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[AuthenticM]

From Vice

Right from the beginning of his leadership, the Corbynite project was held by all the sensible and stolid political experts to be an impossibility. As the first opinion polls thudded down in late 2015, they sifted through the numbers and declared in the dead voice of reason that we had all made a terrible mistake. Labour was well behind where it was in 2010 after Miliband's leadership win; the only way it could avoid a catastrophic defeat in the next election would be through a surge unprecedented in recent British political history. Corbyn's strategy – winning back non-voters and energising young people with a positive programme and by offering them something tangible rather than branding and empty phrases – was universally derided. Everyone knew that young people simply didn't vote; everyone knew that once someone stopped engaging with electoral politics they were gone forever. The only way Labour could ever do well was by aping the Tories, offering a gimpy miniature version of all their callousness and idiocy to an essentially Tory public, drawing the bounds of political discourse closer and closer into a stifling little hole, without hope, without ideology, where truth and common sense would squelch about in misery.

Last night, we got a surge unprecedented in recent British political history. Last night, we saw huge numbers of young people voting for the first time, and voting for Labour. Last night, we saw innumerable masses who had given up on politics for decades coming back, because they had something to believe in.

The gleeful anti-Corbyn Cassandras were wrong – deafeningly, magnificently wrong – because they thought that politics was first of all about numbers, rather than people: a dead Newtonian science, the calculation of inert bodies. Something as bitter and determined and ironic as the last-minute hope of the believers had no way to enter their computations. The local party offices besieged every day by hundreds of people willing to knock on doors and hand out leaflets and do anything to help had no way of entering the model. Neither did the kindly mums making phone calls, or the huge crowds turning up for rallies, or the kids putting memes together on MS Paint. This was all just enthusiasm, a disease of the die-hard, an ephemeral wash that would break against the brute solidity of political fact. It wasn't real. And they weren't entirely wrong: it wasn't real; all that enthusiasm was just swirling potential, until the election was called and it poured through the sky to take on concrete form.

The Tories ran a campaign that was not about people; it was about inevitability. Instead of offering anything, they issued a command to the electorate: this is how the polls and the numbers say that things are going to be, make it happen. Theresa May refused to debate, because what was the point? It'd only drag her down to the level of her doomed competitors. They didn't really try to win, because there was no need; the press would take care of it all and tell their readers exactly what to do. At a time when millions of people were desperate for a positive change, they ran on the promise of a lifeless eternity, in which every day would be just like the last – but with the nights longer, the grass yellowing, the sun dimming, because that's just the way things are. It was the biggest act of self-sabotage in British political history.

Jeremy Corbyn is not Prime Minister – not yet, at least. But the world has shown itself to have its own kind of irony. After weeks of screeching about coalitions of chaos and links to Irish terrorism, the Tories are now propping themselves up with the help of the DUP, a gang of noxious and fanatical homophobes, with links to murderous far-right paramilitaries. They're weaker than ever; a few by-elections could overturn their majority in months. And none of this would have been possible without Jeremy Corbyn.

 

[i_am_ben]

but he lost

 

[Linkstrikesback]

but he lost

He "lost" the election, but he absolutely won the battle, and the conservatives and public know it. The "war" isn't over.

The conservatives are shitting themselves because they know they're fucked and will be able to barely function as a party as a result of this election and Corbyns effort. They're also likely terrified of the very real possiblity that when they have to call another election to function, Corbyn is now in a position to win thanks to this election making a bunch of the nonsense about him being "unelectable" being clearly untrue, and they can hardly stick with the "terrorist sympathiser" line after they jump right in bed with a party know for being exactly that at the first chance they have.

The public have only gotten even more in favour of Corbyn judging by the few polls we've gotten afterwards.

Things are looking up.

 

[Humidex]

but he lost

Numerically, yes. But it's the potential seed of something different in British politics. Where even the tabloids can't do jack to influence public opinion.

 

[GuessMyUserName]

Courage is the magic that turns dreams into reality.

 

[IdreamofHIME]

DUP won the election.

 

[GrizzleBoy]

but he lost

Overcoming the entirely right wing media to the point where it's now in their interests yo blast the conservatives and their politics instead of constantly making the point that there's no room for the left in politics anymore, is a pretty huge deal.

The Tories won the election, but their leader, their politics, their position of power, their public perception, their ability to pass right wing policy, is all pretty much destroyed. Even days after the election, people are still not even sure if the Tories will actually be able to work with the DUP. Also wondering if/why May should still be around.

Labour lost the election, but the complete opposite has happened for their leader, their politics and their party.

If you challenge a person to a game of poker because you're apparently amazing at poker and heard that the other guy sucks, then end up losing money while the other guy ends up making money off of you, it kind of doesn't matter that you have more chips at the end. You used to have even more chips than that, and lost them yo someone who apparently can't even play poker.

