To not understand how you can vote Tory after watching this

[Kimonolady]

Not trying to be goady. Not trying to start a fight.
This video truly shocked me to the core and I actually found it hard to finish.
If you're planning on voting Conservative - has this video given you pause for thought? Is there a way you can explain your choice in light of it? Genuinely curious.
Video is at the top of the page (article worth reading too.)
www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/may/30/disabled-readers-austerity-disability-cuts

FreeNikki, I think Blair has been the worst of the lot, a smiling liar who did so much damage and exactly as you said. How can it be legal to say things to get voted in and then volte face like that?

MacarenaFerreiro I would strongly encourage you to watch the video, if only because it would make our dialogue here more productive, but also because I'm genuinely interested in your views on it.
I completely agree that journalists pick extreme examples rather than the "norm" as you said, but my issue is that the life shown in the video is so shocking to me that even if it's an isolated case, that's truly unacceptable. Even one woman living like that without support is appalling.

noblegirafe... I know. I think people must have just not understood how good it could be for this country or what it even was. It's not like the politicians are going to be upfront about it because you say, they don't want it.

The lying that goes on is criminal, nothing less.

FreeNikki, I think Blair has been the worst of the lot, a smiling liar who did so much damage and exactly as you said. How can it be legal to say things to get voted in and then volte face like that?

Quite. JC is seen as the angel as he has not yet been tested. Who bloody knows what he is really going to do just like Blair. People have such short memories. Blair started the whole privatisation of the NHS too.

I think a Conservative voter would watch that video and blame the last Labour government for leaving the country in a financial pickle. (that's not what I believe). It's the stock Tory response any time anyone questions the ruthless cuts that are being made.

Kimonolady... Who then? Which party is best able to deliver what the UK wants and needs?

This has really turned into a thread that's just attacking the other side, whoever that "other side" is to you, and that's really not what I wanted or intended.
If you have watched the video and have thoughts you'd like to share, I'd like to hear them. That's all.
Thanks babybarrister for your response.

"JC is seen as the angel as he has not yet been tested"

He's been tested many times - his voting record is there for anyone to see. He's hardly in the same boat as Blair. He's a socialist. Blair was a centrist.

In terms of bias, I don't think people mean it's made-up, but more that out of millions of people the Guardian have hand selected 3 tragic stories to prove their point.

I get that, I do - and maybe there are many vulnerable people whose lives have improved under Tory rule. But why aren't there articles about them if that's the case? I have only read horror stories from many different sources. Happy to be shown otherwise though

mummabear: "Everyone who needs help should get it."

I am guessing you have never had to go through the unbelievable stress and indignity of trying to claim ESA or PIP then. Repeating yourself ad nauseam for 40-70 pages of forms to send to the DWP. Trying to prove how much pain you're in. Dealing with a system that is designed to cut your benefits regardless of how many years you were able to work before you became ill. Transferring from DLA to PIP to be one of the 51,000 people so far to have your (NOT FREE) Motability car taken away because of mobility rule changes.

And for those people thinking they are safer under the Tories? Just ask your local PCC how many frontline Police Officers your force has lost since the Tories came to power. Despite promising that their budget cuts would not affect frontline numbers, every force has lost PCs and Sergeants.

The Tories' austerity measures are simple - they target those already struggling and those who cannot fight back. Disabled, ill, public sector workers, especially Police who cannot strike and who have no union. The budget cuts to Police forces are horrifying. Actually horrifying, with no plans to reduce or stop the cuts.

So as lovely as it must be to think that "everyone who needs help should get it", not only does this simply NOT happen under the Tories, many of whom have an actual inhumane attitude to disabled people, things will get worse if the Conservatives win.

As a final point, hasn't the debt actually increased under the Tories? Which makes me wonder what has austerity done, other than penalise the poor?

Did you honestly expect it to go any other way? If you did then you are clearly unused to the political nuances prior to an election on here.

There is no such thing as balanced political discussion on MN

Those videos were shocking, and deeply disturbing.
Frankly I would cut my hand off before I would ever vote Tory!

JC has not been tested. He has never been prime minister. Who knows what he will really do.

