View Full Version : General Election Caithness Poll
It is an Election year, but what are the real issues that we want the candidates to be addressing? Is it local , national or international issues? Or is it impossible to separate them into those categories?
Well we all have our own views but does it really matter who gets in politicians will tell you any old crap just get elected they never give you straight anwsers
The results are already quite interesting. Crime is foremost in voters minds when Caithness relatively has fewer crimes than most other places.
Naefearjustbeer
24-Jan-05, 02:21
The results are already quite interesting. Crime is foremost in voters minds when Caithness relatively has fewer crimes than most other places.
and we want to keep it that way!
Labour = Friend of the Criminal IMHO!
I've not cast a vote here because I don't live in Caithness at the moment… but if I did I'd have to admit that Iraq/Terrorism is going to be foremost in my mind at the next election. I won't vote Labour as long as the current leadership (and I include more than just Blair in that) are in place… and even then it will take a monumental shift in policy for me to even be tempted to look to them for governance. I won't vote Tory because they are even worse than Labour. I dread to think where we would now be had they been in charge of this debacle.
Of the remaining parties I'm going to be casting my vote with the following in mind (in order of importance, most important first):
Their general attitude towards their fellow man
Honesty
Economy (Jobs)
Evironment
Education
Crime
Health
Candidate loyalty doesn't enter into the process.
PS – It's interesting that taxation isn't in the poll.
PPS – Rheghead, are we to take it from your new-found ability to post sticky polls that a) you are an anonymous moderator and b) I'm going to have to be nicer to you from now on? ;)
In the immortal words of William Jefferson Clinton: It's the economy, stupid!
Well, it's usually the economy, but I agree with the bulk of JJC's first paragraph above. However, I would most probably vote for a Brown-led Labour Party. Brown is (I think) sufficiently distant from Blair and Iraq that I would give him the benefit of the very-considerable doubt.
When it comes to tactical voting, boundary changes have muddied the water a little, but my "new" constituency is held by a Labour MP whom I dislike, so I shall be voting for the the only party I think can beat him here, namely the Lib Dems. However, if I thought there was an earthly chance that Michael "Something of the Night" Howard would become PM, then I might reconsider and vote for Blair's lot as the Devil we know.
After the Economy and Iraq, it's Public Services (including Health and Education) for me.
I have been sufficiently intrigued by the comments on crime rates to check them out. Take a look at the map on this page (http://www.scotland.gov.uk/stats/sss/docs/sss07-02.asp). The geographic distribution of crime rates is pretty much what one would naively expect -- the highest rates are in the biggest cities and the lowest on the Islands. It's nice to see one's prejudices confirmed occasionally.
So, Apollo69, who ya gonna vote for? Based on some of your previous posts, I might guess UKIP perhaps? Or perhaps not.
jjc wrote
PPS – Rheghead, are we to take it from your new-found ability to post sticky polls that a) you are an anonymous moderator and b) I'm going to have to be nicer to you from now on?
Anonymous moderators are that, anonymous. So it is against the forum rules to either admit or deny being one. Just think of my new ability to post sticky polls as 'evolving from the primordial cyber soup'. :)
With that said, and I am not trying to play mind games with you here, but it would be a good idea if you were a bit nicer to me, just once in a while....but not too much :D
The Pepsi Challenge
24-Jan-05, 18:43
Does anyone agree with me on this...?
How does/can John Thurso relate (politically) with that of, say, the tinks and the average joe in the street? Somehow I don't think he would understand their problems. That's not a slight on tinks by the way. I find them to be humourous, misunderstood people.
But there you go.
He advertises his surgeries quite well and has them reguarly, not many MPs do that, especially if they have cabinet posts and spend too much time in Westminster.
The results are already quite interesting. Crime is foremost in voters minds when Caithness relatively has fewer crimes than most other places.
That's because we want to keep it that way!
The results are already quite interesting. Crime is foremost in voters minds when Caithness relatively has fewer crimes than most other places.
I found it odd too. Caithness isn't some sort of post-Giuliani New York, worried about murder rates creeping back up. It seems a strange thing to be concerned about above all the other issues which do affect day-to-day life in Caithness.
It's a shame the poll didn't include "asylum seekers" - I'd have been interested to see how many votes were cast for that. Again, an issue that barely touches Caithness but you wouldn't know it from the posts that suggest that the entire UK is about to become a Muslim state.
