I went to the blog nation event last time around (I think, unless I was systematically kept out of the loop about one in between *shakes fists*), and the subjects were provocative and…if I am honest…a little bit niche rather than general to the liberal-left cause. They were very important subjects, but ultimately they were subjects that were always going to divide the audience (and the panel).

If you want a debate between people that already have made up their minds then that’s a great outcome of the organisation.

However I get the impression that it’s meant to be more about empowerment, motivation and trying to organise. Subjects that naturally start causing division before we’ve even started seem to be the antithesis to this aim.

Let’s take these for example:

“Responding to budget cuts
Abortion and sex education
Climate change
Immigration
Electoral reform
The West Lothian Question
Where now for foreign policy?
Taxation and tax havens”

Responding to budget cuts, electoral reform, and (cautiously) Climate change seem to be the only things on that list that you could realistically put forward and try and work out a strategy of future organisation, co-operation and promotion online. Everything else, either because they’re highly personal subjects, or subjects that sit disproportionally of one particular side of the liberal-left divide, is not going to do anything but allow us all to reiterate the stances we all know we have anyway.

Writing about them works on here because of the level of traffic and, one would hope, less than partisan viewership that may be taking something additional away from the debate. Talking about them amongst each other only helps to make us frosty at best and actively separates us at worst.

But then I am looking this from a lefty *liberal* point of view, and given the theme is about how the left can organise (and given the broader themes suggested) perhaps this simply isn’t the right event for anyone but Labour supporters or sympathisers to get involved with.

I echo the sentiments of someone in the comments above who said that those like friends of the earth have done much more to influence politics than the Green party. Why we are still focusing on how Labour factor in all of this when we have an almost unique opportunity to be the voice of the liberal left, to whatever government may be around, is really to not quite aim as high as we could be.

I like the format, I think networking is key right now, and doing it *during* a conference event is really efficient; but let’s not make us hate each other?

I think Sunny’s naturally laid-back style may well lead to this result, and this thread seems to me (who would be semi-detached from all the tables above, but would probably enjoy most of them) to be the right place to discuss whether or not we want to take positive steps to churn it up some – I suspect that doing so is the first stage in Rupert Read’s agenda. And makes sense to me.

What does the coalition mean for us?

Where do the LibDems go from here?

And Labour? What kind of party do we want to see, can we play a role in shaping it?

What does the left (ok, assuming that New Labour could be described as such)being in opposition rather than in power mean for bloggers?

If we do get down to individual issues I guess immigration and in particular the way we on the left address the issue would be the key one in the current circumstances.

Form a purely personal pov I’d like to see something on Climate Change.

You got love those corporations…… Privatise the profits and socialise the costs. Anyway, this is starting to become a big battle between left and right. As usual ,the scoundrels on the Right on this side of the Atlantic are draping themselves in the flag and putting on their patriotism masks. I wonder how many share Anderson has in BP.

my thoughts:

would like to cover violence against women as one of the topics.

personally, feel that political parties are a means, not an end. therefore, would like to talk strategy in terms of organizing to achieve particular aims, and then how might Labour be used as opposition, and Lib-Dems and Conservatives as Govt, as one of the methods on a spectrum of tactics to make the changes we want to see.

would like to think about the role of the private sector and what we might want to do with it (or sections of/actors within it).

would like to talk about why we haven’t achieved more on feminism and why we are backsliding – e.g. objectification, violence, representation.

i don’t know what communitarism vs internationalism means, but if it means do we go national or international (in terms of philosophies, perspectives, approaches), then my vote’s for international.

Stephen Whitehead

This will impact on the economy which, in turn, will impact on everyone. Whether peak is here now or 10 years away is really not that important (although 10 years away would obviously be better!). Our economy has surpluses for things like welfare & pensions because we’ve had a glut of cheap energy. I really hope your conference can look at the full extent of the energy crisis. If not, maybe next time – I’ve been speaking about this for 6 years now but have failed to get much ‘non-green’ interest.

Sunny has captured what the essence of the day should be about, and experience tells us that if you put a lot of f##king opinionated people in one room (or break out rooms) there will be no shortage of debate, strategy, theory, keys in hats etc etc.

Throw in a few gins and it could be the best day you’ve ever had – at least this will be my hope.

As I said I think the subjects have broadly covered most bases, but if I could add my two cents, I think we should focus on what is least attractive about the modern left, or at least in the sense of changing perceptions about the left so as not to appear less attractive.

There have been very many areas of distraction where the left seem to have been weak, and it has been an almost impossible task to try and square this circle, about immigration, about Islamism and extremism, about right wing groups such as the EDL or SIOE.

To talk in broad strokes for a moment, when Nick Cohen or Christopher Hitchens or David Aaronavitch talk about the left losing its way, it’s no good simply saying that what these guys are saying doesn’t identify me as a leftie; if the perception is that the left has been wooly on these subjects then the left needs to counter this. And I’m afraid to say myself, as a leftie, that we haven’t been quite as clear as we ought to have been on the subject of immigration, on the subject of dangerous thinkers like Anwar al-Awlaki and groups like Hizb ut-Tahrir, for fear of appearing compliant with our enemies on the far right.

The Pickled Politics blog is somewhere that addresses these problems, as scathing of the British far right as it is dodgy factions in the Middle East, but there are still teething problems by and large on the left that ought be reckoned with; and we need to break the appearance that the left is a ship for victim politics only, as opposed to what is really is: a broad coalition in favour of equality, reason and social inclusion; the enemy of those who want to disturb that.

Another subject, again which Sunny touches upon, is the Labour party. What better time to discuss the future of the party (of which I am a member) after the most leftwing candidate being helped only by an appeal to race, gender (not class) and a helping hand from a Blairite. Abbott, by some people’s estimation, has trouble with unifying the party, and McDonnell does little to unify whatsoever. But the question is how far do left candidates have to accomodate for Labour rightwingers, and why is this seen as anti-pluralistic, when it’s quite clear that the Labour party, in many, many ways, lost its bearings in the last 13 years.

If we solve these problems on the day (haha, a big ask) I’ll be a happy man. Failing that, a pint and a few biscuits will sort me out just champion.

I’d rename the “West Lothian Question” I think – because it’s not just about Scotland. Perhaps Must Britain Break Down?

Professor Conor Gearty, in the current London Review of Books, makes the bald statement that “social democracy is gone for good” – this sounds like a meme in the making to me and the conference sounds like a good place to debate whether to resist or submit to it.

Communitarianism Define, please!

Also – it would be worth asking, “Who is/are The Left?” Because I see the Lib Dems as a centre-left to centrist party, and any discussion about The Left needs to look at how to influence the Lib Dems in and out of government.

I’d say more attention needs to be given to how to influence any government, whether Labour, Lib Dem or Tory. The Left isn’t always going to be in government and trying to achieve its objectives through one political party isn’t always viable. Look at how groups like Friends of the Earth have achieved more for their cause than the Green Party ever will.