Bo-Jo goes down and other political meanderings

[Tubetec]

Well if you didnt foresee Borris Johnsons ignominious end coming from the moment he took power you must have had blinkers on ,he was always going to shoot himself in the foot sooner or later just like Trump did.
Attempting to cover up a blatant act of predatory faggotry by a man called Pincher was the last straw for his fellow party members , it reads like a script from a 'carry on' movie
he's made a right bloody fucking Eton mess of it now hasnt he ?
Next an internal party vote to choose the next UK leader from a batch of 11 unknowns in September ,
The mind bend of modern social media has been the most destructive force against the democratic process ever.

Tomorrow in Ireland the political party with the biggest share of public opinion , Sinn fein , one facet of Irish republicanism, tables a motion of confidence in the leader of the coalition ,Micheal Martin ,which if they succeed would bring about a general election . The other two main political entities have spent the last 100 years pissing various segments of society(mainly the working class) off to the point where a fringe party, and a front for terrorism in the past , that for most of their existance held only a few % of the public vote are now looking like top dogs if it comes to an election . The 'Shinners' probably know more about organising a pissup in a brewery than actually governing our country , but if and when it comes to a public vote ,which it probably wont for now at least , a C change in the banana republic of Ireland is gonna come sooner or later , it may well be the only option to stop the rising disquiet in a segment of the population downtrodden for generations .

 

[Spiritworks]

Needs to happen everywhere. Good luck.

 

[ruffrecords]

Personally I think it was blown up out of all proportion. As usual a decent landslide victory at the polls is greeted by the elite as an affront on their right to power and they set about removing its architect. They finally succeeded. None of the politicians on either side of the house is any better.

Cheers

Ian

 

[living sounds]

None of the politicians on either side of the house is any better.

Few are worse in terms of conduct and scandals.

 

[ruffrecords]

Few are worse in terms of conduct and scandals.

Few are worse at being discovered.

Cheers

Ian

 

[sahib]

Personally I think it was blown up out of all proportion. As usual a decent landslide victory at the polls is greeted by the elite as an affront on their right to power and they set about removing its architect. They finally succeeded. None of the politicians on either side of the house is any better.

Cheers

Ian

Hi Ian,

It was not blown out of proportion, but when you pass the time that you should have resigned, that's what happens. They'll crowbar you.

Don't get me wrong, when he was running for London Mayor I had texted all of my friends in London to vote for him. But he broke the law and he though he would get away with it. He should have gone long time ago. At that level you have to walk on water.

 

[living sounds]

Few are worse at being discovered.

Cheers

Ian

How would you / anyone know that?

It's hard to imagine, say, Theresa May or Gordon Brown pulling the shit BJ did... Or any other PM at least in living memory.

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/many-scandals-boris-johnsons-premiership-2022-07-06/

 

[AnalogPackrat]

The expert speaks.

 

[ruffrecords]

How would you / anyone know that?

It's hard to imagine, say, Theresa May or Gordon Brown pulling the shit BJ did... Or any other PM at least in living memory.

Tony Blair.

Cheers

Ian

 

[sahib]

Tony Blair.

Cheers

Ian

Agreed. He got away with the biggest spin over Irak.

 

[rob_gould]

Well, Blair did many things that were wrong. And possibly criminal.

But I think when people criticise Johnson, they're talking about things like using his position in office to try to get jobs or grants for women he's trying to shag. Or being unwilling to share the number of children he's fathered. Or not declaring financial gifts as political donations. Or not declaring private meetings with Russian oligarchs. Or shamelessly and transparently lying, over and over again in an attempt to cover his tracks.

I don't think either man considers themselves accoutable to the law or to rules of good conduct in the way that they ought to, but I'm not sure that Blair and Johnson are a fair comparison in terms of flagrant disregard for statesmanlike behaviour or personal conduct as a politician.

 

[ruffrecords]

Agreed. He got away with the biggest spin over Irak.

And all Theresa the Remainer had to do was hold the fort and let Brexit die but she could not even do that. And Mr. Brown not only destroyed everyone's pensions by his stealth tax but left local authorities sitting on huge debts due to his PFA initiative. I don't care about minor infractions like going to a party during lock down or spending stupid money on decorations. It's the big things that matter.

Edit: And has everyone forgotten the MP's expenses scandal a few years ago, only brought to light by the efforts of the Daily Telegraph.


Cheers

Ian

 

[rob_gould]

The parties in Downing Street were held at a time when people were being threatened with arrest, fines and even jail for the most minor infractions of lockdown rules.

Whether you agree with lockdown rules or not is a separate topic. What seems more relevant to this conversation is that the very people who wrote the rules felt no obligation to follow them themselves. Doesn't that seem like a shaky foundation for good leadership?

 

[living sounds]

The expert speaks.

Once again, the only contribution is a childish ad-hominem. Mods?

 

[living sounds]

Tony Blair.

Cheers

Ian

Yes, Blair was very bad on many levels. But Johnson, I think, is the type for whom the means almost always justify the ends, and the ends are almost always his own narrow self-interest. That's why he got compared to Trump so often, for whom, of course, the two "almost" in the before sentence may be discarded.

 

[AnalogPackrat]

While politicians often say and do embarrassing things, it is the very slick types who do the most damage. They maintain a facade of professionalism and a healthy glow while stabbing their own in the back. Iraq II was a decades long disaster that killed hundreds of thousands and destabilized the region. Comparing that to whatever BoJo did is ridiculous.

 

[rob_gould]

While politicians often say and do embarrassing things, it is the very slick types who do the most damage. They maintain a facade of professionalism and a healthy glow while stabbing their own in the back. Iraq II was a decades long disaster that killed hundreds of thousands and destabilized the region. Comparing that to whatever BoJo did is ridiculous.

And for me, this viewpoint neatly summarises the danger of Johnson.

He hides his slickness behind an appealing facade of buffoonery. It's appealing to see him as a harmless idiot.

Oh, what's the big deal with silly old Boris taking undisclosed payments from Russian billionaires! He only wanted new curtains! Nothing to see here!

 

[AnalogPackrat]

BoJo is slick? Who knew. My point isn't that he is innocent, simply that the "professional" politicians are more dangerous as they are adept at hiding their (often much larger) crimes from the masses who only see a pretty face, a neat appearance, and a well-delivered speech.

 

[JohnRoberts]

Once again, the only contribution is a childish ad-hominem. Mods?

don't try to suck me into this cancel culture exercise (oops is that ad hominem?).

When you wrestle in the mud with pigs, expect to get a little on you.

JR

PS: I repeat if you see actual rule breaking, report it, but do not cry wolf too often.

 

[rob_gould]

Things written in *this thread* illustrate that, despite a career long string of scandals, very many people maintain that he's just a bit of a rogue whose worst crime is poor judgement and perhaps being a bit randy. No, he did not take the country into an illegal war. But to suggest that his string of failures are just minor things seems really quite naive to me.