crackerjack

Well-known member
I don't think I know about this - what (allegedly) happened, briefly?

Google thisislondon, Andrew gilligan and Lee Jasper and take a large pinch of sodium chloride. Broadly (and allegedly), grants have been made from LDA funds to several rather nebulous organisations, some of which have folded in the very same year without ever filing that year's accounts. Lee Jasper is suspected (by Gilligan, at least) of being matey with some of the organisations.

I should stress the Standard and Gilligan are not to be trusted. But Jasper is, erm, now how can I put this.......?
 

crackerjack

Well-known member
I don't agree with that at all. If people keep voting for someone then why shouldn't they be allowed to stay in power?

But incumbency creates its own power (particularly when you hold it for that long, and probably half the city's people of power are your appointees). Once in a while the playing field needs levelling. Checks and balances are essential in any democracy.
 

vimothy

yurp
But incumbency creates its own power (particularly when you hold it for that long, and probably half the city's people of power are your appointees). Once in a while the playing field needs levelling. Checks and balances are essential in any democracy.

One argument (which I'm sympathetic to) is that term limits create a situation where the incumbent no longer needs to worry about re-election, and eventually reaches a time where the costs of impeachment are greater than the costs of doing nothing. Therefore, watch almost any US president, Dem or Rep, start handing out favours one year from the end of his two terms.
 

vimothy

yurp
And the richest crims in the system all get mysteriously pardoned?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1184118.stm

Marc mother fucking Rich -- exactly who I was thinking of.

Patrick Byrne, CEO of Overstock.com and figure of general controversy and some degree of hatred, has a great blog that touches on some of the history of this guy -- Deep Capture.

EDIT:

Yeah, there is that drawback. But ultimately you have laws to deal with corruption and I'd rather trust in them.

But in a very real and specific way, the laws don't work when you have term limits, which is why this happens.
 

john eden

male pale and stale
Apparently it was all taken out of context blah de blah.

Nothing the BNP likes more than a black segregationist.
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
"But incumbency creates its own power (particularly when you hold it for that long, and probably half the city's people of power are your appointees). Once in a while the playing field needs levelling. Checks and balances are essential in any democracy."
I agree that you need checks and balances but I don't think term limit is a good one for the reasons that Vimothy and I just stated. The pardoning one may be specific to the US but it remains the case that the electorate will have no sway with a candidate in power who knows that he will not have to answer to them again.

"Seems I'm voting for Ken, well well."
I got this order

Ken Livingstone (Labour)
Brian Paddick (Liberal Democrats)
Siân Berry (Green Party)
Matt O'Connor (English Democrats)
Boris Johnson (Conservatives)
Lindsey German (Left List)
Gerrard Batten (UKIP)
Alan Craig (Christian Peoples Alliance / Christian Party)
Winston Mckenzie
Richard Barnbrook (BNP)
 

crackerjack

Well-known member
Seems I'm more Trot than you, cos German was 4th on mine (top 3 same order), with Boris, McKenzie, UKIP and BNP at the bottom.

Some questions are irritatingly vague though: obviously it's important that public officials reflect the city's ethnic diversity, but not if it means strict quotas.
 
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IdleRich

IdleRich
"Seems I'm more Trot than you, cos German was 4th on mine (top 3 same order), with Boris, McKenzie, UKIP and BNP at the bottom."
I'm just relieved it didn't come out with my preferences coming out as directly contradicting everything that I'd already said - I'd have looked a right cock then.
 

crackerjack

Well-known member
I'm just relieved it didn't come out with my preferences coming out as directly contradicting everything that I'd already said - I'd have looked a right cock then.

I did it again, and Boris and McK both moved up 2 slots - must m,ake me a swing voter :slanted:
 

Mr. Tea

Let's Talk About Ceps
Forward, comrades! :)

Ken Livingstone (Labour)
Lindsey German (Left List)
Siân Berry (Green Party)
Matt O'Connor (English Democrats)
Winston Mckenzie
Brian Paddick (Liberal Democrats)
Boris Johnson (Conservatives)
Alan Craig (Christian Peoples Alliance / Christian Party)
Gerrard Batten (UKIP)
Richard Barnbrook (BNP)

Edit:
Some questions are irritatingly vague though: obviously it's important that public officials reflect the city's ethnic diversity, but not if it means strict quotas.
Yeah, this one annoyed me especially, it says "Public sector workers should reflect the ethnic diversity of the communities they serve", so I think I put Neither, since I disagree with quotas but selecting Disagree sounds like you're saying "Public sector workers should not reflect the ethnic diversity of the communities they serve", which is clearly ludicrous.
 
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tom pr

Well-known member
Livingstone and Berry were tied for the lead for me. can't remember the rest of the order - i think Johnson was fifth.
 
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