Friday, October 29, 2004
All aboard the Liberal Love Bus
Some enterprising and broad-minded liberals in the USA have set-up a campaign called FTheVote.com.
It's a novel method for neutralising conservative votes. Liberals are encouraged to, how shall I put it, seduce conservatives and then get them to sign a pledge not to vote for Bush. The campaign includes a tour of 'swinger states' with a 'Liberal Love Bus'.
Could the Liberal Democrats replicate this campaign in the UK? It's a tempting thought, until you realise some of the snags. The average age of Conservative party members is about 70 and their voters aren't much younger, so you'd have to be a fairly extreme swinger (even by Liberal standards) to delve into that particular sexual maelstrom.
Then there's the Liberal Democrats themselves. The FTheVote website declares, "Everyone knows liberals are hotter than conservatives - we look hotter, we dress hotter, our ideas are hotter, and we are infinitely hotter in the sack."
Well, everything's relative. But one glance at the delegates at a Liberal Democrat conference and you'd realise this does not necessarily apply in Britain. Sandals and beards are rarely in evidence these days, yet sometimes you feel you have stepped into the bar scene in Star Wars (but without the violence).
So, will the Lib Dems tour Britain's 'swinger constituencies' with a 'Liberal Democrat Love Bus'? Will they swap STV for FTV? Somehow, I doubt it.
