Election Fever

Image by flockine from Pixabay

2015, 2017 and now again in 2019. Yes, we are off to the polls once more. Election Fever: where the nation is divided between those with raised temperatures and those suffering from a general malaise. So much for the Fixed Term Parliament Act; it's proving as effective as a flu jab when it fails to protect against the prevalent strains of the virus that appear in a particular year.

Remember Brenda from Bristol? We are all now Brenda. Borrow from Spartacus and just say it: "I am Brenda."

This time around it looks as though the captivating adverts from the major retailers as part of the mass marketing of Christmas are going to compete with party political broadcasts. Grief, I'd rather watch It's A Wonderful Life for the 38th time; I wonder if the broadcasters can be persuaded to bring forward its seasonal continuous loop, just to oblige me? Let me cry over a genuine heart wrenching fantasy rather than this tear jerking nonsense. 

Here we are coming up to the time for  joy and goodwill, and video propaganda is about to be beamed into our homes unrelentingly for the next 6 weeks. Whatever did we do to deserve it? Oh, of course, that silly referendum almost three and a half years ago when more than half of those who turned out to vote decided to spite the then Prime Minister and his Project Fear by daring the Government to take us out of the EU. 

Despite regular polls demonstrating that the majority of the electorate has now changed its mind (who wouldn't when they can see the shambles that is being created and money lost, I read £6 billion to date and rising), we are to be denied a second referendum at this stage. Instead we are getting the booby prize of  a First Past the Post General Election.

In my constituency where the present incumbent is a no deal Brexiteer with the historic benefit  of a 60% vote share, he's hardly likely to be displaced. Like millions of people across the country, I am effectively disenfranchised. Not that this will prevent me from exercising my democratic right to cast a vote. Solidarity with the suffragettes who campaigned relentlessly for me to have a meaningless say, but 100 years later, with more and more political parties joining the fray, it has to be time for a change in our electoral system that has only ever worked for two horse races.

By all accounts the pre-campaign electioneering for the two major parties hasn't even got off to a great start.

Mr Johnson was allegedly booed on a hospital visit and a criminal file has reputedly been passed from the Metropolitan Police to the Criminal Prosecution Service concerning the actions of Vote Leave which was his pro-Brexit campaign. Hardly surprising for the purveyor of false claims, misleading statistics and blatant lies, all designed to keep a disintegrating party with an extremely dubious ideology alive for the benefit of a wealthy cabal. No wonder so many liberal Conservative MPs have either been expelled or are taking this opportunity to stand down (Christmas has actually managed to come early for some), with various high profile members announcing their intention to switch allegiance and vote LibDem.

Mr Corbyn made another of his "For the Many, not the Few" speeches to an audience of the faithful. The problem is that when you live in a country gradually losing its spirit of welfare and community  in apparent preference for the culture of "Me, Me, Me," how many are interested or even identify with his portrayal of the downtrodden many? All of which is before we get onto his performance as leader and his party's ambivalent Brexit stance.

We are constantly told that nobody votes to be worse off, although Brexit and a Tory victory at this election might yet be the exception that proves the rule. This year the risk of turkeys voting for Chirstmas is definitely a seasonal turn.

Mr Corbyn has described this election as "a once in a generation opportunity to change the country." However if, after working hard for your money, you are motivated by the prospect of buying a bigger house, driving a bigger car, taking a luxury holiday  are you able to comprehend, let alone contemplate, the impact of institutional transformation? More so, when the offer comes from somebody you have been manipulated by the media to perceive as a Marxist threat.

The distinction between the populist right under Mr Johnson and the momentum of the hard left under Mr Corbyn seems to lie in the politics of greed and wealth, with each undoubtedly about to play to their extreme audiences totally missing the mass of moderate voters who still identify with the shrinking centre ground of British politics.

Polls show that statistically the young are more likely to support the politics of the left whilst over 50's (myself excluded) are more inclined to vote Conservative and that currently Mr Johnson's support is such that he could actually snatch victory from his string of defeats and emerge from the election with a sizeable majority. Whatever is wrong with my country if that is the case?  Do I really have to endure canvassers at the door instead of carol singers and election leaflets through my letterbox as well as Christmas cards, only to be further punished by the most extreme right wing Government we've probably ever known?

My generation in retirement has to assert itself. Forget the statistics, it is time for our quiet but forceful revolution. We are already seizing the opportunity to downsize, declutter, repair and re-use, whilst turning our back on consumerism and accumulation. We are giving back to society by volunteering. We are learning to live in harmony with nature, respectful of the environment and showing concern for the planet. We do travel but seek to do so slowly where possible and with a limited carbon footprint. We are pioneers of a new social contract and conscience where success is no longer judged with reference to material worth and possessions. What on earth do we have in common with the ultra rightwingers seeking to play poker with the future of our country? 

It is up to us to spread the word that going forward in the 21st century we want our country to be united in kindness and tolerance once again, with values that encourage mediation and resolution whilst decrying falsehoods and manipulation. If those younger than us are on board, why not all the over 50's?

Mr Johnson may not, as promised, be dead in a ditch, Mark Francois has failed to implode and there have been no signs of the reputed civil unrest that we were told would follow our failure to leave the EU on October 31st. In fact it has been reported that there was a complete no-show at an event organised for Doncaster today.

So let's be done with Brexit, find a way through this messy election, recognising and calling out  the blatant lies of political convenience when we see them. This year it really is Xmas and not Christmas. If the worst happens and we can't heal society through the ballot box then let's make sure we do so anyway with our words and deeds. If the end result can, however, get rid of all those blue turnips from the shire counties, I for one shall be eternally grateful.