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The Un-credible Shrinking Man

Labour’s party political broadcast. Funny? Convincing? I’m not sure. There is a place for negative campaigning but only if used sparingly and with great caution. But at least answering these questions is a better use of focus groups than helping a political party make its policy. Let’s hope they did ask some real people outside the Leader’s office.

10 Comments

  1. PoundInYourPocket says:

    Given Clegg’s expertise at self-annihilation , was it really necessary to spend my donation on this ?

  2. James Martin says:

    First time I’ve seen this, but I actually thought it was good, been a long time since I’ve actually laughed at election broadcast – “can we hunt him?” Classic 🙂

  3. Kevin Mullins says:

    This was aimed at people who do not indulge in esoteric discussions it was designed to highlight how the Tories use and abuse to further their followers fortunes. It is always best to concentrate on policies but sometimes you have to highlight the character of the psychopaths who are implementing anti working class programmes

  4. David Pavett says:

    I agree with PoundInYourPockett.

    This sort of thing serves to hide Labour’s lack of clear policies, and also to hide the substantial where it is clear that despite differences of policy detail Labour thinking is substantially the same as that of the Tories.

    I found the broadcast embarrassing rather than funny. It seemed to me just another facet of Labour’s inability to present and discuss politics in an adult manner. Besides there would be plenty of scope for the Tories and the Lib-Dems to respond in kind. What a mind-numbing election that would prove to be!

  5. Syzygy says:

    What I liked about the ‘Spitting Image’ style was it projected a sense of the LP having confidence in itself. Like the ‘Now Show’, it assumed that the viewer would get the message and appreciate the stereotypes, but without bashing them over the head. There’s an awful lot of po-faced reactions from the left but I bet this video gets watched unlike the usual patronising fare.

  6. swatantra says:

    Its unlikely. Its not as good as that Clegg stitch up pastiche ‘I’m sorry … so sorry’.

  7. WHS says:

    The problem with this PPB is you have to already be bought into a very tribal (not necessary tribal-Labour, just tribal) mindset to go with it – that all Tories are very posh; really like sneering at their social inferiors like ‘Clagg’; can give themselves orgasms just by muttering under their breaths the sexiest words they know: ‘Margaret Thatcher’; only give a stuff about millionaires; and came into politics only to grind poor people under their heels.

    Well, that’s nice if you agree with it, but only very few people indeed bridle with completely unalloyed revulsion and horror at the mention of the word ‘Thatcher’, as if the 1980s was the equivalent of being locked in a cellar by Joseph Fritzl and they never wanted to think about it again.

    Most people are capable of greater nuance, and that I think is why this won’t hit many target voters.

  8. James Martin says:

    Some of you lot make me laugh. So if it is ‘negative’ to talk about class and the fact that the Tories are a party of the rich for the rich, what are you ever going to do when it comes to talking about and explaining socialism, wealth redistribution and nationalisation? Or wouldn’t you dare mention any of this in case it upset the Daily Mail?

    1. David Pavett says:

      I’m all for mentioning class, talking about socialism, wealth distribution and nationalisation. But that doesn’t make me like dealing with Tories through stereotypes. The problem is, or course, that if Labour’s leaders started to deal in an adult manner with what the Tories stand for they would find that to a large extent they would be talking about themselves. The jokey, stereotype tribalism is just a way of avoiding real politics.

  9. Kevin Mullins says:

    Without the support of Clegg these class enemies could not have perpetrated the crimes against the sick and disabled. Reorganised the law making it easy for the NHS to be privatised. To attack our firefighters’ pension scheme. Drive down workers rights and allow zero hours contracts to proliferate. In essence to continue the Thatcherite ideology of the 80s. They show all the attributes of psychopaths. Lacking in empathy and ruthless, manipulative, emotionally cold and expert liars. I think that was what the broadcast highlighted. I hope that future broadcasts will stress policies and how Labour will implement them.

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