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politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » ComRes Phone Poll Out

SystemSystem Posts: 11,015
edited September 2013 in General

politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » ComRes Phone Poll Out

The fieldwork dates were between Friday the 30th August and Sunday the 1st September 2013, ComRes interviewed 1,000 British adults by telephone, so all post the Government defeat on Syria.

Read the full story here


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Comments

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    First!
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    I see the Left have got themselves into a grand old pickle over this Syrian intervention business. They're don't know whether to praise Miliband for stopping it, or criticize Cameron for not trying hard enough to start it, so they're doing both.
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    Broken, sleazy Tories on the slide?
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    Well, this will make a change from the Nats pretending that YouGov is uniquely biased and Panelbase uniquely balanced - especially when commissioned by the SNP....
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    Mick_PorkMick_Pork Posts: 6,530
    Triumph for the fops!

    LOL
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    RogerRoger Posts: 18,891
    The country's full of peaceniks all of a sudden. We're growing up and realizing that not everything is black and white and there are at least 50 shades of Grey
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    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815
    edited September 2013
    FPT
    HYUFD said:

    AveryLP The G20 will achieve very little with Putin there and China also opposed to action, and everyone knows McCain is a neocon anyway

    I am more optimistic than you about the G20, but we shall just have to wait and see.

    The US and its allies should not however bank everything on the G20. It is as much an opportunity to demonstrate that they are the ones being reasonable and to show up Russia and China as being intransigent as it is an opportunity for diplomatic closure. I think we will see the press conferences and journalist briefings being as important as the back rooms in St Petersburg.

    Making sure the world sees that the US is doing his best to secure a last minute diplomatic solution makes it much easier to justify a wider scope of intervention as a response to Russian and Chinese blocking.
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    Christ I hate it when I have an embargoed poll
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    Good evening, everyone.

    "David Cameron showed that he is out of touch with Britain in his handling of the Syria crisis" - is there a corresponding positive, such as "David Cameron showed respect for the people by putting the matter to a vote in Parliament?"

    Also "The United States, without Britain, should launch military air strikes on Syria to deter it from using chemical weapons in future" has multiple ideas (US involvement, UK non-involvement) making it poor for discerning people's views.
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    TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 41,282
    edited September 2013
    Roger said:

    The country's full of peaceniks all of a sudden. We're growing up and realizing that not everything is black and white and there are at least 50 shades of Grey

    it's a NotA for military forays.

    I think we, as a country, are between states. Before, we were told stuff by politicians, which we believed and none of which turned out to be true, whereas we are now in a state of being told stuff by politicians, some of which may turn out to be true, but we don't believe them.

    The third, dare I say, Zen state will be a more demanding one where we actually listen to the arguments.

    For me, I think the arguments in this case have been well made by Cameron, Kerry, etc but those stats show that we're just not in the mood right now.
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    Mick_PorkMick_Pork Posts: 6,530
    Well, this will make a change from the scottish tory surgers pretending that YouGov is uniquely balanced and Panelbase uniquely unbalanced - especially when commissioned by DevoPlus. ;)
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    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815

    Christ I hate it when I have an embargoed poll

    Nothing much to see here though.

    Move along.

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    F1: Ricciardo will drive alongside (as it were) Vettel next year:
    http://www.espn.co.uk/redbull/motorsport/story/122971.html
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    TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 41,282
    AveryLP said:

    Christ I hate it when I have an embargoed poll

    Nothing much to see here though.

    Move along.

    Disagree ALP, there is much to see. That is a pretty conclusive set of numbers re. Syria.

    It is tempting and all too easy to blame Tony Blair and his set-up.

    So I will.
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    GrandioseGrandiose Posts: 2,323
    Hardly a triumph for anyone here. Labour might have got two points back, but it's on (pre-Syria vote) trend at 6 points. UKIP down slightly, not much but surely they'd like to be up after the public agrees with them. Lib Dems up, but still at only 12% (but they presumuably didn't expect to be up so decent). Conservatives down slightly - never cheer a loss.
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    RogerRoger Posts: 18,891
    edited September 2013
    My reading of the political fallout in as much as there is any is that Cameron has ended up looking totally incompetent if not ridiculous the Lib Dems have lost their only USP and are now a busted flush and Miliband has blown his best chance ever of putting himself and Labour in the vanguard by facing both ways.

    When the dust settles UKIP will take dix points
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    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815
    edited September 2013
    TOPPING said:

    AveryLP said:

    Christ I hate it when I have an embargoed poll

    Nothing much to see here though.

    Move along.

    Disagree ALP, there is much to see. That is a pretty conclusive set of numbers re. Syria.

    It is tempting and all too easy to blame Tony Blair and his set-up.

    So I will.
    But war polling gives nonsense results.

    Before action is authorised the public is against.

    When action is authorised the public is split 50/50.

    On realising the initial military goal (the taking of Port Stanley or Baghdad) the public is two thirds in favour.

    The risk is a long tail of inconclusive outcomes, unclear objectives and a slow build up of casualties. Then public support goes down to below a third.

    Taking action is a big risk with large upsides and downsides.

    If the government gets it right they are rewarded (Thatcher). If they get it wrong they are defeated (Blair by his party).
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    SMukeshSMukesh Posts: 1,650
    Roger said:

    My reading of the political fallout in as much as there is any is that Cameron has ended up looking totally incompetent if not ridiculous the Lib Dems have lost their only USP and are now a busted flush and Miliband has blown his best chance ever of putting himself and Labour in the vanguard by facing both ways.

