Johnson or Corbyn? Worst choice ever for electorate | Simon Carter

It is possibly the worst choice ever placed before long-suffering British voters.On Thursday we will again vote to elect a new government – the third time since 2015.As ever in a UK general election, only two parties can win.
RIVALS: Johnson v CorbynRIVALS: Johnson v Corbyn
RIVALS: Johnson v Corbyn

In the blue corner, a man patently out of touch – like many Tories – regarding the real issues of life in 2019.

A man who, when editor of The Spectator magazine, oversaw the repeating of disgusting lies about Liverpool fans’ behaviour at Hillsborough – years before it was proved in a court of law that they didn’t contribute to the deaths of 96 of their fellow supporters.

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A man who allowed these words in his magazine: ‘The police [at Hillsborough] became a convenient scapegoat, and The Sun newspaper a whipping-boy for daring, albeit in a tasteless fashion, to hint at the wider causes of the incident.’

A man who once described Portsmouth as a place ‘too full of drugs, obesity, underachievement and Labour MPs’.

In this day and age, when many politicians’ social media history and past comments are regularly used as a stick to thrash them with, Boris Johnson appears coated in Teflon.

Nothing seems to stick. And this is the man who not only could be our prime minister on Friday morning, he is the man who is ALREADY in No 10.

The situation is little better over in the red corner.

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There stands a man who has refused to condemn the terrorists that routinely set off bombs that killed and maimed during the height of The Troubles.

The past few weeks have been a miserable, joyless time of electioneering and campaigning by the Conservatives and the Labour party.

Whoever wins on Thursday, the next few months promise an equally miserable, joyless time of accusation and counter accusation. I would not be surprised if we end up with another hung parliament. A jovial thought indeed as we approach the season to be merry.

If it is really true that we get the politicians we deserve, God help us.

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We must all have done nasty things to furry animals in a previous life …

Anoint the ginger one, surely the only winner of SPOTY?

Three cheers for whoever was responsible for putting together the BBC Sports Personality of the Year shortlist.

It’s not an all-white list, and it’s not all-male either. That matters in 2019.

It’s not all English either, thanks to the presence of Welsh rugby captain Alun Wyn Jones.

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Ginger people can’t complain either, as cricketer Ben Stokes is up for the award next Sunday. And the ginger must win.

Dina Asher-Smith, Lewis Hamilton, Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Raheem Sterling have also been nominated. But for all the wonderful things they achieved in 2019, they didn’t produce the sporting miracle Stokes did at Headingley.

Ban Fairytale? It’s the best Christmas song of all time

I don’t listen to Radio Solent, it bores me to death. That’s fine, I’m sure their presenters would say the same about this column.

But Alex Dyke did his best to garner some publicity for the station when he suggested Fairytale Of New York be banned because of its lyrics.

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Once upon a time, we only heard the work ‘snowflake’ at this time of year. Now of course, it’s everywhere as some people seem to be offended by everything.

‘Fairytale …’ is easily in my top 10 favourite songs of all time. Some days it will be right at the top. So I hope Alex Dyke’s view is never taken up.

The NYPD must forever sing ‘Galway Bay’.

And the bells must always ring out on Christmas Day.

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