Argh - how to vote !

[rookiemere]

In scotsnet as this is a uniquely Scottish problem - apologies if there's a politics area somewhere that I should be in.

My postal vote has been sitting staring at me for days.

I know who I don't want to get in. As a non-scots British person with an English DH, I'll do everything I can to avoid another referendum.

Our local Labour MP actually does a lot for the local community and seems like a good egg. But the overall party is a disaster and SNP are talking about going jointly with Labour so they can push through another independence vote.

I cannot bring myself to vote Tory after what they've done - also every time they think up a remotely fair taxation idea i.e. making self employed pay same taxes as employed or making rich OAPs pay for care, even though Ruth Davidson seems very different from the conservatives in England, can't bear to watch the Westminster crowing when/if they get a huge victory.

My heart says Lib-Dems and in fact I've done some campaigning for them at local level, but pre voting questionnaires seem to suggest it's a 3 way race between Lab/Con/SNP so it would be a wasted vote.

Is anyone else really struggling to decide for this election?

Tories couldnt have got a majority at all without the ridiculous protest votes they got.

What an arrogant comment.

If the tories got lots of protest votes then blame it in the SNP.

Why is it ridiculous? Everyone who voted yesterday had their own priorities - for some it was the NHS, for others it was all about Brexit, for another group it was about preventing IndyRef2 at all costs. Many believe that a Conservative government which we can get rid of in a few years is worth it if it means avoiding another divisive referendum.

It's hugely insulting saying that this is a "ridiculous" reason for voting the way some people did. Ridiculous would be voting for someone because they wore a pink shirt or had the same name as your granny.

I cannot help being appalled that Tories managed a majority undoubtedly becsuse some.people put their principles aside and voted for them for i think a stupid reason. A referendum in a few years they could vote No in.

Am Labour voter.

There is currently no administration in NI and if one can't be formed it will probably either mean yet another election there or direct rule. If it ends up as direct rule by a Tory party working with the DUP then the impact on people there (especially LGBT people and women) could be appalling. I'm not just worried about "mainland social policy" (although I'm sure they'll back Theresa May to the hilt if she wants to start trashing our human rights) but about the set-back to any hopes of equal marriage and women having rights over their own bodies in NI.

The DUP views on climate change are also not very reassuring. As with their links to paramilitary violence.

All the people worried about Corbyn in coalition with Sinn Fein (who would probably not have taken their seats - I did at one point think they might but they were quite clear last night) - I wonder what they will make of the Tories with their strings pulled by the DUP who have a miniscule number of Westminster seats.

You might think it's a stupid reason but for some the last indyref was so painful that people can't face it gain. If it had been a truly once in a generation referendum then voters wouldn't have been forced to vote tactically this time.

You might think it's a stupid reason but for some the last indyref was so painful

You see, I didn't find it painful. I thought it was energising, waking people up to the world of politics. We had very different views amongst my family and friends and some lively "discussions" but we're all still pals.

Brexit has been different. I think the Brexit vote unleashed all sorts of latent racism. There were no jobs or hospital appointments because of immigrants. Euro pals feel a dreadful uncertainty about their future in Scotland. Jobs have already relocated in anticipation and funding has been cut for academic and community projects.

And the whole Brexit farce was a vanity vote for Cameron just as this election was a vanity vote for May. That's painful!

You see, I didn't find it painful. I thought it was energising, waking people up to the world of politics. We had very different views amongst my family and friends and some lively "discussions" but we're all still pals.

Well bully for you. Other reactions are available. My husband's Nat relatives were vile. I never want to see any of them again.

As for vanity project- that's rich , as if indyref isn't s vanity project.

My yes friends all found it exhilarating, energising, exciting and engaging. I've yet to meet a no voter who enjoyed the experience.

Other reactions are available

Yes, that's what I was pointing out. And I say that as a Labour Party member who was No right up until a week before the referendum.

Perhaps it was energising the first time, but the SECOND time? And the THIRD? And the FORTH? How long must this go on? Shouldn't we be focusing on things that DO matter? The indy referendum has been and gone. Must it be revisited on a regular basis.until YOU get the answer YOU like? What then... We keep.voting to rejoin the UK on a regular basis too? Also I feel that Orkney and Shetland may wish some energising themselves... After all historically they are NOT part of Scotland.

Yes it definitely does belong to Scotland. I'm from Shetland. We did Shetland history at school.

And the candidate standing for Shetland Independence got 1% of the vote so pretty conclusive.

so brexit was about vanity, but indy ref 1 & 2 are energising? Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder...or has the democratic consensus been slowly fragmenting over the last 30 years due to first past the post making a lot of people feel they can't cast a meaningful vote that affects their life?

I'm not sure if the answer to all this isn't voting reform and more cross party politics rather than carving up the UK, the EU etc.

Shetland and orkney got annexed in the 14-15th century and prior that the gravitated north. After that they belonged to Scotland, to the crown, back to Scotland, etc. Plenty to go about f One wants to make the case for indipendance from Scotland. After all Edinburgh and Lerwick at SO far apart geographically that it only makes sense, doesn't it.

no lottery we had a referendum on that too, and a BIG no came back. ;) People seem to forget about that one, but it was what... 5 years ago, more or less?

oh yes, I voted no on Alternative Vote - I'd change my mind now though :) brexit, independence, austerity, massive state expansion - all pulling us in radically different directions. Compromise needed on all of these big issues!

I am finding myself really feeling negative (partly personal stuff) but I realise also the fact that politicians are playing fast and loose with people's lives. This was an unnecessary election brought about by an unnecessary Referendum. The country is effectively a laughing stock now.

I am surrounded by SNP voters in my family and friends, but I think the outcome of the referendum was clear and the question should never have come back on the table. Because I think that explains the vote in Scotland.

I feel like I should be happy that there is an opposition to the Conservatives at Westminster, because I believe in social democracy. But it seems like the worst of all outcomes because I don't think it is clear how Labour would actually proceed in government (and I am not a hard left Labour supporter and I cannot warm to Corbyn). And May has no credibility at all.

The only good thing is that UKIP is surely dead in the water.

Oh yes, and Labour do not have a majority, so they do not actually have to do anything in government, just about the Tories down.

Question: why do people seem to prefer Corbyn to Gordon Brown? I liked Gordon Brown.

Shout the Tories down, I mean

In fairness, cocoa I think May was right in calling the election. We can discuss the campaign if you like or the fact that she said she wasn't going to call it, but it doesn't change the fact that she needed a strong mandate to get things done (and silence the Lords).
Now we are in the worst situation possible and I guess we'll be voting AGAIN before the year is out, but first we need YET AGAIN a new prime minister.

"Oh come on. As if anyone knew the DUP would come into this."

Um...how could you not know? They're always counted as supporting the tories, the last election was looking like a minority government/hung parliament in the run up to it, they were mentioned as important lots of times... it was only 2 years ago.

As soon as the polls showed the gap narrowing between conservative and labour the DUP became relevant.

It shouldn't exactly come as a shock that anyone who voted Tory was voting for them propped up by the DUP, even if they'd come back with a huge majority that would still be the case, the only difference now is the DUP have more sway.

Well, better than labour propped up by the SNP ;)
In any case, NOBODY was expecting a hung parliament, so let's not talk with the benefit of hindsight.