The general election 2015 will be won by the BBC but, despite the best efforts of messrs Dimbleby, Paxman, Marr, Robinson and Peston.... they will fail to form a government.
UKIP Manifesto
- Thread starter tillson
- Start date
Foreign aid is not given to help any of the people of the countries it's given to, and that has never been the aim. Diplomats in all the main giving countries have admitted as such and any political academic will confirm that.
This aid originated during the cold war as a way of keeping countries on the side of the giver. That is still evident today of course, for example Saudi Arabia helped with US investment to develop it's oil industry is a friend of the West, Syria helped likewise by Russia, and why the west could not assist the Syrian rebels for fear of conflict with Russia.
A current example is the large amount of Chinese aid going into Africa, ostensibly to help the countries it's given to but in fact only to ensure that China gets preferential supplies of African minerals and oil.
The mechanism is simple. Politicians and others in power in the receiving countries either benefit directly from the "aid" or if they spend it on their people, get the benefit of showing how good they are as leaders. These ensure their loyalty to the country giving.
While political advantage is needed, aid will not be stopped, and the current worsening of relationships between the West and Russia ensures continuance.
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too true, in my perhaps jaundiced view there is such similarity between china propping up a regime in zimbabwe and the west doing the same in saudi arabia
A high percentage of so called British foreign aid is used as a disguised export incentive. It has to be used to buy goods from British companies and is in effect tied. That’s the main reason why successive British governments have supported it, and why the Tories - not known for caring too much about the third world poor - support it.
Most large western countries apply aid in the same way and their companies do well out of it.
However they dress themselves up with their manifesto, I still don't like the skewed attitude on immigration although I think the ebb and flow of immigration can be considered a problem for us in some ways.
I do however actually like watching him debate as he's one of the most entertaining of the lot. Cameron and Milliband are just puppets to me.
The real attraction for me are the women party leaders, as in er... well.. in a political way
. It's good to see some more variety in politics this time around.
Oh and i'm one of the ones that gave up on believing anything a party trying to get in power has to say. Once they're in, they usually get corrupted pretty quickly..
I do however actually like watching him debate as he's one of the most entertaining of the lot. Cameron and Milliband are just puppets to me.
The real attraction for me are the women party leaders, as in er... well.. in a political way
. It's good to see some more variety in politics this time around.Oh and i'm one of the ones that gave up on believing anything a party trying to get in power has to say. Once they're in, they usually get corrupted pretty quickly..
I do think that many people nowadays are voting to prevent outcomes they do not want rather than voting for ideas in which they really believe. I think with more explanation before the referendum, the AV voting system may have helped in this way. You would have been able to vote first for a smaller party with little hope of winning, then if that candidate failed to win have a second choice which your vote would be transferred to. This would make it more possible for new ideas / parties to take off, as the voter would not be risking 'letting in' the direct opposite of what he wished by supporting the small party.
Would apply for instance to the choice of Green vs Labour & equally to UKIP vs Conservative, & no doubt many others. Back in the 50s 95% of voters supported Lab or Con. This is now down to 60%, but the first past the post system does not really fit this new world. I also see the Scottish people as much more collectivist & Scandinavian than the English (I worked on big projects & lodged up there for some years). Ultimately I think they will wish to run their own show
Would apply for instance to the choice of Green vs Labour & equally to UKIP vs Conservative, & no doubt many others. Back in the 50s 95% of voters supported Lab or Con. This is now down to 60%, but the first past the post system does not really fit this new world. I also see the Scottish people as much more collectivist & Scandinavian than the English (I worked on big projects & lodged up there for some years). Ultimately I think they will wish to run their own show
I had a private bet on with someone that the pollsters were obviously wrong and that it would be an outright Conservative victory.
So I'm feeling smug about that, but politically it wasn't an outcome I wanted so feeling I'm downhearted as well.
I actually didn't want any of them, but the Conservatives least of all this time, given the threat to both our EU membership and the Human Rights Act.
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So I'm feeling smug about that, but politically it wasn't an outcome I wanted so feeling I'm downhearted as well.
I actually didn't want any of them, but the Conservatives least of all this time, given the threat to both our EU membership and the Human Rights Act.
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am with you on that - apart from EU referendum debacle and human rights act i work in the nhs where its increasingly a matter of picking up the pieces as social care is destroyed. It feels a step towards an increasingly fragmented, uncaring, frankly insane society.
Yes, but even if there had been a four sided box on the bottom of all the ballot slips dedicated to the "None of the above Party" they would have only come second this time round but they have done exceedingly well in the past
.The only good thing I can say for UKIP is that they have driven the BNP out of electoral existence.
Quote from the Independant
"The British National Party has received just 1,667 in the 2015 UK general election, a vast drop from 2010 when it garnered 563,743.
The far-right party fielded just eight candidates this election, securing zero MPs and being beaten by Cannabis Is Safer Than Alcohol and Monster Raving Loony Party.
It was the second least popular party ahead of Class War."
Quote from the Independant
"The British National Party has received just 1,667 in the 2015 UK general election, a vast drop from 2010 when it garnered 563,743.
The far-right party fielded just eight candidates this election, securing zero MPs and being beaten by Cannabis Is Safer Than Alcohol and Monster Raving Loony Party.
It was the second least popular party ahead of Class War."
Like Scotland with the SNP, once again London has shown itself to be a different country from the rest of the UK.
Here in London the Conservatives made only three gains from the Liberals and none from Labour, but Labour won seven Conservative seats to become easily the overall winner. And Labour nearly made it eight, missing that last one by just 165 votes. Overall Labour +7, Conservatives -4, an outcome the opposite of the rest of the Britain.
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Here in London the Conservatives made only three gains from the Liberals and none from Labour, but Labour won seven Conservative seats to become easily the overall winner. And Labour nearly made it eight, missing that last one by just 165 votes. Overall Labour +7, Conservatives -4, an outcome the opposite of the rest of the Britain.
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