I voted for crime in the poll, but in a national sense rather than just locally.
The results are already quite interesting. Crime is foremost in voters minds when Caithness relatively has fewer crimes than most other places.
I found it odd too. Caithness isn't some sort of post-Giuliani New York, worried about murder rates creeping back up. It seems a strange thing to be concerned about above all the other issues which do affect day-to-day life in Caithness.
It's a shame the poll didn't include "asylum seekers" - I'd have been interested to see how many votes were cast for that. Again, an issue that barely touches Caithness but you wouldn't know it from the posts that suggest that the entire UK is about to become a Muslim state.
Could it be a case of the fear of crime is distorting the real perception of crime? (I know that sounds really pretentious and namby pamby but it was a genuine question).
Dr Szin - I haven't decided yet. I will wait until I have heard what they all have to say.
well, I opted for Environment. If we don't get our global act together, we won't need to worry about crime, tax, health, education or people. (In fact I'm thinking of renaming myself Voice of Doom.) However, if you had asked me who I'd vote for right now Rheghead, I wouldn't have a clue. Not much choice out there is there?
Don't VOTE - it encourages others... :evil :evil :evil
Ciao,
Dave the Rave :cool:
Ps.. They are all as bad as each other.
dougleith
26-Jan-05, 00:05
How does/can John Thurso relate (politically) with that of, say, the tinks.
I would have thought he'd be more than qualified to relate to the tinks. :D
Old Labour
26-Jan-05, 16:35
I notice that the SNP have announced their Prospective Parliamentary Candidate - someone called Karen Shirron (from Aberdeen!). I wonder if she knows that it is 210 miles from there to Wick/Thurso!!
I don't know whether to take offence or not - but I would at least have appreciated someone who lives or works somewhere north of Dingwall and knows the specific concerns and issues we have up here. Any thoughts? Or am I just being old fashioned? :o)
O.L, I suggest you listen to what she has to say and offer before you draw any conclusions beforehand which are based on her geographical origins. You may be impressed?
I see the crime and the environment are the issues most concerning us. I guess the crossover of the two will be the topic of flytipping [mad] [mad]
I am disgusted by the amount that goes on!!
i am a socialist by nature but will vote for the party that has the right approach to crime.
i will never vote for the candidate that is "the nice one" i will vote for the party with the right policies.
Voting blue, would mean bringing back the death penalty for some poor sod who stole a loaf of bread(slight exageration), i think you know what i mean.
Voting gold would never get a result, they just sit on committees for an internity before something got done.
The party that could clear up the complacency the policy have in caithness about crime would be the party for me.
Corruption, drugs and anti social behaviour need addressing in caithness.
This means the council and the law authorities need a complete sweep.
Get rid of them, their all in it for themselves.
do not vote for LORD john thurso, he dropped his title to fool us, don't let it happen again.
girniegoe
29-Jan-05, 01:39
Do not always agree with Reghead but think he has hit the nail on the head this time
Could it be a case of the fear of crime is distorting the real perception of crime?
I believe the "fear" of anything can be greater than the actual experience. We read of happenings in the press or hear on the tv, relate our own experience to what we have heard and then fear even more for our personal circumstances . The fact that the perpetrators of crime in Wick/Caithness are actually known is much more frustrating but surely less frightening than some unknown entity committing the same crime?
By the way, am surprised Health was not ranked higher...
girniegoe wrote
I believe the "fear" of anything can be greater than the actual experience. We read of happenings in the press or hear on the tv,
We saw the politicians whipping up 'fear' to justify the invasion of Iraq. The 'fear' of contaminated water, hence why people buy bottled water. The 'fear' of personal attack, so we all buy security lights, alarm systems and mobile phones.
If they can make us frightened then we will do or buy anything to make ourselves have a false sense of security. We are like putty to the 'fear mongers' who are only thinking of their pockets.
I see the Church is trying to make abortion an election issue and the Tories are trying to make cheap political points out of it all. I would not like abortion to become an election issue, we would be going down the same road as the US otherwise.
Having said that, I am all for shortening the gestation threshold point for any aborted foetus. I am personally appalled by those nightmare hospital stories from the pro-life lobby. Surely a decision to abort can be taken earlier rather than later?
