Here is my contribution to the debate, having joined the Labour Party, been told that I can’t vote, paid the extra £25 (thanks to a friend) and now fuming about the entire process.
Jeremy’s Enemies
We know he’s not the chosen one
(though the initials are JC)
but he was chosen by us all –
that’s democracy.
Yet, though he was elected
you all pop up to oust him,
to say he’s unelectable:
and you will joust him
and if we join to keep him in
you try to price us out
and if we pay, we’ll pay again-
we have no clout
But who was it you wanted?
One in a light-blue suit
fresh off the Milliband-wagon
some GM fruit?
You want the flesh of government
but scatter like the rind
the promises and policies
you Left behind;
for what has JC ever done
that you should fear the guy?
Not mouthed the National Anthem?
Not worn a tie?
No weathercock at Westminster
he stands on solid ground
dug in with quiet dignity –
you spin around.
You, out of touch with deeper roots
whose policies are grass –
take care, for you will reap the fruits;
you can keep your shiny suits;
your name is written on your boots:
it’s Ozymandias.
Sarada Gray 
Excellently done x
Thank you
I don’t share your politics: I believe a nation run by the Corbynistas would quickly go to he’ll in a handcart. But I like your poem, and I don’t believe the word FRUIT could possibly be read as homophobia in this context.
Thanks for commenting
Then you’ve lived a very sheltered life:
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=FRUIT
Britain will be going to hell in a handcart soon without so much as a push from the ‘Corbynistas’.
Did you see Corybn at PMQT today? May slaughtered him – and he went to it like a lamb. Part of his problem is that he is far too ‘nice’ a person to an effective Opposition leader. It’s all very well being high-minded and sticking to the issues, but there comes a time when you have to go on the attack and Corbyn has shown no inclination to do this in nearly a year at the helm.
You might want to look at the line which references ‘a fruit’ – supporters of Angela Eagle might think you’re being a bit below the belt there.
He may be mild-mannered but at least he opposes the government. What did Milliband ever do?
And why is ‘fruit’ below the belt?
‘Fruit’ – term used to pejoratively describe an LGBT person. Not used so much nowadays but possibly still au courant with Telegraph readers. Liberace was notoriously described as ‘fruit-flavoured’ pre-Wolfenden.
Wow, that passed me by. I didn’t know she was gay and never heard that term, wouldn’t have used it if I had
Miliband’s line seemed to be that the government was doing everything right – but was doing it too quickly and without sensitivity. Predictably, that did not enthuse his supporters. But I don’t think Corbyn is any better – he reads out questions sent to him by Labour supporters and his speeches tend toward the prolix and over-detailed. He doesn’t appreciate the fact that he lives in a soundbite age – he might not like this (I don’t like it) but any practising politician who aspires to leadership must realise this and do something to accommodate it. He reminds a lot of people of Kinnock (the worst Labour Opposition leader of my lifetime), although I don’t think he’s anywhere near THAT bad. My nearest comparison would be the pacifist George Lansbury, who led the Labour Party ineffectively for some years after its crushing 1931 defeat before being removed around the time of the Munich crisis.
Cheery prediction: the 2020 election will be fought between the Conservatives and UKIIP (or whatever has replaced it by then) – two right-wing parties fighting for the keys to a decaying privy.
Optimism and hope are subversive, and despondency and pessimism play into the hands of those who would exploit the worse side of human behaviour. We saw this very much in the referendum campaign. The electorate is used to being led by psychopaths – anyone who would “press the button” for instance clearly has antisocial personality disorder – so when we are presented with someone who is relatively well-balanced and altruistic we are conditioned to seeing them as inadequate. This is what’s happened with Corbyn. Hope is subversive and revolutionary, as is “niceness”.