[247/365] Jennie and Sarah

[cosmolinguist]

I really want to properly write something about how Jennie quit the Lib Dems yesterday and then Sarah quit too.

But I'm so tired. I woke up with a killer headache very early this morning and I've felt ill all day. I've still had to be out with my parents all day.

I don't have words to convey how big a wrench this is. It's hard to explain to non-political people, who see politicians only as distant and unreal (especially in this age of Trump and Boris) figures, that actually being involved in politics has elements of a family, a pub where you're all regulars, a weird but harmless religion, a geek convention, all the internet arguments you've had, a committee room, a history lecture theatre, a confessional, and the worst day jobs you've ever had. All of these things can lead to you making some of the best friends of your life.

I admire both Jennie and Sarah so much, I am glad to have worked with them on the LGBT+ exec, and it will be so much less fucking fun without them. I utterly support them in their decision and I'm angry they were driven to it for the sake of one goddam vote in the Commons and a short-lived publicity stunt of this guy walking across the aisle on live TV.

I told them both that losing them is a huge blow to the party -- more than I think it comprehends right now -- but that for them as people it'll mean a lot less stress and a lot more free time, and they're both sorely in need of that. I'll miss them as colleagues, but as their friend...I just love them and hope they'll be okay.

Comments

[barakta]

So sorry, must be much harder being so far away from people who understand why this matters.

It's utterly barking here... And not in a good way.

Sending you some love across the ocean.

[cosmolinguist]

Yeah I'm getting very garbled accounts of what's going on in the UK from glimpses at social media I've been allowed to grab, and the U.S. TV news versions of events which is very light on detail and from what I can tell misleading too. But it all sounds grim, and I'm sorry to hear that.

[barakta]

I'm relying on David Allen Green and Tanni Grey Thompson to be honest - both tremendous tweeters.

Nothing we can change even if we do stare at it like addicts...

I have to make myself do paid work today off the Interwebs before I go barking too.

[barakta]

I should say it's garbled here too, I suspect you may not be missing much. No One Has A Clue...

[silveradept]

From the looks of things, they are doing it on principles that they wish the parliamentarians would have. Which makes it both excellent for standing up for themselves, and terrible that it creates that kind of disarray and problems.

[cosmolinguist]

Yes it's just such a shame that the principled people are the ones who end up having to leave so that those who are left are less likely to be.

Lots of disarray will be caused by this; they both (Jennie especially) had important positions in federal committees and lots of responsibilities for the upcoming federal conference that's the weekend after this.

[rmc28]

Maybe the disarray might lead people to consider checking with high-profile opinionated people in positions of responsibility before shitting on them?

Hahahahaha.

[theandrewhickey]

Good one! I'll be laughing at that all week.

[miss_s_b]

.

[kaberett]

I am bitterly reminded that my string of detailed referenced NO REALLY THIS IS A PROBLEM AND I WILL QUIT THE PARTY OVER IT e-mails re the transmisogynistic posters during the 2017 GE... were utterly stonewalled, starting with "repeatedly sending me Sal's statement including in response to detailed critique of said statement" and finishing with "going utterly silent, except for e-mails asking me why I'd quit the party and if there was anything they could do to make it better for me, to which my responses were also ignored".

[cosmolinguist]

Yes that is a great example of what Sarah was talking about: LGBT+ LDs should have been the first place HQ went when they got a complaint like that. I mean in an ideal fucking world they would've consulted us on the poster and it might not have gone out in the first place! But we aren't kept in the loop and it's very frustrating.

[miss_s_b]

* biggest hugs *

Love you too

[cosmolinguist]

Love you too. Miss you. I know I probably wouldn't have seen you the last few days even if I had been in the country, but it's no fun when there's no chance of hugs yet (or of getting drunk together:) ).

[rmc28]

I managed to make one decision, which is to have me and Tony rejoin Plus, *and* set membership up as recurring.

(If we're staying we can put our miniscule activity where it may do some good.)

[cosmolinguist]

Thank you! I've been treating Plus like my local party for a decade because it's been where I can do some good.

[mrs_leroy_brown]

It's so, so, hard to leave a party you believed in, as a voter/non elected official and so clearly much harder as someone who worked hard to bring positive changes, to have to leave because the principles you fought for are disregarded. What a rotten situation :(

(I did write a longer rant, but then deleted it because I don't want to make it about me!)