Four More Years

Okay, so they won. Not going to pretend I like it, but clearly, the people voted for it. I remain, as ever, a Republican Socialist. But I'm not going to buy the media "Liberal Democrats Won" stuff.

No they didn't... What happened was that Labour's vote haemorraged. They lost a wee bit, and other parties gained in the interim.

Perhaps, for me, the most impressive result was the SNP win in the Western Isles. Let's be honest, it's a romantic heartland. Out history revolves around it. It beats with it. It is the source of a lot of our songs, our poetry, our beliefs. If the SNP won Cumbernauld, would it be such an amazing result? Not quite, but still good... That's the point, it's what it means to us.

And, as Joe Middleton, who was thrown out of the SNP for being a Republican Socialist pointed out, the 36% Labour vote means 64% wanted Labour out. Thats one of the lowest votes to get a government into power that the UK has ever had. Enough pointless statisticary though...

Why is it that the press mourn the winners in elections like this, and lust after the least-worst loser? I'm no fan of Labour (as you might have guessed) but somehow they won, with a 66-seat majority and still managed to be regarded as the loser. Does this mean I only have to get the independence vote up to second place to be a winner?

My party, the SSP, gained nothing and didn't expect to. What worries me is that George Galloway's Respect Party gained a seat London (Befnal Greeen and Bow). What it means is that those who want the British Socialist Party have been given a caveat to build a British Platform from. From a Scottish Independence platform, this is clearly dangerous.

But then, there's this other part of me which thinks... Let them. Let them build their Socialist Alliance... With the Brit Soc alliance the Scottish Vote the SSP provides will likely disintegrate, and the pro-SNP socialists will return to the SNP fold (or form another Republican party) and the BSP will merely end up splitting the Labour vote. This, is truly a good thing, since a BSP is the best thing for splitting Central Scotland Labour votes, since Central Scotland, being a Labour Heartland, has little love for New Labour as such, it tolerates in favour of "an alternative" which the Lib Dems can never provide, despite the build in their vote.

I have a few predictions: 1, that Tommy Sheridan will be approached by Respect activists to build on their success in Bethnal Green and Bow; naturally so, since he's now unemployed after screwing too many SSP activists to be of any use. 2, that some form of alliance between SSP activists and Respect activists will occur between now and the Scottish Parliament elections. 3, In Scotland, the Lib Dem success will falter because of it's affiliation to the Scottish Executive (a problem it never had during the Westminster elections). 4, the G8 conference will be a watershed in Scottish Political opinion and beliefs; it will be a greater catalyst for change in political opinion since the Poll Tax riots.

Scotland just changed, and no-one even knows it yet.