Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[Barrister]

On a "punishment" election, some striking polling from the Telegraph. A quarter of the Conservative Party's 2019 voters think they deserve to lose every seat they hold:


And on age breakdown


On needing a strong opposition the public don't really care about how low the Tories go. Even if you say how they'd feel about them falling to 50 seats, people are broadly okay with that. When the public turns, they really turn

I think people are maybe underrating the possibility of Labour winning big. But also, maybe a socialist one party state is just the will of the people.

Edit: Also Guardian's Dining Across the Divide found an amazing voter. UKIP-Lib Dem swing

There is definitely an element of voters who can flip between hard left and hard right fairly easily without ever coming near the centre.

[Jacob]

Elijah Wood became a teacher in Gloucester?!

[Sheilbh]

Least weird thing Elijah Wood's done

[Sheilbh]

There is definitely an element of voters who can flip between hard left and hard right fairly easily without ever coming near the centre.

Yeah - although UKIP to Lib Dem (to stop Ed Miliband) to Labour (because Corbyn?) to Tory is a journey. Trekking through the extremes and the centre, just widely roaming

Ireland has transferable votes all the way down which takes a very long time to count - arguably Europe's worst MEP has just been voted out on the twentieth round of re-allocations. One thing it really shows is that voters are far less coherent and consistent than people who are interested in politics. The vote fragments in very unexpected ways every time.

I think it's kind of a great thing about democracy in its way. I absolutely love the very idiosyncratic individuals voting choices.

[Sheilbh]

Re. panic in the right wing press. After the Mail's "socialist one party state", this from the Telegraph

[Jacob]

I mean, I don't discount that there could be a significant impact on rural areas with posh public schools. And just because it involves fancy schools doesn't mean the impact won't be significant for people who aren't rich...

... but comparing adding a tax on education for rich people to the pit closures and massive unemployment of the 80s is pretty rich 

[Sheilbh]

Yeah - I was also under the impression that the Daily Telegraph broadly thought Mrs Thatcher was a good thing. Perhaps they're re-evaluating.

[Tamas]

Re. panic in the right wing press. After the Mail's "socialist one party state", this from the Telegraph

OMG 

[Richard Hakluyt]

yes, its going to be that bad 

[Sheilbh]

We have another three weeks to go - I don't think this is as unhinged as they'll get.

[Josquius]

Re. panic in the right wing press. After the Mail's "socialist one party state", this from the Telegraph

The mail you say? ... So... They're.... In favour of it?

[Josquius]

Pretty shocking news to me. Then again given the state of all else.

But it seems GPs are struggling to find work.

BBC News - Unemployed doctors 'cannot pay their bills'
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crgg1wzpve2o

[Tamas]

Jonathan Pie on Farage, excellent as usual: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwIa70EDZjE

[Sheilbh]

He's really really not excellent. He's the left-liberal side of anti-politics, which is why his TV career started on Russia Today.

Bad enough the NYT gave him space (although that was part of a weird trend of the NYT printing very fringe views from the UK alternative media - as if the Times gave a column to someone from Chapo). But someone doing the exact same act, with exact same background would have people here (and on the NYT) saying it's Russian disinformation. I don't think it is but I think if we want others to have firewalls then we need to have some on our own side.

[Tamas]

He's really really not excellent. He's the left-liberal side of anti-politics, which is why his TV career started on Russia Today.

Bad enough the NYT gave him space (although that was part of a weird trend of the NYT printing very fringe views from the UK alternative media - as if the Times gave a column to someone from Chapo). But someone doing the exact same act, with exact same background would have people here (and on the NYT) saying it's Russian disinformation. I don't think it is but I think if we want others to have firewalls then we need to have some on our own side.

He hates on the Tories and Farage, is all I know.