Vote Them Out. Demo on Sat 10 May & campaign aimed at getting councillors to speak. (5 Viewers)

[NorthernWisdom]

Question.

May 22nd is not actually that far away. Given the practical difficulties of organising a coherent campaign from scratch in such a short space of time, is there not the danger that votes for candidates will be negligible, thus suggesting few people do care about the club, and the entire campaign ends up counterproductive?

Edited to say that I don't necessarily disagree with the premise of putting candidates up, I do fear the time scale means doing it well is challenging!

 

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[letsallsingtogether]

Most of the things we do are sporadic so we should be good at it, then again who votes in the locals?

Question.

May 22nd is not actually that far away. Given the practical difficulties of organising a coherent campaign from scratch in such a short space of time, is there not the danger that votes for candidates will be negligible, thus suggesting few people do care about the club, and the entire campaign ends up counterproductive?

Edited to say that I don't necessarily disagree with the premise of putting candidates up, I do fear the time scale means doing it well is challenging!

 

[letsallsingtogether]

So lets vote his Council out then with a party that has no issues only football.

What about he roads,Bins,Buses and how are they going to get more Full Time jobs in the City for our teenagers?

Rob Stevens doesn't even live in Coventry, LOL

 

[shmmeee]

Most of the things we do are sporadic so we should be good at it, then again who votes in the locals?

63,572 people at last count. About 2000 votes to win a seat on average.

 

[letsallsingtogether]

Oh and where do you stand on the issue of joining the Greater Birmingham district if your in favour you can shove it?

 

[NorthernWisdom]

63,572 people at last count.

Hmm, how does that translate to percentage of electorate? (not population, not surprised infants don't vote... although some seem to )

 

[letsallsingtogether]

We can't even get 10 to agree on here!

63,572 people at last count. About 2000 votes to win a seat on average.

 

[Brighton Sky Blue]

Oh and where do you stand on the issue of joining the Greater Birmingham district if your in favour you can shove it?

Eh?

 

[Nick]

63,572 people at last count. About 2000 votes to win a seat on average.

I don't know much about politics, but what fun stuff can you do if you have a seat? Any decent perks?

 

[shmmeee]

Hmm, how does that translate to percentage of electorate? (not population, not surprised infants don't vote... although some seem to )

25%

 

[shmmeee]

I don't know much about politics, but what fun stuff can you do if you have a seat? Any decent perks?

http://www.coventry.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/9477/members_allowances_2012-2013

Looks like you get a basic allowance of about £12k. Dunno what a special allowance is, but some take it above £20k in total. You get the odd jolly abroad on trade trips if you're in the right position I'd imagine, and invitations to every local function from tea parties to school plays to awards ceremonies, where you will sit for hours clapping until your hands get sore. Then every week you get to listen to people complain about their bins and potholes, while blaming you for every problem from their neighbours to the amount of dog poo these days. Oh and every now and then you'll be slagged off in the local paper (and now the Internet!).

At least that's my experience from the sidelines.

 

[letsallsingtogether]

And I thought I had it bad....FhEEEEEEEEeew

http://www.coventry.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/9477/members_allowances_2012-2013

Looks like you get a basic allowance of about £12k. Dunno what a special allowance is, but some take it above £20k in total. You get the odd jolly abroad on trade trips if you're in the right position I'd imagine, and invitations to every local function from tea parties to school plays to awards ceremonies, where you will sit for hours clapping until your hands get sore. Then every week you get to listen to people complain about their bins and potholes, while blaming you for every problem from their neighbours to the amount of dog poo these days. Oh and every now and then you'll be slagged off in the local paper (and now the Internet!).

At least that's my experience from the sidelines.

 

[letsallsingtogether]

Simple question where do they stand on joining up with Brum If they are against it and are campaigning in Wainbody ward I may vote for them.

They Must have some other objectives on there manifesto?

Eh?

 

[Nick]

http://www.coventry.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/9477/members_allowances_2012-2013

Looks like you get a basic allowance of about £12k. Dunno what a special allowance is, but some take it above £20k in total. You get the odd jolly abroad on trade trips if you're in the right position I'd imagine, and invitations to every local function from tea parties to school plays to awards ceremonies, where you will sit for hours clapping until your hands get sore. Then every week you get to listen to people complain about their bins and potholes, while blaming you for every problem from their neighbours to the amount of dog poo these days. Oh and every now and then you'll be slagged off in the local paper (and now the Internet!).

At least that's my experience from the sidelines.

We need that mayor of Toronto.

"And the last thing was Olivia Gondek, it says I wanted to eat her p*s(y, I’ve never said that in my life to her," Ford said to shocked reporters during a live, televised press conference. His reasoning? "I'm happily married. I've got more than enough to eat at home."

