Are we voting?

This is the first election

This is the first election for a very long time where the 2 main parties, those with a real chance of actually forming a government, offer radically different visions of the future whilst marginal parties can make a difference locally and help set the agenda nationally.

I don’t believe that any one party has all the best or right policies, but unfortunately we don’t get to pick and mix. I do hope that whichever way you vote you do so on the basis of having done some actual research into the policies that you are most concerned about and do so using reliable sources, not just those that reflect your preconceptions.

Personally I am at that time of life where I need stability in the economy more than anything. Brexit and the fallout from that has put enough of a question mark over probably the remainder of my working life. I cannot risk a radical shift in economic policy and having lived through the political maelstrom of the 1970s I have no wish to revisit those failed socialist policies. I am however aware that I live in an area of the country that is affluent, well served by its public services and has a thriving economy, I benefited from a free education to degree level and through some hard work, some luck now earn a good wage though nowhere near the £85k that would apparently make me a fat cat. I understand that not everyone is so fortunate in the hand they were dealt, the opportunities they had, the choices they made, or the circumstances that they now find themselves in.

So I’m hoping for the continuation of a Conservative government who have a track record of not screwing up my life*, but with a good dose of humility and appreciation of the real struggles of people who deserve a bit of help.

*Your experience may vary.

ianguignet wrote:

A vote for that Witch is a nail in all our childrens coffins

How? elaborate please. Hyperbole much? People probably said the same about Thatcher when I was a child but everyone I still know from being a child has done ok for themselves.  The only people who ended up in coffins before their time were driving too fast.

Spend, spend, spend is all very well but who’s paying? That 1% that pays into 25% of tax income can easily go live somewhere else so you’ve got to think out these Robin Hood strategies a bit more.  

If we were dealing with ‘normal’ Labour then things may seem less cut and dried but the country has never wanted the extreme left or the extreme right so Corbyn will not get in. Labour was most successful in recent memory when it was nearer the centre.  Tony Blair is now long demonified because of Iraq but a Labour now that resembled anything like that Labour would be in with a chance. Not marxism, no way.

ianguignet wrote:

ianguignet wrote:

A vote for that Witch is a nail in all our childrens coffins

I know Nicola Sturgeon has her faults but there’s no need to be mean.

I voted Labour – though in a

I voted Labour – though in a seat where it will make no difference.

Issue wise its the normal stuff I suspect for Labor voters – NHS, social services, education, environment, not selling weapons to dodgy places, workers rights, wealth distribution, women’s rights, and I think they hate cyclists slightly less than the Tories. I realise they aren’t always great on all those issues but, you know, shows improvement and should get some encouragement.

East Bristol is typically

East Bristol is typically Labour, so I’ll be voting Green just to show a bit of support for actually addressing air pollution. I think the priority has to be the planet – it’s where I keep all my stuff.

Only option to revisit Brexit
Only option to revisit Brexit is liberal and they’re about 20,000 votes behind last times winner in my constituency so no, I won’t be. I don’t see anything much different between Cons and Labour.