    When the dust settles UKIP will take dix points

    For a while,it looked like UKIP will take all 3 points from this one before Miliband managed to corner Cameron purely by chance and shut out UKIP from the goal.

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    tim said:

    So no movement in VI over the summer basically, despite Tory hysteria.

    That's not true though, is it? Although you are probably being very selective about what you call "the summer".

    Around 1 May the Labour lead was over 9 and now it is under 6 taking a rough average of polls, and that's including the couple that have recently shown Labour improvements.

    Still no room for hysteria, granted, although personally I haven't expressed any.

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    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815
    Roger said:

    My reading of the political fallout in as much as there is any is that Cameron has ended up looking totally incompetent if not ridiculous the Lib Dems have lost their only USP and are now a busted flush and Miliband has blown his best chance ever of putting himself and Labour in the vanguard by facing both ways.

    When the dust settles UKIP will take dix points

    Thank god for that, Roger.

    Now we can all rule out electoral success for UKIP.

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    Mick_PorkMick_Pork Posts: 6,530
    tim said:

    So no movement in VI over the summer basically, despite Tory hysteria.
    But Camerons incompetence has weakened his position within the party this last week.
    Another half dozen letters gone in?

    Was Dan Hodges epic flounce all in vain? Weep for the PB Hodges. ;^ )
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    NickPalmerNickPalmer Posts: 21,326
    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?
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    TOPPINGTOPPING Posts: 41,282
    AveryLP said:

    TOPPING said:

    AveryLP said:

    Christ I hate it when I have an embargoed poll

    Nothing much to see here though.

    Move along.

    Disagree ALP, there is much to see. That is a pretty conclusive set of numbers re. Syria.

    It is tempting and all too easy to blame Tony Blair and his set-up.

    So I will.
    But war polling gives nonsense results.

    Before action is authorised the public is against.

    When action is authorised the public is split 50/50.

    On realising the initial military goal (the taking of Port Stanley or Baghdad) the public is two thirds in favour.

    The risk is a long tail of inconclusive outcomes, unclear objectives and a slow build up of casualties. Then public support goes down to below a third.

    Taking action is a big risk with large upsides and downsides.

    If the government gets it right they are rewarded (Thatcher). If they get it wrong they are defeated (Blair by his party).
    Yes fair enough.
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    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    It is within the margin of acceptance by PB Tories, Nick.

    And PB Tories don't make errors.

  • Options

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    Yes - MOE is 4.3%

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    RogerRoger Posts: 18,891
    edited September 2013
    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    He should have made the case for non involvement just like Charlie Kennedy did over Iraq. No ifs No buts.
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    TheScreamingEaglesTheScreamingEagles Posts: 114,370
    edited September 2013

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    According to ComRes' margin of error calculator, yes

    http://www.comres.co.uk/poll-digest/11/margin-of-error-calculator.htm
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    AveryLP said:


    And PB Tories don't make errors.

    Except for rushing through a Syria vote and losing it 285 v. 272?
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    NextNext Posts: 826
    Having read about the appalling atrocities that are being carried out on civilians, and the pitiful state that many in the country have to live in. When, oh when, are Obama and Cameron going to get together and bomb North Korea?
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    AveryLP said:


    And PB Tories don't make errors.

    Except for rushing through a Syria vote and losing it 285 v. 272?
    Unfortunately Cameron isn't a PB Tory. He's a real one ;-)

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    GrandioseGrandiose Posts: 2,323

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    According to ComRes' margin of error calculator, yes

    http://www7.politicalbetting.com/index.php/archives/2013/09/02/comres-phone-poll-out/
    The calculator is based on results with a maximum error around 50%. Since it's a 95% confidence level, a poll will only in theory show -3% when there has in fact been no change 2.5% of the time (half of 100-95). However, that calculator only accounts for sampling error (the error that occurs if you *entirely randomly* draw samples of x out of y), which therefore assumes that the rest of the methodology is correct. Therefore the true margin of error is more complex.
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    SMukeshSMukesh Posts: 1,650
    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.It doesn`t help that some of his own MP`s such as Jim Murphy and Ben Bradshaw keep talking about a second vote.
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    After the Syrian vote I said it was on a par with Mrs T's loss of the Sunday Trading vote in 1986. On reflection it's probably less significant than that. Yes, we've had the boring psycho-analyses of Dave and his relationship with his party, which we've all read a thousand times before, but not much else. Oh, and Ed Miliband embodies vagueness.
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    MarkSeniorMarkSenior Posts: 4,699

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    According to ComRes' margin of error calculator, yes

    http://www.comres.co.uk/poll-digest/11/margin-of-error-calculator.htm
    Not quite correct , because the MofE of 4.3% is calculated on a poll share of 50% , for a poll share of 34% the MofE will be around 3% .
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    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.It doesn`t help that some of his own MP`s such as Jim Murphy and Ben Bradshaw keep talking about a second vote.
    Miliband's amendment was a no-action amendment. It is now obvious that he has no plan.
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    @Mark Senior, Grandioise, Nick Palmer.

    For the avoidance of confusion, I've removed my comment about it being a MOE change.

    Anyone want to write a guest thread on MoE?
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    AveryLP said:


    And PB Tories don't make errors.

    Except for rushing through a Syria vote and losing it 285 v. 272?
    Unfortunately Cameron isn't a PB Tory. He's a real one ;-)

    Yebbut isn't Dave supposed to read PB?
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    AveryLP said:


    And PB Tories don't make errors.

