Is Ed Miliband responsible for the state we are in?

[IdaBWells]

By running against his brother for party leader, changing the rules to vote for Labour leadership (enabling Corbyn's rise) and refusing to support Cameron in Obama's desire to move into Syria I read an article that blamed Brexit and Trump on Ed. Is this reasonable to make one person responsible for so much?

And all of what you say excuses and nullifies the lies Leav e has propigated? The biggest villain (despite the outright lies, and the cowardice, the "putting party before country" ((Cameron, May, Johnson)), is the Labour party?

Yes, because some people will cast around for any scapegoat rather than accept the fact that the Tory party have, once again, put their own survival above the best interests of the country.

Perking I disagree, I think the Conservatives did realise it. That's where Cameron's popularity came from as he was able to present himself as a moderate and more of a centrist . With Labour moving left Cameron won the middle (unexpectedly), also because of course Cleggy had sunk the Liberal Democrats. Unfortunately for Cameron the Tories then were dragged to the Right by the Eurosceptics.

Also, OP, can you explain how Ed Miliband is responsible for Trump? Is he some kind of evil genius who used mind control to influence the American electorate?

The list of things that Cameron was "surprised at" and "didn't expect" is even longer than the list of things that are #nickcleggsfault.

His Director of Communications, Andy Coulson, turning out to be a bad'un after Cameron employed him while he was still being paid by Rupert Murdoch and had no security clearance... Remember that one?

I think David Milliband would have been elected PM. The moment he was beaten I knew we were in trouble. Ed is great but not PM material. Now we are double screwed with Corbyn who will never resign because he has no self awareness and is surrounded by deluded loons. I want the bloody conservatives out but we have no hope with corbyn.

Ed Milliband didn't ask to be born - I blame the parents!

And still I see people parrot on here some idea that the Tory party is the competent party, the party that knows how to run a business.

I'd love to get a job where I could fuck up that badly and still have people blaming some other guy years later.

PerkingFaintly I know! They screw up over and over again, and somehow manage to convince enough people that it really isn't their fault, and then get reelected as the strong, stable party.

by running he changed the outcome of the leadership election which almost certainly would've gone to David who had been chosen by a majority of MPs and individual Labour party members.

So what? David wasn't chosen in the end! That's what elections are all about!

Saskia these are not my personal opinions but of the writer of the article I read. His theory was that because Ed did not support Cameron when Obama asked the UK for support going into Syria. So Cameron turned Obama down and Obama then did not intervene in the early stages of the Syrian civil war.

The resulting escalation of the war in Syria and the refugee crisis in Europe brought immigration to the top of the political agenda in UK and the US. Popularism was on the rise and Trump used images of Syrian refugees by their thousands walking into Europe PLUS the terrorism of 2015, combined with illegal immigration in the USA to frighten the right-wing of the American electorate.

However the theory falls somewhere there as Hillary won the popular vote by 3 million votes. Trump won the electoral college.

BIWI yes, and the point of this thread is that his leadership decisions are partly responsible for where we are today. My point wasn't that he shouldn't run against his brother only that by choosing to do so he altered history

He didn't alter history. This is how stuff is. If the Labour Party has backed Barbara Castle, maybe she would've been the first woman Prime Minister and put both the Tories and union barons in their place. I'm afraid things are the way they are.

I think that both conservatives and labour were haemorrhaging votes to UKIP in protest, such was the one sided reporting by some of the biggest newspapers. I wouldn't like to say that David milliband wouldn't have agreed to a referendum evenetually in order to draw a line under the whole issue. Everyone was overconfident of a remain vote which would have put it to bed, unfortunately it rumbles on.

Blair is responsible for majority:

The wars
The Eastern European migration into the UK that could have been more gradual had be put the initial limits on the numbers
The over spending in the public sector that couldn’t be sustained

Eugh!!! Vile human being, bailed before he could be held accountable

We’re all responsible for this shit show.
-The leave campaign for lying.
-The leave voters for believing the lies.
-The remain campaign for being so piss poor.
-The remainers for being complacent and not getting off their arses in enough numbers to vote.

• parliament for their stupid game playing around the votes on Brexit
• the conservatives for Johnson/Hunt
• Labour for Corbyn

Everyone is shit and we’ve got the politics we deserve!

Here is the original article in by Craig Walmsley in Medium from 2017
medium.com/@craig_walmsley/this-is-all-ed-milibands-fault-f221341eb108

I knew it would get everyone in a lather but I am genuinely interested. I am a Brit who has been living overseas for over 20 years and therefore has been unable to vote for a long time. My family were traditional Labour voters, both parents were from working-class backgrounds who became a teacher and a business executive, from London and the North East. If I could I have no idea who I would vote for.

Yes so many people still (rightly) pissed off about Blair and Iraq affected the support of either Milliband brother.

History is the recording of “how stuff is”.

I know, OnlyFoolsnMothers.

I thought I couldn't despise any modern politician more than I do Blair.

How wrong I was.

I thought Blair made horrific mistakes because, in his overweening arrogance, he imagined he knew best what was right for the country (and world).

Cameron? May? Johnson?

They don't give a shit what's best for the country. The first two only cared about what (they imagined) was best for the Tory party.

The third cares only about what's best for B Johnson.

I've read the 'article' - Walmsley just (badly) outlines a list of things that happened then blames Ed Milband for them without explaining why.

History is the recording of “how stuff is”

History is the study of the past. There is no 'how stuff is' in reputable history.

Well obviously it was a platitude to describe our current life as "how stuff is" in the first place.

I often think this and feel sad about it. David would have been genuinely electable, and, I believe, would have been PM. So much could have been different... If only!

Yes the article has no great analysis, I was just throwing it out there to get a sense of how MN readers felt. Amazing what ancient history it all feels now.

Perking I absolutely agree with your opinions of these politicians. We are now held hostage. Unbelievable that we are about to enter into such a signficant time in "how stuff is" without even knowing who our leader is.

Agree that he shouldn’t have run against David, since David would obviously be far more “electable” as PM.

What is sad as far as the sibling factor goes is that David apparently shared with his brother all his plans and tactics for the race ahead before he knew Ed was running.