Johnson's scandals- how on earth did he get where he is

BoroMart said:
The x-factor generation, flashy advertisements, slogans, nicknames, a backstory and a bit of personality over actual talent goes a long with with huge swathes of the public these days sadly.
Click to expand...
It’s not just “these days”. Traditionally the British public will vote for an Etonian, to proportionate levels that make no logical sense other than that the British public believe Etonians to generally be worthy leaders of the nation.

It’s a historic tradition and certainly not current/generational.
 
Blair was good and bad to me. I agree the unemployment figures were kept quite low, there was investment in the NHS and Education and there was a drive to improve the life chances for people from working class communities particularly through education. The minimum wage was introduced. We got peace in Northern Ireland. There was also an investment in social welfare, care for elderly and young.

However his governments kept a lid on some problems that came out later.

For example the NHS looked to improve with quite a few new hospitals, but we have now found out they funded by Private finance who are taking over 10% of my local hospital revenue a year and its costs £2 a hour to park my car near the hospital with the money going to a private company. It is possible ot park for £2.50 all day in the City centre away from the hospital.

Regional differences were growing with manufacturing and mining jobs not getting replaced in what is called the left behind areas of the UK. Some of this was covered up by moving the unemployed onto disability benefit and off the unemployment figures so areas like Easington Colliery had over 25% of local workforce on disability benefits. Not enough was done to really level up for me, especially from a left wing government with North East ministers. I wanted more radical change and some real change like infrastructure improvements, regional tax incentives, public sector workers moved. in the Teesside area jobs were going quite quickly in the chemicals industry and relatively new Samsung factory shut down.

The City of London was allowed to do what it wanted and hence the foundations for an all mighty financial crash in 2008/9 were laid in the 10 years before. It was not just the UK Government, but they were part of it. See the film the Big Short for some insight.

Allowing totally unrestricted emigration from new poorer EU states caused social problems that possibly laid the foundations for some the 2016 Referendum result. I believe only Sweden and UK allowed totally unrestricted immigration in 2003 from the new EU states both countries have now moved to the Right. The other established EU states had transistional arrangements to smooth inward immigration which seemed more sensible.

Ref Iraq - under Blair weren't UK troops also sent to Afganistan (and some unfortunately died there) and didn't we hand over UK citizens to be sent for "questioning" to Guantanamo Bay?
 
Johnson is a bit of a buffoon, but people in this country are quite tolerant of buffoons and I think he plays on it. The sleaze could be different and his opponents seem to be chipping away strongly at this. I do think Johnson is better than Cameron. Cameron was of the Notting Hill set and I always thought he held his nose when he came to industrial areas like Teesside not that he came much.

I'd like to see a UK leader from what we would call a normal background, certainly State Comprehensive then say Polytechnic background, a bright working class/lower middle class kid. Blair was expensive private school and Durham University not exactly from an ordinary background.
 
BoroMart said:
The demonisation of Blair is beyond belief. It's been going on for a 15 years. The Tories couldn't afford to have people accept that the late 90s early 00s were the most positive period for the majority of Brits in living memory. With plenty of jobs, a good social support system, NHS hitting targets, new infrastructure rolling out, and a reduction in the gap from the 1% to the majority. But, you know "war criminal" that killed 200k people, FFS. It's not even an honest assessment of the entire Iraq situation either but people have lapped it up because it's been repeated ad nauseum for 15 years. They still repeat it and beat the Labour party down with it, despite almost every Tory voting for invasion, including the next 3 Tory Prime Ministers - Cameron, May and Johnson, who were 100% in favour of military action. Like it or not, on the domestic front Tony Blair is the best prime minister we have had in living memory and a return to many of his policies would see a much better country than what we have today.
Click to expand...
Agree 100%. The New Labour years from 1997 until the global financial crash of late 2008 were a very positive time socially and economically. The actual Iraq War Criminals were Cheney, Rumsfeld and George W Bush i.e. a US right-wing government, but no one mentions that

