sky news debate
Discussion
I don't think the TV debates really change anyone's minds about people. They might nudge opinions a little either way but barring something ridiculous I don't think a massive swing will happen because of it.
I'd put money on the fact that before and after the next two:
Nigel Farage will be close to being beatified by some, others will be meh and he'll be a nasty racist to others.
The Greens will be the loony left to some, others will be meh and they'll be the saviours of society to others
And so on, and I don't think the TV debates will change that.
I have to admit that the one constant I noticed was Paxman's shoddy interviewing. He seems to resort to the personal too readily and seems out to crucify his interviewees rather than actually gain meaningful information from them.
I thought his 'geek' comment to Ed Milliband was particularly revealing. I know Milliband will throw 'Tory posh boy' etc at Cameron and vice versa but they have a certain political point to them (Posh boy=not caring about the poorer sections of society, Cameron's jibe about Milliband being Salmond's poodle had a point to it)
But Paxman calling him a geek just stunk of him being insulting and childish. It'd have been nice if Ed Milliband had asked what's wrong with being a geek but then again it's harder to think of that under pressure.
I'd put money on the fact that before and after the next two:
Nigel Farage will be close to being beatified by some, others will be meh and he'll be a nasty racist to others.
The Greens will be the loony left to some, others will be meh and they'll be the saviours of society to others
And so on, and I don't think the TV debates will change that.
I have to admit that the one constant I noticed was Paxman's shoddy interviewing. He seems to resort to the personal too readily and seems out to crucify his interviewees rather than actually gain meaningful information from them.
I thought his 'geek' comment to Ed Milliband was particularly revealing. I know Milliband will throw 'Tory posh boy' etc at Cameron and vice versa but they have a certain political point to them (Posh boy=not caring about the poorer sections of society, Cameron's jibe about Milliband being Salmond's poodle had a point to it)
But Paxman calling him a geek just stunk of him being insulting and childish. It'd have been nice if Ed Milliband had asked what's wrong with being a geek but then again it's harder to think of that under pressure.
cookie118 said:
I don't think the TV debates really change anyone's minds about people. They might nudge opinions a little either way but barring something ridiculous I don't think a massive swing will happen because of it.
I'd put money on the fact that before and after the next two:
Nigel Farage will be close to being beatified by some, others will be meh and he'll be a nasty racist to others.
The Greens will be the loony left to some, others will be meh and they'll be the saviours of society to others
And so on, and I don't think the TV debates will change that.
I have to admit that the one constant I noticed was Paxman's shoddy interviewing. He seems to resort to the personal too readily and seems out to crucify his interviewees rather than actually gain meaningful information from them.
I thought his 'geek' comment to Ed Milliband was particularly revealing. I know Milliband will throw 'Tory posh boy' etc at Cameron and vice versa but they have a certain political point to them (Posh boy=not caring about the poorer sections of society, Cameron's jibe about Milliband being Salmond's poodle had a point to it)
But Paxman calling him a geek just stunk of him being insulting and childish. It'd have been nice if Ed Milliband had asked what's wrong with being a geek but then again it's harder to think of that under pressure.
All very true. The exchanges last night actually reinforced my already pre-set mind.I'd put money on the fact that before and after the next two:
Nigel Farage will be close to being beatified by some, others will be meh and he'll be a nasty racist to others.
The Greens will be the loony left to some, others will be meh and they'll be the saviours of society to others
And so on, and I don't think the TV debates will change that.
I have to admit that the one constant I noticed was Paxman's shoddy interviewing. He seems to resort to the personal too readily and seems out to crucify his interviewees rather than actually gain meaningful information from them.
I thought his 'geek' comment to Ed Milliband was particularly revealing. I know Milliband will throw 'Tory posh boy' etc at Cameron and vice versa but they have a certain political point to them (Posh boy=not caring about the poorer sections of society, Cameron's jibe about Milliband being Salmond's poodle had a point to it)
But Paxman calling him a geek just stunk of him being insulting and childish. It'd have been nice if Ed Milliband had asked what's wrong with being a geek but then again it's harder to think of that under pressure.
Your final comment is so very true. Many times I've thought of the perfect reply .... long after the event....
One of the best politicos at thinking on their feet in recent years to this interested observer is N. Farage.Comments like "Doing better than expected", "not being able to think under pressure" and stating that Paxman was maybe a bit mean, condescending and rude are scaring me to be honest.
Did the nasty man ask mean questions about your brother and call you a geek? Aw diddums. Tough enough my arse.
He's not lining up at the regional HR office hoping to be the next Assistant Store Manager, he's running for PM.
He gets the keys to nukes, power stations, an army, the lives of 60+ million people.
He is not up to the job, period.
Did the nasty man ask mean questions about your brother and call you a geek? Aw diddums. Tough enough my arse.
