Spiked on why the propaganda war on Ukip has failed.
From the standpoint of a Westminster political consultant, the typical UKIP voter is a disgruntled, prejudiced idiot who simply fails to grasp the sophisticated messages of the political oligarchy. ‘We haven’t educated people as to what they are all about – UKIP voters need to be educated’, asserts Glyn Ford, Labour’s former European Parliament leader. Education is what you demand of naughty schoolchildren.
And therein lies the problem. The politicians of the mainstream parties seem to assume that we don’t understand their message. It never appears to cross their minds that, actually, we do understand and understand it all too well and we don’t like it. For all its faults (and there are plenty to choose from), Ukip has one major ace up its sleeve – it ain’t LibLabCon and that’s one hell of a starting point. Voting for Nige and his chums is slightly more sophisticated than abstaining or spoiling one’s voting slip – and if it causes apoplexy in Westminster a whole lot more satisfying. It is the equivalent of “none of the above” and that is why, despite the invective, the insult-laden, vacuous frothing at the mouth and the snide, supercilious, self-regarding smirking of its detractors who seem to think we would be better off having Cameron or Miliband telling us what to do and arse-raping our wallets to pay for it, is, in some way, better than what Farage has to offer; people are still prepared to cast a vote for Ukip. You see, if you keep shouting at people, they stop listening, for there is nothing worth listening to. If your message is more of the same – and yah-boo racists if you vote Ukip – well, why not live up to the insult? Eventually, having been constantly harangued that they are racists and that they are stupid by the political élite and their camp followers, they decide that they would rather someone else was at the helm – anyone else. And that’s the nub of it – anyone who isn’t one of the PPE graduates who dominate LibLabCon without ever having done a proper day’s work in their sorry, useless lives, yet have done their damnedest to fuck up ours.
People who have decided to cast a vote for Ukip are not stupid, they are not racists and they are not fruitcakes. Far from it. They are sick and tired of a political élite that has forgotten who is supposed to be the boss in this relationship.
It’s not us who don’t get it, it is them.
H/T Dick Puddlecote.
xX they are not fruitcakes. Fart from it.XX
Was that a DILIBERATE typing error? 😀 😀
Wow, you got in there quick. I picked this up and corrected it on the proofreading a few seconds after publishing.
I posted a comment on the DT Blogs as rapscallion – http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/jameskirkup/100270693/online-ukippers-truly-believe-thats-why-theyre-rude-and-thats-why-i-admire-them/
The buggers just DO NOT GET IT at all. So wrapped up are they in their incestuous Westminster bubble that they simply cannot comprehend the deep seated anger. Come May 22nd they are in for one hell of a shock.
Yep – spot on isn’t it?
” Come May 22nd they are in for one hell of a shock.”
I really hope so, I really do.
I repeat here a comment which I earlier left on Frank D’s blog re the same subject:
As usual, our current politicians are using the only tactic they know – slurs, smears and insults – to crack what, this time, is entirely the wrong nut. People aren’t supporting UKIP because they think it’s chock-full of perfect, saintly people – they’re supporting them because they are saying what the people want to hear and, more importantly, they’re promising to do what their supporters want them to do. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – I’d vote for a singing monkey standing for UKIP – simply because they are the only party who are at least talking seriously about getting us out of the horror which is the EU. None of the other parties are (realistically) touching the subject with a barge-pole. So they can hurl as many insults as they like. The vast majority of UKIP candidates, I’ll wager, are perfectly normal people who happen to support a particular policy that I also support, but to be honest, I don’t care if UKIP is packed to the gills with wierdos or oddballs or, yes, even wicked old racists right now. The need to get us out of the EU is, to me, pressing enough for me to vote for the candidate of any party who looks as if they might actually take concrete action to achieve that aim. Once out, we can then start being more selective about the views, opinions or natures of the individual politicians who represent us and vote them out because of their distasteful views and replace them with someone better. But getting us out of the EU, to me, is now such a pressing matter that all else takes second place.
insult-laden, vacuous frothing at the mouth and the snide, supercilious, self-regarding smirking
Well yes, it was meant to be, and I am most of those things. Although I draw the line at “frothing at the mouth” – more “pointing and laughing”, than anything else. It’s hard to do otherwise with a party whose leader claims to be raging about the horrible bias of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Anyway, I would’ve thought you’d be aware that I’m a wordy, low-achieving office monkey of no particular party affiliation from East Lothian rather than a Westminster elitist LibLabCon apparatchik. Party political types generally have to humour the type of drooling mutant that can raise a withered horn for e.g. Farage, because they want your vote further down the line, whereas I’m just openly laughing at Ukip voters and telling them to stick their opinions up their bottoms, because I don’t care. But I can see why you’d find it congenial to elide me with the awful LibLab whatevers that rile you up.
Otherwise, carry on – I wish you all the best in your desire to elect the most work-shy, clock-punching bunch of cash-pocketing, snoozing slackards ever to grace the European Parliament. I’ve always strongly believed that people deserve to be governed by the people they vote for.
The foaming at the mouth comment was aimed at Jackart – the link should have been a clue. The reason I referred to you two was that you are simply following the mainstream trend of accusing Ukip voters of being idiots. You are both wrong. Partly because it is such a sweeping generalisation, that it can never be entirely true of the hundreds of thousands who will be casting a vote and partly because you are both ignoring the “none of the above” factor. That said, I do find Jackart’s invective laden rants and childish insulting of those who dare to point out that he might be wrong somewhat amusing.
You appear to have jumped to a conclusion here. Given that I have not decided for myself yet what I will be doing on the 22nd, I find it odd that you have assumed that I will even be voting, let alone voting for a particular party.
‘The most work-shy, clock-punching bunch of cash-pocketing, snoozing slackards ever to grace the European Parliament.’ – a gratifying improvement on the current political class.
But UKIP really are a steaming herd of drooling fuckwits from the far left hand side of the bell curve. I’m surprised and disappointed you’re taken in by them. You’ll be embarrassed you were in a couple of years.
If you are surprised and disappointed, it’s because you haven’t taken in what I’ve written. I’ve not been taken in by anyone. I am, however hugely enjoying the discomfort caused to the big three. I’m getting my popcorn ready for next week.