 

[RetroDLC]

but he lost

Politics is an art of compromise. A majority rule doesn't nullify the minority outright, they still exist regardless the result.

 

[Newtype-001]

He was always going to lose.
Every1 was against him.

There was only down for him and Up for may but it went down for May and up for Corbyn.

FeelsGoodForJezza.

Atleast his party will support him now that theyve been btfo

 

[i_am_ben]

He "lost" the election, but he absolutely won the battle, and the conservatives and public know it. The "war" isn't over.

The conservatives are shitting themselves because they know they're fucked and will be able to barely function as a party as a result of this election and Corbyns effort. They're also likely terrified of the very real possiblity that when they have to call another election to function, Corbyn is now in a position to win thanks to this election making a bunch of the nonsense about him being "unelectable" being clearly untrue, and they can hardly stick with the "terrorist sympathiser" line after they jump right in bed with a party know for being exactly that at the first chance they have.

The public have only gotten even more in favour of Corbyn judging by the few polls we've gotten afterwards.

Things are looking up.

He still lost and the Conservatives, in all likelihood, now have 5 more years in power....

 

[RetroDLC]

He still lost and the Conservatives, in all likelihood, now have 5 more years in power....

By law, the Conservatives lost too, because they don't have a majority. Labour lost the election but won the battle by immensely strengthening their political position. The Conservatives won the election but lost their majority rule and have crippled themselves in almost every way possible. It's not a win or lose situation.

 

[kess]

This is going to turn into a Bernie thread, isn't it?

Imagine the meltdowns on PoliGAF if Bernie managed a 70% youth turnout for the Democrats but still lost the election through the electoral college.

 

[Pookmunki]

He still lost and the Conservatives, in all likelihood, now have 5 more years in power....

Curious, how do you come to this conclusion, given all that is happening right now?

"In all likelihood" is certainly not the phrase that comes to mind.

 

[Linkstrikesback]

He still lost, and the Conservatives in all likelihood now have 5 more years in power....

They by all likelyhood don't have five more years in power. They won't be able to appease the DUP for long without entirely destroying any election chances they have as a party for the foreseeable future, and the moment they decide to stop playing ball, the party will have little choice but to call another election, at which point the good comrade will likely become the new prime minister.

 

[Sweeney Tom]

This is going to turn into a Bernie thread, isn't it?

Why wouldn't it

Spoiler

Corbyn's middle name is literally Bernard

 

[airmangataosenai]

So weird how left leaning media are portraying these results as an outright win for Labour. Brexit is still going to happen and now it will be easier to pin any bad conpromises on Corbyn sabotaging the process.

 

[Stead Fast]

So weird how left leaning media are portraying these results as an outright win for Labour. Brexit is still going to happen and now it will be easier to pin any bad conpromises on Corbyn sabotaging the process.

How so?

 

[autumnleaf]

but he lost

They won but sort of lost, Labour lost but sort of won.

 

[shadowkat]

He still lost and the Conservatives, in all likelihood, now have 5 more years in power....

Won't that depend if they can work with the the other party, since they don't have a majority?

 

[RetroDLC]

So weird how left leaning media are portraying these results as an outright win for Labour. Brexit is still going to happen and now it will be easier to pin any bad conpromises on Corbyn sabotaging the process.

No left-wing media are calling it an 'outright win' for Labour, the situation is a strengthening of Labour. Also, if the Conservatives don't allow cross-party discussion for the course that Brexit should take, no blame can be put on Labour as it will be all the Conservatives fault for a bad deal or breakdown.

 

[Sir_Crocodile]

Won't that depend if they can work with the the other party, since they don't have a majority?

The pro-eu tories will probably be more of a headache to may then the dup.

 

[Pookmunki]

So weird how left leaning media are portraying these results as an outright win for Labour. Brexit is still going to happen and now it will be easier to pin any bad conpromises on Corbyn sabotaging the process.

May sabotaged herself by calling the election, fucking up the campaign and looking likely to be leaning on DUP barbarians, potentially at the expense of the NI peace process.

But yeah, it's all Corbyn's fault.

 

[aeolist]

He still lost and the Conservatives, in all likelihood, now have 5 more years in power....

may called an election because her party's small minority made it difficult to pass legislation since a few holdouts could stall anything controversial. she wanted to win a bigger majority and make things easier going into brexit.

now her majority is completely gone, they're trying to win a coalition partner that absolutely everyone hates, and that will only give them a 2 vote margin to pass anything. her party is probably going to kick her to the curb and put someone even more despicable in power, and post-election labour is polling ahead of the tories.

it's very unlikely that they'll make it five years and labour stands a very good chance of outright winning another election, and that's coming from a position just one month ago when basically everyone was predicting the total opposite result. this is absolutely a labour victory.

