Don't get me wrong, I think Paddick has been a very impressive mayoral candidate. He may not have the slickness of a career politician, but his interview performances have improved dramatically over the course of the campaign. His refusal to name a second choice was absolutely spot on. Quite why he's broken his silence now is beyond me.
But that's not the real problem. I suppose, now the polls are closed and the results are being counted, that Paddick's entitled to tell the media whom he cast his second preference for, that's his business. But a vote for Lindsey German? Is he mad, in a coma, or back in time?!
If Paddick had cast his second ballot for Ken or for Boris, I'd say fair enough. It may not be an appetising choice, but you've got to pick the least worst of the two. If he'd backed the Greens, he'd have thrown away a vote in a truly misguided fashion, but I could just about understand his decision. But what business does a Lib Dem have voting for a socialist, far-left, RESPECT candidate? A candidate who believes that economic freedom is the greatest threat to social justice? A candidate who supports Iraqi insurgents in their attacks on our own armed forces?
There should be a blacklist of parties that Lib Dems will never cooperate with, under any circumstances. The BNP and RESPECT (and its derivatives) should be on there without any question.
10 comments:
But Paddick is a loony-lefty, he made that clear enough in his tenure in Lambeth, and comments on anarchist websites. That the party courted him so assiduiouly then is quite an indicator of how badly we need a good talent-spotter in the party.
I'm not too well-up on his record in Lambeth, but I had a flick through his comments on the Urban75 forum, and if anything they're quite the opposite. From his posts there, he really does come across as a conviction liberal. (Alex Wilcock has a very good analysis of those comments.
To be honest, I can quite understand his voting Lindsey German. It's not a choice I would have made, but when you've just spent two months or so desperately trying to make anyone see you as viable next to a man who has come to the end of his natural political lifespan, and a clown, I can understand that a vote for either of them would seem stick in the craw.
Greens, maybe, but to be honest they're not a serious party. The left list at least had some substance. Maybe disagreeable substance, but...
Yon man justified his 2nd pref on the grounds German was the only non-homophobic candidate in the race. This being Lindsey German who dismissively referred to gay rights as a "shibboleth", and who until not very long ago was in an unholy coalition with some lovely people who, er, shall we say, don't have gay rights as a shibboleth, not by a long chalk.
Voting for a candidate solely on the basis of your sexuality, though? I thought Libs would have opposed Ken's pigeonhole and interest-group politics?
At least today we're all Londoners.
Good post. I too was shocked and am still disappointed.
I had a few visits to my blog linked to from the Urban 75 place the other day - wasn't sure what it was but it rang a bell. Only just recalled that I booked the band I used to manage in for a couple of gigs with them a while ago; now remember that at the time they were seemingly linked to some kind of anarcho-syndicalist bunch.
(excuse my crap prose, am typing quickly, need to stop blogging and have a remotely normal Saturday...)
For what it's worth, if you did the Vote Match test and answered with Lib Dem policies, the Left List came out 2nd to Brian as the best match.... strange times.
I didn't expect anything different, to be frank. I always suspected Paddick to be firmly planted on the far-left, masquerading as a centrist to get into office.
I'm not entirely sure I'd agree with that analysis Sam; I don't think Paddick was masquerading as anything. I think it's more down to shocking political stupidity/naïvety, rather than some sort of far-left conspiracy.
Right, so he's more of a dummy than a commie
Is it just possible that he decide that it hardly matters who else he voted for becasue its a wasted vote. He was quite open about saying that he didnt want either Ken OR Boris in so how could he chose between two people he equally didnt want in. I did almost the same thing and wasted my second vote on the basis that I didnt want Ken OR Boris and everyone else stood such a small chance of getting in i might as well use it as a protest vote.
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