Telling

Election party

Election party at Demos tonight.  Apparently we'll be playing this drinking game...

Trust and trustability

Trust has been an important word in the campaign for all political parties and voters. Media street interviews have been characterised by the repetition of ‘they’re all the same’, ‘can’t trust any of them’ style remarks. Politicians have responded by highlighting the trust in their campaigns and manifestos. But merely acknowledging the problem and mentioning it often cannot bring back trust. In fact, I would argue that the real problem in politics is not too little trust, but too much.

Onora O’Neill famously described the decline in trust during her 2002 Reith lectures for Radio 4. Polls which ask the public questions such as ‘would you trust a neighbour with your front door key’ have reported a decline in trust in civic life. I think that it is true that trust has declined in community relationships, but trust in politicians is quite different. Following the collapse of communism, and after a period of steady economic growth, we now have almost complete trust in the capitalist system. No-one disagrees with free market economics anymore and its steady management by clever automatons is seen as the key for success public and private life. We live in a high trust age.

The advantages of existing in a high trust climate are many. A high trust public can be fickle, fun and carefree. Problems are someone else’s responsibility. A high trust public does not necessarily feel the obligation to go out and vote. Cynicism can be enjoyable, and it can bring people together. But the costs of high trust living are also high: dissatisfaction, dislike and a sense of being left out.

Do I trust politicians? I agree that some of the political interviews and party political broadcasts have been toe-curlingly bad. And I think the climate has become so dysfunctional that many politicians have lost the ability to communicate in a meaningful way. But if I had a choice whether to leave my wallet by mistake in front of a) a politician, or b) a member of the public, I’d choose the politician every time.

Politics suddenly interesting shocker

Already had two impassioned debates about tax in the pub with people I wouldn’t normally talk politics with.  Incredible.

But was rather shocked to discover than in a number of recent by-elections in my local area the Green Party actually performed better than Labour.  Now I do love the Green Party, and I’ve recently become a new member, but as things stand currently they’re not a major party and I wouldn’t really expect them to do better than any of the big three.  And the last decade has been characterised by Labour landslides so you have to wonder how badly Labour must do when they’re not in a purple patch! 

I know by-elections are different, but even so. 

Are You Thinking What We’re Thinking?

There's something about the Conservatives current poster campaign that’s quite clever. The slogan is refreshing and unexpected, which is good initially, but then you realise it doesn’t mean all that much. The real strength of the posters is the hand-written style.  Because it’s handwritten it looks ordinary, honest, almost like the handwriting of someone you know.  It is hard for handwriting to look like propaganda, it is undesigned and human by its very nature.  The handwriting is also distinctively ‘not posh’, and in some of the posters barely joined up.  The posters also look highly distinctive and ‘no nonsense’ versus commercial billboards. All of this adds up to quite appealing posters in semiotic terms and they are certainly much better than Labour’s.

But my problem with the Conservative posters is the poisonous message which adds a sinister undertone to ‘Are You Thinking What We’re Thinking’.  My particular least favourite is the ‘How would you feel if a man on early release attacked your daughter’.  And there are the other focus-group-garnered buzz words of ‘matron’ and ‘asylum seekers’. 

I agree with the Archbishop of Canterbury in his condemnation of negative campaigning.  It plays on superficial and inflated fears without addressing real moral questions such as the obligations we have towards vulnerable people and especially children.

After hearing about the Eco-tax which the Green would like to instate instead of VAT I am considering joining the Green Party.  Fear I am about 4 years too late to be of use to them though.

Alastair Campbell's weblog

here.  Juvenile but funny.  Please tell me there's an Alan Milburn one too.  He's much more sinister than AC.