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Can't Get No Satisfaction

The British election of 2010 has been, from a progressive point of view, an almost abysmal failure - a disappointment so staggeringly at odds with the Obama-like energy of the debates and campaigning - and it raises a question - is Britain too broken, too destabilised or demoralised, civically - to even be able to mount a rebellion or radical break with its outmoded electoral system and corrupt parliamentary structure? It seems so.

In the end, the Clegg revolution was only televised, but never materialised - actually losing seats and barely raising above their normal low-20s limit of support. What happened to change, to a new way, to bolting past the two old parties? The voters bottled this one. In the end, they seemed to panic, from London, Dundee, Carlyle, to Humberside - everywhere.

No pattern has emerged, but drift and lack of consensus. And, though the Lib Dems should have supported the larger progressive majority, and shored up Labour, it appears they will let Cameron form some sort of rump of a government. Britain is in for a sort of awkward moment. It feels limited, it feels like a short-changed moment, instead of change. The nation couldn't awaken. Instead, drowning voices, scuttling feet, and polling stations that turned people away. Really, a damn shame.
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Mike Begnal said…
I think what it shows is that the Lib Dems are not anything other than what their name describes. It is no surprise to me that they would prop up the Tories. They are 'liberal' in social policy, somewhat, but just as capitalist and ruthless as the Conservative party in most other respects. More capitalist than the Labour party, even 'New Labour' I mean. So I assumed that they would go with the Tories all along. At least observing from a distance....
Sun May 09, 07:20:00 am 2010
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