If i could, i'd vote Lib-Dem.

Now i will not profess to knowing anything, about politics. Half the time i can't even spell the word.


But i agree with a lot the things that the Liberal Democrat's in the Britain talk about. And following tonights debate on Itv 1 i feel that Nick Clegg (Leader of the Lib-Dem's) came out on top.


I didn't see all of the debate, i saw about 50 minutes out of 90, but i agreed with a lot of his points.

There appears to be a lot of the same old crap sprouting from the two main political parties in mainland Britain. 2 parties that have been in power for large blocks of time for the past 25 years or more and for the most part dominate the British political landscape and it's policies, laws, legislature and foreign policy.



In the 1980s, the "old" Conservative's reigned supreme under the Thatcher-ite era. An era often portayed in the media, and my imagination, as being full of greed, right wing idea's and questionable action's (Sinking of the Belgrano in the Falklands war?). But in bed with Reagan (the American president at the time), and bad move's on behind the falling Iron curtain the cold war ended. And to some extent the west's capitalist's way's seemed to be winning.

Under John Major and America Under Bush, Russia slowly fell apart and the 1st Iraq war happened.

By 1997 Tony Blair, a young fresh faced "New Labour" PM came in. Offering a change, as most politicians do. What exactly i can't remember. It was the era of Brit-pop and so on, time's were good.

Sure Dianna Died, but there was a peace process in Northern Ireland and Britain had a shinny new future.

Fast forward to the next century and in their grumpy way the Brits weren't too happy with the waste and ridiculous state of their nation but they kept going. The Millennium Dome sat idle for years, a folly of false promises of large scale change. The real change in London was the Emergence of The financial Center's around the Bank of London and at Canary Wharf/ Isle of Dogs. (Former docklands left desolate thanks to Containerisation and the breaking of selfish unions under Thatcher)

Following 9/11 Tony Blair reinforced a special friendship with the American's, now under the Disputed and widely lampooned George W. Bush. Britain Followed America into Iraq in 2003, seeking rumoured Weapon's of Mass Destruction. British troops died in Basra and trained the local Authorities while the American's played Cowboys and Haji's elsewhere. In 2005 as plan's slowly formed for eventual British withdrawal from Iraq, they joined the fight in Afghanistan. (Swiftly invaded in 2001 to oust the Fundamentalist government that housed suspected terrorist leaders.)


Eventually after about 10 years Tony Blair stepped down, shortly into his 3rd Consecutive term, letting Gordon Brown, former Chancellor of the Exchequer (guy looking after the money and regulation and taxes etc).

Brown briefly had his honneymoon period then became a media pariah. Anger has followed him in the media  for at least 3 to 4 years. He didn't call an election a few years ago after the poll's dipped out of his favour, so he waited till the 5 year term was up, to see if he could be elected properly.

Several attempted "coups" and so on followed him in recent years. Even accusations of being a bully. And as the Finacial Crisis, the credit crunch, thar be hard time's, that recent hic-up in your pockets, set in he wasn't directly to blame. It wasn't in his hands any more.



Now the election. After YEARS, and probably far longer than i have meekly referenced. The British public have been guided and influenced by the same political ideologies. "Thatcher-ism" and "Blair-ite" thinking have led Bratain to where it is now. Of course this is both a good, bad, and neutral thing. But in many aspects the landscape of British polotics and representation need's changing.


With an unpopular war, a National Health Service, ageing Population, Increasing Unemployment, Economic Downturn/Depression/Recession (depending on the economist's you read, and the media fear-mongering you believe), MP's Expense's Scandal's, Public disillusionment with politics etc etc.


The Lib-Dem's are offering something Truely different for a change. But they can't do it alone. Unfortunatly despite wonderful Liberal idea's that i agree with, such as scrapping Britain's Nuclear weapons, cutting expense's and "waste" (without calling it waste) and so on and so forth. The Lib-Dem's sing a different tune, play on things from a different angle and are given less of a spotlight.

They have less of a spotlight because the British Electoral landscape is frankly so fucked up i have yet to even understand it. Apparently a large number of constituencies are so "certain" that they almost never change hands between parties. Only so called "marginal" area's are where political battle's of policies and personalities actually happen. And these can be few and far between.

What's worse is their form of Voting. I haven't the foggiest how it works, but it's not the same as here in Ireland where we effectively give everyone a vote and run through their successive round's of vote's until they have enough to be elected.

In Britain however, the person with the most, goes through, first, and that's about it. This pretty much shuts out big race's in lots of area's making any competition unappealing and pointless.

This also means that a party like the Lib-Dem's is far smaller than it's bigger rival's. With less chance's to branch out into other constituencies, their policies and ideal's rarely spread to all area's or aspects of the vast populous of mainland Britain, and for the most part England.

What makes this all more complicated is that Wale's, Scotland and Northern Ireland also elect some people into the "British" Parliament in Westminster.

Considering these partial Nations also have their own Assemblies and Parliaments, in various complicated form's. Northern Ireland's is currently sort of not actually sitting in a full capacity, but it still run's the place. The Scottish one run's a lot Scotland's affairs, and it's Westminster Representative's, Including Gordon Brown, apparently do something? Same with Wale's, i think? Oh and of Course, The Isle of Man, Isle of White, Channel Islands and other United Kingdom territories in Western Europe.

The Lib-Dem's, are on the scale of things Small. But they may be the key to deciding the shape of the Government formed in this coming election. And most likely stand to gain the most historically from this. If it's a very close race another election could be coming very soon. And slowly and surely i at least hope they gain more influence.

I may not have listed the policies, i may not even know them. But i feel that the Lib-Dem's are sort of better for Britain and wider world, than more Labour or even the "new" Conservatives.

I'd vote for them, if i could, and if they were even running a candidate in any hypothetical constituency i might live in....





Also, i apologise for this polico-centric rant. With few facts.