Gransnet forums

News & politics

Voting for Jeremy Corbyn - the political equivalent of buying a Harley Davidson

(705 Posts)
kittylester Sun 17-Sept-17 18:18:55

A quote from an article by Nick Cohen in Saturday's (I think) Guardian

My phone isn't letting me do links - sorry! But try googling it if you are interested.

lemongrove Tue 19-Sept-17 14:38:18

Smileless2012 it would appear not to be the case, regarding your first sentence, as the man could jump into a sewer and come up smelling sweet, according to the way many view him.
Holding up the example of Cuba being wonderful, well, that's beyond bizarre, the people have had no choices there except hard ones, and according to friends who visited, it was somewhat of a dump.Communism only brings prosperity to the ruling elite.

Smileless2012 Tue 19-Sept-17 14:51:35

Yes, it'sconfusedisn't it lemongrove when the supporters of Corbyn accuse TM and her party of only bringing prosperity to the wealthy and ruling elite.

maryeliza54 Tue 19-Sept-17 14:52:45

Of course, life in Cuba before the revolution was very heaven

Anniebach Tue 19-Sept-17 14:57:32

And it certaintly isn't heaven now

Ilovecheese Tue 19-Sept-17 15:06:26

I support the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership.
I am not a member of Momentum.
I am not a Communist.
I am not a "Corbinyster". No politician is without any faults.
Tony Blair did some good work buy was to much in thrall to George W Bush and the Daily Mail, in my opinion.
Bringing back the minimum wage was good, and did not hurt the economy.
Sure Start centres were a very good idea. etc.
I left the labour Party when they moved too far to the right for my liking.
I returned to the Labour Party under the new, more left wing agenda.
Nick Cohen has a bee in his bonnet about Jeremy Corbyn, I don't know if anyone read his piece just before the election when he told Corbyn supporters to "for f**ks same change your f**king minds" because he thought voting for Corbyn would lose votes for the party. When it didn't lose votes, but gained them, it was as if he had to find another reason.
It is a pity that he seems so negative and bitter because he can write well, the remark about the Harley Davidson was quite witty. Although I'm not sure owners of Harley Davidsons would appreciate it.

trisher Tue 19-Sept-17 15:13:21

No one has said Cuba is "wonderful" lemongrove perhaps you could read posts properly. Cuba has its problems, not the least of which is the shortage of everything. So it is interesting to ask how can it maintain such a high level of literacy? how can it provide medical aid to many other countries ?(Haiti being just one example), how does it have such a large number of doctors ?

Anniebach Tue 19-Sept-17 15:13:51

Surely supporting Corbyn means no problem with him inviting IRA leaders to Westminster just weeks after the Brighton bombing , no regard for those who were mourning, if it was to talk peace ,as some claim, surely he chose the wrong time and place

trisher Tue 19-Sept-17 15:15:16

Ilovecheese it isn't even Nik Cohen's saying, he pinched it.
"Elderly radicals may have “turned to Corbyn as the political equivalent of buying a Harley”, as Professor Colin Talbot nicely put it. "
So not even that to recommend him

Ilovecheese Tue 19-Sept-17 15:16:29

Perhaps I also need to add that I don't support the IRA either, just to make that clear.

dbDB77 Tue 19-Sept-17 17:08:09

One of the reasons that Cuba can afford to have a large number of doctors is because the wage differentials are not as marked as in the UK and other western countries. In Cuba a doctor earns about twice the average salary whereas in the UK a GP earns about 4 times the average salary.
Cuba provides medical workers to other countries in return for payment and in the case of Venezuela for oil - though with the major problems in that country the oil supply has reduced so Cuba has introduced fuel rationing.

maryeliza54 Tue 19-Sept-17 17:11:59

So supporting someone means agreeing with everything they say or do? Who knew?

petra Tue 19-Sept-17 17:25:47

North Korea supply workers to other countries, 40 in fact.
Now what do these two countries have in common?
They both have rulers who live off the fat.

lemongrove Tue 19-Sept-17 17:29:30

Thank you dbDB77 for that information, perhaps some people thought the doctors helped with medical aid free of charge? They don't!

kittylester Tue 19-Sept-17 17:32:04

Crumbs! I've been to Ambleside and everyone here has been to Cuba and back.

I can't be bothered to go into all the back and forth.

It seems to me that some posters think it is unacceptable to think differently from them - that is the sort of totalitarianism that Momentum spouts. It isn't unacceptable. It's all about respect for other people's opinions.

I am a tad to the right of centre not someone who is to be discounted. I'm quite nice really, I pay my taxes, I look out for my family, I volunteer and I care about my community and country. Annie is quite a bit to the left of me and is perfectly entitled to be so but I'm sure she has all the 'qualities' I do.

FGS!

lemongrove Tue 19-Sept-17 17:37:19

?Kittylester in any case, Ambleside is much nicer than Cuba.

Anniebach Tue 19-Sept-17 17:37:33

Thank you kitty, critcism of Corbyn is not permitted by the far left. I do share those qualities with you.

durhamjen Tue 19-Sept-17 17:39:15

How do you know so much about Momentum, kitty?

maryeliza54 Tue 19-Sept-17 17:43:59

Hands up all you nasty far lefties who don't pay their taxes, don't look out for their families, don't volunteer and don't care about their community or country. Or maybe you haven't got a trumpet or superiority complex?

Maggiemaybe Tue 19-Sept-17 17:46:01

I went on a tour of Cuba a few years ago. No, it's far from a perfect society and there is poverty. On the other hand, no one is unemployed, the health service puts ours to shame, and education is free to the highest level, which explains why we met some interesting and cultured people. And we didn't see anyone begging or sleeping on the streets, not until we got home anyway.

Shit tip it most certainly is not. What a hideous and disrespectful way to describe any society.

GracesGranMK2 Tue 19-Sept-17 17:58:43

This has become another threads that is not about the OP but all about one poster's poor me self pity ... yet again hmm

kittylester Tue 19-Sept-17 18:05:12

Because, although I might be slightly to the right, I'm not stupid, unable to read or live in a flipping bubble!!!

maryeliza confused - did I mention any thing about what the hard left do, don't do?

And superiority complex and trumpets are entirely fitting for your post!

maryeliza54 Tue 19-Sept-17 18:09:14

So who are you saying is stupid, unable to read and lives in a bubble?

trisher Tue 19-Sept-17 18:09:57

The countries only contribute if they are able to afford to do so. Medical aid to Haiti has never been charged for because they are so poor (much poorer than Cuba)

kittylester Tue 19-Sept-17 18:12:33

maryeliza - stop looking for trouble.

In answer to DJen, I said I wasn't and was therefore capable of working out Momentum not that anyone else was - as you very well know.

maryeliza54 Tue 19-Sept-17 18:19:23

No I didn't know that -when people post about their virtues and what they are not, there can be an implication that others are not like that.