Things Can Only Get Better?

Image by acidrabbi via Flickr

Brain Hopper was the Socialist Labour Party candidate for the Town of Scunthorpe in the 1997 General Election and stood against Elliot Morley. In the Box asked him for this thoughts looking back to that time.


After John Smith died and Tony Blair came to the forefront of the Labour Party, I just could not understand; what was happening, and the more I saw the more I did not like.

How did this man get to become the leader off the labour party? This person to me sounded like a Tory, he even looked and walked like a Tory, not that I had ever realised before how a person looked or walked or even recognised the ‘walk likes’ of a Tory, I must have it all wrong, we had just had the ‘Iron Lady’ and then John (Curry) Major. We had big names at the top, where did this Tony Blair fit in, all our union representatives and the people at the top; they know what they are doing, I must be totally wrong about this man, but after they removed ‘clause four part four’ from the constitution of the Labour Party my concerns were confirmed.

Many things happened in my life in such a short time and I happened to meet a man who thought and felt the same as me, but compared to me he really new his politics, his name was Jim Lawrie and together we joined the Socialist Labour Party and we stood against New Labour, May 1997. As we all know the country got Tony Blair as Prime Minister and we in Scunthorpe got Elliot Morley. I would have been happy if UKIP or the Referendum Party had won at the time, we may not have been robed as much? However the country had democratically selected through that election a new Prime Minister and, we had New Labour and a new political touchstone at the closing years of the century and the start of the new millennium.

What could be better than this; I have done my bit and but up the fight – After all: “Things Can Only Get Better?”

A decade has gone by and what do you want me to say, what can I say? I wish I could say everything you would like to hear, but the truth is I can’t, just look and learn!

We all had the playground scenario with Tony and Gordon, Tony said to Gordon you go in goal until half time then you can be captain, But half time came and Tony said you're doing such a good job in goal stay there a bit longer, at the end of the game Gordon spat his dummy out and, had a go at Tony, to witch Tony replied you can be captain next time.

Time went by and still Gordon was not happy with Tony, but Tony had found a new friend who was the captain of a much bigger team, his name was George, Tony kept popping over to see George and they became really close, then one day George told Tony he was having real problems with an ‘arse hole’ who just would not do as he was told and that his father has had problems with the same person in the passed, So George,Duke Wayne the cowboy that he thinks he is, With his two guns strapped on and ready to draw on anybody, asks Tony if he wants to be his deputy, Tony who has always wanted to be a cowboy said yes and together they decided to send their boys in to sort this ‘arse’ out, and all off his mates.

After ten's of thousands of collateral damage: Murdered Civilians: and the illegal war still going on today, Tony Blair the snake in the grass that he is, looked at this situation he and his one time mate had created and now decides; he know longer wants to be a cowboy, realising trouble is coming his way, He finally say's to Gordon, you can be captain now, and off he went making millions on the way, as reported in today's 'Guardian:Blair is estimated to be in the process of receiving up to £14m, making him one of Britain's wealthiest ex-prime ministers. This includes a £4.6m memoirs deal with Random House.

He is also receiving a series of US fees from the Washington Speakers Bureau for making speeches estimated to include a £600,000 signing-on fee; consultancies with the US bank, JP Morgan and with Swiss insurers Zurich Financial Services; and commercial consultancy deals through his private firm, Tony Blair Associates, with regimes in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates among others.

The growth in Blair's personal wealth was illustrated in May 2008, when he agreed to pay £5.75m for the late actor John Gielgud's Buckinghamshire residence, described as "a small stately home".

This was in addition to the £4.45m paid earlier for a London home in Connaught Square, together with an adjoining mews house.


He has gone to try to make trouble with another team, set up his own faith foundation, joined the Roman Catholic Church. They can have him; after all there not that smart. As the saying goes; ‘you can take a camel to the water, but you can’t make him drink it’

GOOD RIDDANCE!