U.K. Party Leader Admits ‘I am a Socialist’ While Pledging Loyalty to Unions
British Labor Party leader Ed Miliband took a cue from MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell Saturday when he admitted that he is undoubtedly a socialist. Not only is he proud of it, but he also said he was tempted to join the recent student tuition protest and professed his unabashed support for the unions.
“Yeah, I am a socialist,” Miliband told the BBC over the weekend according to London’s Daily Mail, “and I’m not embarrassed about it.”
After clarifying that he doesn’t want “public ownership of everything” (like his father did) he explained that his socialism is based on “social justice”: “There are big unfarinesses in our society, and part of the job of government is to bring about social justice and to tackle those unfairnesses.”
As the BBC notes, Miliband comes from a family of socialists. His father was a “proud Marxist” while his mother was an “activist”:
That history may be what prompted him to admit he was tempted to join the recent student protests against tuition hikes.
“I was quite tempted to go out and talk to them,” Miliband said. “I applaud young people who peacefully demonstrate.” When asked why he didn’t join, Miliband recalled, “I was doing something else at the time.”
The Daily Mail was quick to point out that 35 were arrested and seven police were injured in the latest round of student protests on Wednesday. Miliband’s aids were equally quick to do damage control, saying that the Labor Party leader did not plan on attending any future protests.
Miliband and his staff, however, didn’t backtrack on another controversial statement. According to the Daily Mail, Miliband refused calls to rein in the influence of the unions, which helped him win his leadership spot. “I don’t want to take them out of the Labour Party’s decision making,” he said, “because, actually, that will make us more disconnected as a party.”
As one British analyst said, “Here, he makes clear he will do nothing to upset his paymasters.”
The comments came amid financial trouble for the country and as Miliband tried to define his party’s goals and audience. After he labeled that audience as the “squeezed middle” and went on to describe 90 percent of the country’s population, he said he meant no one who receives benefits or gets six-figure salaries.
Those who know me know that I am 1/2 Brit and I follow British politics. Being that I would like to move and live in Skye, Scotland at least part of the year, I want to be on top of things. I don’t know what political party I will join when I move home, but will have an open mind like I try to do here in the States.
I admire both men for coming out and being honest about being socialist. Every single person should be allowed to find out where they stand politically and be able to state their beliefs without worry of people attacking them because they disagree. I will defend a Socialist’s right to have a voice as I will defend a White Nationalist’s right to have a voice in society.
I believe that the people if educated on the issues will make the right decision on who they will follow. Let everyone who wants to set up their own soap box to speak from do so and let the people decide which political view they will embrace. If the truth is on their side they shouldn’t be afraid to allow the people to hear the other view point.
To often we have those in power who want to put out the voice of any political view that they disagree with. They work to silence the other view points from being able to share their views with the people.
I read an article that Howard Dean of VT said that the government should pick the guests who appear on Fox and MSNBC. His reasoning was that Americans are to stupid to see the truth. Why is it that some(notice I said SOME) Democrats think Americans are stupid or have the mentality of a dog. A dog is a beloved pet and so to me when they compare us to dogs it is not a nasty or mean comment but that they feel they know better then us and that they have to make the decisions for us as those of us who own dogs or cats make the decisions for our beloved pet.
Why is the Left in this country so afraid of those of us on the Right having a chance to voice our beliefs?
Why do they rush to harsh judgement against those of us who because of our strong Catholic faith are pro life and fight against abortion being used in this country as a form of birth control with public funding as evil terrorists for praying a rosary in front of an abortion clinic for the life of the unborn child? This administration under Obama has ordered it DOJ to treat us like terriorists for daring to PRAY OUR ROSARIES. That is a real terriorist action CATHOLICS PRAYING ROSARIES ISN’T IT?
