The King is Dead, Long Live the King. Labour Party Members - Know your Place!
So it's over. Tony Wright has added his name to to the list of dutiful stormtroopers, and there is no contest. The leader of this country was decided over a meal in an Islington restaurant in 1994.
For years people who remained members of the Labour Party have been telling me that Blair didn't represent the views of the wider Party, that one day things would change, that Labour was a broad church etc. Well, if you see Brown as something other than Blair then you might be happy with the outcome, but I have seen nothing but a load of tautological spin about renewal, from the man responsible for underwriting the last decade. Brown has been an intrinsic part of Blair and the Labour government we have endured, and I have heard nothing of substance that would suggest anything will change other than the control freak at the top.
But that isn't the point, Brown was always going to win. The point was there was going to be a contest. There was going to be a debate. There was going to be a chance for those who have remained in the party waiting for this moment to make an alternative argument. That a continuation of Blue Labour was not the only way forwar [not back].
But the Parliamentary Labour Party are are not going to allow that. Because they know they can't withstand any kind of debate, or scrutiny. They scream that any dissent is a return to the worst days of the 1980s, that any public debate about the wisdom of the Dear Leader elect [or his predecessor] is an instant path to the opposition benches. What they mean is, they are so desperate to keep their positions and jostle for new ones, that if the members of the electoral college outside the PLP do get a chance to voice their dissent, or even to question the 'direction of travel' by significant numbers of them not voting for Brown, then they might have to start justifying their positions to those working on their behalf. And we can't be having that can we...
So if you are a member of the Labour Party, and were considering using your vote 'inappropriately', you should thank the Parliamentary Party, for telling you that you can't have one. Accept your the leader that has been chosen for you, and know your place. There will be no contest, your views are not required. Those of you that are left knuckle down, keep stuffing the envelopes, knocking the doors, attending the meetings and kidding yourselves that the people running the show are in some way interested in your input.
Whatever you think, it has been decided for you. You are backing Iraq, you are backing Trident and Nuclear Power, you are backing PFI, privatisation, a 2 tier NHS, Tory education policy, tuition fees, faith schools, 90 days detention, the love in with Dubya, the assult on civil liberties, the War on Terror as it's being fought etc etc etc. For the PLP have given you Brown, and that is what Brown has given us over the last 10 years. Looking forward, other than a slightly different spin, it appears he is sticking with the programme.
It seems to me rather perverse that I have some respect for you Labour Party members who despite not being 'with the programme', remained in the party to try and influence it. Yet your own colleagues, dare I say comrades, appear to hold you in such contempt.
I don't know whether it's
I don't know whether it's worth worrying about the fact that the PLP has decided not to have any kind of leadership contest, and therefore no debate. On Newsnight yesterday they had a straw poll of some of the PLP regarding a deputy - something they will be voting for - and my God! They chose HAZEL BLEARS!!!! Uneffingbelievable. Are those people smoking crack? Lets hope it was just a 'blip' and that truly hideous creature never gets any further up the greasy pole.
How do we find out which
How do we find out which Labour MPs backed Gordon Brown? I'd want to express my views to mine if he did and make sure other constituents were aware of his craven toadying.
Is it known where and when
Is it known where and when these hustings are being held? And are they restricted to Labour party members? Might be fun to ask them some unanswerable questions.
Oh yes, and just as Gord
Oh yes, and just as Gord finally gets his butt on the throne, out comes the announcement that another 2,500 post offices are to be axed. Thus perfectly encapsulating exactly how little difference he`s going to make to the progressive downgrading of ordinary people`s lives.
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss!
Well, the argument is that
Well, the argument is that Brown is hands-down the popular choice of the PLP, which was elected by the voting public at the last general election. So anyone who doesn't like the prospect of Brown becoming PM knows whom to blame.
That was 35% of the voting
That was 35% of the voting public, Tom - 65% voted against him.
Any Labour person who wanted McDonnell, any activist anywhere who gives a damn has got to get behind the Campaign fo Democracy, to ensure a hung parliament at the next election
It's predictable what floats
It's predictable what floats to the top in the political world. They think the only thing that is Democracy is that you should do your duty, and go out and vote whenvever they decide. The political establishment was over the moon with the turn out in the recent French election, because they believe that a high turnout justifies their existence, then they do just as they like and stuff the masses.
Does anyone know where there is a politician who is truly Democratic, I am still looking?
Remember, kids, the
Remember, kids, the leadership of the Labour Party, as well as the whip, is simply the private internal matter for the Labour party, and none of our business!
The hall of shame of MPs
The hall of shame of MPs nominations/votes is (or was) on the Labour party's website. It is enough to make you weep.
I simply dont understand why supposed left-wingers actually voted FOR gordon. Even if they dont like McDonnell they could have simply abstained.
Abandon hope now all Labour party members. Tony Benn, are you STILL arguing people should stay in the Labour Party and fight from within?
Why did do many  'supposed
Why did do many 'supposed left-wingers' vote for Thatcherite hatchet man and Calvinist Sadist, Herr Brown? Well, it's just possible that all those lucrative non-executive directorships, media deals, 30% plus pay rises, attractive properties, free piss ups, and other wonderful amenities, are likely to benefit Labour MPs for a little while longer with the full support of Rupert Murdoch, the financial markets, Britain's blue chip companies, the corporate media and the world largest superpower. Ergo Mr Brown.
For most of the 'labour left' it's a great deal. Keep the machine spinning, and live on the juice. If the marks look like wising up, just head down to the TUC conference with a fiery speech on Cuba or social justice and get the lost sheep corralled back into the collective delusion. Some of these guys are just consummate players.
There used to be a joke
There used to be a joke about the Callaghan government that it's motto was "Keep politics out of politics". Since then it has only got worse. It has become an article of faith among Labour Party faithful that serious debate should be avoided at all costs, because it will only fighten those sensitive swing voters who are counted on for a fourth/fifth/sixth historic victory. On the other hand there are those of us that think that politics is about thinking through big issues (and not leaving it to Tony/Gordon and some focus groups to think about it) and many of us actually think that those swing voters ought to be frightened out of their complacency.
About those 2,500 post
About those 2,500 post offices closing . . .
As 'Captain Swing' pointed out, this is a more significant landmark in Labour history than Brown's secession.
Time for a commemorative stamp, surely? One in a series of 'Blair Legacy' stamps.