Polling day - So how was it for you?

Thursday evening was spent counting bits of paper with pencil marks on them. I was getting paid to be a counter for the Elmet Ward and the count was being held in Leeds Civic Hall.

I actually wanted to be at the Morley count but there weren't enough passes available once the serious activists had been catered for (my support was essentially moral rather than physical, although I did offer to help three times).

Arriving in Central Leeds a little early, I took a walk down to the Town Hall (where most of the counts were happening) and noticed that the anti-BNP louts were out in force, placards and all. (The actual BNP people are generally very polite and well behaved at counts I have been to). Whilst I don't agree with the BNP, I fully believe that they are entitled to say what they want within the constraints of the law in a free society and the correct response should be to challenge their arguments, laugh at them or treat them with polite indifference, not beat them up.

Returning to the Civic Hall, I was surprised to see Chris Beverley (Morley BNP Candidate) outside, who recognised me and said hello. We chatted briefly and I noticed that he looked like someone may have thumped him as he had bruises on his temple. That is probably an occupational hazard of being a BNP candidate!

I'll post about the count experience on another occasion as I have a busy weekend. However, on leaving the Civic Hall (at about 2:30am), I was greeted by a surprising sight. There, milling about in a back street was what looked like a coach load of extremely drunk St. Trinians VI formers. I have seen the slutty schoolgirl look recently before, in Wakefield early on a Saturday evening. I can feel middle age creeping on, as my first instinct was to say "What DO they look like!"

Also, within a couple of hundred yards of a _lot_ of policemen, some lowlife scum decided to put through a car window, whether for a joyride home (it was an old car) or possibly just for the hell of it. I heard it happen and saw the lad dithering drunkenly whilst his mate (who had pulled) told him not to be so mental. At that point I was slightly more worried about my own car round the corner, but that was safe. I looked back to see if any of the police had noticed but it seemed not.
As it was now five hours after my usual bedtime, I decided that home was the best course of action.