What have i been doing?
Well….
I have one of these! And boy is it sweet.
I’m loving Android so far. Especially since it integrates so nicely with social networks. Big plus for me. That and I’m proudly not an Apple user. Or should I say New Wave Apple users. You guys didn’t support them when they were good but looked bad. Support them vehemently now when they look good. Kinda silly that…
What else eh?
Well I’ve been reading and watching. And reading and watching and reading and watching POLITICS! The UK has been gripped by the general elections. And I set myself the task of reading all the manifestos of the parties who are fielding candidates in my constituency.
Their manifestos can be found here (in the order that I read them in):
Greens
UKIP
Labour
Lib Dems
Conservatives
I got quite worked up by a lot of my friends (and celebrities I admire) posting links, not about voting for their chosen party, but about not voting for another party. I have to say a lot quite unfairly directed at David Cameron. Not the Conservatives, but Cameron himself. And I’m not a Conservative. I haven’t made my mind up yet.
Sure I’d laugh any other time of the 5 years a government is in office (especially at the fantastic b3ta site), but it made me sad that they are going to base their votes on personality. Not one of them has mentioned any politics at all. Don’t get me wrong, I do the same myself to Gordon Brown. Don’t like him one bit. But at least I have read and seen what he has to say. (I watch the Daily Politics every day it is on, subscribe to Nick Robinson’s Twitter feed and read stories carefully aggregated by Google). At least I am open to hearing him out. You wouldn’t go into an exam without revising would you? You wouldn’t disregard an alternative view of science because you didn’t like the person who wrote it, would you? I feel that is worse than not voting.
The sad fact is that a lot of people will vote for their choice of party based on the tired old image of class they inherit from their parents. Rich people will predominately vote Tory, poor people will predominately vote Labour and trendy young people will vote Lib Dems. Let’s be a bit more scientific in choosing our government.
What made me slightly happier today was the realisation that out of all the manifestos I’ve read the same message (broadly speaking) comes through in all of them. Only a slightly different tone and ethos comes through between the main parties.
Which brings me to another point:
Why can’t I cherry pick the manifesto pledges that I like? Why can’t can’t I also cherry pick the politicians I like? Why can’t the politicians I like enact the policies I have chosen for the course of the government?
It is like fantasy football except with the politicians. Politicians will vie for a place in the House Of Commons based on their record and commitment whilst in and out of MP positions. The MPs will be chosen once a year to ensure the best MP stay in a job whilst the worst are kicked out. Policies will be chosen by weighting the quick voting of individual policy areas between the parties and a final subset of policies will be chosen based on the scores received. This will be called the MEGA MANIFESTO!! The people have chosen the policies and chosen the people they would like to carry out these policies.
Too complicated? Isn’t this the same game of fantasy football played out every day by thousands….. nay, millions! of Britons?
