UKIP Thread

[Ebeneezer Goode]

That's the point. If they didn't appeal to these people, they wouldn't have the problems with them.

They can't help but appeal to them though. A pro-immigration-control stance is always going to look more attractive than what Con/Lab/Lib can offer to a xenophobe, whether the policy itself is bigoted or not. It's no different than the Greens attracting anarchists or animal rights terrorists.

 

[Red]

With the implosion of the BNP and BF being a complete and utter joke UKIP probably is the party that mostly resonates with them. I wouldn't hazard a guess at numbers but I'm sure especially with the BNP in decline that some of their supporters are getting behind UKIP even though they'll think UKIP isn't radical enough. I'm sure Farage doesn't want those types in the party either.

 

[Captain Scumbag]

They can't help but appeal to them though. A pro-immigration-control stance is always going to look more attractive than what Con/Lab/Lib can offer to a xenophobe, whether the policy itself is bigoted or not. It's no different than the Greens attracting anarchists or animal rights terrorists.

Or the SNP (a party with many intelligent and well-meaning people) attracting some really nasty anti-English thickos. Or how Labour under Kinnock (who was hardly Che Guevara) still had loads of hardcore communist nutjobs among its ranks.

But good luck trying to argue this one. I tried a few times on TFF, and I might as well have been yelling in Swahili to a brick wall.

 

[SUTSS]

I think there is also an issue with how quickly UKIP has expanded. Any party that expands that quickly is going to have a lot of people coming in who really aren't the right people to be representing anyone. The Greens are having similar problem, although not to the same extent.

 

[silkyman]

Well they haven't been, so no.

Or perhaps there haven't been as many. By an order of magnitude

 

[Ebeneezer Goode]

Or perhaps there haven't been as many. By an order of magnitude

That wouldn't explain why we don't hear about them. It's not like UKIP scandals are only reported on in bulk.

 

[Craig]

New landlord in my local has put up a UKIP poster. Had an inkling he was touched since he first took it over.

I'm not going to start frequenting the WMC so I'll have to grin and bear it.

 

[Red]

He must be committed, you don't often see businesses with face to face customers openly supporting political parties. It could cost him custom and might be a bad move in a time when pubs are in decline.

 

[silkyman]

That wouldn't explain why we don't hear about them. It's not like UKIP scandals are only reported on in bulk.

That doesn't make sense.

 

[Ebeneezer Goode]

That doesn't make sense.

Alty just posted a Labour scandal. Did the Murdoch press go mental over it? Doesn't seem like it.

 

[silkyman]

But it was reported. You're making out that they sweep it all under the carpet and make the kippers front page news.

 

[Ebeneezer Goode]

But it was reported. You're making out that they sweep it all under the carpet and make the kippers front page news.

I'm not saying they sweep it under the carpet, I'm saying that the coverage is disproportionate. I don't even think it's partisan either, the UKIP narrative is just simpler and sells. It doesn't pay to be nuanced and representative. I mean, when that Lib Dem councillor was arrested for a drunken racist attack, do you seriously believe that the coverage would have been as low key had it been a UKIP representative?

 

[silkyman]

A press report is a press report. None of these have been screamed from the front pages.

 

[silkyman]

I think there is also an issue with how quickly UKIP has expanded. Any party that expands that quickly is going to have a lot of people coming in who really aren't the right people to be representing anyone. The Greens are having similar problem, although not to the same extent.

That is probably very true, and should be on the minds of many potential UKIP voters. A far right party, standing in the main on xenophobic policies like withdrawal from the EU and immigration (and the erosion of good old fasioned Britishness) but with a heavy dose of 'and stop foreign aid, too' is always going to attract, to use the extreme, he sort of person who has previously been involved with or voted for the BNP. UKIP aren't the BNP, but they're probably the next best thing.

And not everyone is dim enough to expose themselves on Facebook in the week before an election.

I'm sure you will get undesirables involved in any party, but when your starting point is essentially BNP Lite, you'll face a real challenge. So a vote for your local UKIPER might just be a vote for someone who genuinely believes that the UK would be better off out of the EU, but there's a chance, and a much stronger chance than any of the other parties, that it's a vote for someone who is that way inclined.

 

[mnb089mnb]

A couple more UKIPpers in trouble today. One hoping a woman would be raped and another threatening to shoot a political rival. Didn't know they had so many members.

Daily Express have backed them now too.

