Labour leadership

[Smokeandsteam]

I What the Corbyn camp thinks is neither here nor there to me.

Good for you. Except that's what my original comment was about - how this would be received by the JC camp, how they would perceive/use this, what is happening to the trajectory of debate. It was not 'will Andy Burnham renationalise the railways or is he bullshitting'. FFS

 

[teqniq]

Well that wasn't exactly clear.

 

[DotCommunist]

and the answer was that I think they'll see it as transparent politicking and not believe he will follow through

 

[DotCommunist]

because how thick do you have to be to believe he'd back that one up?

 

[agricola]

I'll do it for him

"Yes, during the Labour leadership campaign I did pledge to renationalise the railways however after looking into the issue further we realised that we might be in breach of EU competition law and the last thing we want to do is put at risk our membership of the EU thereby jeopardising hard working British families"

You left out "... though of course the public sector can make an bid to run a franchise, though we won't be funding it and we will make damned sure no-one else can"

 

[cantsin]

apols if already posted, but feel a bit stupid not being aware of the extent of Lord Sainsbury funding of Progress - shocking stuff .

https://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-7dd3-Who-are-the-real-entryists#.VcJGY_lVikq

 

[teqniq]

I didn't know till i read that.

 

[Jeff Robinson]

What singularly fails to get mentioned on all the op-ed pieces that get written about Kendell is how incredibly dim she seems to be. I've never seen her have an answer for anything. Instead, she gets caught in terrible fallacious logic and obvious nonsense. Not big-lie nonsense like Gideon, Ham-face or Balls come out with, which can be argued with but they have some skill in defending. But nonsense on stilts that a two year-old would see through.

She might be a terrible Tory but, frankly, the rank stupidity she exhibits is worse.

I'm incredibly grateful for her stupidity.

 

[killer b]

I thought Sainsbury had jumped ship to the tories?

 

[ViolentPanda]

I thought Sainsbury had jumped ship to the tories?

Only to the red Tories.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

Good for you. Except that's what my original comment was about - how this would be received by the JC camp, how they would perceive/use this, what is happening to the trajectory of debate. It was not 'will Andy Burnham renationalise the railways or is he bullshitting'. FFS

Isn't the best way to use that simply to welcome it? They're in the same party and supposedly on the same side, after all.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

I'm incredibly grateful for her stupidity.

Why?

For me, she represents something far larger, the stupidity of Harman and Milliband before her. A mix of stupidity and moral cowardice. The mix varies by candidate, but the result is the same.

 

[taffboy gwyrdd]

https://bilgewatch.wordpress.com/2015/08/06/labour-leadership-alleged-green-entry-ism/

 

[Kaka Tim]

Burnham making noises about renationalising the railways and making leftish comments - looks like hes trying to get camp Corbyn's second preferences. I suspect this will work to an extent.

 

[killer b]

He isn't after Corbyn's second preferences - if Corbyn is one of the last two then they won't count. He's after the first preferences of people who might be tempted to vote for Corbyn.

 

[laptop]

Isn't the best way to use that simply to welcome it? They're in the same party and supposedly on the same side, after all.

Welcome, with a soupçon of sarcasm, yes. Can they work the word "belated" into the statement?

 

[JTG]

He isn't after Corbyn's second preferences - if Corbyn is one of the last two then they won't count. He's after the first preferences of people who might be tempted to vote for Corbyn.

Strikes me that if that 43% figure is anywhere near accurate then he'll need them. If JC scores that highly on first preferences then he'll only need a tiny number of transfers to win. So Burnham needs to take first prefs directly from him

 

[mauvais]

That raving mouthpiece of the loony left has something nice to say about Corbyn's economic policies today.

http://ftalphaville.ft.com/2015/08/06/2136475/corbyns-peoples-qe-could-actually-be-a-decent-idea/ (may require registration, is free)

 

[teqniq]

With plans like these I can't see him getting anywhere near the levers of power, but hooray for saying it anyway.

Corbyn to set out plans for UK nuclear disarmament 70 years after Hiroshima

Labour leadership hopeful Jeremy Corbyn will use the 70th anniversary of the dropping of the atom bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima to set out his plan for nuclear disarmament in the UK.

Speaking at a Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament commemorative event in London on Thursday, Corbyn will say that if he were prime minster he would not replace the Trident nuclear weapons system and would transition away from nuclear weapons entirely.

In a document entitled Plan for Defence Diversification, Corbyn sets out a strategy to protect the jobs and skills of those who work on Trident, and in the defence sector more widely, by investing in “socially productive” hi-tech industry and infrastructure projects.

The bit in bold is something I have long thought would be a really good idea.

 

[weltweit]

.. The bit in bold is something I have long thought would be a really good idea.

I am happy to give up nuclear weapons, when Russia, North Korea, Iran and China give up theirs!

 

[teqniq]

Someone's got to start somewhere

 

[weltweit]

Someone's got to start somewhere

All together now !!

 

[Lo Siento.]

I am happy to give up nuclear weapons, when Russia, North Korea, Iran and China give up theirs!

For what eventuality?

 

[JTG]

I am happy to give up nuclear weapons, when Russia, North Korea, Iran and China give up theirs!

Yeah, cos our nukes definitely deter all of theirs

 

[weltweit]

And let's not forget the USA should give up theirs at the same time, after all being the only country in the history of nuclear weapons to have used them against civilian targets!

eta: and France and Israel (like that will happen anytime soon!)

 

[weltweit]

For what eventuality?

Sorry, I don't follow?

 

[Lo Siento.]

Sorry, I don't follow?

When do you imagine that having nuclear weapons would be useful in our interactions with those states?

 

[Kaka Tim]

He isn't after Corbyn's second preferences - if Corbyn is one of the last two then they won't count. He's after the first preferences of people who might be tempted to vote for Corbyn.

ah yes - your right. If Corbyn comes first in first preferences - which looks quite likely - his 2nd preference votes dont count.
There will be more pressure on Kendall to drop out the race I guess - that would probably ensue copper or burnham have enough on 2nd prefs to stop JC.

 

[weltweit]

When do you imagine that having nuclear weapons would be useful in our interactions with those states?

It is very difficult to accurately predict the future, except that the short term includes that Israel has attained nuclear weapons, North Korea likewise and Iran has been trying to obtain nuclear weapons, an ambition which seems at the moment to have been headed off. The knowledge of how to develop nuclear weapons is now known which means others may also attempt to attain them in the future.

To leave Europe with France as the only nuclear power would leave our reliance on the USA much greater in order to maintain a balance and deterrent against Russia.

And one should not discount the deterrent effect of nuclear weapons on conventional warfare. If Russia (or an other) were to amass a conventional force of tanks in order to invade western Europe (or anywhere) that army would be very vulnerable to being wiped out by a battlefield nuclear strike.

It is tempting to say, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Austria, etc etc don't have nuclear weapons, and they are not exactly quaking in their boots about unnamed foreign invaders, and it is a good point, but were we to discontinue our program I think we would be the first country to have had nuclear weapons and to have ceased having them.

 

[J Ed]

I am happy to give up nuclear weapons, when Russia, North Korea, Iran and China give up theirs!

Yep, gotta keep those nukes otherwise we'll have Hezbollah at Dover in the morning