Eagle to win, I want Corbyn out, I want the UK labour party to win and I agree with the 172 mps in that they don’t have a chance in hell now.
        If you want to insult me for that view, for wanting a labour victory, then join comrade kitty cat and have at it. lol.

        • Sanctuary 2.2.1.1

          Ah, there we have it. The Labour right making it’s sole pitch for legitimacy. They can’t say they are popular with the party, because they are deeply unpopular. They can’t say they are socialists, because they manifestly are not. The only fig leaf they have is a nonsensical claim to “electability”. Only they are not electable, are they? They’ve lost everything since 2010 in the UK and 2008 here.

          And even – if for the sake of imagination – we swallow the lie of their superior electability, for what? The stated goal of supporting the establishment neoliberal status quo? Is Labour really about just being an “electable” soft Tory managerialist alternative? That is a doomed approach, people will always prefer the rude, deep blue Tory shout to it’s pale, pastel pink urban elite echo, and into the political vacuum of the abandoned working class that the Labour right arrogantly abandoned in the assumption it had nowhere else to go is going a populist, neo fascist UKIP. In short, the 1990s political strategies designed to protect 1980s neoliberalsim are dog tucker in the UK. The population is revolting against the establishment. The only people who don’t understand this are the dead men and women walking of the British PLP.

          Everytime you buffoons on the right of Labour have your grandiose claims of legitiamcy via electability put to the litmus test of the voters, you have your arse handed to you on a plate.

          • Peter Swift 2.2.1.1.1

            I’m not on the right of the labour party at all, just not as ‘left’ as the vocal minority, unelectable left, but don’t worry, I’m not going to insist you validate the statement you’ve just made up and presented as fact.

            For everything else, I’ve said my bit in 2.2.1
            I don’t need to add more to that, it’s pretty categorical, and I don’t need to enable your inner/outer anger by expanding on your rage.

            • Sanctuary 2.2.1.1.1.1

              To right I am angry, when I see injustice and arseholes in power I get angry, what do you do? Hold their dicks while they take a piss in the hope they might listen to you?

              Anyway, I can see you’ve retreated to the standard neoliberal fallback, the “I think my argument is so powerful that it’s not necessary to talk about it… …especially to such an UNREASONABLE person” defence. Typical.

              • Bill

                I’d suggest the Peters’ of this world do it less “in the hope that they might listen to you” and more in the hope that some of that golden piss of power splashes their way.

                You can almost see the facebook post with the photo of the venerated piss-wet jeans leg and the swooning commentary about the day they came that close to power.

        • Bill 2.2.1.2

          Third to last paragraph of the post, Peter Swift. You give an account of yourself that fits perfectly inside that “desperate rag tag army of dim-wits and authoritarians to uncritically regurgitate the lines and faux concerns of the reactionary section of the UK Parliamentary Labour Party too. As MPs incessantly yell ‘Broken!’ off the back of some stupid belief that no-one can see they’re brandishing crow bars and holding lump hammers aloft, expect dimwits and authoritarians to uphold the illusion that ‘there’s nothing to see here’…and then watch as those people ‘get in behind’ who-ever winds up winning.”

          • Peter Swift 2.2.1.2.1

            You’re protected as an author so enjoy the free shot.
            If that’s how you need to roll, so be it 🙂

            • Bill 2.2.1.2.1.1

              Protection?

              If you feel that para doesn’t in any way apply to you and your mind set,(ie – the opportunistic and hedge betting, authoritarian mindset) then feel free to explain.

              If you feel that para is being unfair on those MPs backing the challenge to Corbyn’s leadership, then again, feel free to explain.

              • Peter Swift

                I’m not being baited in to a ban by you, Bill, so I choose to leave your topic.
                Let the record show any insults and bullying behaviour are absolutely nothing to do with me.

                • Bill

                  Correct. You aren’t being baited into a ban by me. But you can leave the topic – even on the false grounds that you put forward. No worries.

                • ropata

                  What a lot of hot air Peter Swift. Your throwaway comments (at 2 and 2.2.1) fail to convince anyone that your hero Eagle is worthy of anything more than a humiliating faceplant. Bye then.

        • Andrea 2.2.1.3

          “the 172 mps in that they don’t have a chance in hell now.”

          You have a preference for Ms Eagle (calm down, dear) – and that’s fair enough.

          However, your fretful few 172 MPs are far outnumbered by the many thousands who have recently joined, signed up and paid to become new Labour members who have taken the Party’s membership numbers to their highest in thirty odd years.

          And it wasn’t because of any efforts by the said Ms Eagle.

          On voting day, it’s those left-leaning six pound sign-ups who have the only voice that matters. They seem to prefer a quiet bloke who stands up at PMQs and politely, without insult or vitriol, reads out questions from constituents for the PM to answer. Not an MP whose own constituents have started a petition for her to go before she’s pushed.

        • leftie 2.2.1.4

          If anything, it’s the trouble making self interested 172 MPs that are ruining UK Labour’s chances Peter Swift. I want Corbyn to win, and I am pretty sure that he will.

    • KJT 2.3

      Can’t even have the most basic level of Democracy.

      The people selecting the leader of their country, can we?

      After all we are to thick to know what is good for us?

  3. Jenny 3

    “We are trying to change a system that resists change.”
    Hone Harawira
    August 2014

    And boy did they resist change with a vengeance.

    When the Right of British Labour say, “Corbyn is unelectable”, what they mean is, “We will make you unelectable. ”

    As Chris Trotter likes to say of the Right Wing of the NZ Labour caucus, and which could just as easily apply to the British troughers in the Labour Party caucus “They would rather keep control of the losing side, than lose control of the winning side.”

  4. Incognito 4

    Et tu, Angela?

  5. Anne 5

    I have a picture of Angela Eagle too. Red eyed and bawling on TV cos she tried so hard… I don’t want any leader who can’t keep him/herself under control in stressful circumstances. Who wants a leader like that??

    • Colonial Viper 5.1

      …no man could make that comment on The Standard.

      [Unnecessary comment, not true and liable just to start a pointless flame thingee. Please drop it] – Bill

  6. Ad 6

    Corbyn will not continue to lead the party on the virtue of his cause and the membership alone.

    If he can’t find a way to reconcile the PLP with the membership, there will be the most almighty party split.

    Some on both left and right of the Labor Party may like a split, so that the Scots and the Greens and the Mega-Lefties and the rump of Labour will all inevitably align around their political polarities as extreme as they like, somehow coalesce happily into a united front, and then somehow win the hearts and minds of the electorate.

    Whereas the more likely outcome in their system is that the more the leftie side splits, the more the Conservatives win, and win, and win, and win.

    Corbyn needs to show he has what it takes in leadership chops to unify his party.

    • Bill 6.1

      Isn’t it the responsibility of the PLP (sections of) to reconcile themselves with the membership? Why would it be down to Corbyn to do that for them? And how would he do it – besides placating the PLP at the expense of giving political expression to the wishes of the membership?

      If the PLP are out of step with both the membership and the leader, then why are they there?

      By way of illustrative comparison, when the politics and opinions of that section of the PLP challenging Corbyn held sway in Scotland, Scots turned to the SNP who had – they openly admit this – stolen the garb of ‘Labour before the Blairites and Kinnocks’. And Labour, still to this day controlled by Blairites in Scotland, is dead but not quite buried.

      Now sure, there is no alternative for Labour voters in England and Wales bar the hopelessly destructive protest vote for UKIP. But if ‘the Eagles’ have their way, then that’s where peoples’ votes – votes of despair and anger, will fall.

      edited for clarity – had missed a ‘not’.

      • Colonial Viper 6.1.1

        Clearly, Corbyn is by definition a poor leader because he won’t bow down low and scrape before a bunch of Blairite born-to-rule MPs who will be satisfied with nothing less. Of course, it’s nothing to do with all these MPs being in completely the wrong party, or being in politics for completely the wrong reasons.

      • Ad 6.1.2

        No, the PLP’s job is to be a good opposition in Parliament.

        Corbyn’s job is precisely to be at that point which leads both the PLP and the membership: i.e. to lead and to unify. He wanted the job, and is not doing it.

        The PLP are there because they are selected and elected. You don’t have to like it.

        I have not seen evidence that Corbyn has the qualities to unify his party and his people together. Corbyn is fast running out of time, out of media space, and out of Parliament.

        The more this drags on with no process and no admission from Corbyn anything is wrong, the more Corbyn’s Labor is going to make the Conservative leadership contest – for the Prime Ministership itself – look like as well ordered, magisterial and and calm as Queen Elizabeth’s coronation.

        • Colonial Viper 6.1.2.1

          The PLP are there because they are selected and elected. You don’t have to like it.

          And they can be deselected. In fact, I hope Corbyn contacts all the relevant electorate committees personally about this.

          Trying to unify a bunch of snakes is a dangerous exercise in futility.

          • Ad 6.1.2.1.1

            The selection and deselection is for another election, just under five years away.

            Corbyn on current trajectory won’t last five months.

            I sincerely hope Corbyn can last, and unify, and lead. It’s in no way apparent.