LyingWitchInTheWardrobe I wish I knew the answer to that question.
I'm certainly not a die hard Labourite, as a lot of posters seem to believe!
I'm struggling, and have seriously thought about spoiling my ballot but just can't bring myself to "waste" a vote like that. I live in a marginal seat, so my vote will have an impact, and I feel a responsibility to use it wisely.
In my line of work I see a lot of people who have been affected by Tory cuts, and that's had a big impact on me. I don't feel I can vote conservative for that reason. But I just despair that there's no real valid opposition.

That socialism post was made about Obama back in 2012.

Clearly never happened!

It's also one of the worst analogies I've ever heard.

Has anybody actually answered OP's question yet? By the way, OP never said she was a labour or Corbyn supporter. So let's stop with the partisan deflection tactics.

LiviaDrusillaAugusta We can live in hope, eh?
In all seriousness, my social circle are all very left-leaning, and I'm aware that I'm living in an echo chamber. There are a fair few Tory voters on MN, certainly FAR more than I know in my real life, and so this is really the only way I can understand those views better.
Since you've posted on here a fair few times, would you mind saying what issues have been at the forefront of your mind during this election? Is it mostly the economy, education, defence, etc?

I think that we are all susceptible to confirmatory bias where we all seek out evidence to shore up opinions which we already hold

I agree with that. Which is why people say how did we get the leave vote when everyone I know voted remain or whT have the Tories get in when everyone on my timeline voted Labour.

I watched the video, the first one was really hard to watch. However, I don't think that there would necessarily be any more accessible housing in Islington under any government. I hope that the accessible flat is adapted and available quickly. I'm surprised to hear that someone like Alex, who one assumes is receiving means tested benefits, isn't entitled to free prescriptions but has to pay for some meds. I understand that perhaps not all aids such as incontinence pads are freely available, but I thought those were part of the extra costs disability benefits were awarded for.

I was very saddened by Alex's apparent isolation, especially if her life is lived 24/7 with no family or friends for any company.

Austerity was not necessary full stop - nothing to do with no money left. If austerity was so necessary point me to any study that says it worked. If it had worked the conservatives would be proclaiming its success - the fact they are silent about it speaks volumes.

Austerity targeted those most in need - it had no impact at all on the 5% it was a vicious, ideological swipe and its proponents should be shamed.

Mother of a physically disabled child here, also her carer. I could vote Labour and have a lovely windfall.

I would never do that because I have lived through a Labour government and I know that once all the money is spent it will have to be paid back, which means our finances will colapse.

When the crash happens I may not be here to look after my daughter, I want stability rather than short term gain.

I doubt the video will make any difference to anyone - the labour supporters will hold it up as more evidence that the Tories are evil and the Tory supporters will roll their eyes and feel they don't have to justify their vote

Everyone who needs help should get it.

I agree. So why are those with disabilities seeing their benefits being withdrawn and cut so drastically? The Conservative government has taken specific and targeted steps to attack vulnerable people, and I find it indefensible.

Any system is not going to work for everyone, I'm sure under every government there are people who felt cheated.

But, the underlying issue is that some people were taking the piss out of the benefits system. Two of the people on that link are clearly disabled and really shouldn't have had their payments taken away, another has a condition that I also have and although it does make life occasionally difficult, it doesn't prevent me from working and never has done.

I would much rather the system paid out more to those who were really in need and I think it usually does. I think targeting the payments at those most in need is a worthwhile strategy. Another example, DS2 has a mild auditory processing disorder and it was suggested that we fill in a DLA assessment to see if he could get government help - this has also happened to 2 friends who have children with ADHD who are completely manageable......why?

We get posts on here all the time which mention that people are better off not working and that isn't the point of a benefits system, it is meant to support those who haven't got a job in the short term and not be a means of income for those who chose not to work.
I personally know two people in our village who have been "forced" back to work, having lived off benefits previously.....benefits shouldn't be a choice.

Politics aside, if Jeremy Corbyn is voted in he will not get a good deal for the UK from Brexit and could potentially bankrupt the country leading to many more years of austerity.

Its not good for anyone having a weak labour leader, our country works best on the cyclical political cycle we have where conservatives lead for a few terms and then labour for a few. It prevents anyone getting too left/right wing. If JC gets in, it will damage our lovely country for decades.

littlehandcuffs thank you so much, I feel like you're the first person to really engage with my question.
Alrhough I'm not convinced, I really value hearing your reasoning. It's not something I'd thought of or heard of before.