There's a story being distributed that I've seen several times in the last few days. The Labour surge among those under 45 is from people "who weren't alive during the 1970's to experience first hand the results of policies now espoused by JC". This got pushed during #GE2017 as "Corbyn will take the country back to the 70s.". The suggestion is that the current Labour Manifesto is a repeat of the disastrous policies of the Wilson/Callaghan government. Or that it's the same position as Michael Foot's opposition.

I think this is a right wing Tory lie being spread to limit the potential damage from a centrist social-democratic alternative. Corbyn's policies look extreme "Left Wing" only in relation to the extreme right wing that is now considered normal. The Overton window has been pulled so far to the right that a position like Heath's Tories or even John Major's is now portrayed as dangerously socialist. The policies of Thatcher, Blair/Brown, Cameron/Osbourne have been normalised.

What I don't have is the analysis and understanding of the 2017 manifesto compared with the positions of mid-70s and early 80s Labour. How similar are they, really?
[from: Google+ Posts]


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[ 16-Jun-17 7:40am ]