    Except for rushing through a Syria vote and losing it 285 v. 272?
    Unfortunately Cameron isn't a PB Tory. He's a real one ;-)

    Dave reads PB.
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    SMukeshSMukesh Posts: 1,650

    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.It doesn`t help that some of his own MP`s such as Jim Murphy and Ben Bradshaw keep talking about a second vote.
    Miliband's amendment was a no-action amendment. It is now obvious that he has no plan.
    Despite some Labour MPs` reservations,they voted with their leader and only 6 defied him.Unlike Cameron who was defied by 30 of his own and 9 of the Lib Dem MPs...Doesn`t say much for the leadership of the man with the plan does it?

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    surbitonsurbiton Posts: 13,549
    The result of the 4th question means Britain is gradually veering towards becoming a pacifist nation.

    Maybe, I am oversimplifying. But it is clear that unless there is clear and present danger to the UK directly, the British peopel want to stay out.
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    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    According to ComRes' margin of error calculator, yes

    http://www.comres.co.uk/poll-digest/11/margin-of-error-calculator.htm
    Not quite correct , because the MofE of 4.3% is calculated on a poll share of 50% , for a poll share of 34% the MofE will be around 3% .
    The ComRes calculator shows a MOE of 3.1 on a 50 share - but 4.3 on a 34 share on 1000 base size.....Surely the MOE is greater on smaller sample sizes, not larger?

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    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815

    AveryLP said:


    And PB Tories don't make errors.

    Except for rushing through a Syria vote and losing it 285 v. 272?
    Unfortunately Cameron isn't a PB Tory. He's a real one ;-)

    Yebbut isn't Dave supposed to read PB?
    The Right Honourable Sir Avery Lympe-Pole, KG OM CH replies:

    I believe he does Sunil, I believe he does.

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    NextNext Posts: 826
    SMukesh said:

    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.It doesn`t help that some of his own MP`s such as Jim Murphy and Ben Bradshaw keep talking about a second vote.
    Miliband's amendment was a no-action amendment. It is now obvious that he has no plan.
    Despite some Labour MPs` reservations,they voted with their leader and only 6 defied him.Unlike Cameron who was defied by 30 of his own and 9 of the Lib Dem MPs...Doesn`t say much for the leadership of the man with the plan does it?

    You mean the Labour MPs voted against Cameron?

    Miliband must have really, really, twisted their arms to get them to do that.
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    JonathanDJonathanD Posts: 2,400
    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.

    Ah, the lucky families of the few thousand more Syrians who have to die of chemical attacks before Ed will get his act together.
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    Dave reads PB.

    I think you have to post comments to be a PB Tory.

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    SMukeshSMukesh Posts: 1,650
    JonathanD said:

    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.

    Ah, the lucky families of the few thousand more Syrians who have to die of chemical attacks before Ed will get his act together.
    You do realise that 100000 have died through conventional warfare in Syria and the chemical bomb toll is only 1500 at best.Even Obama says the need to bomb Syria is to act as a deterrent for chemical warfare and not to stop the deaths which will continue to increase in the civil war.

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    Dave reads PB.

    I think you have to post comments to be a PB Tory.

    I'm saying nothing
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    MarkSeniorMarkSenior Posts: 4,699

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    According to ComRes' margin of error calculator, yes

    http://www.comres.co.uk/poll-digest/11/margin-of-error-calculator.htm
    Not quite correct , because the MofE of 4.3% is calculated on a poll share of 50% , for a poll share of 34% the MofE will be around 3% .
    The ComRes calculator shows a MOE of 3.1 on a 50 share - but 4.3 on a 34 share on 1000 base size.....Surely the MOE is greater on smaller sample sizes, not larger?

    Yes something wrong there , haven't the time to do the full calculations now but clearly the MofE goes down as does the % of the sample you are measuring .
    As Grandiose posted , though , if a pollster's samples are not random and/or it's methodology is faulty then the MofE calculation will always be too low .
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    SeanT said:

    Hello. Weird polls. I suspect the random variance implies real temporary volatility, and we will proceed to status quo ante Syria shortly

    Back to poetry.

    Seems I've now annoyed Ireland, and the entire literary establishment, via my Telegraph blogs, after previously insulting atheists, Germans, all politicians, crop circle believers, Australia, murderers, John Kerry, the BBC, the Guardian, europhiles, scientists, climate changers, and America.

    I'm running out of targets. Do pb-ers have any suggestions?

    Scousers? Catholics, train spotters, left handed people and the French.
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    GrandioseGrandiose Posts: 2,323
    SeanT said:

    Hello. Weird polls. I suspect the random variance implies real temporary volatility, and we will proceed to status quo ante Syria shortly

    Back to poetry.

    Seems I've now annoyed Ireland, and the entire literary establishment, via my Telegraph blogs, after previously insulting atheists, Germans, all politicians, crop circle believers, Australia, murderers, John Kerry, the BBC, the Guardian, europhiles, scientists, climate changers, and America.

    I'm running out of targets. Do pb-ers have any suggestions?

    Prince Philip. No honour among thieves.
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    SeanT said:

    Hello. Weird polls. I suspect the random variance implies real temporary volatility, and we will proceed to status quo ante Syria shortly

    Back to poetry.

    Seems I've now annoyed Ireland, and the entire literary establishment, via my Telegraph blogs, after previously insulting atheists, Germans, all politicians, crop circle believers, Australia, murderers, John Kerry, the BBC, the Guardian, europhiles, scientists, climate changers, and America.

    I'm running out of targets. Do pb-ers have any suggestions?

