04/06/2010: "false impressions of spin"

ADDITIONAL:
it would appear that others on the internet are picking up on this post subject.... some in high regard!
Guido's blog
Nick robinson's newsblog on the BBC website nick robinson picking up on this is unusual!

and their off... the general election starting gun has been fired, every household in the country will now be bombarded for the next 4 weeks, via the internet, via the telephone, via their televisions, about which of the parties we should vote for.

in this sense, its all good fun, it is only once every 5 years.

in another sense, its a total nightmare for the public!

how does the general public, seperate the spin from the substance?
when the wife told me to "look at that" when blair walked into downing street after his landslide election victory in 1997 was all over the tv news, little did we know then what we know now, it was all fake
the cheering masses of people in downing street that day were labour activists, flown and bused in, to give the impression of euphoria

a year later, our clan landed on downing street, and were refused access to the entire street, unable to even get a clear photograph of the front door that the world sees, locked out and not wanted.
i even asked the armed police guards, "not a chance" i was told.
i pay for it, i vote for it, but when i want access to it..... im not allowed anywhere near it.

more recently, the gordon brown appearance in reading town centre on a friday dinnertime, not a soul around only advisors, police, councillors and plain clothes detectives. no access allowed.
or the council estate in january, live on the dinnertime news, the prime minister reveals a "new" initiative on anti social behaviour.... once again, not a soul around him, even when stood next to the only shops in the area at a busy dinnertime... the general public absent.

easter sunday - a totally unexpected walkabout for the prime minister and his wife.. across horse guards parade and into st james park over looking the water - without any bodyguards we are told.... wow, could this be the open access to the prime minister we want?
not quite - after a few words with some tourists in st james park and a deserted walk through horseguards, hes back in his bunker, safely tucked away from the public and their awkward questions.
how can you tell?
simple - if it was an unscheduled walkabout without any bodyguards, then there wouldnt have been two or three professional photographers on hand to record the apparently random trip would there!

.... and on to today,
election is called officially, an hour or so later, the labour leader is off to st pancreas on the train, he doesnt arrive at the station and get on the train.... he walks through a long string of well wishers, shaking hands and repeating "what a sunny day it is" to them all.
and? whats wrong with this?
this is statesman gordon brown - the amount of the general public he has met on the street, since becoming prime minister, you could count on one hand.
now hes walking through crowds of people shaking hands with them?
look at the sheer bad manners of the man when adam boulton of sky news, did an interview with him then said "thankyou for the interview gordon brown" instead of calling him prime minister.

... "but hes there walking amongst the public" says the wife.
but if you notice, in the background people are in cafes and shops looking surprised, now look at the faces of the seemingly random members of the general public who are seemingly lined up taking it in turns to shake his hand....
they are not surprised in the slightest, because its yet more spin.

when gordon brown goes anywhere, where he may meet the general public, its always, a surprise visit.
he zooms in (announced only to his inner circle and some labour party workers in the area) has a brief 5 minutes, then he zooms out again
labour workers are more often than not the "general public" or "the people" quoted in labour speeches and seen on the "surprise visits" - they are not the general public at all.
i would wager good money that the prime ministers office contacted the local labour party and told them that gordon brown would be making an unexpected handshaking stop at st pancreas before boarding a train, round up any of our workers and send them over.

it is marketing of the labour leadership - which all parties do to some extent, but to portray labour party workers as "the general public" is grossly misleading and shows how shallow this government have become, in their pursuit of power.