12-30-2020, 08:37 AM
(This post was last modified: 12-30-2020, 08:43 AM by Thomas Paine's Ghost.)
I have just spent an interesting hour reading this thread [below] on Liberal Democrat Voice [LDV]. As might be expected, it is generally accepted it was the leadership of Nick Clegg that caused the downfall of the Party. He made it clear that he thought it worth risking the Party's very survival in order to prevent Brexit - which he failed to do, but instead left to take up an extremely rewarding job with Facebook.
[Thread: The Independent View – A way forward for the Liberal Democrats
]
What I found most interesting about the discussion was the range of views from the contributors - mostly on whether the Party's MPs should vote against the Brexit bill, for it or abstain - although a number did address the wider issue of what was the way forward for the Party.
Apart from finding the views interesting, I was reminded how good LDV was as a site for political discussion - I used to contribute regularly before joining the Liberal Party. The question that sprung to mind while reading the thread was - why isn't Liberal Talk used in the same way by its members? Admittedly there are far fewer members of LP than the Lib/Dems, however, in my short time with the Party the site seems to be used only for Press Releases by ReadingLib even though there are plenty viewing - no one comments.
It could be that for most members comments are restricted to the Party's Facebook page. If this is the case surely LDV demonstrates that as much, if not more, can be achieved outside of the social media - without the dangers that social media can bring - particularly to the young.
The thread also shows how many talented Lib/Dem members might be attracted to the LP if the website was crisp and clear like the UKIP site. Faced with a decade of consistent effort to remedy the mistakes of the past - even if a plan can be agreed - a good number of Lib/Dems may consider a change of party in a favourable light.
I am unable to post the link - it is a pity that this feature does not work.
[Thread: The Independent View – A way forward for the Liberal Democrats
]
What I found most interesting about the discussion was the range of views from the contributors - mostly on whether the Party's MPs should vote against the Brexit bill, for it or abstain - although a number did address the wider issue of what was the way forward for the Party.
Apart from finding the views interesting, I was reminded how good LDV was as a site for political discussion - I used to contribute regularly before joining the Liberal Party. The question that sprung to mind while reading the thread was - why isn't Liberal Talk used in the same way by its members? Admittedly there are far fewer members of LP than the Lib/Dems, however, in my short time with the Party the site seems to be used only for Press Releases by ReadingLib even though there are plenty viewing - no one comments.
It could be that for most members comments are restricted to the Party's Facebook page. If this is the case surely LDV demonstrates that as much, if not more, can be achieved outside of the social media - without the dangers that social media can bring - particularly to the young.
The thread also shows how many talented Lib/Dem members might be attracted to the LP if the website was crisp and clear like the UKIP site. Faced with a decade of consistent effort to remedy the mistakes of the past - even if a plan can be agreed - a good number of Lib/Dems may consider a change of party in a favourable light.
I am unable to post the link - it is a pity that this feature does not work.