    Just say Nigel Farage is an idiot. Your hit rate will go supernova.
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    SMukesh said:

    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.It doesn`t help that some of his own MP`s such as Jim Murphy and Ben Bradshaw keep talking about a second vote.
    Miliband's amendment was a no-action amendment. It is now obvious that he has no plan.
    Despite some Labour MPs` reservations,they voted with their leader and only 6 defied him.Unlike Cameron who was defied by 30 of his own and 9 of the Lib Dem MPs...Doesn`t say much for the leadership of the man with the plan does it?
    Cameron did what a leader should do in such a crisis. He talked to our international partners and came up with a plan. He then put that plan to an urgent vote in parliament.

    Sadly, he could not convince enough people. Some people were against for good, moral reasons; others because they wanted to give the government a bloody nose. The latter people were not thinking of the people of Syria.

    But your diversion is irrelevant to the point.

    Thanks to Miliband's and Labour's behaviour, both his do-nothing amendment and the government bill got voted down. This has caused severe problems for our international partners, and also puts the Syrian people at risk of further chemical weapons attacks.

    Which would be reasonable if Miliband had an alternative plan. But he doesn't. It's a shame that this doesn't concern you.
  • Options
    SeanT said:

    Hello. Weird polls. I suspect the random variance implies real temporary volatility, and we will proceed to status quo ante Syria shortly

    Back to poetry.

    Seems I've now annoyed Ireland, and the entire literary establishment, via my Telegraph blogs, after previously insulting atheists, Germans, all politicians, crop circle believers, Australia, murderers, John Kerry, the BBC, the Guardian, europhiles, scientists, climate changers, and America.

    I'm running out of targets. Do pb-ers have any suggestions?

    Pro-intervention in Syria warmongers?
  • Options
    GrandioseGrandiose Posts: 2,323

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    According to ComRes' margin of error calculator, yes

    http://www.comres.co.uk/poll-digest/11/margin-of-error-calculator.htm
    Not quite correct , because the MofE of 4.3% is calculated on a poll share of 50% , for a poll share of 34% the MofE will be around 3% .
    The ComRes calculator shows a MOE of 3.1 on a 50 share - but 4.3 on a 34 share on 1000 base size.....Surely the MOE is greater on smaller sample sizes, not larger?

    Yes something wrong there , haven't the time to do the full calculations now but clearly the MofE goes down as does the % of the sample you are measuring .
    As Grandiose posted , though , if a pollster's samples are not random and/or it's methodology is faulty then the MofE calculation will always be too low .
    I limited my comment to errors affecting changes. If we're talking actual shares/leads, then the previous poll might have mistated them.

    On other sorts of error, consider the fact that all the companies are supposed to be asking the same question of the same population.
  • Options

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    According to ComRes' margin of error calculator, yes

    http://www.comres.co.uk/poll-digest/11/margin-of-error-calculator.htm
    Not quite correct , because the MofE of 4.3% is calculated on a poll share of 50% , for a poll share of 34% the MofE will be around 3% .
    The ComRes calculator shows a MOE of 3.1 on a 50 share - but 4.3 on a 34 share on 1000 base size.....Surely the MOE is greater on smaller sample sizes, not larger?

    Yes something wrong there , haven't the time to do the full calculations now but clearly the MofE goes down as does the % of the sample you are measuring .
    As Grandiose posted , though , if a pollster's samples are not random and/or it's methodology is faulty then the MofE calculation will always be too low .
    Is that "literally" within the MoE?

    :)
  • Options
    SeanT said:

    Hello. Weird polls. I suspect the random variance implies real temporary volatility, and we will proceed to status quo ante Syria shortly

    Back to poetry.

    Seems I've now annoyed Ireland, and the entire literary establishment, via my Telegraph blogs, after previously insulting atheists, Germans, all politicians, crop circle believers, Australia, murderers, John Kerry, the BBC, the Guardian, europhiles, scientists, climate changers, and America.

    I'm running out of targets. Do pb-ers have any suggestions?

    Insult the Queen. Go on: you know you want to. ;-)
  • Options
    SMukeshSMukesh Posts: 1,650

    SMukesh said:

    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.It doesn`t help that some of his own MP`s such as Jim Murphy and Ben Bradshaw keep talking about a second vote.
    Miliband's amendment was a no-action amendment. It is now obvious that he has no plan.
    Despite some Labour MPs` reservations,they voted with their leader and only 6 defied him.Unlike Cameron who was defied by 30 of his own and 9 of the Lib Dem MPs...Doesn`t say much for the leadership of the man with the plan does it?
    Cameron did what a leader should do in such a crisis. He talked to our international partners and came up with a plan. He then put that plan to an urgent vote in parliament.

    Sadly, he could not convince enough people. Some people were against for good, moral reasons; others because they wanted to give the government a bloody nose. The latter people were not thinking of the people of Syria.

    But your diversion is irrelevant to the point.

    Thanks to Miliband's and Labour's behaviour, both his do-nothing amendment and the government bill got voted down. This has caused severe problems for our international partners, and also puts the Syrian people at risk of further chemical weapons attacks.

    Which would be reasonable if Miliband had an alternative plan. But he doesn't. It's a shame that this doesn't concern you.
    Miliband doesn`t need a plan.He only needs to consider whether the government`s plans are good enough to vote with them or not as they are in power.If there was such an urgency to punish with a `limited military intervention`,Obama wouldn`t be delaying the decision by 9 days wouldn`t he even if there`s absolutely no need for him to do so.Shows that he isn`t sure of the result of bombing Syria.
  • Options
    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815
    SeanT said:

    Hello. Weird polls. I suspect the random variance implies real temporary volatility, and we will proceed to status quo ante Syria shortly

    Back to poetry.

