Is Ken Livingstone an alcoholic? Does it matter?

[its not cool to be weird]

Sorry to dredge this up again but I got a leaflet through the door today from Boris. I live in Battersea which is part of Conservative Wandsworth (though I appear to be in a Labour ward).

Apparently Boris aims to -

Make London safer by beefing up the police and introducing knife crime strategies, chairing the Met Police Authority and tearing up red tape and tackling small crimes with schemes like Payback London.

Get London moving with fresh transport ideas, new orbital bus routes, free bike hire and a more flexible Congestion Charge.

Develop more attractive affordable housing.

Reduce overspending at city hall and restore 'transparency, accountability and common sense to London government'.

Then there's pics of him grinning with some Londoners and with big D (not with any minorities though, which is actually rather a relief, although it does mention that he is part French, Turkish and German, a 'one-man melting pot' apparently).

All spin no doubt, but for those wondering what his promises are, there they are. Anyone got any leaflets from the other candidates?

[Borboski]

On this, since its recent:No one voted for Bush as a 'larf'. He was a very capable front-man for an organised Republican power group. Bush's success was due to his appeal to Americans as an 'ordinary bloke'. That yokel style of public speaking that won him so much derision over here was what got him elected twice.

Even that is a very crass simplification, Bush offered a stereotypical conservative agenda on policy issues, and even more importantly tax cuts.  And just like in this country, lots of people like to think that they are the wealthy middle classes.

See this piece by the excellent Paul Krugman:
http://www.pkarchive.org/economy/TaxCutCon.html

[its not cool to be weird]

Well yeah I realise there's more to it than that.

[mitzidog]

What I want out of London is

• Transport not to be the preserve of R'n'b braodcasting skunk addicts
  The roads to be clear enough for ambulances to get through if I need one.
  Other than that to be left alone to get on with my life.

Really - the only thing the mayor and assembly should be doing is removing the obstacles to us all getting on with it.

That's why I think a decent assembly and a slightly lacklustre mayor might be a good thing.

[biggytitbo]

This debate on Newsnight is ace! Ken looks like he's been sedated, Boris looks like he's high.

[sick as a pike]

Paddick is poor and looks like a low-quality deputy Headmaster.  Johnson faffing and rubbish, Livingstone best but with a slight air of tired dubiousness.
Paxman went very The Day Today, even by his standards.

[biggytitbo]

Paddick is poor and looks like a low-quality deputy Headmaster.  Johnson faffing and rubbish, Livingstone best but with a slight air of tired dubiousness.
Paxman went very The Day Today, even by his standards.

Is Ken ill or something? He looked absolutely wrecked. Boris really is a disaster area isn't he? Brilliant!

[Danger Man]

Is Ken ill or something? He looked absolutely wrecked.

ummmm....might it possibly be to do with alcohol?

[23 Daves]

Paddick is poor and looks like a low-quality deputy Headmaster.  Johnson faffing and rubbish, Livingstone best but with a slight air of tired dubiousness.
Paxman went very The Day Today, even by his standards.

I thought that as well!  He almost went into "BORIS!  YOU'VE LOST THE NEWS!!!" territory.  "I despair!"

Brian Paddick really has lost whatever hope in hell he had of getting my second vote after that performance as well.  He looks like the sort of person I'd barely trust to become my office supervisor, never mind Mayor of London.  There's a certain oily quality to him I don't quite take to as well - it's impossible to put my finger on what it is I don't trust about him, but he really sets my alarm bells ringing.  Brilliant politicians have never had a chance to lead as a result of such flippant and shallow analysis, obviously, but he frequently appears as if he hasn't thought things through any more than Boris Johnson as well.

[23 Daves]

Somebody's uploaded the most aggressive segment of the interview on to YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spknUcSHYK4

I completely forgot about the bit where Jeremy completely cuts Boris off, I think I was too busy killing myself laughing at the time.
"Can I just say..."
"No you CAN'T!"

Ken clearly enjoys that bit, he lets out a little cackle of glee.

[its not cool to be weird]

That's a good interview, I can't believe I missed it.

