Tony Benn RIP

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Palfrem

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Amazed we don't have a thread on this venerable old campaigner yet.

A true conviction politician. So few like him remain in the Commons these days.
 
I was fortunate to hear him one evening and regardless of any political views I may hold I came away with the impression of a man that was idealisitc but willing to listen and learn from others and who truly wanted to use his abilities and influence to improve people's lives.

He was not perfect as no-one is but he added greatly to the life of this country so I wish him a peaceful rest.
 
Me too a man that stood up for his beliefs and principles, right or wrong, not a turncoat or yes man, unlike most of them today.

RIP
 
Any politician who put constituents and principle before party politics is a person worthy of respect, even if you don't always agree with him. May he rest in peace.
 
Very similar to DSM10000 I always thought of him as a rich socialist until I saw him on one of his 'face the people' type shows.
Changed my opinion - prepared to listen to criticism and give his sincerely held opinions which he put across very well.
Also not prepared to toe the party line unlike the vast majority of yes men we have today.
We need more like him to represent all sides of the political divide.
 
As a Tory boy I say Rest in Respect and Peace Tony Benn. Pity there are not more like you in all the parties.
 
one of the most articulate policitians ever.

it was a joy listening to him speak, even if I didn't agree with his views.

RIP
 
"Conviction Politician" does of course tend to have rather a different meaning these days.....
 
Yep a man who I hardly ever agreed with but a strong man with the best interests of the people he stood for close to his heart.
Not a money man just a decent guy
 
Always struck me as an honest politician, who believed in fairness, not the grab all you can and hang everyone else attitude that is so prevalent in today's society.
 
I have fond memories of the guy - particularly when I was youngster - he lived at 52 Festive Road IIRC.

I think my favourite was when he was a wizard.

That fancy dress costume shop was great wasn't it!
 
I have fond memories of the guy - particularly when I was youngster - he lived at 52 Festive Road IIRC.

I think my favourite was when he was a wizard.

That fancy dress costume shop was great wasn't it!

You had to admire the way that he was able to get into and out of all those costumes without ever letting anyone see his underpants.
 
Always struck me as an honest politician, who believed in fairness, not the grab all you can and hang everyone else attitude that is so prevalent in today's society.

Well not quite: he believed in his own views absolutely and was not prepared to sell out for personal gain , as so many of the current crop are so willing to.

However, some of his ideas of "fairness" were a bit barking. We would all be be in Trabants

Right about the bureaucratic monster that is the EU though
 
I thought he kind of lost his way in the 70s. Once the IMF bailout occurred he detached from the reality of the problems we were facing and increasingly focused on the ideology of what he wanted and ignored the practicalities.

Always struck me as a very engaging and natural media performer and communicator who was actually wasted in politics and would have done rather well on TV covering politics rather than engaging in politics.

Totally disagreed with most of his politics but sad to see him pass away.
 
I always thought the Labour party should be about representing ordinary working people, no place for petit bourgeois political utopians.
Never could work out why Viscount Stansgate was allowed in.
I think the reason nobody hates him is that he never achieved anything much (HSE maybe?) so nobody had a grudge against him, that and being 'BBC friendly' - it made me laugh how much fawning there was on the beeb yesterday compared to the brief mentions Bob Crow got. I put the radio on four times yesterday and every time, within minutes some BBC lovey has wailing and gnashing their teeth as if something terrible had happened
 
I always thought the Labour party should be about representing ordinary working people, no place for petit bourgeois political utopians.
Never could work out why Viscount Stansgate was allowed in.
I think the reason nobody hates him is that he never achieved anything much (HSE maybe?) so nobody had a grudge against him, that and being 'BBC friendly' - it made me laugh how much fawning there was on the beeb yesterday compared to the brief mentions Bob Crow got. I put the radio on four times yesterday and every time, within minutes some BBC lovey has wailing and gnashing their teeth as if something terrible had happened


Extraordinary! So now there is to be a test which your ancestors have to pass if you are to join a political party. The Nazis with their "aryan blood" are the only other ones that comes to mind.No one who is not authentic working class need apply,no conversions,nobody allowed to see the force of the argument if their forebears don't fit.

Only in your mind is it somehow a contest between the dead Crow and the dead Benn. Anybody who kept the political debate alive,anyone who used oratory instead of a focus group,anyone who held to his beliefs and evidenced them cannot be said to have achieved nothing,unlike "here today gone tomorrow" party hacks.
 
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