He's not lining up at the regional HR office hoping to be the next Assistant Store Manager, he's running for PM.
He gets the keys to nukes, power stations, an army, the lives of 60+ million people.
He is not up to the job, period.
andy43 said:
Comments like "Doing better than expected", "not being able to think under pressure" and stating that Paxman was maybe a bit mean, condescending and rude are scaring me to be honest.
Did the nasty man ask mean questions about your brother and call you a geek? Aw diddums. Tough enough my arse.
He's not lining up at the regional HR office hoping to be the next Assistant Store Manager, he's running for PM.
He gets the keys to nukes, power stations, an army, the lives of 60+ million people.
He is not up to the job, period.
Equally it's not like we're voting for the prom king or queen, we're voting for the leader of the country. I don't give a flying fDid the nasty man ask mean questions about your brother and call you a geek? Aw diddums. Tough enough my arse.
He's not lining up at the regional HR office hoping to be the next Assistant Store Manager, he's running for PM.
He gets the keys to nukes, power stations, an army, the lives of 60+ million people.
He is not up to the job, period.
k if he's a geek or not, I want to hear debate about his policies and political views, not whether or not he's one of the 'cool kids'.FWIW I thought Cameron came off much better than Milliband. He has two weak spots in interviews he cannot answer and come off well/neutral-immigration and the police. Millibad was honest about the previous failings and where the country is but when Milliband is having to admit previous mistakes Cameron has too much ammunition economically for Milliband to do anything about it.
IMO I thought Paxman was too preoccupied with trying to break Milliband down personally, and didn't spend enough time questioning the things that matter.
cookie118 said:
andy43 said:
Comments like "Doing better than expected", "not being able to think under pressure" and stating that Paxman was maybe a bit mean, condescending and rude are scaring me to be honest.
Did the nasty man ask mean questions about your brother and call you a geek? Aw diddums. Tough enough my arse.
He's not lining up at the regional HR office hoping to be the next Assistant Store Manager, he's running for PM.
He gets the keys to nukes, power stations, an army, the lives of 60+ million people.
He is not up to the job, period.
Equally it's not like we're voting for the prom king or queen, we're voting for the leader of the country. I don't give a flying fDid the nasty man ask mean questions about your brother and call you a geek? Aw diddums. Tough enough my arse.
He's not lining up at the regional HR office hoping to be the next Assistant Store Manager, he's running for PM.
He gets the keys to nukes, power stations, an army, the lives of 60+ million people.
He is not up to the job, period.
k if he's a geek or not, I want to hear debate about his policies and political views, not whether or not he's one of the 'cool kids'.FWIW I thought Cameron came off much better than Milliband. He has two weak spots in interviews he cannot answer and come off well/neutral-immigration and the police. Millibad was honest about the previous failings and where the country is but when Milliband is having to admit previous mistakes Cameron has too much ammunition economically for Milliband to do anything about it.
IMO I thought Paxman was too preoccupied with trying to break Milliband down personally, and didn't spend enough time questioning the things that matter.
The thing that matters with Ed is the perception that he is an incompetent wet lettuce who you wouldn't trust to run a tuck shop and simply can't credit him being the PM. That is the instinct reaction of the majority of the country of all ages or all political instincts. This is why he gets that angle of attack not his policies, they will have no bearing on whether Labour get in or not. The floating majority when they go to the ballot box to elect their local MP will largely be voting on whether they consider the party leader viable or not. The policies don't matter didly, they never do.
DJRC said:
The thing that matters with Ed is the perception that he is an incompetent wet lettuce who you wouldn't trust to run a tuck shop and simply can't credit him being the PM. That is the instinct reaction of the majority of the country of all ages or all political instincts. This is why he gets that angle of attack not his policies, they will have no bearing on whether Labour get in or not. The floating majority when they go to the ballot box to elect their local MP will largely be voting on whether they consider the party leader viable or not. The policies don't matter didly, they never do.
i hope you're right this time. I suspect you will be, but fear of Miliband is affecting me.cookie118 said:
I thought his 'geek' comment to Ed Milliband was particularly revealing. I know Milliband will throw 'Tory posh boy' etc at Cameron and vice versa but they have a certain political point to them (Posh boy=not caring about the poorer sections of society, Cameron's jibe about Milliband being Salmond's poodle had a point to it)
I'm not so sure. I think it matters if you don't have any charisma meeting world leaders you need to work with, unless you're Putin (but even he I'd imagine is more of a laugh) or you can't empathise with others, perhaps even your brother.That said, I do agree Paxman didn't do a great job. He never seems to lean hard on the right points these days, frustratingly.
andy43 said:
He gets the keys to nukes, power stations, an army, the lives of 60+ million people.
He is not up to the job, period.
When you say it like that, it's difficult to think of politicians who are.He is not up to the job, period.
David Davies maybe.