            • Colonial Viper 6.1.2.1.1.1

              No, you cannot unify a disloyal group of snakes. You should not even try because the moment you turn your back for even a second they will bite you in the arse. Is there something about this you do not understand?

              • Cricklewood

                Andrew Little seems to have managed to some degree… maybe he has has won his colleagues around (something Corbyn hasn’t managed) but he was also unpopular with parliamentary colleagues.
                Like it or not the key job of a party leader is to unify both sides by providing a focal point for the convalescem around. Corbyn has failed at this and given they are in a fpp system any split will be disastrous.

                • Ad

                  Exactly.

                • Bill

                  No. In a system where the vote for the leader is weighted, then an Andrew Little has to play politics for the sake of his own survival.

                  But in the UK system for leadership, a leader can give expression to the wishes of the membership and be done with the Machiavellian bullshit.

                  Andrew Little hasn’t brought a caucus round. He’s been brought round by the caucus – and Labour have lost members in the process.

            • Wayne 6.1.2.1.1.2

              Ad

              How does a leader unify a party when he has suffered a vote of no confidence from 75% of his fellow MP’s?

              I guess by getting new MP’s (or at least candidates). Will the voters actually vote for a slate of Labour candidates (replacing deselected MP’s) who are substantially more left wing than they are used to. The voters might prefer the deselected MP’s, who won’t just meekly disappear.

              So a real prospect of two Labour parties.

              • Bill

                Will the voters actually vote for a slate of Labour candidates (replacing deselected MP’s) who are substantially more left wing than they are used to.

                If the example offered by Scotland is anything to go by, yes.

        • Bill 6.1.2.2

          No, the PLP’s job is to be a good opposition in Parliament.

          That would entail giving parliamentary expression to the people who voted for them and more, to elevate the concerns of party members, who not only voted for them, but who support the same political body they serve in.

          But they either don’t want to do that or are incapable of doing that. Manufacturing a leadership crisis to distract from that, well…it ain’t working out for them at the moment.

          But I fully expect moves will be made to keep Corbyn off the ballot sheet, skew or screw the voting rights of £3 ‘supporters’ and to game the general member’s voting rights in any and every way they can think of.

          Which might mean they get to claim the brand name of “Labour” at the end of the day.

        • Psycho Milt 6.1.2.3

          No, the PLP’s job is to be a good opposition in Parliament.

          Correct. And just at the point when the governing party is in a state of disarray and wide open to attack, the PLP mounts a coup against its leader that effectively distracts from the governing party’s disarray. That is being a bad Opposition in Parliament, in fact it’s hard to imagine a more crap Opposition than the one these MPs have modelled for Labour supporters over the last few weeks. The coup leaders’ electorate committees should deselect them for that alone.

          • miravox 6.1.2.3.1

            +1

            Appalling behaviour by a supposed opposition. No matter what they think of Jeremy Corbyn, as a party with the job of holding the government to account the timing of a leadership coup could not be worse. Moreover, to double the idiocy of the plotters, if they’d paid attention they would have known Corbyn would not readily abandon the people who elected him.

    • Draco T Bastard 6.2

      Corbyn needs to show he has what it takes in leadership chops to unify his party.

      And the best way to do that is to get rid of the people tearing it apart and that’s the PLP members who voted against him and that means he should be talking to the members and encouraging them to deselect those those people as candidates.

      We saw what happened to Cunliffe when he tried to keep the back-stabbers happy.

  7. stunned mullet 7

    I was sent the piece below from the UK… no one does character assassination like the brits.

    ‘I’m sure it seemed like a good idea when various non-Labour party people paid their £3 and voted for Jeremy. I was tempted to do it myself, but the thought of giving Labour £3 was enough to put me off. We all knew that he would make the Labour party completely unelectable as a potential party of Government. I very much doubt, however, that ANYONE could have predicted how he would have turned out. His rise to power has preceded the return to prominence of scumbags like Livingstone, Galloway, and 80’s scouse [deleted], Derek Hatton.
    We’re talking about someone who has gone against the wishes of most of his MP’s by voicing his opposition to replacing Trident. He even ordered his MP’s to vote against a government bill, while HE attended a happy clappy anti-nuke demo. Someone who is supposedly anti-EU, but advocates us staying in. And even then, his hatred of the Tories means you won’t see him sharing a Pro-EU platform with Cameron or Gideon anytime soon. In fact, he’s done the square root of fuck all since the campaign started.

    As I mentioned in my [deleted] of Naz Shah, there has been a noticeable rise in Anti-Semitism since he became leader. And again, apart from making a few very unconvincing statements about how bad it is, he’s done absolutely nothing about it. And by doing nothing, he has shown how utterly unfit he is to be leader of the Labour Party. And this bearded clam has pretentions of being our next Prime Minister? I’d sooner have Jim Hacker as PM than this limp penis.

    His Judgement was called into question the moment he appointed John McDonnell as Shadow Chancellor. A vile creature, who despises Britain and is known to have supported the IRA. This is a man who claims to be for the working class, but like his predecessors, has as much in common with the working class as Christiano Ronaldo has with a fucking Womble.

    He sacked Hillary Benn from his role as Shadow Defence Secretary because he dared to defy Corbyn by voting for air strikes in Syria, and promoted Emily Thornton, a known hater of the working class, and someone who knows fuck all about defence, simply because she agrees with him on replacing Trident. And he’s given a Shadow Cabinet post to Andy Burnham. That shiny faced lickspittle who has been, depending on the leader, a Blairite, a Brownite, a Millibandite, and now a Corbynite.

    The fact he shagged that arrogant, racist, [deleted], Diane Abbot should have been a clue that his judgement was seriously impaired. Look at his performances at PMQ’s, he’s a fucking disaster. Limp as a soggy slice of bread. He actually manages to make Cameron look competent. In fact, the only time that Cameron looks bad, is when he allows his arrogance to get the better of him, and he starts to sneer at and insult people who disagree with him. What’s particularly pathetic though, is his tactic of asking questions from supposedly ‘ordinary’ people who’ve contacted him. You know, Bill from Portsmouth, Rita from Stoke, Mohammed from Pakista…err…Bradford, Julie from Manchester. I know that one turned out to be a fairly well paid employee of the BBC, and a Corbyn Supporter. This actually did surprise me, because I genuinely thought these people were made up.

    Even with a Government as limp and useless as our current one, I think that Corbyn and his mob of Britain hating bell ends has fucking Buckley’s chance of getting into Downing Street as anything other than a guest. Statesman? He can’t even hack it when the Tory back bench jeer him. His face when Hillary Benn gave his speech on bombing Syria showed what a nasty prick he is. And the fact he really doesn’t give a fuck about the UK , or the British people, make him eminently unsuitable to be Prime Minister.

    Mind you, that may turn out to be a moot point. There are rumours that many Labour MP’s are sharpening their knives and planning their Ides of March moment. They’re just waiting for the result of the Local Elections next week. I doubt anything as dramatic as a coup will take place if, as predicted, Labour suffer a major loss of Councillors. There’ll be much feet stomping, but ultimately, Corbyn will remain as Leader. Even if they did get rid, who would replace him? I’m sure Burnham would stand again, and then clamp [term denoting a degree of sycophancy] of the MP who eventually becomes the new Leader.

    It says a lot about the man that, even with the current government being so contemptuous and malignant toward the British people, Labour will not win the 2020 General Election. Corbyn is as much a leader as I am a member of the Avengers.’

    [Have deleted the more offensive expressions that would have been removed from any comment submitted here-abouts. Pain in the arse. You want to cut and paste? Then do the work of making them fit with ‘standard’ culture. Cheers.] – Bill

    • Bill 7.1

      So apart from deleting out a pile of ‘ist shite, what strikes me about that comment (where’d it come from btw?) is that it packaged up just about every snide attack line that’s been published in main stream media in one go. Now sure, it’s got a right wing bent to it, but the Blairites or ‘New Labour’ or whatever that gaggle in the imagined center calls itself these days make essentially the same arguments – without the steroids of overt hate and with a bit of civilised tinsel to make the package presentable and even a bit innocuous to anyone not really paying attention.

      • stunned mullet 7.1.1

        strange…same source as this rant about Blair…

        ‘Blair has once again stuck his head above the parapet. As we know, we need to negotiate our new relationship with the Fourth Reich over in Brussels. As we also know, this will be pretty complex. So, up pops Tony Blair, like the eternal foul stench, once again pretending to be our saviour and offering his services as a negotiator.
        Apart from the fact Blair is a filthy, murdering, money whore, lying, arrogant, ignorant, dishonourable, dishonest, conniving, warmongering, bloodthirsty traitor. He never does ANYTHING unless there is something in it for Tony Blair. His chances of a cushy job in Brussels have been shot to shit, so I can only imagine that Blair considers this an opportunity to once again raise his profile and be seen as some kind of hero. He seems to need the adoration of the public. The big problem he faces, is that everyone on Planet Earth knows that he’s a massive [DELETED].

        Still, he can’t resist the opportunity of taking part in a high profile negotiation. Whoever turns out to be our next Prime Minister, their first job should be telling Blair to fuck off, [deleted] up his arrogant arse. Let’s not forget, it was Blair who gave up part of our rebate on the money that the EU steals from us each year.

