Why do people say ‘all the parties are as bad as each other’ ?

[Diefrausagtnein]

‘I can’t choose between them’
’Lesser of two evils’
It’s just so flipping cynical and pessimistic. And also lets the current lot off the hook who really have been terrible. Ed Davey and Keir Starmer for example seem fairly sensible and above all honest. Current lot haven’t been. Brexit, Covid corruption, austerity. Really how can other parties that haven’t been in power for 14 years, or ever for that matter, be as bad.

Name the good in each one

It’s only ever used one way too. It’s a way to vote conservative while wanting to distance themselves from the party at the same time.

It’s usually said by Conservatives who are trying to minimise all of the vile things that previous Tory MPs have done!

They generally mean they are having to pick the least bad rather than one that they actively agree with a large proportion of their policies.

They are actually bored by politics so they don’t give it proper attention and actually listen. They just hear what’s filtered through social media. Beige brains.

They've lived through decades hearing the same rubbish recycled and have learnt they really are all the same.

I think it's generally just said by people who can't be bothered to find out what the differences are, eg find out what current policies are or read a manifesto.....or just read some news once in a while.

Yeah generally an excuse made by Tory apologists.

Because some people don’t have the intellectual capacity to read and distinguish between the parties. It’s easier to whinge and complain.

It really is a question of which you feel is the least likely to inflict more damage on the country though and it’s hard to say. I don’t vote Tory, but there are many things about other parties that concern me and which I can’t get on board with. I’ll be voting in a constituency that has been subject to boundary changes and will always be Tory, so it does feel as though we’re disenfranchised.

Because some people don't understand politics and or economics

They are all as bad as each other, though. I'd love to be proven wrong, but I've been voting long enough to see both Labour and the Conservatives (and partially the lib dem) bugger things up. I can't wait to see the back of the tories, but I can't see Labour being any better at all. In fact in some areas they will be worse. And if you think Keir Starmer is honest then you are very, very naive indeed. I'll be voting independent I think.

Because it’s true?

I didn’t vote in 2019. Bojo or Corbyn. NO THANKS!

Starmer isn’t remotely sensible. He said that he’d let a loved one suffer on a waiting list and not go private, despite having millions. That blind adherence to ideology is extreme and not sensible at all.

Easy to blame conservatives for Brexit, but us turkeys were the ones who voted for it, despite Cameron urging us not to. Whilst Corbyn said nothing at all. Cameron was forced into calling a referendum he didn’t want. He even resigned after the electorate didn’t listen to his recommendation. I voted remain.

Because they all talk shit, say one thing and do the opposite - none of them actually care about us peasants as long as they're all ok and making money

Because many people are poltically illiterate. They don't understand the differences in ideology, how social systems work, have little understanding of basic economics and no interest in social history. I suppose you can't force people to to educate themselves or take more of an interest, but I do wish they were less vocal during the run up to an election....

Because they are thick and lazy

It’s said by the politically illiterate as a way of not having to engage with actual policies, or do any actual thinking.

I'm Labour to the bone, but New Labour and Phoney Blair proved that they will promise you anything to get info government abd then do whatever they like once they are in.
The people at the top of all the main parties are career politicians, not like your local constituency MP

I generally vote labour in General Elections. Lib Dem in locals as we have a really good councillor.
Held my nose for Corbyn despite knowing not a cat in hells chance of winning.
New labour introduced some decent policies which benefited us as a family.
I live up north and there’s so much going wrong, so little investment, local town was never particularly well off but had a bit of character, now it’s reminiscent of somewhere in 1970s Eastern Europe, my ds1 struggled to find a decent apprenticeship and ended up at uni, god knows whether he’ll find a job after graduating and I know of many other young people in the same position.

I always feel that some folk don’t have a clue what some parts of the country are really like and if they did they’d maybe want change. We’re off to London in a few days. I read that a particular museum had received multi millions in investment and yet our local town has lost £400 million in funding in 10 years. 400 f***g million ! How much did the garden bridge cost in planning and never built ? HS2 ? Billions wasted, nothing to show, but but they’re all the same….
No probs with London either, appreciate it’s the capital etc, but somewhere something is wrong.

@gingercat02 New labour did so much that was positive though.

I think some people say this out of frustration - they struggle to choose due to so many information. So it’s a bit of a temporary emotional reaction.
However many people who are saying this just show themselves being selfish imo. They mean that they don’t agree with ALL and don’t like ALL that the party is saying. But that’s impossible, the point of democracy is that we adopt the approach which is the best possible for most people and no one suffers too much. Even between party members there are disagreements and differences. They don’t get decisions unanimously. You look at key issues and choose the most important priorities and you accept that there are other people’s interest and other restraints.

But there really are no good parties right now imo. I'm a floating voter and very central in my views. So I read the manifestos in detail and use 'fact checker' online before making a vote. This year their manifestos are all over the place and ill judged. Both parties are chucking in random things and both seem to lack clear vision. I like Kier Starmer, but he does seem to be a bit of a puppet. Labour have failed to support women imo, and have suddenly done a bit of a U turn following the Cass Report. Lowering the voting age to 16 seems a ploy to catch more votes for themselves as research has consistently shown younger voters to be more liberal in their views and more likely to vote for them. It seems rather self serving. Conservatives have had a tricky time in office re Covid, the economy and Brexit. But then Brexit was of their own making and Boris couldn't lie straight in bed. They have run the NHS further into the ground (although Labour increased costs through outsourcing under Tony Blair, which have continued). They don't seem to have made it a priority. And they have some deeply repugnant out of touch politicians. My personal view is that it's time for a change and that switching between parties every few years is a good thing as it refreshes and rebalances. I would absolutely love to see the NHS depoliticised and run by an independent non political body comprising medical staff with experience and with long term financial plans, in the same way as The Bank of England is more independent and has greater clout. I would also like to see the parties put forward and publish clear specific policies backed up by realistic strategies which can be properly interrogated. I do feel as though both parties could do a lot better. It's a shame that the lib dems have become a non entity and that The Green Party have become a woke infighting party, instead of having clear sensible and achievable policies. I feel that politics was better when there were 3 parties in the mix.

We used to have a Tory MP who was never here. Got done for expenses fiddling.

we now have a very popular Lib Dem MP who is so different. Is at every local event. Positive. Helps people. Campaigns on local issues. Works hard.

they are not all the same.

@Naran the ‘we voted for Brexit, nothing to with the Tories’ meme is annoying and untrue. And another example of clear lying.
Starmer I suspect meant emergency care which for most of us would be NHS. I think it’s telling that Sunak said he’d use private health care. He would’ve been slated by the press for that years ago.

I remember life under the new labour government to have been a time of real optimism and tolerance and diversity. Maybe it's the daft things I remember like the Sure Start Centres and the lowering of pavements so that wheelchairs could use them and the move towards gay equality and the improvements to the health service.

People complaint about the PFI agreements under labour but they weren't a total disaster IME and got things built that otherwise would not have been built. We have incredible local facilities because of it - but people complain all the time about the fact that they have to pay hospital car parking because of it.

Mistakes were made but the alternative was what? Getting everything right first time or trying nothing new.

I think the main thing was a feeling that we had a government that genuinely cared for people and was there to serve. With the Tories it has really been about shoring up private wealth. Even with the coalition it was clear that the Lib Dems were trying to temper the Toy agenda wherever they could. I don't see how people can see it differently?