 

[RedShift]

He still lost and the Conservatives, in all likelihood, now have 5 more years in power....

If this parliament lasts five years I will eat Jeremy Corbyn's hat.

 

[autumnleaf]

He still lost and the Conservatives, in all likelihood, now have 5 more years in power....

All it will take is a few by-elections and rebelling Tories in that 5 years. Their position is very precarious to survive the full term.

 

[NotLiquid]

So weird how left leaning media are portraying these results as an outright win for Labour. Brexit is still going to happen and now it will be easier to pin any bad conpromises on Corbyn sabotaging the process.

Labour weren't exactly promising to back out of Brexit as far as I know so this is a weird point to make.

 

[i_am_ben]

Curious, how do you come to this conclusion, given all that is happening right now?

"In all likelihood" is certainly not the phrase that comes to mind.

The Conservatives will form government - Labour wont.

They by all likelyhood don't have five more years in power. They won't be able to appease the DUP for long without entirely destroying any election chances they have as a party for the foreseeable future, and the moment they decide to stop playing ball, the party will have little choice but to call another election, at which point the good comrade will likely become the new prime minister.

The Conservatives have no impetus to call another election anytime soon. In fact, they have an incentive to do the exact opposite. They will placate the DUP as much as possible.

Don't get me wrong it will be a circus - just see Australian politics for the last 8 years - but this is far from a labour 'win'. Heck, if anything, Labour has failed to capitalise on a very winnable election (if they actually had decent leadership).

By law, the Conservatives lost too, because they don't have a majority. Labour lost the election but won the battle by immensely strengthening their political position. The Conservatives won the election but lost their majority rule and have crippled themselves in almost every way possible. It's not a win or lose situation.

The Conservatives will be governing though. They may be wounded but they'll still be ruling Britain for the next few years.

 

[i_am_ben]

All it will take is a few by-elections and rebelling Tories in that 5 years. Their position is very precarious to survive the full term.

Oh for sure it's very precarious. It's going to be a circus for the next few years.

Just think:

• by-elections
  
• numerous expenses scandals
  
• ministers caught with prostitutes

etc.


But throughout it all the Tories will be single-minded on one thing - remaining in power.

 

[Zushin]

but he lost

Tories won a pyrrhic victory.

 

[BobTheFork]

but he lost

Yep

 

[Syder]

DUP won the election.

They really didn't though. The government in Northern Ireland is a mess, to say the least, and Sinn Féin gained seats.

Sinn Féin and many others will feel a coalition between Conservatives and DUP is in violation of the Good Friday Agreement. This will not end well.

 

[Mimosa97]

Overcoming the entirely right wing media to the point where it's now in their interests yo blast the conservatives and their politics instead of constantly making the point that there's no room for the left in politics anymore, is a pretty huge deal.

The Tories won the election, but their leader, their politics, their position of power, their public perception, their ability to pass right wing policy, is all pretty much destroyed. Even days after the election, people are still not even sure if the Tories will actually be able to work with the DUP. Also wondering if/why May should still be around.

Labour lost the election, but the complete opposite has happened for their leader, their politics and their party.

If you challenge a person to a game of poker because you're apparently amazing at poker and heard that the other guy sucks, then end up losing money while the other guy ends up making money off of you, it kind of doesn't matter that you have more chips at the end. You used to have even more chips than that, and lost them yo someone who apparently can't even play poker.

Best analogy i've read so far. Good way for peoole like me who don't know much about british politics to understand why it was a tories debacle despite then winning the election.

 

[Napoleonthechimp]

The Conservatives will form government - Labour wont.



The Conservatives have no impetus to call another election anytime soon. In fact, they have an incentive to do the exact opposite. They will placate the DUP as much as possible.

Don't get me wrong it will be a circus - just see Australian politics for the last 8 years - but this is far from a labour 'win'. Heck, if anything, Labour has failed to capitalise on a very winnable election (if they actually had decent leadership).



The Conservatives will be governing though. They may be wounded but they'll still be ruling Britain for the next few years.

It was anything but winnable in the minds of many. Corbyn has cemented his position as Labour leader and will be there as the tories are pulled down by the weight of their own blunders and the Brexit disaster.

Meanwhile Corbyn's Labour can use the intervening years to build a stronger base and hold the tory's feet to the flames.

 

[31GhostsIV]

The Conservatives will form government - Labour wont.



The Conservatives have no impetus to call another election anytime soon. In fact, they have an incentive to do the exact opposite. They will placate the DUP as much as possible.