However, right-wing biased media in UK was able to do two things very successfully:
- Blame a global financial crash caused by right-wing style deregulation of financial markets in US, on Labour's economic management
- Blame all the stupidity and horror of US led Iraq invasion on Tony Blair and Alistair Campbell

Both ridiculous interpretations but Labour failed to destroy these mis-truths and now they are accepted as fact by many people
 
Redwurzel said:
Johnson is a bit of a buffoon, but people in this country are quite tolerant of buffoons and I think he plays on it. The sleaze could be different and his opponents seem to be chipping away strongly at this. I do think Johnson is better than Cameron. Cameron was of the Notting Hill set and I always thought he held his nose when he came to industrial areas like Teesside not that he came much.

I'd like to see a UK leader from what we would call a normal background, certainly State Comprehensive then say Polytechnic background, a bright working class/lower middle class kid. Blair was expensive private school and Durham University not exactly from an ordinary background.
Click to expand...
Dream on Red.
The British public are too easily taken in by posh liars.
We get what we deserve, unfortunately.
 
You only have to look at how we swoon over the Royal family to understand why so many seem to know their place and prefer a born to rule old etonian to run the country.
The the British working classes would like to erase all the last 100 years progress for a little jingoism.
 
The people who end up running the country in any government are generally bright people. Good degrees, Oxford, Cambridge, etc. You may not like it that they went to Eton or Fettes or Harrow but they are undoubtedly bright people.

If you want to choose the best people to run the country then you have to include people from the ancient universities etc in the search.
 
How has this thread decended in Blair bashing?

It's about Johnson and the fact English people are voting for a complete charlatan. This is a man who fronts a party that has systematically attacked the fabric of the state for 11 years, lied to people in order to appease a few very wealthy and yet continues receiving support.

It's staggering that the masses fall for it. The myth against Labour was based on the Financial Crisis of 2008. Gordon Brown was placed into a terrible situation and had no choice but borrow to stop a bad situation becoming even worse. The Tories spun that into Labour can't be trusted.

Normal people have then voted in a Tory government ever since despite the shocking evidence in front of them.
 
Soutra said:
The people who end up running the country in any government are generally bright people. Good degrees, Oxford, Cambridge, etc. You may not like it that they went to Eton or Fettes or Harrow but they are undoubtedly bright people.

If you want to choose the best people to run the country then you have to include people from the ancient universities etc in the search.
Click to expand...
If only that were true. Former Chancellor George Osbourne (as just one example) was a dunce who got into Oxford via a scholarship for "those of good character who are not academically gifted" due to privilege (and parents wealth). He famously refused to answer a question on 8 x 7 from a seven year old in a television interview whilst Chancellor

Inherited wealth and privilege still have far more say in who runs the country than intelligence and talent
 
Nero said:
How has this thread decended in Blair bashing?

It's about Johnson and the fact English people are voting for a complete charlatan. This is a man who fronts a party that has systematically attacked the fabric of the state for 11 years, lied to people in order to appease a few very wealthy and yet continues receiving support.

It's staggering that the masses fall for it. The myth against Labour was based on the Financial Crisis of 2008. Gordon Brown was placed into a terrible situation and had no choice but borrow to stop a bad situation becoming even worse. The Tories spun that into Labour can't be trusted.

Normal people have then voted in a Tory government ever since despite the shocking evidence in front of them.
Click to expand...
There are mountains of evidence that PROVE that Labour are better with the economy than the Tories and pretty much always have been - where the Tories excel is in lying to the electorate and continuously putting themselves forward as a safe pair of hands when in reality the are terrible with the economy.

Furthermore they portray themselves as the party of law and order and yet cut thousands upon thousands of jobs from the police force. They pretend they're guardians of the NHS while selling it off bit by bit and ensuring their pals with private servie providers for the NHS get rich off the back of taxpayers money.

Scarier still is that it's all in plain sight and doesn't take an awful lot of research or understanding to see this and yet millions continue to vote against their own interests with this corrupt and morally bankrupt government. It's sickening.
 
