The future of the Labour Party: Where does it go from here?

[Famous Mortimer]

Controlled by the DOPE more like it amicorrect fellas, haha

Bit daft, but it'd be a heck of a popular policy if they decided to get behind it. Plus, I can't think of a good Labour / weed pun, so the Tories would struggle to fight against it.

[Johnny Yesno]

Fucking hell:

https://twitter.com/paulmasonnews/status/1218155368594968578

I wonder which candidate he's earmarking there?

They were saying on TyskySour a couple of weeks back that Mason had been coming out with some weird stuff.

I really must start bunging Novara some money. We really need them.

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1217788645534523393.html

I've asked for comment from @RLong_Bailey team re 'Red Roar' story, as any journalist is meant to:

"Rebecca unequivocally supports a woman's right to choose and has only ever voted in favour of extending the right to abortion, such as in Northern Ireland. These responses have >
been selectively quoted by the fake news peddlers at the Red Roar to propagate a misleading narrative. Rebecca's response to the Deanery of Salford clarified the existing law and current Labour policy, stating that abortion procedures should be properly regulated, and that >
women's reproductive rights and the decriminalisation of abortion should be maintained. Rebecca's response was also a reflection of her own personal agreement with the Disability Rights Commission — that "the context in which parents choose whether to have a child should be one >
in which disability and non-disability are valued equally" — rather than her view on policy. During any proposed public consultation a wide range of views would of course be heard, and it is Rebecca's duty as an MP to ensure her constituents are able to respond."

>
If Red Roar were remotely serious they would have asked Long Bailey office for comment. They didn't because they are a daft fake news site.

Unfollowed a journalist tweeting it. Take some responsibility and don't share crap.

[DeadJefferson]

FWIW, not a lot, I and I think, many others, were very happy indeed with Corbyn's leadership.  As I'm pretty sure you were, yourself.  I'm not expecting any new leader to be an improvement on that.  For starters, no one standing or even high profile enough in the Party (apart from possibly McDonnell), has the background, philosophy, integrity, humanity, relateability and so on, to come even close.  That's just a fact.

We're not replacing Corbyn because we've sacked him for being useless.  We're replacing him because he's recognised that this fight is not about him, it's about ideas.  He has become a hate-focus, doesn't matter what he does or says, he'll be pilloried, therefore, he's standing aside in the hope that the ideas will have more chance of winning without his name attached.  It's a personal sacrifice, we all know this.

We all also know, if we've got any sense, that whoever picks up will face the same barrage of hate.  It's not about who they are, it's about the ideas they're promoting.  Which, of course, means that no person intending to continue Corbyn's legacy will be able to "turn the party around".  It isn't that that's needed nor what can win, because this isn't a fair fight.  We are not going to change our opponents, even if we change our leader.  What's needed is someone who will not give in and will continue to push for our goals and take all the shit.  And someone after that, who'll do the same, until we wear them down. 

I agree we need to sort the party out - in that we cannot allow our next leader to face the campaign of undemocratic attacks from the PLP and Labour grandees that Corbyn has.  But that's not for the new leader to sort out.  That's for us to do and we should already have done it for Corbyn to our eternal shame.

[Johnny Yesno]

Also, in response to the letter:

For the avoidance of doubt I unequivocally support this. Some pretty grubby attempts over the last 24 hours to deliberately misrepresent my position.

https://twitter.com/RLong_Bailey/status/1218203721034760199

[idunnosomename]

I love abortion

[idunnosomename]

Remember the walnuts lads who were like jussie smollett false flag

https://amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/17/man-found-guilty-of-aggravated-assault-against-owen-jones

Oh aggravated homophobic assault by far right. Oh well lads. You people etc

[jobotic]

Paulie, AT etc I'm sure will be eager to hold their hands up.

And that cunt that said it was probably because Jones is annoying.

[idunnosomename]

Whoops it was my CLP tonight and i forgot

[Armin Meiwes]

Fucking Friday night for a CLP! Are they having a laff!

[Buelligan]

Those smears against RLB are pretty horrible.  Men using a women's issue to attack a woman.  Not a good look at all.

[Armin Meiwes]

Yeah I mean I don't think I'm going to be putting her number one pref tbh but so fucking sick of how everything's just spurious accusations and *getting* the other candidate with whatever happens to comes to hand now instead of talking about the actual you know.. POLICIES. I mean you expect it from the Tories but why the fuck is someone like Mason lowering himself to it, honestly thought he was better than that.

