Election day today, and I'm shortly off to register my vote(s). I'm probably going to vote for Ken first and Brian Paddick second. I just can't really see myself voting for Boris Johnson, as I don't think I can take anyone who affects such an 'endearing buffoon schtick' seriously (I'm not entirely certain he doesn't have some kind of consultant on hand to artfully ruffle his hair, just so, before he leaves the house).
Looking at all his policies too, a lot of them seem to be quite reactionary, and not very well thought through. With regard to crime he proposes installing metal detectors at major transport hubs to detect knives and guns, and more police on public transport to prevent antisocial behaviour, neither of which I'd particularly want to see, as they both seem like classic examples of treating the symptoms rather than the cause, and indicative of the increasingly paranoid society we live in, where we're scared of ourselves and our kids.
On transport, well, I have to say, it still seems quite expensive and disorganised, but then I don't know what it was like before Ken came to power really, so don't have much to compare it to. Looking at his website, he does seem to have some positive statistics to back his policies up, and again, Boris's '21st century Routemaster' all sounds a bit fuzzy to me.
Mostly though, I'm hoping Boris loses so that the London Evening Standard will SHUT THE FUCK UP in its increasingly irritating front page campaign of alternately smearing Ken, and intimating that Boris's victory is almost a foregone conclusion. I hate that rag anyway, with its dreary celeb goss and regular, hysterical predictions of 'Travel Chaos' or 'Chaos Fears', every time it snows or there's a public holiday (worse if the two are combined).
I can sort of understand voter apathy though, or indeed why people might feel that it is 'time for a change'.
After that I'm off to get some cord for a poster I got framed, for the gallery who did it (who shall remain nameless) neglected to do it themselves... which is pretty crap really.
4 comments:
I did sort of the same, only in reverse. I agree with the Congestion Charge in principal, but think that the execution of it has been appalling and I've not seen any significant cheapening of, say, Tube fares as a result of it. So, not first vote for Ken from me.
I would have voted for Ken first JUST to keep Boris out, but I think that if people voted more honestly then the 3rd choice would have a better chance more often.
Well. I'm just about to go to bed. And they finally called it for Boris.
Yeah... a birching for Labour then.
Man... Boris though. Has it really come to this? Who next? Vernon Kay?
John McCririck? Richard Littlejohn? Steve Penk?
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