Election Posters Gone Mad

M

Marathon Man

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These election posters are getting up my nose. It seems that every available pole/tree/sign is being used.

Whatever about the eyesore element, what really annoys me is that road safety signs, e.g. speed limit, dangerous bend and yield signs are now being used as props for these - haven't seen a stop sign used (yet!). Roundabouts attract these things like magnets - you wouldn't want to be looking for a direction sign (and they are often hard to see anyway!)

.....and when the posters come down - they will all invariably be ripped down - the tie-wraps will be left behind on the poles. Sometimes having long loose ends, these things would nearly take the head off you in strong winds.
 
I don't mind them being up so much as what's happening round our way with the recent high winds. These posters are usually made of rigid cardboard and I've seen more than one flying lose around the road. If the wind catches them the wrong way they'll be under a car or blown against the windscreen causing all sorts of havoc.
 
I'm not sure if this type of BILL POSTING is legal. Any legal eagles out there? What I do know is that is a blight on our landscape. :mad: And after the whole affair is over they are very slow in removing the signs ......... now dangling at precarious angles. One of the candidates, surname is that of a well known TV host, has his mugshot far too low here in Ranelagh. If a blind person is walking along and a wind whips up, could be dangerous. If there was a directive that these posters were to be removed a couple of days before the election, then any of the candidates not having there poster removed would be deemed a litter bug .......... and this may cost them votes. Might help things a little.
 
In this day and age, when everyone has access to television and the internet, does anyone really vote for somebody because they've seen their mug on a poster tied to a lampost?
 
The worst complaint i have heard about the posters is the cable ties that they use to attach them to poles, they take down the posters but leave the ties on the side of the road and they are a serious hazard to cyclists.
I
 
On a related note, what was the Sinn Féin mantra: ' a candidate in every parish' or something?

It seems to me they are getting close to saturation - I saw a quadruple SF election poster in my local area i.e. vote 1,2,3,4.

I've never seen this before.
 
Have to admit I heard a new travel warning on AA Roadwatch last week, motorists were being warned to watch out for flying election posters in the gales. Another reason to ban them
 
liaconn said:
In this day and age, when everyone has access to television and the internet, does anyone really vote for somebody because they've seen their mug on a poster tied to a lampost?
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Everyone doesn't have internet access. Between 60% and 70% of households have internet access. Source: [broken link removed].

Of course no-one makes a voting decision based on a mug on a lampost. But marketing works. Why do Coca Cola and O2 and NTL pay for expensive billboard marketing? Because it works.

Simply putting the face in front of people gets over the first hurdle of recognition or awareness.


Mpsox said:
Another reason to ban them
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A ban would favour incumbents over new candidates, as incumbents have had plenty of opportunities to get their face out there over the previous term.
 
Am taking great pleasure in cycling over the broken bits of election posters felled by wind and which now litter my commute. I think I've got nearly every party so far as well as a couple of independents.

I don't think they put them up well to start with. I saw a truckload going up on Friday night at a great rate of speed... probably before they all blew away.

The faces are daft - most politicians are boot-ugly anyway so you wouldn't want to see their faces (particularly at the door never mind up a pole or on a fence).

Just shows you that in this country, all politics is local and its not about your party, its what you personally do for John or Mary. Must be great for the ego to see yourself staring down from every lamppost?
 
The Seanad Elections (for Univ. seats anyway) take place without any election posters. Every candidate is allowed to send each person in their constituency a letter/leaflet to pitch for their votes. Why can we do the same for all elections and get rid of this poster madness?
 
I think a ban on these posters would be great but that we should go further.

Why should we be hindered by the constraints of popular opinion in other countrys (whereby money is pumped into certain electees coffers to help them convince people they are the right person).

I dont think people should be allowed use any sort of finance to get into the dail.

There should be multiple town hall like debates and canvassing door to door. Simple as . .

Any person thats found to of spent over x amount on some sort of propaganda should be disqualified (by independent non paid adjudicators).

This would mean that the monetary motivation that comes with running as a FF or FG candidate would be gone and people might actually get innovative and be their own independent T'D's instead of being mainly backbenchers that vote for whatever the government wants . .

Sure there would be teething problems and some cute hoouers would get back in, but in time it would weed out the vested interest from the people who may have genuine interests in this country. Lets be honest, the most intelligent and moral people in this country probably arent at the upper class of society or in positions of power. .
 
Paulone said:
... - most politicians are boot-ugly anyway ...
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What about Mary Lou McD? - an atypical political face, the lady who put the pretty into Sinn Féin.

Sorry, but I can't find a picture that does her justice, this being the best of a bad lot
 
mathepac said:
What about Mary Lou McD? - an atypical political face, the lady who put the pretty into Sinn Féin.
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Are you serious? I wouldn't call her ugly but I certainly think there's something distinctly unclassy and '3AM eating chips sitting on the steps of the central bank' about her.
 
Caveat said:
Are you serious? I wouldn't call her ugly but I certainly think there's something distinctly unclassy and '3AM eating chips sitting on the steps of the central bank' about her.
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LOL.


I think its absolutely crazy, in an era when we're trying to save the environment, to have hundreds and hundreds of posters stuck up all over the place. I know its about brand recognition, but I don't think that's a good enough excuse. If they want us to vote for them, get out and do the leg work. In any event, people should be voting on party policies and track record, not on individual personalities.
 
Paulone said:
The faces are daft - most politicians are boot-ugly anyway
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This is probably the reason why they get their faces changed by computer to make them more babyish.

I remember 4 years ago the FF politician Eamon (?) Ryan had a picture up on the poles all over the place, his face and the face of the man I saw on tv were totally different.

Paulone said:
so you wouldn't want to see their faces (particularly at the door never mind up a pole or on a fence).
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I don't mind the faces of politicians up poles I'm just sorry we can't put the real ones up there.
 
Theres one local candidate who has 7 posters up on one small roundabout, and one on each of the light poles coming off the roundabout, on a dual carraigeway stretch, about 8-10 each side. Ridiculous.
 
Apparently Fianna Fail are keeping the party name as small as possible on the posters and just highlighting the candidate. I wonder why?:)
 
NorthDrum said:
I think a ban on these posters would be great but that we should go further.

Why should we be hindered by the constraints of popular opinion in other countrys (whereby money is pumped into certain electees coffers to help them convince people they are the right person).

I dont think people should be allowed use any sort of finance to get into the dail.

There should be multiple town hall like debates and canvassing door to door. Simple as . .

Any person thats found to of spent over x amount on some sort of propaganda should be disqualified (by independent non paid adjudicators).

This would mean that the monetary motivation that comes with running as a FF or FG candidate would be gone and people might actually get innovative and be their own independent T'D's instead of being mainly backbenchers that vote for whatever the government wants . .

Sure there would be teething problems and some cute hoouers would get back in, but in time it would weed out the vested interest from the people who may have genuine interests in this country. Lets be honest, the most intelligent and moral people in this country probably arent at the upper class of society or in positions of power. .
Click to expand...
Interesting idea - the downside would be putting further power in the hands of the media, as they would have a stranglehold over mass access to the public.
 
Caveat said:
Are you serious? I wouldn't call her ugly but I certainly think there's something distinctly unclassy and '3AM eating chips sitting on the steps of the central bank' about her.
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Perhaps, but by comparison with her cohort...
 
Has anyone seen the posters of Dan Boyle (Green Party) for the European Elections?

He looks like a guy heading off to face a firing squad. Or is it gravitas.......? :confused:
 
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