    Seems I've now annoyed Ireland, and the entire literary establishment, via my Telegraph blogs, after previously insulting atheists, Germans, all politicians, crop circle believers, Australia, murderers, John Kerry, the BBC, the Guardian, europhiles, scientists, climate changers, and America.

    I'm running out of targets. Do pb-ers have any suggestions?

    Morganatic Royal Marriages, Hillsborough victims, the child abuse victims of BBC presenters,

  • Options
    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,983
    SeanT The Oracle of Twitter Stephen Fry?
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,983
    AveryLP Would agree on that!
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    Poll alert. YouGov for The Times

    49% of voters said parliament “should hold a debate” if UN weapons inspectors conclude a chemical attack was launched by the Syrian regime, while 37 per cent believe that there would be “no need for a new debate”.

    and

    Conservative voters were most likely to approve of another debate (60 per cent), with 56 per cent of Lib Dem voters in favour and 47 per cent of Labour voters.

    However, 49 per cent of all voters said that confirmation of a chemical attack and approval from Congress for a US military strike on Syria should not reopen the question of Britain’s involvement in military intervention.

    Only 36 per cent said those developments would represent a “new situation”, making it “reasonable for the Prime Minister to ask Parliament to look again at whether Britain should take part in military action”.
  • Options
    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815
    HYUFD said:

    SeanT The Oracle of Twitter Stephen Fry?

    Yes, Stephen Fry.

    Pleeeeeeeeeze, Seany, be a good boy!

  • Options
    RogerRoger Posts: 18,891
    @SMurkesh

    Miliband needs to show some leadership and quickly.

    He should have explained clearly why he didn't think it was right to get involved in Syria and that the days of following the US like a well trained poodle were a thing of the past. He should then have laid into the Cameron for his pathetic party management and his feeble leadership.

    He should have then sent his MPs out to the studios to repeat the message. So when these polls on Syria started to come out Miliband could be seen to be the one leading public opinion. The template was there from 2003 when the Lib Dems did it over Iraq

    I'm rapidly losing confidence that he has the slightest idea how to sell himself and his party

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    NextNext Posts: 826

    Poll alert. YouGov for The Times

    49% of voters said parliament “should hold a debate” if UN weapons inspectors conclude a chemical attack was launched by the Syrian regime, while 37 per cent believe that there would be “no need for a new debate”.

    and

    Conservative voters were most likely to approve of another debate (60 per cent), with 56 per cent of Lib Dem voters in favour and 47 per cent of Labour voters.

    However, 49 per cent of all voters said that confirmation of a chemical attack and approval from Congress for a US military strike on Syria should not reopen the question of Britain’s involvement in military intervention.

    Only 36 per cent said those developments would represent a “new situation”, making it “reasonable for the Prime Minister to ask Parliament to look again at whether Britain should take part in military action”.

    There was always going to be another debate/vote in the House, if the first one had passed. But it did not.

    If MPs/voters want another debate after the UN returns, they can want. Miliband's merry band of followers have scuppered that.
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    MarkSeniorMarkSenior Posts: 4,699
    Grandiose said:

    Is 3 points on 34 actually within the margin of error?

    According to ComRes' margin of error calculator, yes

    http://www.comres.co.uk/poll-digest/11/margin-of-error-calculator.htm
    Not quite correct , because the MofE of 4.3% is calculated on a poll share of 50% , for a poll share of 34% the MofE will be around 3% .
    The ComRes calculator shows a MOE of 3.1 on a 50 share - but 4.3 on a 34 share on 1000 base size.....Surely the MOE is greater on smaller sample sizes, not larger?

    Yes something wrong there , haven't the time to do the full calculations now but clearly the MofE goes down as does the % of the sample you are measuring .
    As Grandiose posted , though , if a pollster's samples are not random and/or it's methodology is faulty then the MofE calculation will always be too low .
    I limited my comment to errors affecting changes. If we're talking actual shares/leads, then the previous poll might have mistated them.

    On other sorts of error, consider the fact that all the companies are supposed to be asking the same question of the same population.
    All polling companies may ask the same question but their methodology can and does modify the results differently . We know for example that online pollsters give very different results to telephone pollsters even in Comres' case when they are the same pollster .
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    OT - Robert Peston's BBC 2 series on shopping is excellent - from M&S polyester/nylon of the '50's (mother not impressed) via the premium priced Chicken Kiev of 1980 (£9 in today's money) to the MetroCentre in Gateshead.....
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    SMukesh said:

    SMukesh said:



    Miliband's amendment was a no-action amendment. It is now obvious that he has no plan.

    Despite some Labour MPs` reservations,they voted with their leader and only 6 defied him.Unlike Cameron who was defied by 30 of his own and 9 of the Lib Dem MPs...Doesn`t say much for the leadership of the man with the plan does it?
    Cameron did what a leader should do in such a crisis. He talked to our international partners and came up with a plan. He then put that plan to an urgent vote in parliament.

    Sadly, he could not convince enough people. Some people were against for good, moral reasons; others because they wanted to give the government a bloody nose. The latter people were not thinking of the people of Syria.

    But your diversion is irrelevant to the point.

    Thanks to Miliband's and Labour's behaviour, both his do-nothing amendment and the government bill got voted down. This has caused severe problems for our international partners, and also puts the Syrian people at risk of further chemical weapons attacks.

