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UK - Election 2015

You think 5 UKIP MPs is too low or too high? You must choose one way, otherwise the bet is too slanted IMHO. (I have a feeling you think it's too high).

But either way I accept the avatar bet.

Done. :D

I think your forecast is too high......so if Ukip get 5 or more seats, you win. If they get 4 or fewer seats, I win.

I'm off to check your posting history to see what you really dislike :D
 
Done. :D

I think your forecast is too high......so if Ukip get 5 or more seats, you win. If they get 4 or fewer seats, I win.
Confirmed. Yeah, my first avatar bet!
I'm off to check your posting history to see what you really dislike :D
Me too :D. There have been already some helpful suggestions, but they're a bit too, hmm, easy.
 
Just for fun, I also took the survey. I must say it's very time consuming, and it's hard to compare policies. For instance, there was only one party advocating "dignity in dying". I'd like to know every party's stance towards euthanasia to be able to compare the election programmes. By contrast, the Dutch "election guide" sites typically give you 50 yes/no questions and then present how well it matches to the various parties.

On the site they describe why they don't do it that way (i.e. the usual way)

Vote for Policies is the only service that connects you directly with the parties and their pledges. Focussing on policies in this way is not only the best way of helping people make a truly informed decision, it also provides a fair way of tracking a government’s progress after the election and holding them to account. We believe this is the path to a better democracy.

Both Mrs Don and I found it illuminating to see policies in the parties' own words (even though you don't know for sure which is which - but in the main you can have a jolly good guess). I think one of the reasons why the Greens were such a good match for Mrs Don is that a lot of their policies were phrased in a way which appealed to her (even if they were much the same as Labour, LidDem and Plaid for many sections).
 
Gentlemen

Always go to odds checker before placing your bets.

Odds against UKIP getting 4-5 seats are 4-1 with Bet 365 and to get 6-10 they are 13/2 against. 2-3 seats is almost even money.
 
Done. :D

I think your forecast is too high......so if Ukip get 5 or more seats, you win. If they get 4 or fewer seats, I win.

I'm off to check your posting history to see what you really dislike :D



You will win this bet, without a shadow of a doubt.

Ukip will be lucky to get two Westminster seats (Farage + perm 1 from 3). Three would be a very, very good result for Ukip. 4 would be near-incredible. 5 would be incredible.

Let me know if you need help choosing a suitable avatar ;)
 
I am not sure it's fair taking advantage of a poor Dutchman. OTOH they did steal one of our ships in 1600-and-something so maybe it's time we got our own back.
 
According to the Daily Mail, one in four voters has yet to decide. This was confirmed in a straw poll taken just now of the girl (Serena) who delivers our sandwiches, yoghurt etc in a van every day. She has yet to make her mind up even at this late hour.

I am not sure how to take this. Assuming a turnout of 70% (say) does it mean the 70% who are voting include a quarter who have not made their minds up and the 30% who are not voting include three quarters who have made their minds up but aren't voting? :boggled: 'I have decided to not vote Conservative'. "I shall not be voting Labour'. 'I have not made my mind up who not to vote for'.


I think this "1 in 4" stat - and some are (incredibly) saying it's 40% - is misleading and incorrect.

History shows that the vast majority of the UK electorate are fixed voters (with approx 30% Conservative, 30% Labour, 25% other). Only some 15% are true floating voters - and of those 15%, only about 1/10 (i.e. some 1.5% of total voters) actually make a difference on account of living in sufficiently marginal constituencies.

Therefore, pretty much every UK election comes down to a relatively tiny number of people (some 700,000 out of a total electorate of 46 million). Identifying and targeting those people is the Holy Grail of pollsters and political parties alike. My sister lives in a key marginal and she's been bombarded with visits, leaflets, emails, phone calls, and "personal" letters from the party leaders (she fits a swing demographic).

This "undecided" thing has long been known to be a huge red herring. Most people who declare to pollsters that they are "undecided" actually mean this: "I'm extremely likely to vote for Party X, but I don't want to put my cards on the table right now by telling you that".
 
.......they did steal one of our ships in 1600-and-something so maybe it's time we got our own back.

The blighters!!!!! Which one?

Obviously, ddt deserves everything he/she gets. :D
 
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I am not sure it's fair taking advantage of a poor Dutchman. OTOH they did steal one of our ships in 1600-and-something so maybe it's time we got our own back.
1667, Raid on the Medway. We towed away your flagship, the Royal Charles, and burned the rest of the fleet, as well as the docks. You're still not over it? You can still see the stern of the Royal Charles in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. :)
 
1667, Raid on the Medway. We towed away your flagship, the Royal Charles, and burned the rest of the fleet, as well as the docks. You're still not over it? You can still see the stern of the Royal Charles in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. :)

You also knocked us out of the World Cup qualifiers in 1994 when Koeman should have been sent off but ended up scoring from a free-kick a minute or two later.

Revenge will be sweet.
 
1667, Raid on the Medway. We towed away your flagship, the Royal Charles, and burned the rest of the fleet, as well as the docks. You're still not over it? You can still see the stern of the Royal Charles in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. :)

Well, that's it. You're toast now. I was going to be merciful in victory, but after hearing of that barbarity........pppphhhh............be grateful for anything you get.

The best bit of this for me is the thought of you sitting in front of the TV at 5 o'clock in the morning, cheering on UKIP!!!!!! :D
 

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