A much better format for the debates would be for them to handle a 6'5 pissed up telly presenter, demanding raw meat. Like a shaved polar bear. Whomever can evade his huge paws and placate the sloshed giant gets the job.
Zod said:
DJRC said:
The thing that matters with Ed is the perception that he is an incompetent wet lettuce who you wouldn't trust to run a tuck shop and simply can't credit him being the PM. That is the instinct reaction of the majority of the country of all ages or all political instincts. This is why he gets that angle of attack not his policies, they will have no bearing on whether Labour get in or not. The floating majority when they go to the ballot box to elect their local MP will largely be voting on whether they consider the party leader viable or not. The policies don't matter didly, they never do.
i hope you're right this time. I suspect you will be, but fear of Miliband is affecting me.DJRC said:
I usually am. This country is not voting Ed into No 10. They weren't the minute he was elected and every yr since has only re-established that point. It's a cast iron take it to bank stone cold certainty.
That's right. Most of them are voting to keep Cameron out of No.10. That is the narrative from every other political party of note. davepoth said:
DJRC said:
I usually am. This country is not voting Ed into No 10. They weren't the minute he was elected and every yr since has only re-established that point. It's a cast iron take it to bank stone cold certainty.
That's right. Most of them are voting to keep Cameron out of No.10. That is the narrative from every other political party of note. Right, well whenever you have sorted out your English syntax into whatever it is you thought you wanted to say let us know, in the meantime Ill try and put my point across again because, well frankly, Id made sense.
The
Country
Isn't
Voting
Ed
Into
No 10.
Got it? Cameron, Clegg, Wee Eck, Sturgeon, Farage, the Green bird...all irrelevant. The simple...really really really...simple point is that the 15% of so of the voting demographic who make up the floating voter mob are going to pause in front of the paper holding the pencil and remember Ed. They are going to remember that they think he is a prat. Weak, incompetent, silly looking, silly minded,, silly sounding, wet lettuce prat. And then they are going to vote for anyone else. It may or may not be CMD, Farage, Clegg, etc but it won't be Ed. Yes, yes, some of them will actually give a f
k who their MP will be, but 99% of them won't. It will be about who is delivered into No 10. And it won't be Ed.Let me put it in simple words for you, in a correctly constructed sentence.
Most of them (the country) are voting to keep Cameron out of No.10.
Look at every party that isn't the Conservatives and "Keep the Tories out" is part of their narrative, if not their manifesto.
Labour won't win this election outright IMO. But I'm pretty sure that the Conservatives won't be in power either. Without the SNP as a coalition partner, Labour will end up forming a catastrophically weak minority government supported on an issue by issue basis by half a dozen parties from the Lib Dems to the Greens. It'll be a clusterfk without a strong leader (and we won't have a strong leader), and I expect another election fairly soon afterwards once it all collapses into farce.
Most of them (the country) are voting to keep Cameron out of No.10.
Look at every party that isn't the Conservatives and "Keep the Tories out" is part of their narrative, if not their manifesto.
Labour won't win this election outright IMO. But I'm pretty sure that the Conservatives won't be in power either. Without the SNP as a coalition partner, Labour will end up forming a catastrophically weak minority government supported on an issue by issue basis by half a dozen parties from the Lib Dems to the Greens. It'll be a clusterf
k without a strong leader (and we won't have a strong leader), and I expect another election fairly soon afterwards once it all collapses into farce.davepoth said:
Let me put it in simple words for you, in a correctly constructed sentence.
Most of them (the country) are voting to keep Cameron out of No.10.
Look at every party that isn't the Conservatives and "Keep the Tories out" is part of their narrative, if not their manifesto.
Labour won't win this election outright IMO. But I'm pretty sure that the Conservatives won't be in power either. Without the SNP as a coalition partner, Labour will end up forming a catastrophically weak minority government supported on an issue by issue basis by half a dozen parties from the Lib Dems to the Greens. It'll be a clusterfk without a strong leader (and we won't have a strong leader), and I expect another election fairly soon afterwards once it all collapses into farce.
I can only hope you are wrong. Else it will be a complete and utter waste of 5 years trying to get the country back on an even keel after Blaire/Brown/Balls profligate spending and economic cock ups. Most of them (the country) are voting to keep Cameron out of No.10.
Look at every party that isn't the Conservatives and "Keep the Tories out" is part of their narrative, if not their manifesto.
Labour won't win this election outright IMO. But I'm pretty sure that the Conservatives won't be in power either. Without the SNP as a coalition partner, Labour will end up forming a catastrophically weak minority government supported on an issue by issue basis by half a dozen parties from the Lib Dems to the Greens. It'll be a clusterf
k without a strong leader (and we won't have a strong leader), and I expect another election fairly soon afterwards once it all collapses into farce.Gassing Station | News, Politics & Economics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff