Who Should You Vote For?

[Smiley]

I asked a mate the other day who he'd be voting for. He replied, if he could be bothered, probably Labour as his parents always did and they were for the "common working man". So I asked him what he thought was classed as a "common working man" by Labour - his & mrs joint income is well over £100K per year. I explained that I thought the Tories may well be expanding the lower tax rate, whilst Labour would quite probably rape him blind in taxes.

He was surprised. I was worried.

[exiledwhite2]

Pre recession in 2007 we were hardly in the worst position in terms of spending. Whilst we were worse off than some developed countries we weren't near the 1994 levels. As per graph below.

 

As for banking regulation, that is true, though the Conservatives wanted less stringent regulation still.

 

 

The thing is we should have been running a huge surplus throughout the 2000's but Labour ramped up spending in real terms, and when tax revenues dropped, we were fucked.

[Guest]

The thing is we should have been running a huge surplus throughout the 2000's but Labour ramped up spending in real terms, and when tax revenues dropped, we were fucked.

Possibly. But again easy in hindsight. The Conservatives supported the then Labour government's spending plans. They werent absurd in any way despite the rhetoric that is now thrown around.

[Smiffs]

No possibly about it and the true cost was probably never declared nor was known until the money ran out.

 

I don't recall the tories agreeing to it either.

 

If you had 10 years of economic windfall and at the end of it you were looking down the side of the sofa to pay the gas bill then there's nobody to blame but yourself.

[Guest]

No possibly about it and the true cost was probably never declared nor was known until the money ran out.

 

I don't recall the tories agreeing to it either.

 

If you had 10 years of economic windfall and at the end of it you were looking down the side of the sofa to pay the gas bill then there's nobody to blame but yourself.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6975536.stm

 

As for 10 years economic windfall, that is exactly what happened under the Conservatives in the 80s had almost a decade of a booming economy then a recession in the early nineties. Almost the same position.

 

I know it is easy to simply believe the rhetoric the Conservatives have been peddling via their PR and the media in general but it just doesn't stack up with reality. Osborne's comments in the article linked demonstrate that better than anything I can say.

[Not in Crawley]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/comment/david-blanchflower/david-blanchflower-labour-is-being-far-too-reticent-it-didnt-cause-the-global-financial-crisis-and-coalition-austerity-policies-have-stalled-the-recovery-10158888.html

 

Here's the link, hope it works. Just for a balanced discussion, like.

[Guest]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/comment/david-blanchflower/david-blanchflower-labour-is-being-far-too-reticent-it-didnt-cause-the-global-financial-crisis-and-coalition-austerity-policies-have-stalled-the-recovery-10158888.html

 

Here's the link, hope it works. Just for a balanced discussion, like.

 

 

I read it last night

 

Essentially it says that we should have spent more and is written by a leading economist.

 

Spending other people's money is the always solution of socialists.

 

G Brown tried it to death. It didn't work. So, fuck it, spend more.

[Not in Crawley]

I don't think you'll ever get a job writing for Digested Reads to be fair BD with that summary!

[Guest]

I read it last night

 

Essentially it says that we should have spent more and is written by a leading economist.

 

Spending other people's money is the always solution of socialists.

 

G Brown tried it to death. It didn't work. So, fuck it, spend more.

Define didn't work? Brown left office with the economy back in growth. It worked as far as it was planned to.

[Guest]

I don't think you'll ever get a job writing for Digested Reads to be fair BD with that summary!

 

 

Probably not the only reason the Guardian wouldn't have me!

[Not in Crawley]

Yeah, probably would be the least of their concerns!

[Guest]

Define didn't work? Brown left office with the economy back in growth. It worked as far as it was planned to.

 

 

We were bankrupt

 

 

"Unfortunately, when I opened it, it was a one-sentence letter which simply said: 'Dear chief secretary, I'm afraid to tell you there's no money left,'

[Not in Crawley]

Joke notes - that's the way to define your voting preferences.

[Guest]

Joke notes - that's the way to define your voting preferences.

 

 

What what?

[mickbrown]

The economy is cyclical. I've decided it matters not one shit who's in charge

[Smiffs]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/comment/david-blanchflower/david-blanchflower-labour-is-being-far-too-reticent-it-didnt-cause-the-global-financial-crisis-and-coalition-austerity-policies-have-stalled-the-recovery-10158888.html

 

Here's the link, hope it works. Just for a balanced discussion, like.

See I like stuff like that because it's semi balanced. Equally you could find an article slaying the way labour acted and the way the tories reacted.

 

The frightening this is Ed Milliband. The bloke is a prick. If it was Tony Blair Mark 1 then he'd get my vote again. But Milliband is an out fucking communist who couldn't run a bath. I went to a meeting thingy with Ed Balls a few years ago and liked what he said probably much more than Cameron has ever come out with.

 

It's not great but it could be a whole lot worse if Red Ed running the shop as a part puppet for the SNP.

[Smiffs]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6975536.stm

 

As for 10 years economic windfall, that is exactly what happened under the Conservatives in the 80s had almost a decade of a booming economy then a recession in the early nineties. Almost the same position.

 

I know it is easy to simply believe the rhetoric the Conservatives have been peddling via their PR and the media in general but it just doesn't stack up with reality. Osborne's comments in the article linked demonstrate that better than anything I can say.

Reality is today there should not be anyone who wants to be employed, still unemployed. Red Ed is at polar opposites to Tony Blair when he came to power.

 

There is fuck loads of work out there.

[Guest]

Reality is today there should not be anyone who wants to be employed, still unemployed. Red Ed is at polar opposites to Tony Blair when he came to power.

There is fuck loads of work out there.

Are you talking Labour policies here or just reacting to the headlines in the papers?

 

Because nothing Milliband has said comes close to communism. I agree he doesn't have a media savvy bone in his body nor is he good at presenting himself like Blair was. Ultimately Cameron is pretty poor at this too but gets away with it as his opponents in Brown and Milliband are worse. I'm not sure that things would be much different under Labour or the Conservatives. Broadly they are actually pretty similar despite the rhetoric on both sides. Both will maintain the cuts despite Labour trying to disassociate themselves from that.

[Smiffs]

I read it last night

 

Essentially it says that we should have spent more and is written by a leading economist.

 

Spending other people's money is the always solution of socialists.

 

G Brown tried it to death. It didn't work. So, fuck it, spend more.

It depends what you spend, how it's spent, and the rewards it brings.

 

We could have built our way out of the mess by underpinning starter homes which requires infrastructure which generates associated industries which generates investment which generates jobs which generates wealth which generates personal spending generates tax revenues which generates sustainability.

 

Relying on a million new civil servants licking stamps and annoying the likes of me was never a solution.

[Smiffs]

Are you talking Labour policies here or just reacting to the headlines in the papers?

 

Because nothing Milliband has said comes close to communism. I agree he doesn't have a media savvy bone in his body nor is he good at presenting himself like Blair was. Ultimately Cameron is pretty poor at this too but gets away with it as his opponents in Brown and Milliband are worse. I'm not sure that things would be much different under Labour or the Conservatives. Broadly they are actually pretty similar despite the rhetoric on both sides. Both will maintain the cuts despite Labour trying to disassociate themselves from that.

I don't read newspapers.

 

I get my opinions from running a business that puts me in daily contact with site labourers and chief executives. I've seen the social harm Gordon Brown caused. I've told lads they are out of work when they have mouths to feed. I've seen an industry worth over £100 billion a year almost brought to its knees.

 

The hardest hurt are always those at the bottom.

 

Then I watch the news and think fuck me, this bloke is dangerous to all of us.

[anewman]

A vote for labour is a vote for Islam

[COYW]

You get the politicians you deserve. Straight in at number one 35 years ago. Can't imagine anything with lyrics as provocative as this getting anywhere near the charts these days: 

 

[no balls]

A vote for labour is a vote for Islam

Joking apart, if you're in the Central Bolton area I dread to think with that woman you have in currently.

[birch-chorley]

As has been shown above, labour spending as a proportion of GDP was fine pre credit crunch

 

Maybe they should have squirrelled some away for a rainy day but every action has a reaction and that would have meant our GDP wouldn't have risen as high. I guess hindsight is a great thing, not many were banging the 'we are about to hit a financial disaster drum' pre credit crunch, the few that did got filthy rich.

 

We were always going to be first out of the trenches in the last recession as we have a fucking huge financial services sector and that's where it all kicked off. We need to take that on the chin and not throw the baby out with the bath water. There's not many industries we punch above our weight in but that's one.

 

One things for sure, if it wasn't for the last labour government borrowing tens of billions to bail out the banks & come up with a stimulus package when the entire private sector held its breath then our GDP would have tanked further into a certain depression (-10% GDP)

 

For the record all major developed countries also followed our lead and took this course of action - we just got clobbered more due to the size of our FS industry

 

Now I detest labours welfare spending and moleycodling of public sector workers but to give no credit for the handling of the external circumstances of the global credit crunch is obsered

 

The Tory government of the early 90's left a huge pile of shit too a fact that is glossed over by far too many

Edited April 8, 2015 by birch-chorley

[Guest]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-32223556

 

Best thing I've heard from Labour so far in this campaign. Definitely think they are right to look at careers advice.