Isn't it sad....

[nikki1978]

... how this election is making so many of us divide and turn on each other when presumably we all want the same things in the end?

It is very sad.

Me too herbie. But then I was saddened earlier to see people being bashed for being 'lefties'.

Don't leave us herbietea

Many people try to be measured (sure, some definitely don't!!) but emotions are running high at the moment. This is such a tense time. I've had to bite my tongue many times.

I recommend reading Stephen Fry's blog. He wrote a seven-page essay just before the election in which he goes on at length about everybody having their reasons for voting as they do, what lovely Tories/LDs/Labour people he knows etc. etc.

www.stephenfry.com

It was the same at the time of the gulf war, there was real bad feeling on mn.
I think some of the tory bashing is bad, but some of what I read on conservative home is pretty unattractive too.

just dont get how some people can hate others because they have different opinions. I like some and hate some in all the parties,irrespective of whose politics I support.

herbietea, we need you. You were in top form in the Brown webchat.

To be fair, there's been an equal amount of Brown/Labour-related vitriol.....

Politics divides opinion. That's par for the course, surely?

I don't hate anyone. I despise everything the Tories stand for, though, and I am glad I have a place to come and express my disgust and talk about it with others - likeminded or not.

It's not personal - I don't think it is for many people, is it?

Yes, I think it's a weird atmosphere and not very healthy really. Hopefully things will go back to normal when our political overlords have sorted themselves out.

I think you must stay Herbi. We'll build a coalition together, it'll be a rainbow thread of positive feeling for the Good of The Nation MN

It can get a bit personal sometimes I think, some people enjoy having a good 'debate' - but it has dominated on here a bit and in RL you might have a conversation with someone with opposing views for one night, but it doesn't go on and on and on like it has here.

Stay.

The first thing I will bring to the negotiating table will be a need to learn how to use the strike out facility

People do say the same thing - on both sides.

Just avoid the politics threads for a bit

I don't think we do all want the same thing though. We all have different circumstances and all want different things to improve our circumstances. This will be different things for different people.

I have posted a lot on politics and argued with and irritated by some but not holding anyone's political view against them.

Do we all want the ssame things though?

"Do we all want the ssame things though?"

There's probably a 'Miss World' list of things like peace, harmony and helping little children that we could agree on. But, beyond that, I think different people want very different things depending on their circumstances and their opinions.

What I don't like on this board (and it's common across all internet message boards) is the amount of cowardly snarking that goes on. Very easy, when sat anonymously at a keyboard, to fling about insults and vitriol that wouldn't be expressed in real life.

sits on hands and resists comedy response which may be taken the wrong way

oh, please give us the comedy response DF. I need a laugh this morning.

I am a fairly robust person, but after the comments from some on here about Tories (and they have been personal imo), I am re-evaluating if I actually want to bother with MN any more.

I can see why some would vote Labour and I respect that; but when it comes to be told that one is vile; selfish and out of one's mind to be voting Tory, then it's gone too far.

I don't viscerally hate Labour voters; I profoundly disagree with much of Labour policy and the way the Labour politicians only govern for their parts of the UK, and ignore the areas that didn't vote for them. I think Labour voters may believe in a fair future for all, but their politicians over the past 13 years have comprehensively demonstrated that this is not the case. It's shame that some of the Labour supporters on MN can't have the courtesy to debate the policies rather than get so personal.

I found it quite depressing that considering the votes were in proportion 4:5:6 (LD, Lab, Con) there were people telling LD supporters they were wrong to have voted LD if they didn't want to get power.

It's very clear none had sufficient majority to just create bills and have them voted through, and compromise is essential to shift the economy (and electoral reform too) but mocking others for not voting one way or other seems a little short-sighted - a major problem has been how the votes translated into MPs.

I would love for more interest and participation in decision making - it would allow the public to pick the best policies from all parties without having to have such "binary" situations (as we've had for umpteen years, with just Labour or just Conservative governments).

NetworkGuy - the issue there is that the "best" policies of all the parties are unlikely to add up into a deliverable programme.

i.e. we'll want to sweeteners from all of them but the shit sandwich from none of them.

e.g Cutting the deficit as fast as the tories say they will- yay! Keeping spending at Labour levels- yay! Put them together- oh-doesnt work. Back to endless fighting about it.