Hello Sailor

The Labour party, which for much of its last period in office considered the British armed forces a price worth paying in the service of American corporations, is attempting to re-brand itself as "a party of the armed forces" by hiking up its skirts and soliciting uniformed members. Labour's would-be Steve Hiltons will commend to this year's LabConFlab in September a scheme whereby anyone who has served in the army, navy or air force in any capacity will be able to join the party for a penny, or one forty-one-hundredth of the standard rate. "Veterans' unique experience and insight will bring wisdom and expertise to the Labour party," gushed a spokesbeing, who wisely chose to remain anonymous. "No other political party has a membership scheme which offers concessions for veterans so this move would set us apart from others." Well, if some in the Labour party are open to the idea of being different from other parties, that will certainly make a reassuring change. The Royal British Legion had nothing to say, but at least one veterans' group has taken an uncharitable view. "I don't think that offering a bribe to vote for a party is a good thing," said the deputy campaign manager of the Equality for Veterans Association, who seems to think that political parties should show an interest in, of all things, policy: "Veterans have real hardships caused by things like the lack of parity for pensions. I wish the parties would concentrate on serious things like that."