    Which would be reasonable if Miliband had an alternative plan. But he doesn't. It's a shame that this doesn't concern you.
    Miliband doesn`t need a plan.He only needs to consider whether the government`s plans are good enough to vote with them or not as they are in power.If there was such an urgency to punish with a `limited military intervention`,Obama wouldn`t be delaying the decision by 9 days wouldn`t he even if there`s absolutely no need for him to do so.Shows that he isn`t sure of the result of bombing Syria.
    Obama's delaying because he needs an international consensus, and Miliband robbed him of that. So now he is seeking Congress's approval instead. The original plan was fairly obviously to launch an action on, or before, last weekend. So Miliband kyboshed that plan and now has no idea what to do next.

    And neither do the government. Except at least they had a plan. And now no-one does, and the chemical warfare treaties are worthless.

    Well done Ed!
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    john_zimsjohn_zims Posts: 3,399
    edited September 2013
    @Tim

    'An apparently this was the 14th chemical attack Cameron knew about '

    And the Weasel that leads the Labour party still decided to play party politics.
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    AveryLPAveryLP Posts: 7,815
    edited September 2013
    tim said:

    SMukesh said:

    JonathanD said:

    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.

    Ah, the lucky families of the few thousand more Syrians who have to die of chemical attacks before Ed will get his act together.
    You do realise that 100000 have died through conventional warfare in Syria and the chemical bomb toll is only 1500 at best.Even Obama says the need to bomb Syria is to act as a deterrent for chemical warfare and not to stop the deaths which will continue to increase in the civil war.

    An apparently this was the 14th chemical attack Cameron knew about

    And he could not even be arsed to get ten if his ministers to vote.
    Now that's incompetent high ground

    tim

    A majority of the HoC did vote for UK intervention in Syria.

    A vast majority of Toriy and Lib Dem MPs voted in favour of the Government motion supporting intervention.

    A vast majority of Labour MPs voted in favour of the Opposition amendment supporting intervention.

    Now whose fault was it there were two votes?
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    Roger said:




    He should have explained clearly why he didn't think it was right to get involved in Syria

    The peacenik stance hasn't been quite as fruitful as Ed first envisaged, so he'll be banging the drum for intervention soon enough. You can write that down.
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    SMukeshSMukesh Posts: 1,650
    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    Miliband needs to show some leadership and quickly.

    He should have explained clearly why he didn't think it was right to get involved in Syria and that the days of following the US like a well trained poodle were a thing of the past. He should then have laid into the Cameron for his pathetic party management and his feeble leadership.

    He should have then sent his MPs out to the studios to repeat the message. So when these polls on Syria started to come out Miliband could be seen to be the one leading public opinion. The template was there from 2003 when the Lib Dems did it over Iraq

    I'm rapidly losing confidence that he has the slightest idea how to sell himself and his party

    I agree with you he sells himself short.The Tories have been briefing in unparliamentary words about his actions and he lets them get away with it by staying silent and not defending himself.
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    Next said:

    Having read about the appalling atrocities that are being carried out on civilians, and the pitiful state that many in the country have to live in. When, oh when, are Obama and Cameron going to get together and bomb North Korea?

    When it becomes the fashionable cause of their wives.

  • Options

    SMukesh said:

    SMukesh said:



    Miliband's amendment was a no-action amendment. It is now obvious that he has no plan.

    Despite some Labour MPs` reservations,they voted with their leader and only 6 defied him.Unlike Cameron who was defied by 30 of his own and 9 of the Lib Dem MPs...Doesn`t say much for the leadership of the man with the plan does it?
    Cameron did what a leader should do in such a crisis. He talked to our international partners and came up with a plan. He then put that plan to an urgent vote in parliament.

    Sadly, he could not convince enough people. Some people were against for good, moral reasons; others because they wanted to give the government a bloody nose. The latter people were not thinking of the people of Syria.

    But your diversion is irrelevant to the point.

    Thanks to Miliband's and Labour's behaviour, both his do-nothing amendment and the government bill got voted down. This has caused severe problems for our international partners, and also puts the Syrian people at risk of further chemical weapons attacks.

    Which would be reasonable if Miliband had an alternative plan. But he doesn't. It's a shame that this doesn't concern you.
    Miliband doesn`t need a plan.He only needs to consider whether the government`s plans are good enough to vote with them or not as they are in power.If there was such an urgency to punish with a `limited military intervention`,Obama wouldn`t be delaying the decision by 9 days wouldn`t he even if there`s absolutely no need for him to do so.Shows that he isn`t sure of the result of bombing Syria.
    Obama's delaying because he needs an international consensus, and Miliband robbed him of that. So now he is seeking Congress's approval instead. The original plan was fairly obviously to launch an action on, or before, last weekend. So Miliband kyboshed that plan and now has no idea what to do next.

    And neither do the government. Except at least they had a plan. And now no-one does, and the chemical warfare treaties are worthless.

    Well done Ed!
    Military action could cost more civilian lives than the chemical attack (whoever carried that out).
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,983
    RIP David Jacobs, The David Jacob's Collection on BBC 2 was required listening on Sunday night, David Frost and David Jacob's, two gentlemen titans of broadcasting gone within a week!
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-23938128
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    FloaterFloater Posts: 14,195

    AveryLP said:


    And PB Tories don't make errors.

    Except for rushing through a Syria vote and losing it 285 v. 272?
    Unfortunately Cameron isn't a PB Tory. He's a real one ;-)

    Dave reads PB.
    Oii Dave, your response to my wifes letter was pants.

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    SMukesh said:

    SMukesh said:

    Roger said:

    @SMurkesh

    I thought that at first but he never pressed home his advantage and before the week was out it was obvious he didn't know what he wanted to do. I still don't know what he wanted to do.