Don't get me wrong it will be a circus - just see Australian politics for the last 8 years - but this is far from a labour 'win'. Heck, if anything, Labour has failed to capitalise on a very winnable election (if they actually had decent leadership).



The Conservatives will be governing though. They may be wounded but they'll still be ruling Britain for the next few years.

Don't underestimate the Tories ability to eat their own during a crisis. May is toast and hanging on for dear life, I'll be astounded if she makes it through the summer recess.

The right wing press was blindsided by this, and Corbyn's result (Blair has been PM on less votes) has reinvigorated both the Labour Party, and people on the street wanting positive change after seven years of Tory negativity and fear.

 

[AuthenticM]

If you challenge a person to a game of poker because you're apparently amazing at poker and heard that the other guy sucks, then end up losing money while the other guy ends up making money off of you, it kind of doesn't matter that you have more chips at the end. You used to have even more chips than that, and lost them to someone who apparently can't even play poker.

Fantastic analogy.

 

[DeathyBoy]

This is going to turn into a Bernie thread, isn't it?

Imagine the meltdowns on PoliGAF if Bernie managed a 70% youth turnout for the Democrats but still lost the election through the electoral college.

PoliGaf is in permanent meltdown

 

[Hierophant]

maybe don't discount the opinions of youth next time, turns out being a staunch proponent of your own ideals and almost never straying from them is a better message to send to the youth then "same old shit but different name"

 

[weekev]

Do you think there is a chance Jezza will now play possum, lull the tories into a false sense of security to the point where they feel confident of regaining their majority, have another snap election and then Jezza will come out fighting and take the win?

I cant see Conservatives calling another election any time soon for fear of being overrun given how poorly they did this time.

 

[bonesmccoy]

I wonder if this 'win' will get him to be more open about his views on the EU and Brexit.

 

[Air Zombie Meat]

Turns out all the mockery of people for daring to suggest a different approach was utter bullshit. Feels good and now the future of this country seems brighter for it.

 

[the better twin]

maybe don't discount the opinions of youth next time, turns out being a staunch proponent of your own ideals and almost never straying from them is a better message to send to the youth then "same old shit but different name"

Let's be real. Promising free stuff you can never deliver vs a leader with less than no personality is the reason for the result. Most sane people think Corbyns "ideals" are ludicrous.

 

[SugarDave]

Things can only get better.

Spoiler

I hope.

 

[MrS]

Vice can spin it however they please: 5 years of opposition still awaits Labour. If you're a Labour voter and feel enthused by that, more power to you.

 

[axisofweevils]

Yep. For the last year, following politics on either side of the Atlantic has been an Emperor's New Clothes situation, where very few people in charge seem to realise they're stark naked. Corbyn's surge showed, that yes, other people see it too. I feel more optimistic about UK politics than any time post Brexit.

The newspapers praising Theresa May when she robotically said "I feel the entire country is coming together" after the most divisive vote in history was pathetic.

 

[SolarPowered]

Turns out all the mockery of people for daring to suggest a different approach was utter bullshit. Feels good and now the future of this country seems brighter for it.

I remember how every post about Corbyn that wasn't an outright insult practically got dogpiled on gaf for what felt like a couple of years. I envy Labour voters as someone who voted for Bernie in the US democratic primary.

 

[ElNarez]

Vice can spin it however they please: 5 years of opposition still awaits Labour. If you're a Labour voter and feel enthused by that, more power to you.

It's not gonna be 5 years, because the Tories' coalition is untenable and it can fall apart at any moment's notice with a couple of by-elections. It's exactly the one result Theresa May didn't want to happen.

 

[cromofo]

No matter who won, Brexit.

 

[It's Reyn Time!]

Vice can spin it however they please: 5 years of opposition still awaits Labour. If you're a Labour voter and feel enthused by that, more power to you.

Assuming there isn't another election before then (which with a razor thin majority propped up by a group of religious extremists is a hell of an assumption) we have five years of being in a much better position to oppose the most heinous shit put forward by the tories, and five years of Brexit blowing up in the tories' faces.

 

[The Technomancer]

For whatever reason I haven't seen anyone else articulate my take on this yet, which is that these results are evidence of two things:

Corbyn's platform is more popular than people expected
Corbyn's platform still isn't popular enough to achieve sweeping political power

Everyone seems invested in only one of those things being true and the other being outright false, but its vitally important that we understand both

 

[Zvonimir Boban]

but he lost

He still lost and the Conservatives, in all likelihood, now have 5 more years in power....

So weird how left leaning media are portraying these results as an outright win for Labour. Brexit is still going to happen and now it will be easier to pin any bad conpromises on Corbyn sabotaging the process.

Yep

Vice can spin it however they please: 5 years of opposition still awaits Labour. If you're a Labour voter and feel enthused by that, more power to you.

"But he lost"