To love Jeremy Corbyn and hope he wins

[derxa]

I'm not a Labour/Tory supporter but this man actually has principles.

I also think he's great. And I will also be voting for him. because, as a PP said, he best represents my views

We (the Labour Party) have tried beige. I want to stand behind someone I can believe in. I'm tired of being cynical and defeatist. I want to stand up for what I believe in, not what I hope will win people's votes. I'm angry enough with this government to want to stand up and be counted and I think Corbyn will help me do that, without selling my soul down the river

I live in Islington, but Emily Thornberry's Islington South & Finsbury constituency next door. He is hugely popular round here and an amazing constituency MP. Yes, he's left wing, but he's been proved right and ahead of his time (anti apartheid during the 1980s. He's an old fashioned social justice candidate. He also speaks his mind. Whether that makes Labour electable is another matter!!!

Some of the responses on this thread underline what I dislike about politics atm. I am quite passionate about politics and I like to have something to get behind. I like to vote with my heart. I like principles and beliefs and a clear stance. What I despise is this sneaking around, mumbling, passive aggression. The undermining of character, ageist and rude comments, the unfounded generalisations. So there are rumours of Tories joining Labour in order to elect an unelectable opposition leader? What of keeping their own house in order? Offering a message of hope and prosperity and success and fairness? Championing their own cause? Nope, all this sneaking around, arguing, bickering, sniffing about for perceived weaknesses.

We all seem to end up voting against something instead of for it.

I like Corbyn. I like what he represents. It's already started though. Somebody give him a fucking bacon sandwich and have done with it.

YANBU. I love him too. But then I loved Michael Foot Going to leadership hustings this weekend with an open mind ... I'm a fan of Yvette as well, but she's not been inspiring me lately and I'm not sure she'd be able to lead Labour to a win either ....

It's hardly ageist to point out that people aren't going to vote for a PM who in any other profession would have retired ten years ago.

"people aren't going to vote for" Corbyn.

Aren't they? I would. I think you'll find plenty of the people on this thread might.

The point is, you don't know what's going to happen. He might become leader and shake up the whole party, stepping aside for a younger leader in time for 2020. He might have all the vim and vigour needed to do it himself. He might be the greatest opposition leader of all time. The Lib Dems might reinvent themselves or the Greens or all of the left wing parties could work together and the face of politics could change. We simply don't know. We can can vote for what's on offer right now and do so according to our principles and beliefs.

Or you can make sweeping generalisations, decide there's no point, write off the bit of hope being offered and we'll all just give up now.

His age does not prevent him from giving it his all right now. Who the heck knows what will happen in five years. We have to do something right now and then react to what happens later, later.

I will be voting for a leader of the Labour Party for 2015. In an election, I'm not so foolish as to vote for a man. Or his age. Or his ability to eat a sandwich. Or his sexual history. Or his family.

I like what Jez has to offer right now.

His age shouldn't matter but it does. Look what Menzies Campbell had to put up with when he was Lib Dem leader.

I, on the other hand, will be voting for a leader I believe can persuade people to vote Labour in five years' time, because all the things we believe in like fairness and social justice and supporting the most vulnerable people in our society aren't worth a row of beans unless we start winning elections.

I do hate it when people blame the unions, Len, or anyone else for Ed. The Labour Party is their party. It's the party of organised workers (what's left of them). They can elect a penguin as its leader if they feel like it.

Saul Yes, exactly.

I, on the other hand, will be voting for a leader I believe can persuade people to vote Labour in five years' time
Thing is Amethyst, that's what I felt about Blair. He was a leader I thought would bring about the renaissance of the LP. I turned a blind eye to the stuff that made me uneasy about him and the direction that he was taking the party.

I'm really not prepared to do that again.

Why do you feel that way about Blair, Lizzy? Is it just because of Iraq? Because I absolutely believe we would have gone into that war under another party and/or another PM.

I felt that way about Blair too. I'm a socialist and always have been. When given the chance to vote during the Blair years, I voted Lib Dem. This was long before Iraq.

I vote for what I believe in and more importantly, what I think is best for society. Locally, for example, if I wanted to vote for what seems to be electable, I'd be voting UKIP. I can't do that. I can only vote for principles.

