Can Labour Take the Crown
To begin with
I’m sat meditating, after drawing three cards from my Tarot pack. (To be more precise, I’ve separated the Major Arcana and shuffled them to mix them up a bit and it is from these 22 cards that I have cut and removed three.)
I had a question firmly in my mind as I worked the deck and drew out my hand. As per usual, I’m laying down a hand of three: past (on the right), present (centre), and future (to the left). They’re all face down at present, because I didn’t want to influence my divination in any way.
Now is the moment of truth…
But before I get started
I’ll tell you what I’m up to here: Well. This week I’m actually doing something I’ve not done before (publicly at least :-D ). I’m going to do a reading for all three parties over three days.
I’ve begun with Labour because they are in opposition. It’s as simple as that.
The hand in question
Turning over each card, I discover (from right to left): The Wheel of Fortune, The Hermit, and The Devil.
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As hands go, it’s pretty strong. The Wheel of Fortune represents good luck and bad in varying amounts (depending on the other card in the reading). The Hermit is a studious card, connected to study, tuition and solitude. And The Devil card is about excesses – not just the seven deadly sins but any form of excess going.
This is the hand as it falls these are the cards and there rough meaning. Now comes the bit that I enjoy the most: demystifying the meaning from the symbols, using a little intuition.
Quick word about timing
When I view a hand like this one, I’m reminded that it covers about six month. Two months for past, one for present and three for future. To put it at it’s simplest: Taking the month where you are (July) for the present. Two months prior (that’s May and June) represent the timeframe for the past. And the following three months (August to end of October) cover the future. This way I can gage what has and will happen in the very near future.
Now, on with the reading:
The Wheel of Fortune Arcana
When I pull out the Wheel, I know that we are dealing with luck in a big way. (It’s like receiving an ace first in a hand of 21. If the next card falls right, you are either up for a win, or a possible 5 carder. If they don’t you could bust or end up with a low hand. That’s the Wheel of Fortune.) What comes around also goes around. Labour has had a nice couple of months recently; it’s not been so good for the government with the bank scandal at the end of last month (and the G4S shambles this month). The number symbolism of the Wheel (10) is significant: think 10 Downing Street, and that’s enough to make a Labour Peer grin.
However, as I stated before, the other card in this had have a powerful bearing on the Wheel; especially, the one representing the present. The Hermit is a teacher, the eternal student and a lonely figure. He symbolizes order, facts and attention to detail. (As they say, the devil’s in the details!) And the order of the day (or the past) is how Labour have handled themselves over the ‘Bank Crisis’: They are at the heart of the roots for this little debacle. They had a hand in bailing out the bank in the past; there are possibilities the Labour government ‘bullied’ or ‘strong-armed’ banks into ‘adjusting’ the lending rates – which has resulted in the ‘fixing’ scandal… That said, they have not let it coy them into a quiet position; on the contrary, they have berated the coalition at all possible chances. Calling for resignations and enquiries. Their position has been a seesaw of wins and swiftly shifting blame.
Then we have the Devil. And it’s those ‘details’ that will come back to haunt them later. Furthermore, we have them almost partying at the thought of getting away with it - so far. The excesses of greed and lies that the banks have displayed will affect Labour’s chances of returning to Number Ten at the next election.
All in all, it has been a pretty good couple of months and the Wheel of Fortune is the symbol of that success (and slight embarrassments).
The Hermit Arcana
The teacher is about to preach school’s. The Hermit is a great symbol for education. And that has been in the news, with student fees, and schools returning to Academy, and less student deciding to get a further education than ever (due to the increase in fees). Labour were quick to question the elitism of the education system at present.
But the Hermit is also a loner: of the three main parties, Labour is the one in opposition (as opposed to the usual two parties vs. the government). Labour actually finds itself the sole opposition - a very lonely place to be for any party in this three-party-system.
It hasn’t hampered them though. Luck has been on their side (Wheel of Fortune) on more than one occasion with Tory MPs shooting themselves in the foot at all occasions. (Re: MP Aidan Burley’s Olympic gaff in calling the opening ceremony “leftie multicultural crap”. See guardian article.) And their wins have helped them in the poles too (Labour currently has an 11 point lead; see Yougov for an up-to-date figure). The Devil hasn’t raised his head in the present position yet, but maybe he’s waiting for the future.
That said, as a side note, I feel that Ed Miliband has his work cut out to don the Prime Ministerial mantle. His party might be leading, but I personally think he lacks something (killer instinct, possibly!).
The Devil Arcana
(That bring us to the master of deception, himself.) For the moment I want to explain how the past has a bearing on the future: Think of it like a tree. The roots feed the branches. You cannot always tell how deep the roots go, but the branches cover at least the same span. Past as the roots, present the truck, and future the branches. This configuration shows the correlation between cause and effect perfectly.
Now back to the question, “What lies in store for Labour?” And the devil has those answers. There is excesses and wasted opportunities, but mainly, there is restriction. For Labour to get back in power, the Devil point to two areas of contention: Education (Hermit) and Labour’s former reign (Wheel of Fortune).
Tony Blair (Devil), although the ex-PM, has raised his head and reminded the voters that he ‘was’ the man to beat; but he is Yesterday’s Man (Wheel). He wants to be PM again, but for that to happen the current Labour King, Miliband, has to fall. However, Blair is marred by his past government - the acrimony between him and his ex-chancellor, Brown, for the ultimate power. And Gordon won. But he ultimately lost too, because his government was replace by the Coalition (the voter’s vote of no confidence in Labour’s regime) - leaving Labour in sole opposition (Hermit). The bank crisis has its roots in Brown’s ministry, both as chancellor and PM - and his ‘mismanagement’ of the country’s assets has also helped to lead Britain into this double-dip recession (that no one is keen on calling a ‘depression’). The excesses of the Blair/Brown government (Devil) have led to troop deployments abroad and a rise in unemployment.
Voters have a short memory, so Ed Miliband, has a chance to win the heart of their voters back (Wheel). But it is at the cost of being much stronger leader than he seems - and putting the boot in to Blair and any other that might oppose him. He also need a strong stance on education (Hermit) to win back their minds, as well. The Education of future lies in making Further Education less elitist. Basically Labour need to return to root values: A strong Welfare System, strong policing, and employment for all that can work. The Nanny State has to step aside for the Welfare State or Labour’s core voters (the working class) will not turn-up to vote for them.
Result
As I said before, the devil’s in the details. And it’s the detail of the ‘Labour Party’ that have gone awry. New Labour is like the Conservatives becoming orientated to ‘left-wing’ policies - instead of their ‘right-wing’ stance. Labour need to stop being imitations of pre-70s Conservatism, and return to their roots.
If they don’t, then their past will have its pound of flesh. And the Miliband roadshow will be over before it gets a chance to muscle-up.
That’s my prediction.
Cyberpunk65
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