Or this:

[video=youtube;iWIUp19bBoA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWIUp19bBoA[/video]

Imagine them arguing with SISU?

 

[Rob S]

Vote Them Out. Demo on Sat 10 May & campaign aimed at getting councillors to ...

Rob, you admit in this interview that a strategy of putting up candidates for council elections means 'Get Cov Back to the Ricoh' as a group have come down on one-side of the debate, yet for the past 6 months you have been claiming that as a group you want pressure on all sides. I don't think your argument that other groups are pressuring Football League, the Club etc. is credible when you are wanting people to vote for your candidates, who will be seen inevitably as solely anti-council/ ACL.

It is completely credible. We set up because there was pressure on most sides but not the council so we filled the gap. We have consistently supported and given publicity to the other parts of the wider campaign by all groups.

Anyone thinking that we want to give Sisu an easy ride should have a read of this:
http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/any-sky-blues-return-must-6353243

An important point that I will stress: We have not selected candidates yet and we have not formulated a manifesto yet so you are jumping the gun as to our positions for the elections. Part of the reason for putting the call out now is to help formulate that and the debates here and elsewhere will aid that. People being asked for their views on policy before an election? Whatever next! ;-)

There's probably another important point here about the fact that we are calling current councillors and executives to account – and in doing so, seeing if the ones who want to break the silence will – rather than being 'anti-council'. This is not a protest against the institution itself. Just as the councillors should be properly overseeing the executives, so should the people oversee the councillors and call for change if they aren't doing a good enough job.

 

[Rob S]

I'll also point to what I said in the Central News piece thread

(For context, the video is here http://www.itv.com/news/central/upd...n-into-sky-blues-stadium-row-court-documents/)

Slightly bizarre seeing yourself interviewed outside the Houses of Parliament. Pity you can't see the club badge on my shirt.
I'm glad Darryl used that clip of the interview as I'm checking all of the protests that have been made by all fans groups rather than just ours.

It's one thing that we will keep coming back to because we think that it is important to keep the message out there that all sides in this dispute should be held to account and part of sorting this out. Focussing on just the Council or just Sisu or just the Football League etc. isn't going to work.

The reason we set up GCBTTR was to fill the 'gap in the market' as far as the council is concerned in all of this, but we are happy to support Trust, KCIC etc. initiatives as it is all part of getting us back home.

 

[chiefdave]

We have not selected candidates yet and we have not formulated a manifesto yet so you are jumping the gun as to our positions for the elections.

Doesn't this show a huge flaw in the idea? We're now less than 40 days from polling day and the other parties are gearing up their push but you don't have candidates or a manifesto. Hasn't this all been left too late?

There's probably another important point here about the fact that we are calling current councillors and executives to account

Any Coventry resident can do this, you have a right to take your councillors to task and if people aren't happy with what they have been doing, on this or any issue, they should have been doing this already.

 

[Rob S]

Doesn't this show a huge flaw in the idea? We're now less than 40 days from polling day and the other parties are gearing up their push but you don't have candidates or a manifesto. Hasn't this all been left too late?

No. Nominations only opened this week and possibly standing candidates is only part of the campaign. (See the original link at the start of this thread.)

Any Coventry resident can do this, you have a right to take your councillors to task and if people aren't happy with what they have been doing, on this or any issue, they should have been doing this already.

And this is exactly why we've launched this campaign. Residents have tried and been fobbed off.

Just for the record, we didn't originate the standing candidates idea. People came to us and suggested it. Specifically, back when we did the petition hand-in protest in November and during the Higgs v Sisu high court last week.

 

[Brighton Sky Blue]

No. Nominations only opened this week and standing candidates is only part of the campaign. (See the original link at the start of this thread.)

And this is exactly why we've launched this campaign. Residents have tried and have been fobbed off.

Just for the record, we didn't originate the standing candidates idea. People came to us and suggested it.

Will your party have any other policies besides trying to secure the return of the club?

 

[chiefdave]

No. Nominations only opened this week and standing candidates is only part of the campaign.

You're missing my point unless you're suggesting that other parties have only this week begun to think about who they might put forward as candidates or what their manifesto will be. What is your timescale for announcing candidates and policies? With less than six weeks till polling day by the time you are ready to start campaigning, where as a new party you are already behind existing parties, how long will be left?

I'm not saying this is a bad idea I'm just saying I think it has been left far too late. It would have been much better, in my opinion, to have started this months ago and have the announcement earlier in the week be details of candidates and your manifesto.