Damn I love Paxman. He makes the fact that there were only six episodes of The Day Today bearable.

[Blue Jam]

I completely forgot about the bit where Jeremy completely cuts Boris off, I think I was too busy killing myself laughing at the time.
"Can I just say..."
"No you CAN'T!"

Ken clearly enjoys that bit, he lets out a little cackle of glee.

I love the bit where Paxman just goes "I despair"

[Blue Jam]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-exXKOEA1w

Ratings disabled... bwahahaha...

I've just been searching for party political broadcasts on YouTube, got sent this one and it sounds the most pointless and amateurish so far:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REh8oNINUXY

Then again, I'm sure there are worse "promotion of Englishness" candidates, I can't bear to track down the BNP's effort on YouTube. Why the fuck do so many of them obsess over England and the English anyway? As Ken's broadcast goes to great lengths to show, London is a very diverse city and a large percentage of us Londoners couldn't give a fuck about "English pride". I remember getting a leaflet when Gary Bushell stood for election in my constituency, it had a big St George cross on it and I thought "Er, I'm Welsh mate, what's this supposed to mean to me?"

Fuck another bank holiday on St George's Day too, what we need is one for the first Monday in November.

EDIT: Unfortunate choice of title for this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlJ1fHoFo0Q

[ThickAndCreamy]

Then again, I'm sure there are worse "promotion of Englishness" candidates, I can't bear to track down the BNP's effort on YouTube. Why the fuck do so many of them obsess over England and the English anyway? As Ken's broadcast goes to great lengths to show, London is a very diverse city and a large percentage of us Londoners couldn't give a fuck about "English pride". I remember getting a leaflet when Gary Bushell stood for election in my constituency, it had a big St George cross on it and I thought "Er, I'm Welsh mate, what's this supposed to mean to me?"

Fuck another bank holiday on St George's Day too, what we need is one for the first Monday in November.

I agree, the whole idea of English pride and Englishness fucks me off. I don't want a day where I am meant to feel overjoyed to be living in a country were I was born. That makes me feel arrogant and a cunt as if I am stupidity patriotic like most of the USA is. I do not and never want to feel as if the country I live in is the best in the world as I can never be certain. When people use it politically (e.g. every American presidental candidate) it is absolutely horrendous and it makes me not want to vote for the MP.

[the ruffian on the stair]

'...and tearing up red tape...'


The tearing up red tape promise appears in almost every Tory leaflet and letter (our local Tory councillor promises the same thing). The Tories brought in all this red tape when they told us everything would work better run by managers.

No doubt Boris has Eton friends at the BBC planting negatives Ken stories for him.  Boris couldn't organise his own arsehole.

[23 Daves]

One of Boris' campaigners has assured me that it doesn't matter that Boris is a rambling buffoon - "He's got a team of really good people behind him who'll help him out on numerous issues, don't worry at all," she said.

Right.  So not only is she not denying he's a rambling buffoon, but I have to place my trust in an anonymous band of people to run everything instead.  This just gets better and better. 

[its not cool to be weird]

One of Boris' campaigners has assured me that it doesn't matter that Boris is a rambling buffoon - "He's got a team of really good people behind him who'll help him out on numerous issues, don't worry at all," she said.

Right.  So not only is she not denying he's a rambling buffoon, but I have to place my trust in an anonymous band of people to run everything instead.  This just gets better and better. 

Just think of it as practice for the general election.

[Blue Jam]

I agree, the whole idea of English pride and Englishness fucks me off. I don't want a day where I am meant to feel overjoyed to be living in a country were I was born.

Yes, it seems a silly and petty idea, certainly not a major election issue, but not a vote-winner either. Don't these pro-Englishness candidates realise that a lot of the "bloody foreigners" and non-English people in London are also voters? And that pissing them off wouldn't really be a bright idea for anyone who wants to be mayor?

How do they think George Galloway won Bethnal Green and Bow for a start? He chose a fairly safe seat with a load of Muslims who were probably as anti-war as he is, and played to their needs and their fears. Something tells me "England For The English" won't be a big vote-winner in Banglatown.