I like him but he isn't Prime Minister material as he doesn't have wide enough appeal.

SNP are NOT left wing (although Sturgeon is more so than Salmond.) They have succeeded in appealing to all parts of the political spectrum by exploiting a them v us mentality (English dominated Westminster v Scotland.)

I wasn't hannahhouse

And I'm surprised you pay that close attention to what individual posters were saying 3 months ago.

I live in corbyns constituency and have obviously followed his voting record Etc over the past 15 years I've also met him once or twice he is LOVELY

Probably not pm material tbh but he is a nice return to principled non career politicians so wish him well as he will be a refreshing voice

Most of the posters supporting Jeremy Corbyn where hammering Labour before the election, I notice.

Not me- I was quite disillusioned by them and have been for a number of years because they have presented themselves as no significant difference to that of the Conservative party.

As someone up thread has already stated- Corbyn may not be the 'ideal' PM in 2020- but if he responsible for stirring up a new Socialist movement, one that is seen as a credible Oppositional party, challenges the policies of a Tory Govt that seems hell bent on shitting on vulnerable people, then as leader of the Labour party he will have gained a great deal.

I have heard many people who voted Tory in the 2015 say that they regret their vote. They feel that the Tory party has hoodwinked them and lied. Whether or not they vote Labour in 2020 I dont know- but they are less votes for the Tories.
There does seem to be a lot of interest shown towards Corbyn in the media and on social media. A lot of this is from younger people- these are where the 'new votes' will come from.

I remember 1997 being the first time that I could vote. I was passionate about my Labour vote. I was 19 years old. I didnt realise at the time that I was voting for 'New Labour'. In hindsight now when I look back I was perhaps more of a Liberal Democrat. I had lived my entire life up until that point under a Tory Govt and the desire for 'change' was palpable.
People are naive if they believe that a choice of Corbyn as a leader of the Labour party will be a death knell for Labour. I see him him as really re-igniting people to make decisions more based on their principles as opposed to what Murdochs rags are feeding to them.

Most people don't have those principles, though, Emma. Look what the Tories did in the past five years, even with the Lib Dems ameliorating the worst of it: there was reams of negative coverage in the press over the bedroom tax, the NHS, the increase in VAT and so on - and STILL people voted Tory again, because they believed Labour would fuck the economy, and didn't consider the issues Labour was campaigning on to be relevant to them. People vote out of self-interest, not altruism. Even the young.

Jeremy Corbyn seems like a thoroughly decent man, but a vote for him as leader is a vote for another ten years of Tory government during which the poor will be hit even harder. If that's what people want for the sake of principle, fine - it just seems bonkers to me. Almost masochistic.

I know deep down you are right Amethyst

I have my rose tinted glasses on I think

Half the problem with Labour people is that right now they'd rather be pure and holy than in power. After all in some ways its easier than actually being in government and facing hard truths. The Tories won fair and square but they just stick their fingers in their ears and sing la-la-la we're not listening. I dread the idea of George Osborne being the next Prime Minister but it looks like he'll be in for a decade at this rate.

cruikshank the SNP are chameleons who pick a bit from the left and and a bit from the right and do whatever suits them at the time. if you actually look at their policies and history they go all over the place on the spectrum

I have heard many people who voted Tory in the 2015 say that they regret their vote. They feel that the Tory party has hoodwinked them and lied.

This is really quite odd... I can't think of anything they've done so far that's not what they promised to do... The welfare cuts weren't spelt out in detail but the size of them was hardly a secret! If anything, the Tories have softened their position since the election, with their living wage and doubling the period in which welfare changes were to be made. What planet were these people on?

I don't want politicians to be 'authentic' whatever that means I want them to be good at politics and getting the right thing done. whatever you think of blair he was certainly that. it's funny how people say they want politicians to be 'authentic' but as soon as they do something 'authentic' like screw up their personal lives or change their minds (U-turn!) its a different story.

What planet were these people on?

The made-up planet of non-existence

The Tories won fair and square

Oh yes, sure. The care cap for the elderly which was promised for 2016 in their manifesto has just been postponed to 2020.