Out of the past (updated)

Enough already about the damn Mintoff era.

What follow are comments I posted under Bocca's latest blog post and replies to my comments.

KEITH CHIRCOPYou are right about one thing for sure: My generation is sick and tired of hearing 2 or 3 decade old horror stories from the Mintoff era. I can understand how you cannot put those years behind you, but don't expect me to rule out voting for MLP simply because of those campfire tales. That's exactly what they are to us since we didn't experience those years, and when MLP was in government between 1996 and 1998 we didn't see any truckloads of dockyard workers wreaking havoc. By the next elections we'll be in our mid-thirties and your generation will be in your fifties, if not sixties. To the new voters, these stories will seem like "stejjer tan-nannu". So please criticize Joseph Muscat and his party all you want, but all this talk about MLP being undemocratic based on incidents which took place in 1979 or 1981 or whenever don't help your cause any. Ask anyone of your students, bocca. The same goes to those labourites who still mention the interdett. Enough is enough.

JOE MARTINELLIKeith Chircop, simply because you are too young to have experienced that Socialist era does not mean that what some people who experienced the nastiness and deprivation of those times are narrating "stejjer tan-nannu" or "campfire tales'. Those stories are real and documented and no Joseph will make them go away. The problem with the MLP is that they can never have a true 'new beginning' because to do so is to dissolve the party, purge the radical old timers, rename the new party and start fresh with young capable people with modern ideas. Present day MLP is a mere clone of the old party and unwilling to change.

KEITH CHIRCOPAre you still scared of the Germans, Mr Martinelli?

FRANCO FARRUGUIAKeith Chircop, there is no way one can compare what happened during the Mintoff regime here in Malta with WW2, simply because in WW2, the enemy was outside our shores; while, during the Mintoff regime, the enemy was within our shores, our neighbours, our next of kin, even. So, please, stop trying to sound cool and young and if thank your lucky stars you have what you have today, because Mintoff took away our youth! No education, no freedom ... what else is there to deny a man? Cadbury? We didn't have that either! And by the way, for the old man, computers were anathema, because they took jobs away! Pffft!

KEITH CHIRCOP@Franco Farrugia: As a matter of fact, I will not vote for Dom Mintoff or Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici any time soon. Catch my drift?

JOE MARTINELLINo need to answer your inane comment. Franco Farrugia was quicker on the draw and responded in excellent fashion. Now go and get a (Maltese) history lesson, will you?

KEITH CHIRCOP@Joe Martinelli: You hit the nail right on the head. That's exactly what they are: history lessons. History lessons we are tired of hearing. You think people around the age of 30 don't know what went on 20-30 years ago? We didn't vote for Sant for various reasons. The Mintoff/KMB era wasn't one of them. How about YOU get some lessons on how young people feel when you bang on and on about these age-old horror stories?

JOE MARTINELLIMy answer is: "LUCKY" - that how they feel. The reason why the MLP stays in opposition is because many of those who were Mintoff's buddies are still very much around and conditioning the younger prospects to the same way of thinking. No thanks - that's what the voters say - election after election!

PJ MIFSUDKeith Chircop, recently past historically-documented facts that the over 40s have lived through can only be described as "campfire tales" and "stejjer tan-nanna" by immature and foolhardy minds - in the same vein as others who declare that the Holocaust is a figment of the imagination. The dictum that history repeats itself has been proved to be true in several cases. It is advisable for you to take Mr Martinelli's excellent piece of advice on this matter. To ignore one's history is simply inviting to be doomed to repeat it. The MLP must necessarily undergo a radical change, first and foremost, with regard to an outdated mentality. It has to purge the firmly-embedded ideologically radical-Socialist faction still very much in control, to be substituted by capable, forward-looking , non-ideologic politicians with a modern outlook on how modern democracies function. As rightly stated, the MLP is still a mere clone of the 70s and 80s Socialist Party (with the mob element removed) and seems unwilling to change. In my opinion, they missed the opportunity by just, for had George Abela been elected Party leader, this dream would have been possible to realise.

KEITH CHIRCOPPJ Mifsud: What's foolish is to expect people born after Mintoff's era to adopt your us-and-them mentality, simply because of what you went through. Whereas there's no doubt that making fun of Joseph Muscat's balding head and the colour of his ties is stupid, it is at least contemporary. So I'd rather read about that than see the "aristokrazija tal-haddiem" phrase being mentioned again.

TIM RIPARD@ Keith Chircop. You're sad, Keith. What you can't understand is that the MLP, in its vast majority is still made up of thousands of people who lust for what they consider the 'glory' days of the '70s-'80s regime. There are plenty of over-50 MLP supporters, I can assure you, as well as younger ones fully-indoctrinated to believe the same thing: an electoral victory is means it's time to grab what we can from 'our' government. Joe Muscat depends on the support of these people and will pander to their will, with some subtlety this time around, I'm sure, but pander he will and we'll all be the worse for it.

KEITH CHIRCOP@Tim Ripard: Not voting for a party because of the way you feel about its supporters is demented.

TIM RIPARDKeith, it's not the supporters per se, it's their behaviour I object to. (Read my comment again). What's so demented about NOT voting for someone whose behaviour you do NOT like?

KEITH CHIRCOPTim, do you think Joseph Muscat would let his supporters in the police force/army fire guns upon Nationalist crowds? You think he'd let the dockyard workers ransack the Curia building?

TIM RIPARDStop trying to put words in my mouth. This is the bottom line of my first comment: "Joe Muscat depends on the support of these people and will pander to their will, with some subtlety this time around, I'm sure, but pander he will and we'll all be the worse for it." As I said, there will be subtlety (i.e. no, I don't expect mob violence - though I can't rule it out) but I still fear chaos in education and health, corruption and a government that looks after its blue-eyed boys. I've had enough of trying to explain it in simple terms which you don't seem able to understand and will refrain from further comment on this subject.

KEITH CHIRCOPYou're not saying anything one doesn't hear the minute he steps into some kazin tal-PN. You think Joseph Muscat would let his supporters do anything they want (maybe not violence) because he needs their support, whereas Nationalists will become second class citizens once again. Your proof being that people like Joe Debono Grech and Mary Louise Coleiro are still around. Gee, didn't hear that one before.