Politics Before A Concert? No Thanks

Paloma Faith, an artist I am rather fond of, has gathered Owen Jones to be her warm up act for a couple of gigs.

As she's a socialist, I can see why, but… it's a concert, not a rally outside Parliament!

What do most people go to a concert for? To have a good time, and have 3 to 4 hours of music they love being blared into their eardrums, helping them forget the troubles they face.

When I go to a concert, it's usually to escape the hectic times of life, to feel the bass drum, and bass guitar reverberate through you.

To then go back to your bed, and have the high pitched ringing in your ear, and still feeling the blast from the bass guitar, and drum.

I do not go to have some political journalist tell me that there should be a politics of hope, and tell us that we, the crowd, don't think in terms of left and right, but in terms of issues.

I have to admire Jones though, as I'm sure he's aware it could go one of three ways:

1. He gets the crowd going, and thinking, whether it gets them thinking in the way he, and Paloma, are hoping for is not to be known

2. He could go down like a lead balloon, and he could off stage to utter silence

3. He could get booed, as I say, people are there to have a good time, and forget about the troubles they face in life, and not think about the looming general election, where hear enough about politics on a daily basis

I can see why Paloma is doing this though. The thought of Nigel Farage getting anywhere near frontline politics is not a pleasant thought, but nor is the idea of listening to the same drivel Jones comes out with on daily basis.

"We need hope!" He'll cry. "Don't blame the Polish fruit pickers!" (Because that's what they come here to do?) "Don't blame the Indian nurses. Don't blame the immigrants. Blame those at the top. Hold them to account!"

I've said it once, and I'll say it again, no one blames the immigrants, we blame Labour, because we all know it was Labour who went out in "search parties" to bring more immigrants here, we know it was Labour who allowed the benefits system to so easily rigged, we know it was Labour who helped wreck our economy.

I wish them both well, and think Owen is rather brave for taking this on, but I really can't see this going down well at all.