        Though not for much longer…’

  8. whateva next? 8

    Thankyou Bill, that is exactly what will happen, but makes it a little less tedious to see it in print, naming and predicting the spin, it makes it less potent/aggravating.

  9. Sirenia 9

    This has echoes of the 1980s Labour Party here. Some of the MPs led by Douglas and Prebble took the party way off to the right against the wishes of the membership and many of the MPs. But they were too powerful to be effectively challenged. It has taken decades to heal.

  10. fisiani 10

    Corbyn is the leader chosen by the members. The fact that most of his colleagues do not want him to be the leader is unusual but they do not give him his mandate. Same applies in NZ.

    • Pasupial 10.1

      Hmmm; I find myself in agreement with fisiani on this point. Most unusual.

      Edit: No, missed that last; “Same applies in NZ”, which is not true for the NZLP where there is a 40/40/20% split (from memory) between MPs/ general members/ union affiliates. The selection process for National and Act is opaque to me, but is unlikely to involve the members voting.

    • Stuart Munro 10.2

      Not true of Gnat selection though – secretive, arcane and completely undemocratic as befits the embodiment of political evil.

  11. weka 11

    Something caught my eye the other day, a piece in one of the UK papers quoting an unnamed source within the PLP who said that the numbers of members supporting Corbyn was dropping but that they just kept signing up new people so there was no winning now (for the challenge). I had to laugh at that (although who the fuck knows what is truth and what is spin).

    I hope Corbyn thrashes them, or failing that that the party splits. If 63% of Labour voters voted Remain, then 37% voted Leave (although that probably doesn’t take into account the non-vote). 37% is a significant proportion. Time for some radical change that looks at everyone’s needs and desires.

    • Bill 11.1

      Neil Kinnock – the guy who arguably started Labour’s downfall all those years ago – had a piece in The Guardian imploring people to join up in order to vote against Corbyn.

      I’ve no idea why these people think they might have any support from the general population.

      Maybe it’s in recognition of a lack of legitimacy that Project Fear Mk III will be rolled out. Afterall, it worked so well for them in the Scottish referendum (killed the party dead), during the EU debate (any change away from this certainty will do)..

  12. Pasupial 12

    Corbyn’s team have to keep the attention on Eagle’s voting history; especially regarding her support for Blair’s war (and opposition to any investigation of the Iraq war afterwards). Also, her fondness for; ID cards and a National Identity Register for UK citizens, but resistance to; any register of professional parliamentary lobbyists, seems to show where her priorities lie.

    http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/10182/angela_eagle/wallasey/votes

    • Colonial Viper 12.1

      Thanks. Helps make crystal clear why the Establishment want her as their woman.

      Why the hell are people like this tolerated in Labour anyway.

  13. DS 13

    If Corbyn is on the ballot, he wins. The Right of the party jump or are pushed out. The Soft Left makes its peace with Corbyn.

    If Corbyn isn’t on the ballot… things get seriously ugly. The members and the unions will not be amused – good luck running a Labour election campaign without money or volunteers.

    • Bill 13.1

      Slightly loose thought – but if things get ugly and ‘the Eagles’ take the Party, then where do Labour voters turn?

      I mean, it’s not a MMP environment and so there are no viable alternatives to the Tories and Labour (I doubt anyone would give the SDP another shot).

      So apart from an angry and frustrated vote going to UKIP, what’s the option besides pitchforks, in a situation where the positioning of both parliamentary wings means that UK politics flap in clockwise spirals?

  14. save nz 14

    +100 Bill

  15. Tautoko Mangō Mata 15

    Media biassssssss!
    “Even the traditionally left-wing media — not only the Guardian and Observer, but also the Daily Mirror — have been more than willing to join the chorus of voices calling for Corbyn to step down. This is not a response to the market but rather a political decision, as their own research demonstrates that their readerships do not agree with this editorial line.”
    …….

    “Jeremy Corbyn’s rise to the leadership of the Labour Party was an earthquake in politics which reflected a deep disillusionment in the political and economic system. His tenure in that position has been shaped by a media environment which is no less in need of such an earthquake.”
    https://www.jacobinmag.com/2016/07/jeremy-corbyn-media-coup-bbc-labour/

    Lest we forget, just another reminder of the damage that newspapers can do!
    Time to recall the NZ Herald 22 Jun 2014 attack on David Cunliffe/Labour.
    “Businessman gifts $150k to Labour/List includes $100,000 for bottle of wine signed by Helen Clark” supposed donor Donghua Liu.
    Donation turned out to be $25,000 to National’s Jamie Lee Ross campaign after a dinner at Donghua Liu’s house attended by John Key, PM.