The Left also rush to harsh judgement against those of us who because of our strong Catholic faith oppose Gay marriage. Didn’t you know we Catholics ARE EVIL RACISTS BECAUSE WE FOLLOW THE TEACHINGS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH THAT SAY HOMOSEXUALLY IS A SIN AND THE CHURCH DOESN’T SUPPORT GAY MARRIAGE. The church should not be FORCED TO MARRY GAY PEOPLE WHEN THE CHURCH THINKS IT IS A SIN. I don’t understand how one can be a good Catholic and not obey and follow the teachings of our church? As Catholics are choice is do we obey the teachings or disobey and do what we want to do? I think it is one of those either or choices in life.
Back to this article the people in the UK will decide what the future will be for leader of the Labor Party. I am a capitalist and I know that there are capitalists in the UK who I can join with and work together with. I will take an honest look at the SNP but from the brief look at its political platform I think they are pro abortion which means as a Catholics I can not be part of that party. I don’t know if the Conservative Party has pro abortion in their platform or not. I am not at that place yet, so I haven’t really looked at the platforms of the different Parties yet in the UK.
Right now I am back in the Republican Party, but I am unhappy with my Sen. Jon Kyle. I don’t think they learned their lesson and it will be the same ole same ole that is pissing the American people off. Both Republicans and Democrats do earmarks. Both parties talk the talk but ignore the WILL AND DESIRE OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE when they go ahead and do earmarks anyway. I DON’T CARE HOW WORTHY THE CAUSE IS THAT IS GETTING MONEY IT IS STILL WRONG WHEN OUR DEBT IS SO HIGH. WE MUST CUT SPENDING.
The UK is in the same place that the United States is, but unlike the States they have a leader who is trying to do the right thing in bringing down the debt so that they can start to rebuild. In the States we have a President who spends, spends, spends like we have no debt and doesn’t want to face the fact that we can’t spend all this money. We must cut our spending, raise taxes, and bring the defict down. To continue to enslave ourselvs to China and whoever holds our debt IS making us even weaker to the point that someday we will loose our freedom and become enslaved to whoever holds our debt. I truly don’t think Obama loves this country because he doesn’t act like it when he continues to SPEND, SPEND, SPEND MONEY WE DON’T HAVE TO SPEND. IT LOOKS TO ME LIKE HE IS DRIVING THIS COUNTRY INTO BANKRUPTY ON PURPOSE. I HAVE ZERO RESPECT FOR OBAMA AND HOPE FOR A MIRACLE THAT A DEMOCRAT I COULD SUPPORT RUNS AGAINST HIM IN 2012.
I admire David Cameron for making the hard choices that he has to make in order to bring the debt down. In the short term it will hurt but in the long term the British people will be better off because they will be saved from having to go through the hell that the American people will have to go through when we go bankrupt.
People in a lot of nations are going to have to face the truth that our governments can’t spend, spend, spend on programs. MANY OF THESE PROGRAMS ARE GOOD, BUT THE MONEY ISN’T THERE. WE MUST ROLL UP OUR SLEEVES AND TAKE THE MEDICINE OF SPENDING CUTS FOR NOW TO GET OUR HOUSE IN ORDER AND OUR DEBT DOWN. WE CAN’T CONTINUE TO CLOSE OUR EYES AND PRETEND THE MONEY IS THERE FOR ALL THESE PROGRAMS WHEN IT ISN’T. WE ARE SPENDING OUR CHILDREN’S FUTURE. IT IS MORALLY WRONG.
France too shows moral courage in spending cuts to bring down their high debt. It seems it is just the States who is stupid to think that more spending and adding to the debt is the way to bring the debt down.
All programs need to be on the table. All programs will have to have some money cut. All programs need to be smarter on how they spend their money. Gone are the days of wasteful spending.
FAMILIES IN THE UK, IRELAND, EUROPE AND THE STATES ARE HAVING TO CUT THEIR SPENDING AND LIVE WITHIN A BUDGET AND OUR GOVERNMENTS MUST TOO. WHY SHOULD THEY HAVE A DIFFERENT STANDARD THEN THE FAMILIES WHO LIVE IN THOSE COUNTRIES?