Labour leadership voting underway

[Cain]

I am 99.9% certain that, no matter who wins, he will be a New Labourite fuckwad with no new ideas, no charisma, no vision and absolutely no valid reason to be involved in politics, except an appreciation for sociopathy and cruelty.

[MMIX]

I am 99.9% certain that, no matter who wins, he will be a New Labourite fuckwad with no new ideas, no charisma, no vision and absolutely no valid reason to be involved in politics, except an appreciation for sociopathy and cruelty.

. . . optimist!

[Cain]

And his name will be ********* Miliband

[MMIX]

And his name will be ********* Miliband

I assume the asterisks stand for Toss a coin, or Tosser for short

Neither of the Millibands have as much balls and chutzpah as Diane Abbot though . . .

[Cain]

Abbot would be interesting.  Did you hear Blair's backhanded compliment to her?

Mr Blair has not backed a candidate but is believed to favour David Miliband.

Asked whom he would back by the BBC's Andrew Marr, in an interview to be screened later, Mr Blair said: "It may be fairly obvious, and I'm not saying it isn't."

But he said, whoever was elected, "even if it's Diane [Abbott] they will have my 100% support".

Yes, "even Diane" has his support.  Ringing lack of endorsement there.

[MMIX]

Abbot would be interesting.  Did you hear Blair's backhanded compliment to her?

Mr Blair has not backed a candidate but is believed to favour David Miliband.

Asked whom he would back by the BBC's Andrew Marr, in an interview to be screened later, Mr Blair said: "It may be fairly obvious, and I'm not saying it isn't."

But he said, whoever was elected, "even if it's Diane [Abbott] they will have my 100% support".

Yes, "even Diane" has his support.  Ringing lack of endorsement there.

after a couple of days of "headlines" from his 'autobiography' - you know, the slag off Brown ones 
I'm not actually convinced that his endorsement would actually help anyone

[Cain]

True.  I found it more interesting that his memoirs revealed what an idiot Blair is:

On the Iraq war, Mr Blair also insisted leaving Saddam Hussein in power would have been a "bigger risk" to security than removing him.

He acknowledged "we did not anticipate the role of al-Qaeda or Iran" in planning for the aftermath of the conflict and spoke of his "anguish" over the conflict.

Yes, who could've forseen the country next door or a terrorist group who had their former base of operations destroyed by the USA two years previously, but still had a strong presence in the region, would take advantage of an invasion?  IT WAS ENTIRELY UNPREDICTABLE.

[MMIX]

True.  I found it more interesting that his memoirs revealed what an idiot Blair is:

[snip] IT WAS ENTIRELY UNPREDICTABLE.

Only if they weren't concentrating 

Its all smoke and mirrors anyway. Like Thatcher's lapdog said
Many journalists have fallen for the conspiracy theory of government. I do assure you that they would produce more accurate work if they adhered to the cock-up theory.
—Sir Bernard Ingham

a fine piece of sleight of hand there, from the bluff old codger. You know, I'm not sure which is worse any more, being lied to barefaced by morons, or being taken for a gullible putz myself

[Cain]

Also, didnt Blair claim Al-Qaeda was operating in Iraq and that's why we had to invade?

So it was completely unexpected that Al-Qaeda would be there...because he knew it was a lie?

[MMIX]

Also, didnt Blair claim Al-Qaeda was operating in Iraq and that's why we had to invade?

So it was completely unexpected that Al-Qaeda would be there...because he knew it was a lie?

You have a devious mind Cain - pity you are too principled for a life in politics, eh? 

[Cain]

So, after nearly a month of voting, it has been decided that Ed Miliband is now the Labour leader

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-11412031

Ed Miliband is the new Labour leader, it has been announced at a special conference in Manchester.

The ex energy secretary beat four other candidates - including his older brother David - in a ballot of Labour members and trade unionists.

Mr Miliband, 40, replaces acting leader Harriet Harman in the contest triggered by the resignation of Gordon Brown.

He has said Labour needs to rediscover its radicalism and become a movement and a cause.

As well as his brother, Mr Miliband also saw off Ed Balls, Andy Burnham and Diane Abbott in the four month contest.

Personally I thought David would win.  Didn't want him to, I wanted everyone to lose in fact, but I suppose we should count our blessings that the most outspoken Blairite tosser isn't the leader, at least.  He's merely in his Shadow Cabinet.

[Pope Pixie Pickle]

i personally wanted Diane Abbot to win.

[bds]

I was rooting for Balls, purely for the comedic value.

[Payne]

I still think they should have just crowned Charles Kennedy King of Labour.

[Cain]

Charles Kennedy was awesome: when he was in charge of the Lib Dems they were actually worth voting for, not just a less insane variant on the Tory Party.  Plus, you know, despite being a functioning alcoholic he still got it right on the Iraq War, suspension of civil liberties, the economy etc

Anyway, this is a pretty good article on Ed Miliband, how he acquired his victory and what it actually suggests

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2010/sep2010/labo-s27.shtml

Diane Abbott was the most obviously change based candidate, even if that change was only from the electable if terrible New Labour back to the unelectable if terrible Old Labour.  What was needed was someone who offered superficial change while still retaining some of the core values of New Labour whilst being a little more left-wing than the Blairites (remember the Blairite smear campaign once Maximum Tone left office about the Coming of the Scottish Socialist AntiChrist?  Yeah, exactly).  With the hysterical attacks on Ed Miliband by...well, pretty much everyone, Useful Idiots like those writing at liberalconspiracy.org fell over each other to try and endorse him.

Just as planned
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