is there a better speaker and man of the people than Nigel Farrage at the moment?

zagubov

chewmylegoff wrote: »

george galloway is a demagogue.

come to think of it, so is alex salmon.

Alex got his party elected to power by a landslide with absolutely no media backing him and in an electoral system expressly designed to stop parties winning that kind of victory. That's some formidable odds to beat

On the other hand, Cameron gets tons of media support and still couldn't win an election in a first-past-the post system designed expressly to ensure one party wins.

I've absolutely no trouble spotting who's performing at his cognitive peak here .:D

The_White_Horse

Nige has some excellent policies on tax as well. don't foget that.

BobQ

chewmylegoff wrote: »

george galloway is a demagogue.

come to think of it, so is alex salmon.

I agree (about Galloway), but the question was about good speakers. I think that you can appreciate a true orator even if you dislike what he says.

The speakers around in past decades included some quite passionate orators whose speeches you tend to remember, unlike the present crowd. Blair, Kinnock, Cook, Helestine, Thatcher, Ashdown, Powell, Tebbit were all much more inspirational speakers than any of the present bland crowd.

chewmylegoff

zagubov wrote: »

Alex got his party elected to power by a landslide with absolutely no media backing him and in an electoral system expressly designed to stop parties winning that kind of victory. That's some formidable odds to beat

On the other hand, Cameron gets tons of media support and still couldn't win an election in a first-past-the post system designed expressly to ensure one party wins.

I've absolutely no trouble spotting who's performing at his cognitive peak here .:D

I don't disagree. That doesn't mean that he isn't a demagogue though.

homelessskilledworker

BobQ wrote: »

I agree (about Galloway), but the question was about good speakers. I think that you can appreciate a true orator even if you dislike what he says.

The speakers around in past decades included some quite passionate orators whose speeches you tend to remember, unlike the present crowd. Blair, Kinnock, Cook, Helestine, Thatcher, Ashdown, Powell, Tebbit were all much more inspirational speakers than any of the present bland crowd.

Don't forget Oswald Mosley and Hitler, far too many people forget that we had a strong facist movement in the UK pre WW2 because of the strong passionate speeches Mosley made.

chewmylegoff

homelessskilledworker wrote: »

Don't forget Oswald Mosley and Hitler, far too many people forget that we had a strong facist movement in the UK pre WW2 because of the strong passionate speeches Mosley made.

Depends what you mean by a strong movement - 0 seats were won in uk elections by anyone standing on a fascist ticket. That doesn't compare well (from the point of view of the fascists) with, say, nazi germany...

A quick google suggests that the high watermark was getting 16% of the vote in a by election. I wouldn't describe the BNP as a strong movement but they have done rather better, although still returned 0 MPs (like...UKIP).

zagubov

chewmylegoff wrote: »

I don't disagree. That doesn't mean that he isn't a demagogue though.

True enough he is one but only if you use the earliest meaning of a leader of the common people.

I was just slightly worried you mean a proponent of violence/rabble-rouser/ promoter of prejudice in which case - then OK quote me verifiable statements that back this up. I'm honestly intrigued. The man hasn't a hateful bone in his body AFAIK.:A

He has pushed for a national identity that welcomes people born in England/ Pakistan/ Poland and elsewhere, into work and public office. The fact he believes that a nation's decisions are best taken by locals (regardless of creed or colour) with a stake in the outcomes seems pretty reasonable

It makes me want to remind everybody that it's not the Scottish Nationalist Party no matter how much the amateurs at the ft keep misprinting their name for propaganda purposes.

Nationalist and fascist parties do badly here as this country is a mature democracy. end of story.

Moby

Sampong wrote: »

Yet UKIP had more policies than the other parties combined at the last General election.

Can't wait for this....go on then spill your load...again!:rotfl:

Jegersmart

Yes, I concur - Farrage, Johnson and Galloway would be my votes for being great communicators and speakers. I will always remember when Galloway basically tore the US Senate apart when he was summoned to give evidence at the hearing over there some years ago.

I am not saying that I agree with these guys' views in particular or at all times, but you have to give credit where it is due......

imho
J

thor

BobQ wrote: »

I agree (about Galloway), but the question was about good speakers. I think that you can appreciate a true orator even if you dislike what he says.

The speakers around in past decades included some quite passionate orators whose speeches you tend to remember, unlike the present crowd. Blair, Kinnock, Cook, Helestine, Thatcher, Ashdown, Powell, Tebbit were all much more inspirational speakers than any of the present bland crowd.

The current crop are quite forgettable(a bit like pop music these days) but out of your list I can only remember speeches from Blair and Thatcher. Kinnock was often ridiculed for a being a welsh windbag! Powell would be unknown today if he did not have his racial speech.
People do seem to want to paint a rosy picture of the past but when it comes to politics, politicians generally have always been bland since time immemorial.
There are 3 figures who I recognize as head and shoulders above the rest and they are in no particular order:
JFK, Hitler and Martin Luthar King
The best of the rest are struggling to get out of the championship.