    I think he wants to keep his options open in case the situation worsens considerably.Eg.Next chemical attack and 5000 dead.It doesn`t help that some of his own MP`s such as Jim Murphy and Ben Bradshaw keep talking about a second vote.
    Miliband's amendment was a no-action amendment. It is now obvious that he has no plan.
    Despite some Labour MPs` reservations,they voted with their leader and only 6 defied him.Unlike Cameron who was defied by 30 of his own and 9 of the Lib Dem MPs...Doesn`t say much for the leadership of the man with the plan does it?
    Cameron did what a leader should do in such a crisis. He talked to our international partners and came up with a plan. He then put that plan to an urgent vote in parliament.

    Sadly, he could not convince enough people. Some people were against for good, moral reasons; others because they wanted to give the government a bloody nose. The latter people were not thinking of the people of Syria.

    But your diversion is irrelevant to the point.

    Thanks to Miliband's and Labour's behaviour, both his do-nothing amendment and the government bill got voted down. This has caused severe problems for our international partners, and also puts the Syrian people at risk of further chemical weapons attacks.

    Which would be reasonable if Miliband had an alternative plan. But he doesn't. It's a shame that this doesn't concern you.
    What was this 'plan' that Cameron came up with ?

    And while some people are for intervening for good, moral reasons, others because (in Avery's words) they never want to miss an opportunity to 'bomb ragheads'.
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    NextNext Posts: 826
    edited September 2013
    SeanT said:

    Thanks for all the advice.

    I think the key to this blogging lark is finding the sweet spot where what you opine is deeply annoying and contentious, but also horribly possible (which makes what you say even more annoying) - without it actually being SO annoying that it tips people over into murdering you.

    On that basis... I might avoid matters Liverpudlian. Howeer Nigel Farage is an interesting target. Trouble is I quite like him. Hm.

    It would be good to go against the grain. Maybe I could attack attention seeking bloggers. That Mike Smithson fella! Never liked him.


    "Why the Scots won't vote for independence, as they wouldn't be able to blame the English any more"?
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,983
    edited September 2013
    AveryLP SeanT on Stephen Fry could certainly be amusing! Although not too harsh as our Stephen is rather a sensitive soul, although he can give as good as he gets
  • Options
    CarolaCarola Posts: 1,805
    SeanT said:

    Thanks for all the advice.

    I think the key to this blogging lark is finding the sweet spot where what you opine is deeply annoying and contentious, but also horribly possible (which makes what you say even more annoying) - without it actually being SO annoying that it tips people over into murdering you.

    On that basis... I might avoid matters Liverpudlian. Howeer Nigel Farage is an interesting target. Trouble is I quite like him. Hm.

    It would be good to go against the grain. Maybe I could attack attention seeking bloggers. That Mike Smithson fella! Never liked him.


    Have you done an 'all party leaders' rant?
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    SeanT said:


    On that basis... I might avoid matters Liverpudlian. Howeer Nigel Farage is an interesting target. Trouble is I quite like him. Hm.

    Farage and the 1933 Oxford Union vote ?

    http://www.chu.cam.ac.uk/archives/education/churchill_era/exercises/appeasement/part_B1.php

    Kerry has apparently just described this as the US' "Munich moment"......wonder which country that dig was aimed at.....
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    CarolaCarola Posts: 1,805
    HYUFD said:

    RIP David Jacobs, The David Jacob's Collection on BBC 2 was required listening on Sunday night, David Frost and David Jacob's, two gentlemen titans of broadcasting gone within a week!
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-23938128

    I fear for Nicholas Parsons.
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    SeanT said:

    Thanks for all the advice.

    I think the key to this blogging lark is finding the sweet spot where what you opine is deeply annoying and contentious, but also horribly possible (which makes what you say even more annoying) - without it actually being SO annoying that it tips people over into murdering you.

    On that basis... I might avoid matters Liverpudlian. Howeer Nigel Farage is an interesting target. Trouble is I quite like him. Hm.

    It would be good to go against the grain. Maybe I could attack attention seeking bloggers. That Mike Smithson fella! Never liked him.


    Something Mike said to me when he first offered me guest editorship of PB, there's a real joy of destroying people's dearly held preconceptions with (polling) facts.

    It's the equivalent of dropping laxatives in the monkey house.

    You should see the abuse we get on twitter when we do so, is so enjoyable.
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    GrandioseGrandiose Posts: 2,323
    SeanT said:

    Thanks for all the advice.

    I think the key to this blogging lark is finding the sweet spot where what you opine is deeply annoying and contentious, but also horribly possible (which makes what you say even more annoying) - without it actually being SO annoying that it tips people over into murdering you.

    On that basis... I might avoid matters Liverpudlian. Howeer Nigel Farage is an interesting target. Trouble is I quite like him. Hm.

    It would be good to go against the grain. Maybe I could attack attention seeking bloggers. That Mike Smithson fella! Never liked him.


    I was going to suggest thriller-writing travel-columnist Telegraph bloggers as a subject ripe for your cutting edge, Sean.
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    Next said:

    SeanT said:

    Thanks for all the advice.

    I think the key to this blogging lark is finding the sweet spot where what you opine is deeply annoying and contentious, but also horribly possible (which makes what you say even more annoying) - without it actually being SO annoying that it tips people over into murdering you.

    On that basis... I might avoid matters Liverpudlian. Howeer Nigel Farage is an interesting target. Trouble is I quite like him. Hm.

    It would be good to go against the grain. Maybe I could attack attention seeking bloggers. That Mike Smithson fella! Never liked him.


