SomeDude

Good post indeed, but just wanted to add that this is not a "new" thing (not that you said it was).

The voting game is seldom linked to "rational" behaviour IMHO, people look at distinguishing features and that can be a white hat, or cuddling children, or being a good speaker. I guess the US elections make that very clear (I just finished reading Walter Cronkite's bio which is excellent BTW).

More or less back on topic, it just seems (perception) that John Major lacked those features, and my perception was based on how he was portrayed at the time in our media ("grey") and how he never gets mentioned in the discussions on here. I was not trying to say he was not a "good" PM.

TelBoy

It's all Spitting Image's fault!!

the moose

TV is the key now, and I was trying to make the point that Labour, having signally failed with Michael Foot, and almost succeeded with Kinnock, finally pulled it off, televisually, with Blair.

The Tories just don't seem to get it - had they had the nous to get Portillo in as leader, there's a very good chance they'd be pushing for a win next time around. As it is, they've elected a makeweight leader, and are hoping that someone (Letwin?) will be ready next time around - they've already written their own chances off internally for the upcoming elections.

unclebuck

It is a good post. Tells it pretty much as it was. The same could not be said of some of the sycophantic replys.

"When you wake up to the fact
That your paper is Tory
Just remember, there are two sides to every story".

I didn't know there were Tory newspapers in Shakespere's time. lol.

Faire D'Income

This is what I was alluding to earlier. He was a very good politician but he refused to sign up to the modern day ethic of politicians. No voice coaching, no body language courses and it certainly showed causing his perceived lack of charisma to be labelled Grey.

It's interesting how Labour and the Conservatives have almost swapped roles entirely. If you go back to the early '90s the Tories were becoming embroiled in sleaze, a fair chunk of their policies were failing to gain support and the media was out for their blood. Labour on the other hand had an outdated leadership that was entrenched in unworkable doctrine which allowed the Tories to get in power (yet again) despite their best efforts to screw it up. Swap Labour for Tory and fast forward a decade and things haven't changed much.

The pity of it all, is that the opposition party in both cases completely fails to be just that - an effective opposition party.

SomeDude

TV is key, absolutely.

If I may quote Cronkite:


"Those 1952 conventions were not only the first but also the last time the American public would have such an opportunity to see our great political conclaves in pure, indiluted form. By 1956 the parties had begun to sanitize their proceedings. In time, platform and credential hearings were moved farther from the convention (both in time and geography), in part, it can be assumed, to discourage television coverage.

The list of speakers was limited and carefully screened "to avoid confusion", we were informed; delegates were even told what they should wear and how to behave so as to present a more dignified appearance"

Senior_AP

Neil Kinnock was hysterical on that.

OllyK

Shame Hessletine never made to PM

Senior_AP

You sound like my mum. She liked him alot, he came close when it was him, Major and Douggy boy Hurd back in 1990 (or was it 91) ??

Suresh

Thanks for that.

SomeDude

I often read over here that part of the problem is that the UK (and US) effectively have a 2 party system (OK, I know there are others, but they never get to power).

I'm not sure if that is true, and I surely don't want to pretend the political system in my country is better (hum), but it's a different ballgame when parties need to form coalitions - and make compromises.

That means that parties are never "out of power" for a long time and have to behave differently I guess. And are kept in check by their coalition partners.

OllyK

He was very charismatic, no real resons for saying he should have got in other than "I kinda liked the guy", suppose the a lot of voters voted for the grinning idiot for similar reasons. I thought he had to pull out due to heark problems, could be wrong there.??