Monday 2 October 2023
Party conferences aren’t the answer
As we know, the Tories are pontificating in Manchester. The curious thing about party conferences is a strange reluctance to open the windows to free speech.
We all know this, or most of us do. We know that almost everything said by elites, their minions or the media is far from being all that should be said. We know there is much that is kept from the cold blue light of reason or the glittering eye of basic moral rectitude.
The failure of bad ideas appears to a slow process of slow discovery which party conferences do nothing to speed up. From the start, some people see bad ideas for what they are, but too many don't. Net Zero and the pandemic debacle are examples.
Yet even many seriously bad ideas have to undergo a painfully slow and damaging collision with reality before they are widely recognised as bad. Furtive politics, biased media and a gullible population seem to be the problem. Party conferences aren’t the answer.
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4 comments:
I remember back in the '70s, it was said that the Labour conference was dull because it was full of turgid composite motions and points of order, as they actually tried to work out policies there; whereas the Tory conference was dull because it was too heavily stage-managed and it was just a photo-op. Both have deteriorated even more. Both are stage-managed,but both involve a lot of sniping, briefing against the leadership, and anxiety about image.
Sam - yes they have both have deteriorated. It's no longer worth listening for coded hints. The media seem to be the main problem, but then who do the media cater for? It's all a bit chicken and egg.
Arguably party conferences have become opportunities for the various 'courtiers' to dance before the 'Emperor' to display their worthiness for recognition and progression. Who is 'up' and who is 'down' are much more important (in the Political World) than trivial matters like guiding the Ordinary World forwards.
It's smoke and mirrors heavily abetted by the media (who are desperate for column inches/pixels).
I used to think that it was just me getting older (and perhaps wiser?) that I now find party conferences, award ceremonies, staged athletics and sports, or especially the Eurovision Song contest, just empty fluff. But perhaps the world has changed too and the leaders are too self-absorbed to worry about appearances outside their own bubble. It would explain a lot of things.
DJ - I think it is partly an age thing because we have seen the changes as they occurred. Much of the problem seems the be that desperate for column inches/pixels.
Pursuit of the inches/pixels has become more professional, more brash, shallow and generally tabloid. Old media striving to survive an online world I suppose.
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