    "Why the Scots won't vote for independence, as they wouldn't be able to blame the English any more"?
    Or why they only win opinion polls they load?

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    SeanT said:

    Hello. Weird polls. I suspect the random variance implies real temporary volatility, and we will proceed to status quo ante Syria shortly

    Back to poetry.

    Seems I've now annoyed Ireland, and the entire literary establishment, via my Telegraph blogs, after previously insulting atheists, Germans, all politicians, crop circle believers, Australia, murderers, John Kerry, the BBC, the Guardian, europhiles, scientists, climate changers, and America.

    I'm running out of targets. Do pb-ers have any suggestions?

    Monty Python
    Tommy Cooper
    Morecambe & Wise
    Cyclists
    Shopping
    The internet
    Whales
    Endangered species
    Tolstoy
    Shakespeare
    James Joyce's Ulysses
    Salman Rushdie
    The Beatles
    Brazil
    The Pope

    The list is endless.
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    SMukeshSMukesh Posts: 1,650
    @SeanT

    The young prince
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    Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 26,551
    edited September 2013
    So the British public have succumbed to isolationism. How depressing.
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    old_labourold_labour Posts: 3,238
    Advocate the free marketeer argument that the green belt and planning controls have had their day and should be scrapped.

    That will have them choking on their cornflakes.
    SeanT said:

    Thanks for all the advice.

    I think the key to this blogging lark is finding the sweet spot where what you opine is deeply annoying and contentious, but also horribly possible (which makes what you say even more annoying) - without it actually being SO annoying that it tips people over into murdering you.

    On that basis... I might avoid matters Liverpudlian. Howeer Nigel Farage is an interesting target. Trouble is I quite like him. Hm.

    It would be good to go against the grain. Maybe I could attack attention seeking bloggers. That Mike Smithson fella! Never liked him.


  • Options
    Andy_JS said:

    So the British public haves succumbed to isolationism. How depressing.

    The American public was isolationist in 1939-1941.

    These things ebb and flow
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    Andy_JS said:

    So the British public have succumbed to isolationism. How depressing.

    Military action could cost more civilian lives than the chemical attack (whoever carried that out).

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    Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 26,551
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    MonksfieldMonksfield Posts: 2,203
    Andy_JS said:

    So the British public have succumbed to isolationism. How depressing.

    Oh I don't know. I think it's more about tiring of British leaders playing Mini-me to the American President's Dr Evil.

    Cameron bestriding the world stage like an homunculus :(

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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,983
    Carola One hopes not, I'm sorry I haven't a clue would be lost

    SeanT Polly Toynbee is of course the perfect target for you
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    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,983
    She is basically your polar opposite
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    JonathanDJonathanD Posts: 2,400

    Advocate the free marketeer argument that the green belt and planning controls have had their day and should be scrapped.

    That will have them choking on their cornflakes.

    SeanT said:

    Thanks for all the advice.

    I think the key to this blogging lark is finding the sweet spot where what you opine is deeply annoying and contentious, but also horribly possible (which makes what you say even more annoying) - without it actually being SO annoying that it tips people over into murdering you.

    On that basis... I might avoid matters Liverpudlian. Howeer Nigel Farage is an interesting target. Trouble is I quite like him. Hm.

    It would be good to go against the grain. Maybe I could attack attention seeking bloggers. That Mike Smithson fella! Never liked him.



    "Yet what actually is the land that we are so desperate to protect really being used for? Well, this piece in Inside Housing by Colin Wiles makes an interesting point. One of the biggest uses of the green belt, around London at least, is grazing horses. He estimates that around 600,000 hectares of land in Britain is occupied by the country’s 1m or so horses. To put that in perspective, the amount of land that is built on is roughly double that. So horses probably use up almost as much space as we do.

    The reality of the green belt is that it is an enormous subsidy for any activity which doesn’t involve changing the land use from green fields. People who want big pony paddocks within a short drive (or ride?) of their suburban houses in north London can easily get them. People who would rather like suburban houses within a short train journey of their job in central London are instead forced to go and live in places like the Thames estuary."


    http://www.economist.com/blogs/blighty/2013/08/planning-policy
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    SeanT said:

    Hello. Weird polls. I suspect the random variance implies real temporary volatility, and we will proceed to status quo ante Syria shortly

    Back to poetry.

    Seems I've now annoyed Ireland, and the entire literary establishment, via my Telegraph blogs, after previously insulting atheists, Germans, all politicians, crop circle believers, Australia, murderers, John Kerry, the BBC, the Guardian, europhiles, scientists, climate changers, and America.

    I'm running out of targets. Do pb-ers have any suggestions?

    Cities
    Industrial areas
    Suburbia
    Farmland
    Forests
    Mountains

    Young people
    Middle aged people
    Old people

    Enclosed spaces
    Open spaces

    Pizza
    Pasta
    Italian food in general

    And get all your facts wrong and then steadfastly refuse to admit you're wrong - get Hugh Laurie and Hugh Grant mixed up for example or Herbert Sutcliffe and Peter Sutcliffe. Or refer to Jerry and Margo Leadbetter as Jerry and Mungo Leadbetter and say that was the origin of the name Mungo Jerry.


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    Andy_JS said:
    That's interesting as Kevin Rudd is from Queensland.

    IIRC the Liberals did paricularly well in Queensland at the last election and it looks like Rudd's return isn't helping Labor.

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    JonathanJonathan Posts: 20,901
    Seant should clearly attack the Internet and those who waste hours of the life on it.
This discussion has been closed.