  16. Tautoko Mangō Mata 16

    Jeremy Corbyn has backed a parliamentary motion declaring Tony Blair guilty of “contempt”, following the release of the Chilcot Report.
    ….
    Mr Davis, who is tabling the motion, also told the Andrew Marr Show: “I’m going to put down a contempt motion, a motion which says that Tony Blair has held the House in contempt. It’s a bit like contempt of court. Essentially by deceit.”

    He added: “If you look just at the debate alone, on five different grounds the House was misled, three in terms of the weapons of mass destruction, one in terms of the UN votes were going, and one in terms of the threat, the risks. He might have done one of those accidentally, but five?”

    http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-tony-blair-iraq-chilcot-contempt-war-crimes-impeach-motion-david-davis-a7129256.html

  17. rhinocrates 17

    A summary of the ballot process here:

    http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-36654418

    Legal advice is that Jeremy Corbyn would automatically be on the ballot paper, but some dispute this.

    However, if he is left off…

    http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-labour-leadership-challenge-legal-advice-nec-ruling-sue-ballot-paper-a7129516.html

  18. Peter Bradley 18

    When do we in NZ get our JC or Bernie to lead our middle of the road – don’t scare the second home owners – Labour party back to the left?

    • Colonial Viper 18.1

      The Labour caucus has long eliminated (or at least marginalised) any such potential candidate from their ranks.

    • Doesn’t really matter, Peter, even if a suitable contender were to emerge. The electorate has been split three ways in most western countries for years, so the old binary frame is irrelevant. The left & right have been reduced to rumps of roughly the same size as the centrists.

      I’m sympathetic to the pro-Corbyn folk (despite never having self-identified as leftist). He seems authentic, and a true gentleman. Insufficiently savvy to be an effective leader, perhaps, but as long as the members support him there’s a slim chance true Labour values can regenerate in political form in the UK.

      Bill’s critique of the opposition to Corbyn is valid. The MPs/Guardian/Blairite group have spent years trying to reinvent Labour as a centrist party (Sirenia’s analogy to the Rogernomes last night was correct). Such pragmatism was a natural response to the long track record of failed socialism. Unfortunately for this group it is devoid of principle, so even to a centrist like myself its lack of authenticity renders it unworthy of respect.

      A principled centrist path in our era of globalism must be radical & present viable solutions to current major economic, political & cultural problems. My personal critique of Corbyn is that he lacks the lateral-thinking & creative imagination required to see that leftists & centrists must work together on this endeavour of the intellect in all western countries. Its the only way representatives of the people can wrest some control over their destiny from the ruling class.

