I don't think many people have been sparring with Old Holborn as long as I have. And lest anyone feels that's a preamble to a hagiography, let me state from the outset that I think he's a blowhard and self-aggrandizing media whore in the making.
Having been on the receiving end of one his attempts to drum up business and having dozens of quotes in my High Praise widget from window lickers who seem to regard him as some sort of Messiah, I don't think it's petty or spiteful of me to say that it's unlikely that we'll ever be bosom buddies.
But for all that, I do admire his achievements: he has made his blog into a serious player in a very short time - and kept it there; he's stuck the word "libertarian" into hundreds, perhaps thousands of minds, even if they haven't quite grasped that it's not synonymous with "Daily Mail reader" yet; he's launched an annual anti-parliamentary pride march; he's protested at troughing MPs, righteously got a man out of prison (with a lot of help from his friends, to be sure!) and now he's stuck his head above the parapet as a candidate for the Whore of all Parliaments in the coming general election.
You may mock those achievements as meaningless or paltry, but I would ask you: what are your achievements in promoting what you believe in? Convincing fellow-believers of your wit and erudition counts for nought, I'm afraid.
For all the bitching that we do about the whores in Parliament, it's true that almost none of us would ever dream of taking that enormous leap to actually stand up and try convince the electorate of what we believe.
So, even though I don't like him, I do have to concede a grudging amount of respect and admiration for him.
For all that I can't imagine people will take a masked candidate seriously, for all that I have significant differences of opinion with Old Holborn over many things, for all that I've directed invective at him over the years (and meant it very sincerely at the time!) and even for all that I don't agree with all of the Jury team's policies and alliances, I still have to say that I hope that he gets in, because I'm sure he will be an enormous, insufferable, arrogant, unbearable pain in the arse for "consensus politics".
And that is why I think the anti-LibLabCon blogosphere should not regard his candidacy as risible or undesirable, but rather launch him straight up the nose of the rotting carcass of democracy.
So, if you live in the Cambridge constituency and you are as sick and tired as I am of same old tired, ineffectual, statist shite in politics today, please vote for the cunt.
Plus, if he's fucking around in Parliament all the time, maybe the rest of us can get a shot at his Wikio slot.
21 comments:
Let's not forget, I got off my arse and got a man out of prison. Not something many bloggers can claim
Hmmmmm.
I do live in Cambridge, so my vote's up for grabs.
But I'm still makin' my mind up. Not convinced that a great activist makes a great MP. In fact, the opposite may be the case.
Gonna write about this at my place soon, if time allows...
OH, good point. Although, to be fair, that wasn't entirely on your own. :o)
As someone who would never claim to be OH's campaign manager, you just did a rather creditable job Mr Clown. In fact, if the same scathing humour was applied to all PPCs campaigns, politics would be a lot more fun.
I'd love to see the cunt win a seat, his nuisance factor should make for a few good column inches - "who is that masked man?"
Fuck me Obo, came to this after reading B&D's "satire" (their tag not mine) interview piece with OH and AR. This is a well-written, balanced article. Theirs is a horrifically weak piece of comedy, mainly based around OH being northern and AR living in France.
I incurred the wrath of JD yesterday for taking the piss so I can't be arsed again on their site, but nice one for actually bothering to think about what you're writing.
OH has spent years telling us in increasingly less humorous terms that ALL MP's are scum. He never once accepted for a moment the slightest shared of impassioned argument that there were individual good cases in the house, who genuinely do want to purge statism.
Instead for OH he made it a case of principal that the only evidence you ever needed was that someone was an MP, and then they were automatically scum. He makes this clear from the banner on his site.
Now he wants to be an MP, I think your see where I'm going with this. Sellout springs to mind.
So you would encourage people to vote for somebody they don't really like in order to uproot a system we all abhor?
And to believe that the self serving activist will be acting on behalf of the people and not ultimately for himself? His answer above surely shows his desired Messiah delusion. 'I' not 'we' is all I saw there. I am almost positive Anna played a part in that...and where did the money come from again?