Just reading the paper and the contest for the West Midlands Mayor and some comments off the streets
Mary, a retired hospital worker said she was born and bred Labour but wouldnt vote for them now " I like B*****, he says it like it is and Keir Starmer seems a bit stuck up" ... as opposed to Johnson FFS
and Steve a former tyre fitter has always voted Labour but offers praise to Johnson saying "He's trying to get the Country right"and as long as you have this kind of mindset in the electorate with this clown in charge it feels were heading for a one party state.
 
Pigs live in sties,
Yorkshire puds rise,
wet paint dries,
James Bond spies,
Boris just lies.

Coconuts sit on shies,
rain falls from the skies,
a jobseeker applies,
advisers advise,
Boris just lies.

A town crier cries,
a happy shopper buys,
a beach bum fries,
leaky ships capsize,
Boris just lies.

Fat lads love pies,
an aeroplane flies,
wasps terrorise,
rugby players score tries,
Boris just lies.

I only believe
what I see with my eyes.
His lips are moving?
No surprise.
Boris
Just
Lies.
 
I think the answer lies in the age of the electorate that voted for BJ.

It's generally the older generation and voting was along very similar lines to Brexit.

I don't even think its about policy, but about the Brexit issues; people craving a return to when Britain was Great, colonialism, no immigration, no mosques, no silly political correctness, a time that in reality is a fantasy.

Add to that the BJ persona, old Etonian, slightly eccentric, charismatic, no nonsense, its easy to see how he fits in with the Brexit strategy.

The only silver lining is the younger the voter, the less likely you are to subscribe to that nonsense, so time should bring with it change.
 
atypical_boro said:
It’s not just “these days”. Traditionally the British public will vote for an Etonian, to proportionate levels that make no logical sense other than that the British public believe Etonians to generally be worthy leaders of the nation.

It’s a historic tradition and certainly not current/generational.
Click to expand...
A posh background and accent is very highly regarded in this country, particularly amongst the working class.
 
Jonny Ingbar said:
I think the answer lies in the age of the electorate that voted for BJ.

It's generally the older generation and voting was along very similar lines to Brexit.

I don't even think its about policy, but about the Brexit issues; people craving a return to when Britain was Great, colonialism, no immigration, no mosques, no silly political correctness, a time that in reality is a fantasy.

Add to that the BJ persona, old Etonian, slightly eccentric, charismatic, no nonsense, its easy to see how he fits in with the Brexit strategy.

The only silver lining is the younger the voter, the less likely you are to subscribe to that nonsense, so time should bring with it change.
Click to expand...
56% didn’t vote for him, we should not let the Tories portray this image that everybody loves him and everybody voted for him.

Elections are won and lost in a 10% band across the middle of the marginals, Johnson harvested the Brexit single issue vote in 2019.
 
HolgateCorner said:
56% didn’t vote for him, we should not let the Tories portray this image that everybody loves him and everybody voted for him.

Elections are won and lost in a 10% band across the middle of the marginals, Johnson harvested the Brexit single issue vote in 2019.
Click to expand...
Yes that true, but enough did to give the right big majority and if there was an election today sadly I think he'd win easily again.
 
Soutra said:
The people who end up running the country in any government are generally bright people. Good degrees, Oxford, Cambridge, etc. You may not like it that they went to Eton or Fettes or Harrow but they are undoubtedly bright people.

If you want to choose the best people to run the country then you have to include people from the ancient universities etc in the search.
Click to expand...
There's your problem, some people actually believe that nonsense.
No wonder we get what we get
 
HolgateCorner said:
56% didn’t vote for him, we should not let the Tories portray this image that everybody loves him and everybody voted for him.

Elections are won and lost in a 10% band across the middle of the marginals, Johnson harvested the Brexit single issue vote in 2019.
Click to expand...
I read a few months back that 2million Tory votes were people (not 18 year olds) who had bever voted in a general election before. I guess most won't bother to vote again.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top