 

[silkyman]

Come now... Labour types are constantly doing that. It's just that we never get to hear about it.

Surprised the Express took this long. Their owner has been financially backing them already.

 

[silkyman]

A couple more UKIPpers in trouble today. One hoping a woman would be raped and another threatening to shoot a political rival. Didn't know they had so many members.

Daily Express have backed them now too.

Just to be clear.. Was it this UKIP rape apologist, or another one?

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/apr/30/ukip-donor-says-women-cannot-be-raped-by-husbands

 

[silkyman]

Tbf, I've not been able to google up the rape one, but FFS..

http://www.cityam.com/215122/ukip-c...t-blay-suspended-after-threatening-shoot-tory

They keep coming out of the woodwork, even a couple of days before the polls open. Can you rally be sure that whoever is standing in your area isn't suddenly going to come out and blame gay Muslims for global warming -after you've voted for him?

 

[Red]

Here's another one from yesterday

He's deeply sorry....that he's been found out.

http://www.itv.com/news/2015-05-05/...ist-violent-comments-about-female-journalist/

 

[Cheese & Biscuits]

UKIP: The gift that keeps on giving

 

[Smudge]

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/local-news/ukip-hopeful-jack-sen-promises-9175036

Likewise here. Ive heard it all now, UKIP suspending its own members to look good to it's southern constituencies...another o this prick's campaign leaflets through my door today, went straight in the bin. If he doesnt run his own Twitter account, Im pretty sure he never wrote a word on said leaflet either...good to know his 'suspension' was serious too, given he's still standing tomorrow...

 

[Red]

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/local-news/ukip-hopeful-jack-sen-promises-9175036

Likewise here. Ive heard it all now, UKIP suspending its own members to look good to it's southern constituencies...another o this prick's campaign leaflets through my door today, went straight in the bin. If he doesnt run his own Twitter account, Im pretty sure he never wrote a word on said leaflet either...good to know his 'suspension' was serious too, given he's still standing tomorrow...

Disgusting that they let such a vile individual stand for public office. Says it all about UKIP really. Farage acknowledges how bad the comments are, yet only suspends him.

 

[silkyman]

But it's the same for all parties, right?

There's a swathe of Greens and Lib Dems doing the same stuff, yeah?

 

[Ebeneezer Goode]

But it's the same for all parties, right?

There's a swathe of Greens and Lib Dems doing the same stuff, yeah?

No one's suggested that that's the case as far as I can tell. I never said they're all as bad as each other, in fact I said pretty clearly that I think UKIP probably has more of these types due to their immigration stance relative to the other big parties, and the speed at which they've grown.

 

[silkyman]

http://howmanyukipsuspensions.tumblr.com

The fact is, that because of all of the above, there's a larger chance that your local UKIP candidate is a twat of some description.

 

[Red]

http://howmanyukipsuspensions.tumblr.com

The fact is, that because of all of the above, there's a larger chance that your local UKIP candidate is a twat of some description.

Love the 'Days since UKIP suspension' timer.

I don't their stance on immigration ought to be overplayed though EG. There seems to be all manner of bigotry and idiotic speeches and comments they get suspended for, particularly sexist issues. I'd agree that the speed at which they've grown makes it difficult to stop these nutjobs getting in though.

 

[HertsWolf]

A couple more UKIPpers in trouble today. One hoping a woman would be raped and another threatening to shoot a political rival. Didn't know they had so many members.

I'm genuinely curious about comments like this. You see it about the Libdems a lot too. Around one in every ten electors in this country will vote for them each....that's 4.6 million people for UKIP and 4.6 million for the LibDems. For one party that's a lot less than in 2010 and for the other a lot more. But it's still a lot of people. Between them, that's a city the size of London voting for them.

Furthermore, a further 1 in 20 people will vote Green (and probably 1 in every 5 people under 25).

The distortions of the opinion polls wrt Wales, Scotland and NI probably mean that you can up those figures a fair bit too.

All three have more than just a couple of members....

 

[Ebeneezer Goode]

The smaller parties should only agree to form a coalition if a switch to STV is on the table.

 

[mnb089mnb]

I was being facetious really but when you look at the figures it's quite odd isn't it? Green Party have more members than UKIP and Lib Dems, what they don't have is big donors like UKIP and Lib Dems.

 

[silkyman]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2015-32607979

Interesting bit at the end