Funny how life turns out. If someone had told me a couple of years back that I would be depressed on the eve of Tony Blair's departure I would not have believed it. Well, here we are only hours before Blair goes and guess what? Brown is defying the laws of political gravity and I am seriously pissed off.
]All he had to do to win the trust and respect of people like me on the left of the Party was concede a little room, give a little space, re-instate in some way the modest coalition of social democracy which Labour used to stand for. And, in this week of concern over climate change, maybe give a Govt job to talented left and eco-friendly MPs like Alan Simpson (pictured) Nah, turns out Gordon has a very different notion of the broad church recently called for by Alan's Campaign Group comrade John McDonnell .
Brown's big tent includes Liberal Democrats ( but they turned him down) and no-mark , right-wing Tories with plenty of form when it comes to being homophobic and anti trade union. People like this are embraced with open arms. Socialists with core Labour values are told there is no "going back" and, just to rub our noses in it, Brown even brings back the New Labour brand. This is pretty disappointing stuff for me. And I had no illusions. It must be horrific for the many I know who had hopes that Brown was a closet "Old Labour" socialist. So now let's get real.
Brown would love nothing better than for the Left to throw its collective hands up in horror and walk away from the Party. So, tempting though it is, let's not rise to the bait. Time for action, comrades.
Wednesday, 27 June 2007
THE EVE OF DESTRUCTION?
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3 comments:
The thing is, that us people on the centre-left of politics, that believe in democratic socialism, social democracy and a fairer, more progressive Britain have no other party to turn too. Gordon Brown and his New "Labour" buddies know this, and they know that they can ignore us while safely carrying one their policies of neo-liberal privatisation, the failed PFIs and attacks on workers and trade unions rights, because they know that we can only vote for Labour, out of fear of the Tories returning.
A system of PR in Westminsiter might help Labour move more centre-left and democratic socailist, since that would give the option of people like us voting for another party, and that party having a stronger chance of getting into Westminister, and would also mean that Labour would have to work with another party, or maybe two other parties, and I doubt that would be the Tories.
The party has sucessfully supressed every voice within the internal party, and New "Labour" seem to think that "taking on the Labour Party" is what their job is. If the Centre-left ever return to running Labour, then we must expell every single New "Labour" person from the party, since they have the real risk of becoming just as damaging politically as militant was. In my opinion.
Nobody ever said Brown was 'Old Labour'.
And to be honest, I'm all for forwards not back. What we need is a newer Labour.
Geraint, agree very much and maybe PR could be a way forward.Tom, you say some really good things but chanting Milburnite mantras like "forward not back" just isn't helpful.I suggest you read John McDonnell's pamphlet Another World Is Possible - there is nothing backward-looking about it.
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