Are Brits capable of making it an election issue or are the Tories, the media and the Church trying to out of desperation?
Are these not marginal issues which are being whipped up to muddy the waters. They are issues which polarise viewpoints and are likely to make great headlines but are they REALLY as vital to the election
Abortion - is emotive and guaranteed to inflame people and grab headlines
Travellers sites is the same. They seem to forget it was the tories that removed the need for councils to provide sites for travellers in the first place. This is another issue that inflames a vocal group of people bust scrapping the Human rights legislation is a sledgehammer to crack a nut and typical of a conservative "im alright Jack" attitude.
To be honest how anyone who lived through the thatcher years can contemplate putting their cross in the conservative box amazes me
philupmaboug
22-Mar-05, 14:19
Can someone tell me where the figures come from that say Caithness has very few crimes compaired to other areas?? Wick is the second highest crime area after Inverness, that is a worring fact in my eyes. We maybe less than Glasgow but who cares about there? we live here.
It's about time the Scottish Parliment did some thing about the crime in this area, (AND OTHERS) when do you ever see a policeman/women out and about on the beat? All the paperwork they have to fill in nowadays leaves them little or no time to do a scout about to see what is going on. I wouldn't want their jobs for love nor money.
Can someone tell me where the figures come from that say Caithness has very few crimes compaired to other areas?? Wick is the second highest crime area after Inverness, that is a worring fact in my eyes. We maybe less than Glasgow but who cares about there? we live here.
Of course we have less than Glasgow, we are much smaller. I imagin that if you took an average per head of population it would be about the same - so lets get tougher on crime now. It is a cancer of society and the only way to cure cancer is to cut it out early on.
philupmaboug
22-Mar-05, 15:32
I agree with Alli, but our police appear to be tied up in petty rubbish, chasin school kids an the like, get the rector to do his job properly and release them to do thiers. Knock the paperwork on the head and lets get niebourhood watch up an runnin for our future.
How do you go about setting up a neighbourhood watch? Do you have to have a proper meeting etc? ;)
peter macdonald
22-Mar-05, 19:19
It has to be crime for me .Its like katerina says we want to keep the level of crime to a minimum .Wick has real problems and whilst i agree that the local police are tied up with paper work their bosses dont help either .They are so keen to be seen to be conforming with the latest motorist catching initiative they put all the available manpower into it leaving the local criminal s with a free hand . Im no lover of speeders or guys who dont pay their car tax etc but i would sooner see them escape if i thought the police were getting the time and back up to at last sort out the known criiminal element in Wick
How do you go about setting up a neighbourhood watch? Do you have to have a proper meeting etc? ;)
hasn't this been discussed and concidered on another thread?
Can someone tell me where the figures come from that say Caithness has very few crimes compaired to other areas?? Wick is the second highest crime area after Inverness, that is a worring fact in my eyes. We maybe less than Glasgow but who cares about there? we live here.
Try this link, I hope it helps
http://www.upmystreet.com/overview/?l1=Thurso#Sin
concerned resident
23-Mar-05, 11:02
I am still waiting for the promises to be made good from the last election, about what they were going to do, to stop the people of caithness being ripped of at the petrol pumps. ( or did i miss something )
I wonder if it is worth contacting the TV programme 'Watchdog' over our fuel prices?
Surely they can do some investigative journalism into this matter? Lets face it, we are no further than Cornwall from an oil terminal or oil refinery, are we?
well i would put health and schools on my list. As for crime I think we should think of ourselves, theres not much crime up here so why choose to improve something non existent. You want crime you go to where i came from London you would vote it in then. But we are in Caithness and should put our vote to something more worthwhile.Just my opinion
champagnebaby
24-Mar-05, 09:19
well i would put health and schools on my list. As for crime I think we should think of ourselves, theres not much crime up here so why choose to improve something non existent. You want crime you go to where i came from London you would vote it in then.
Ermm do you actually live in Wick?? You may not think there's much crime up here cos you lived in London but there's too much of it up here for the size of the place and not enough being done about it. Wick was never as bad as it is now, it used to be safe to go out and leave your house unlocked now you gotta lock the doors, windows and fit burglar alarms - it's a joke.
But we are in Caithness and should put our vote to something more worthwhile - try telling that to the people who've been victims of crime - getting assaulted, their house broken in to, cars damaged! [disgust]
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