Friday 15 January 2021

Referenda

 I've just finished the book 'Despised' by Paul Embery which sets out very clearly "Why the modern left loathes the working class."

He bases the book largely on his own experiences growing up on the Becontree estate in Barking and Dagenham, which was formed in 1963, this estate is the largest council estate in the UK. 

What happened in the first decade of this new century was that the Becontree estate changed beyond recognition as governments believed that:-

 "....today's working class really did desire the move to a more globalised world, in which such concepts as borders and national sovereignty were of diminished importance, traditional values - such as around family and patriotism - were obsolete, and liberal progressivism enjoyed hegemony. Well, some of them did, no doubt. But from where I was sitting, most seemed thoroughly ill at ease with such a proposition."  

 He goes on:-

"The people in these places cried out to those in power to heed their concerns. But for years these cries were unheard'"

Then we come to the 2016 referendum and the majority in Barking and Dagenham and many other areas, despite the prophecies of disaster, saw their chance to strike back against the political class and vote leave.

First, they saw the economic doomsayers as blatantly overhyping the situation. Second, predictions of economic meltdown had little resonance in their already depressed areas. Finally third, they saw it as the only opportunity they had in their life time to force the political elite to listen to them.

The referendum for these people clearly served a purpose. 

The majority of these people had also long held the view they wanted to leave the EU which explains why the Conservatives broke the 'Red Wall' in the 2019 election as the voters in these areas responded to the guarantee that 'Brexit would be done' unlike the muddle offered by the Labour party.

Those who argue that those that voted to leave did not fully understand the implications entirely miss the point that the vote was to leave and the people who voted such then expected the government to sort out a good deal. That our governments TCA is nearly as bad as a no deal is simply another indication of how incompetent our politcians are and how they have once again let down the people.

Our fourth demand sets out three areas where referenda, under certain qualifying conditions, can be called by the people and I believe the evidence from the 2016 EU referendum offers full justification as why this demand is so essential.

The reforms to our governance need to offer the people the ablity to call for a referendum - real democracy demands it.

  

    


7 comments:

  1. But 'they' don't know what is best for 'them'. Only 'we' know what is best because 'we' have the vision of a much fairer global world where fairness is ensured by by a global government.

    Superficially, it sounds good, but ignores both human nature and so many lessons of history.

    Churchill might have said: “The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.” I would add: "... but a better argument for it is realising that only the average voter can prevent arrogant incompetents staying in office for ever."

    Yes, more referendums, please. It would a) Hold the incompetents to account. b) Slowly make the electorate realise that democracy is in their hands. The result being an engaged electorate as opposed to what we have now.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You write about 'Despised' by Paul Embery and "Why the modern left loathes the working class.". Embrey comments as governments believed that:- "....today's working class really did desire the move to a more globalised world,

    This seems a very timely warning. I read today that Hilary Clinton tweeted “Congress needs to establish an investigative body like the 9/11 Commission to determine Trump’s ties to Putin so we can repair the damage to our national security and prevent a puppet from occupying the presidency ever again”.

    I was in the USA for the 2016 election. All the MSM were predicting a sweeping Democrat vistory, but as a friend said to me, on return from rural Pensylvania, that there were Trump posters everywhere. The "working class" knew that Trump intended to bring the jobs back that they had lost. Trump was/is a threat to "the modern left's" globalisation policies, whatever you think of him as a person.

    The importance of this to us was brought home by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen who on Tuesday called on the EU to "take the initiative" in building a renewed relationship with the United States once Donald Trump leaves the White House.

    The globalists are thrilled by a Democrat Presidency especially when they hear that there will be an immediate Executive Order to rejoin The Paris Climate Accord, that tool that gives globalists tremendous power over the people.

    "The reforms to our governance need to offer the people the ablity to call for a referendum - real democracy demands it." The globalists will fight tooth and nail against such an idea. Today, in the USA, the globalist "modern left's" weapons will be on full parade in Washington, praised by the EU, and totally missunderstood by what pases for government in the UK. Today the enemy will reached the ramparts, and we are too busy watching Netflix to have even noticed.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yes our governments will fight not to allow the people a getter say BUT if the people get behind something, as they did UKIP and the demands for a referendum on our EU membership, then anything is possible.

    ReplyDelete
  4. There needs to be a better way of doing referenda. The 2016 referendum settled nothing. It was a competition to see who could most effectively fool the public. It caused bitter divisions which fester on.

    ReplyDelete
  5. A simple answer is the more you have the better they get but of course they need more work on the procedures not least what threshold is needed to get a referendum and what is the pass mark.

    ReplyDelete