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  • A pallid shade of Green III
    Clearly Labour's focus groups are telling it that it needs to pay more attention to climate change - because hot on the heels of their weaksauce energy efficiency pilot programme and not-great-but-better-than-nothing solar grants, they've released a full climate manifesto. Unfortunately, the core policies in it - a second Emissions ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • A coalition of racism, cruelty, and chaos
    Today's big political news is that after months of wibbling, National's Chris Luxon has finally confirmed that he is willing to work with Winston Peters to become Prime Minister. Which is expected, but I guess it tells us something about which way the polls are going. Which raises the question: ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    7 days ago
  • More migrant workers should help generate the tax income needed to provide benefits for job seekers
    Buzz from the Beehive Under something described as a “rebalance” of its immigration rules, the Government has adopted four of five recommendations made in an independent review released in July, The fifth, which called on the government to specify criteria for out-of-hours compliance visits similar to those used during ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    7 days ago
  • Letter To Luxon.
    Some of you might know Gerard Otto (G), and his G News platform. This morning he wrote a letter to Christopher Luxon which I particularly enjoyed, and with his agreement I’m sharing it with you in this guest newsletter.If you’d like to make a contribution to support Gerard’s work you ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago
  • LINDSAY MITCHELL: Alarming trend in benefit numbers
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 days ago
  • BRIAN EASTON: Has there been external structural change?
    A close analysis of the Treasury assessment of the Medium Term in its PREFU 2023 suggests the economy may be entering a new phase.   Brian Easton writes –  Last week I explained that the forecasts in the just published Treasury Pre-election Economic and Fiscal Update (PREFU 2023) was ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 days ago
  • CRL Progress – Sep-23
    It’s been a while since we looked at the latest with the City Rail Link and there’s been some fantastic milestones recently. To start with, and most recently, CRL have released an awesome video showing a full fly-through of one of the tunnels. Come fly with us! You asked for ...
    7 days ago
  • Monday’s Chorus: Not building nearly enough
    We are heading into another period of fast population growth without matching increased home building or infrastructure investment.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Labour and National detailed their house building and migration approaches over the weekend, with both pledging fast population growth policies without enough house building or infrastructure investment ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 days ago
  • Game on; Hipkins comes out punching
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    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    7 days ago
  • Tax Cut Austerity Blues.
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    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • 100 new public EV chargers to be added to national network
    The public EV charging network has received a significant boost with government co-funding announced today for over 100 EV chargers – with over 200 charging ports altogether – across New Zealand, and many planned to be up and running on key holiday routes by Christmas this year. Minister of Energy ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago
  • Safeguarding Tuvalu language and identity
    Tuvalu is in the spotlight this week as communities across New Zealand celebrate Vaiaso o te Gagana Tuvalu – Tuvalu Language Week. “The Government has a proven record of supporting Pacific communities and ensuring more of our languages are spoken, heard and celebrated,” Pacific Peoples Minister Barbara Edmonds said. “Many ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago
  • New community-level energy projects to support more than 800 Māori households
    Seven more innovative community-scale energy projects will receive government funding through the Māori and Public Housing Renewable Energy Fund to bring more affordable, locally generated clean energy to more than 800 Māori households, Energy and Resources Minister Dr Megan Woods says. “We’ve already funded 42 small-scale clean energy projects that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Huge boost to Te Tai Tokerau flood resilience
    The Government has approved new funding that will boost resilience and greatly reduce the risk of major flood damage across Te Tai Tokerau. Significant weather events this year caused severe flooding and damage across the region. The $8.9m will be used to provide some of the smaller communities and maraes ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Napier’s largest public housing development comes with solar
    The largest public housing development in Napier for many years has been recently completed and has the added benefit of innovative solar technology, thanks to Government programmes, says Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods. The 24 warm, dry homes are in Seddon Crescent, Marewa and Megan Woods says the whanau living ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Te Whānau a Apanui and the Crown initial Deed of Settlement I Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me...
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    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Plan for 3,000 more public homes by 2025 – regions set to benefit
    Regions around the country will get significant boosts of public housing in the next two years, as outlined in the latest public housing plan update, released by the Housing Minister, Dr Megan Woods. “We’re delivering the most public homes each year since the Nash government of the 1950s with one ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Immigration settings updates
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    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Poroporoaki: Tā Patrick (Patu) Wahanga Hohepa
    Tangi ngunguru ana ngā tai ki te wahapū o Hokianga Whakapau Karakia. Tārehu ana ngā pae maunga ki Te Puna o te Ao Marama. Korihi tangi ana ngā manu, kua hinga he kauri nui ki te Wao Nui o Tāne. He Toa. He Pou. He Ahorangi. E papaki tū ana ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Renewable energy fund to support community resilience
    40 solar energy systems on community buildings in regions affected by Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events Virtual capability-building hub to support community organisations get projects off the ground Boost for community-level renewable energy projects across the country At least 40 community buildings used to support the emergency response ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • COVID-19 funding returned to Government
    The lifting of COVID-19 isolation and mask mandates in August has resulted in a return of almost $50m in savings and recovered contingencies, Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. Following the revocation of mandates and isolation, specialised COVID-19 telehealth and alternative isolation accommodation are among the operational elements ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Appointment of District Court Judge
    Susie Houghton of Auckland has been appointed as a new District Court Judge, to serve on the Family Court, Attorney-General David Parker said today.  Judge Houghton has acted as a lawyer for child for more than 20 years. She has acted on matters relating to the Hague Convention, an international ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government invests further in Central Hawke’s Bay resilience
