to feel furious about Tories canvassing outside dc's school

[tittybangbang]

..... we live in a VERY deprived area. Today the Tories sent in a bunch of grammar school boys, no doubt from their homes in the posh bit of the borough, to hand out leaflets outside the dc's school.

How do they have the gall to send middle-class kids into the 'hood' to encourage the poorest people in society to vote in a government who won't represent their interests?

I wanted to shout - 'when was the last time areas like this benefited under a Tory government?'

But I came over all shy and just marched into school with my head down.

But I feel and

And they'd obviously told them to dress down because they were going into a rough neighbourhood - never seen such a scruffy bunch in my life. Someone should have told them - round here people wear CLEAN trainers and IRONED jeans, not stained plimsolls and jumpers that are unravelling round the hems.

They were outside our school the other day, and everyone was avoiding them

YABVU.

FFS, just because someone supports Tories, doesn't mean that they are all rich boys and girls with lots of money you know? I'm getting sick of MN and it's bigoted views on Tories!

Gosh, that really is rather ill-judged isn't it.

My (perhaps over generous) guess is they didn't really think about who they were getting to do the leafleting, just rounded up cheap bodies. Nonetheless it's clearly not creating a great impression.

(On the dressing down thing, that could just be the fashion. See Abercrombie & Fitch for example.)

No - I agree, there are lots of right wing working class people around too.

But these boys were m/c. I could tell. They were all bad haircuts, scruffy shoes and posh accents. You don't get people like that round our way usually, except driving through very fast with their car doors locked and windows wound up.

Poor people voting Tory is like turkeys voting for Christmas.

The Lib Dems and the Labour supporters were outside our school on different days last week.

If you don't like the policies, just don't take the leaflets and stop make sweeping statements and judgements about them

"How do they have the gall to send middle-class kids into the 'hood' to encourage the poorest people in society to vote in a government who won't represent their interests?"

Genuine question: What are the Tories going to do that won't represent the poorest peoples interests?

YABU.

The tories are as entitled to campaign as any other political party.

What makes you think they were told to dress down specifically? Is there really anything too alarming about teenagers looking slightly scruffy?

Do people seriously all iron their jeans in your gaffe? (do you do a nice crease down the middle?)

Dont worry - people will vote for who they want, this kind of last minute campaigning isn't really going to change much and its legal and peaceful.

Yes, how dare people seeking election seek votes?

I say it's an affront to democracy!!

Oh, wait...

And they had the cheek to go to grammar school (or so you think, based on their accents and clothing)??? How dare they!

This social mobility and aspiration nonsense is appalling! The poor must be kept poor for their own good!

YABU

What would your reaction be if working class kids were campaigning in a middle-class area?

Do you know for certain they were grammar school boys? Would they not be at school if erm, schoolboys?

And fwiw grammar school does not equal well off. They select on ability, not income.

I would not like canvassing outside school either... but it's a public place so they've the right.

It can be advantagous though if you get a candidate there too. I say this as someone who's mother once verbally tore Michael Howard apart over Tory education policy outside my primary school

Legally entitled, yes. Morally entitled - no.

"What are the Tories going to do that won't represent the poorest peoples interests?"

David Cameron's government won't be ideologically very different from the last Tory government or any other. What have Tories EVER done for the poorest sectors of society?

The things that will hit areas like this very, very hard will be large cuts in Children's Centre budgets and pressure being put on unemployed people to take poorly paid work instead of staying on benefits, particularly single mothers, of who there are many round our way.

YABU

we live in a democracy and they are perfectly entitled to canvass for votes.

Maybe the grammar school boys come from deprived backgrounds too?

"And fwiw grammar school does not equal well off. They select on ability, not income"

The ones round our way are disproportionately stuffed with kids from private schools, who are bussed in to take the entrance exams on mass.

The only children I know locally who have got into highly academic selective schools are the ones who've had tutoring from year 3 onwards.

If grammar schools were truly meritocratic their intake would be more representative of the populations in which they are based. Unless of course it's the case that middle-class children from professional families and privately educated children are genuinely more intelligent that working class children, which is why selective schools are overwhelmingly full of them.

But surely having pressure put upon you to take work if you are unemployed is a good thing? All Labour have done is make it more worth while to claim benefits then to work.

YABVU.

Had you been talking about the BNP, I'd have had sympathy. But good grief, much as I loathe (as a rule) the Conservative Party they are a legitimate political organisation with the right to hand out leaflets in any public place.

I dont think it really matters as its being rammed in our faces left,right and centre. me for one cant wait til the end of tomorrow.

MsSparkle I was about to say the same.

Surely it is better to work? Better earning power once their children are older, sets a good example of work ethic which is likely to result in increased prospects and success for children.

They weren't grammar school boys were they?

Titty you make some good points about Tory policy. Don't detract from them with bigoted comments about the middle class and grammar schools.

We had some working class people in our village last week. How dare they pollute our nice area with their rough accents and Labour party leaflets! You could tell they'd been to sink schools and ate fast food every night. Frankly I don't want people like that near my children.

abr1de

Were they wearing flat caps and whippets?

Shell suits and pit bull terriers. And that was just the women.

Do you think poor people are too thick to work out who to vote for by themselves? Because that's the implication of what you're saying.