Do we all forget the hate he incites and his ‘playful’ jibes at race and homosexuality?
And we are to support a man that will make a sacrifice of his own political party and jump on board the nearest one that will have him in order to get his foot in the door? Will he be tempted to bail on them if a better opportunity came along 'for the cause of fighter for the people' of course..
Yes he is a good activist and he has some impact but I have no doubt in his instance that power would corrupt. How could we 'trust' him?
If you were to take a vote now from the people in the blogsphere do you think the outcome would be favourable?
Well said Obo. I'd vote for him, just to shake things up a little, whether I agree with everything he says or not.
Oleuanna
Whilst I appreciate your input and wish to address your genuine concerns...
Your mum
A 50 year old fart, and he says 'your mum' to someone who raises a good point in debate. Great stuff.
Jury Team - well done. You fucking suckers.
The homophobia/ anti Semitism etc if true are slightly worrying but not a huge concern.
The fact that we could have someone interesting and news-worthy and waving a 'libertarian' flag in Parliament would make me happy. Anything to raise the profile of anything not LibLabCon is a bonus.
Seconded Heresiarch,
I agree with OH on many things surprisingly; the lines he wishes to draw where I disagree with him (Israel and his views on immagrants (though not immigration which is an entirely separate issue) being 2 notable examples) tend to be the scrawls of a swivel-eyed loon but that does not detract from the enormous pain in the arse he will become to parliament.
Oleuanna,
And to believe that the self serving activist will be acting on behalf of the people and not ultimately for himself?
We all act ultimately for ourselves; libertarianism is a recognition of this home truth. What differs between OH and our present glut of assholes in power is that he wears his bigotries on his sleave and won't shape them into law to suit then; he'll call for less and see which lifestyles survive by their own merits.
Old Holborn,
You have my vote in spirit (for I am Yorkshire-bound) despite our differences.
That was an admirable post Obo. I hope OH does get in for many reasons, but the one I would like to see is that it would make the LibLabCons sit up and perhaps listen.
It may not, OH may not, but despite all our armchair faux outrage, there is at least one man that is prepared to put his (and our) monies where his mouth is, and despite anyones objections, that deserves some respect.
"What power have you got? Where did you get it from? In whose interests do you use it? To whom are you accountable? How do we get rid of you?"
Watch me demand answers.
But how long until Obo and Holby get into another argument where Obo retorts by publishing Holby's name and address?
You pair of cunts.
OH my mum would make a considerably better MP than you... but where will she find the time with all that fried chicken she gotta make? ... ya right honourable cuntship
she can work for me if she likes
http://www.w4mp.org/html/personnel/jobs/disp_job.asp?ref=24032
p.s JD... I am a sick puppy but I actually found that quite funny.....
He's about to get enough rope...chill he could hang himself nice and publicly for us. *grins*
OH... I might apply myself..
Mmmmm I'm in two minds about this... Like you Obo, I kinda respect OH's efforts and for the most part wish him well. Then again I'm a sucker for a grafter... and he certainly appears to be that if nothing else.
However, I cannot forget 'the strop' he threw last year and his noisy threats to close down his blog etc etc. Annoyingly I was a regular contributor and felt that my time helping him build his audience (although my help was never requested) was simply wasted. I said then I'd never post on his blog again and I haven't done so.
I do worry though that he's built a brand based upon the tag line of "646 of them...". Now suddenly he's decided that pissing out the tent looks like more fun than pissing into it? I'm sure he'll counter that by saying he's fighting them from within - The Lord Haw Haw defence perhaps?
As for the notion he's going to be sat in Parliament dressed as Guy Fawkes? Forget it. It'll NEVER happen - Ever! They simply won't allow him.
Like I said, I'm in two minds. I know what goes into running a campaign and I really do have reservations that a mere humble blogger like OH will stick with it. Frankly I'm suspicious. A £1000 lost deposit might just be cheap publicity for his persona/blog but then all the single interest and comedy candidates over the past 40 years have figured that one out. Mostly they lose too.
I'll see how it goes.
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