    The Government has today confirmed $2.5 million to fund a replace and upgrade a stopbank to protect the Waipawa Drinking Water Treatment Plant. “As a result of Cyclone Gabrielle, the original stopbank protecting the Waipawa Drinking Water Treatment Plant was destroyed. The plant was operational within 6 weeks of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Govt boost for Hawke’s Bay cyclone waste clean-up
    Another $2.1 million to boost capacity to deal with waste left in Cyclone Gabrielle’s wake. Funds for Hastings District Council, Phoenix Contracting and Hog Fuel NZ to increase local waste-processing infrastructure. The Government is beefing up Hawke’s Bay’s Cyclone Gabrielle clean-up capacity with more support dealing with the massive amount ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Taupō Supercars revs up with Government support
    The future of Supercars events in New Zealand has been secured with new Government support. The Government is getting engines started through the Major Events Fund, a special fund to support high profile events in New Zealand that provide long-term economic, social and cultural benefits. “The Repco Supercars Championship is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • There is no recession in NZ, economy grows nearly 1 percent in June quarter
    The economy has turned a corner with confirmation today New Zealand never was in recession and stronger than expected growth in the June quarter, Finance Minister Grant Robertson said. “The New Zealand economy is doing better than expected,” Grant Robertson said. “It’s continuing to grow, with the latest figures showing ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Highest legal protection for New Zealand’s largest freshwater springs
    The Government has accepted the Environment Court’s recommendation to give special legal protection to New Zealand’s largest freshwater springs, Te Waikoropupū Springs (also known as Pupū Springs), Environment Minister David Parker announced today.   “Te Waikoropupū Springs, near Takaka in Golden Bay, have the second clearest water in New Zealand after ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • More support for victims of migrant exploitation
    Temporary package of funding for accommodation and essential living support for victims of migrant exploitation Exploited migrant workers able to apply for a further Migrant Exploitation Protection Visa (MEPV), giving people more time to find a job Free job search assistance to get people back into work Use of 90-day ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Strong export boost as NZ economy turns corner
    An export boost is supporting New Zealand’s economy to grow, adding to signs that the economy has turned a corner and is on a stronger footing as we rebuild from Cyclone Gabrielle and lock in the benefits of multiple new trade deals, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. “The economy is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Funding approved for flood resilience work in Te Karaka
    The Government has approved $15 million to raise about 200 homes at risk of future flooding. More than half of this is expected to be spent in the Tairāwhiti settlement of Te Karaka, lifting about 100 homes there. “Te Karaka was badly hit during Cyclone Gabrielle when the Waipāoa River ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Further business support for cyclone-affected regions
    The Government is helping businesses recover from Cyclone Gabrielle and attract more people back into their regions. “Cyclone Gabrielle has caused considerable damage across North Island regions with impacts continuing to be felt by businesses and communities,” Economic Development Minister Barbara Edmonds said. “Building on our earlier business support, this ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • New maintenance facility at Burnham Military Camp underway
    Defence Minister Andrew Little has turned the first sod to start construction of a new Maintenance Support Facility (MSF) at Burnham Military Camp today. “This new state-of-art facility replaces Second World War-era buildings and will enable our Defence Force to better maintain and repair equipment,” Andrew Little said. “This Government ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Foreign Minister to attend United Nations General Assembly
    Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta will represent New Zealand at the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York this week, before visiting Washington DC for further Pacific focussed meetings. Nanaia Mahuta will be in New York from Wednesday 20 September, and will participate in UNGA leaders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • Midwives’ pay equity offer reached
    Around 1,700 Te Whatu Ora employed midwives and maternity care assistants will soon vote on a proposed pay equity settlement agreed by Te Whatu Ora, the Midwifery Employee Representation and Advisory Service (MERAS) and New Zealand Nurses Association (NZNO), Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. “Addressing historical pay ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago
  • New Zealand provides support to Morocco
    Aotearoa New Zealand will provide humanitarian support to those affected by last week’s earthquake in Morocco, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced today. “We are making a contribution of $1 million to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to help meet humanitarian needs,” Nanaia Mahuta said. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago
  • Government invests in West Coast’s roading resilience
    The Government is investing over $22 million across 18 projects to improve the resilience of roads in the West Coast that have been affected by recent extreme weather, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins confirmed today.  A dedicated Transport Resilience Fund has been established for early preventative works to protect the state ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago
  • Government invests in Greymouth’s future
    The Government has today confirmed a $2 million grant towards the regeneration of Greymouth’s CBD with construction of a new two-level commercial and public facility. “It will include a visitor facility centred around a new library. Additionally, it will include retail outlets on the ground floor, and both outdoor and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago
  • Nanaia Mahuta to attend PIF Foreign Ministers’ Meeting
    Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta will attend the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, in Suva, Fiji alongside New Zealand’s regional counterparts. “Aotearoa New Zealand is deeply committed to working with our pacific whanau to strengthen our cooperation, and share ways to combat the challenges facing the Blue Pacific Continent,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago
  • PREFU shows no recession, growing economy, more jobs and wages ahead of inflation
    Economy to grow 2.6 percent on average over forecast period Treasury not forecasting a recession Inflation to return to the 1-3 percent target band next year Wages set to grow 4.8 percent a year over forecast period Unemployment to peak below the long-term average Fiscal Rules met - Net debt ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago
  • New cancer centre opens in Christchurch
    Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall proudly opened the Canterbury Cancer Centre in Christchurch today. The new facility is the first of its kind and was built with $6.5 million of funding from the Government’s Infrastructure Reference Group scheme for shovel-ready projects allocated in 2020. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago

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