 

[Rob S]

You're missing my point unless you're suggesting that other parties have only this week begun to think about who they might put forward as candidates or what their manifesto will be. What is your timescale for announcing candidates and policies? With less than six weeks till polling day by the time you are ready to start campaigning, where as a new party you are already behind existing parties, how long will be left?

I'm not saying this is a bad idea I'm just saying I think it has been left far too late. It would have been much better, in my opinion, to have started this months ago and have the announcement earlier in the week be details of candidates and your manifesto.

You are totally right about the timescales and so forth. It was the disclosures and result of the recent court case that gave us the final signal that this was worth going ahead with.

To be clear about a few things if we do run candidates:

1. If a party then we would essentially be a single-issue party, but have the potential to address other local issues.
2. There are precedents for this with Back to the Valley (Charlton) & The Seagulls Party (Brighton)
3. We are a tiny party going up against the entrenched, well-funded, national party machines. Grassroots is the buzzword here I believe.
4. We are playing on the fact that what we are doing is exactly what the current council top brass don't want to have to deal with.
5. This is a good story to hook the rest of our campaign on. It gets it noticed and we can generate publicity way out of proportion to our size & financial clout.

If no candidates then the fans contract / questions to be answered / supporting certain candidates phase kicks in.

In terms of timescales, if we do have candidates then they would probably be announced at the close of nominations (4pm Thu 24 April) along with any manifesto / platform outline.

But yes, time is very tight. Can I take your questions and input (both much appreciated) as an indication that you might help out?

 

[Grendel]

Rob Stevens doesn't even live in Coventry, LOL

Neither has our longest serving MP "LOL"

 

[chiefdave]

But yes, time is very tight. Can I take your questions and input (both much appreciated) as an indication that you might help out?

Note sure I'd get a lot of votes standing in Portsmouth

I think a key thing will be to have clear and very simple aims and objectives. People tend not to read all the detail so you need something quick and easy to hit people with. Like we have to force the council to do abc or explain xyz. Of course there will be people who will want to dig a lot deeper but to gain anything from it there will need to be a simple message and a target outcome.

 

[RegTheDonk]

Rob, hats off to you for looking into this, but I don't think putting up candidates in some kind of "Sky Blues Party" is the way forward. It's going to cost a lot of money just for the deposits, never mind campaigning, expenses, knocking doors with leaflets, posters etc. You can't just rely on the internet to get your message across.

And if they went on the radio, I fear some people when put under the spotlight and asked about issues away from the Sky Blues, could be tied up in knots and made to look very one dimensional. The main party candidates, regardless if you believe them or not, are quite comfortable in talking about most issues and either have a good answer or can bat away a question that they know nothing about.

I think that is fairly crucial point - would joe public put the future of the roads, the hospitals, the schools, social services etc etc in the hands of a one-aim party? We may knock Lucas (who was a ST holder) and Mutton (who played for the City ffs) because of their lack of resolving the SISU/Ricoh issue, but ask them what went wrong and the history behind poor Daniel Pelka and what they are doing to ensure things are changed to try and stop this happening again, they'll have a good comeback (weather its right or wrong). I dread to think what could happen if there was an open forum or meeting, though perhaps I'm doing potential candidates an injustice and there are some City fans who have confidence, experience and would be up for it.

As you said, the established parties are well funded and, regardless of the issues, many people will vote for them out of habit anyway. I'd take the comparison of the police elections a while back. There were 3 independents, one used to be on the police authority, two were ex-coppers. They knew all the problems, knew the right answers to give, any one of them would have been perfect for PCC. They didn't make the 1st cut of the voting, and it was a straight choice between Labour and Tories (I don't think the tory guy had much police experience anyway - they ditched their preeferred candidate who was a ex-police inspector and a ex-police federation leader).

I just can't see any independent making a dent, unless UKIP field a full list which might knock the big boys share down.

.....
If no candidates then the fans contract / questions to be answered / supporting certain candidates phase kicks in.

I honestly think this would be a better course of action, quizzing the main party candidates and perhaps supporting those that include in their manifesto some conclusion regarding the Ricoh.

 

[Grendel]

Rob Stevens doesn't even live in Coventry, LOL

Tonight I have to report a serious crime of Internet hacking. Jack griffin has stared he did not make a statement Rob S does not live in Coventry.

Jack change your passwords hackers are everywhere.

 

[skybluetony176]

Tonight I have to report a serious crime of Internet hacking. Jack griffin has stared he did not make a statement Rob S does not live in Coventry.

Jack change your passwords hackers are everywhere.

Did yours get hacked when you claimed to be charitable while wishing ill on a charity by a hedge fund.

I'm guessing the wishing ill on a charity was really you and the claiming to be charitable was the hacker.