[pancreas]

edit glitch not fixed by update it seems

[idunnosomename]

Momentum endorsed RLB and I was already leaning to her so i guess yep

[idunnosomename]

Fucking lol how paul chuckle mason has blocked novara media to go full NO POPERY

[imitationleather]

Paul Mason appears to have lost his mind lately. Something must be up behind the scenes.

[holyzombiejesus]

Momentum endorsed RLB and I was already leaning to her so i guess yep

Any news on deputy?

[honeychile]

Any news on deputy?

Rayner, although it was quite close as to whether they would or not, at least as an automatic first choice.

[greencalx]

First hustings today at 11.30, can be livestreamed here I believe: https://labour.org.uk/people/leadership-elections-hub-2020/leadership-elections-hustings/live/. I'll probably be doing the weekly shop, so I guess I'll have to make do with the highlights.

My prejudice is that none of the candidates has sufficient pulling power that I'd be willing to overlook political differences when it comes to ranking them. I know who to put first and last on that basis, but still need to figure out how to order Starmer, Nandy and Thornberry. I continue to worry that Starmer might be a crypto-rightist. Incidentally, he got a bit grumpy in his duel with Laura K on Thursday night. Tetchy, even.

[Buelligan]

After the misleading and, frankly, sectarian, stuff from Paul Mason yesterday I'm even further from Starmer than I was.  Someone who pulls these kinds of stunts against their own side is as untrustworthy and self-promoting at the cost of the Cause as any Owen Smith.  That was a huge misfire IMO.

And it's put me right off Paul Mason and all.  Last time, when he dumped Corbyn in it at the pub, I was pissed off, thought he should've known a lot fucking better given his age and history.  Twice though, two backhanded own goals on the Left?  Not a good look, very disappointed.

[jobotic]

I agree with this. They are doing this to show us that they can. We can smear you all we like, what you going to do? We did it toCorbyn and we'll do it to you. The more ridiculous the better.

https://twitter.com/Tom_Gann/status/1218299710013878273?fbclid=IwAR29blrHCfNsLtU4jjTnycKUq9LspV4ipaqkpTGXFu4VlTmb89Jxw7Je178

Just like Tories and their fucking bongs. "We should spend the money on poor people? This is stupid? Fuck them and fuck you. We run things and we do what we want". The equivalent of burning twenty pound notes in front of the homeless.

[pigamus]

Full RLB speech with Q&A afterwards, courtesy Phil BC

https://www.facebook.com/solidblog/posts/3495675957169767

[olliebean]

My prejudice is that none of the candidates has sufficient pulling power that I'd be willing to overlook political differences when it comes to ranking them. I know who to put first and last on that basis, but still need to figure out how to order Starmer, Nandy and Thornberry. I continue to worry that Starmer might be a crypto-rightist. Incidentally, he got a bit grumpy in his duel with Laura K on Thursday night. Tetchy, even.

Nandy has to drop to the bottom of those three, surely, for suggesting we should look to Catalonia for lessons in how to beat Scottish nationalism.

[BlodwynPig]

edit glitch not fixed by update it seems

I still don't fully get it. not important

[BlodwynPig]

Paul Mason appears to have lost his mind lately. Something must be up behind the scenes.

WHO CAN YOU TRUST?

NO-ONE, THAT'S WHO

[greencalx]

Nandy has to drop to the bottom of those three, surely, for suggesting we should look to Catalonia for lessons in how to beat Scottish nationalism.

Oh yes, forgotten about that. She was sinking to the bottom of the pile in my mind anyway, but that's helpful.

Got the hustings on now...

[greencalx]

You can certainly tell which ones have experience of campaigning: it really shows at the podium.

Phillips is rubbish!

[finnquark]

Phillips appalling here, as is the host.

[greencalx]

"We've got to do something bold" says Phillips, without elaborating on what that might be.

[greencalx]

Oh poor Jess, treated badly by the media. All those horrible Sunday supplement cover shoots. Diddums!

More seriously, for someone who's supposed to be the "media friendly" candidate, she's not a dynamic speaker at all.

[Barry Admin]

I liked when all those tweeters queued up under that Caitlin Moran endorsement to ask her which of Jess' policies she liked.