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From that Independent article
"The result is that the Labour vote is now composed of staunch loyalists and recent converts; a base that holds positions on immigration, defence, welfare and patriotism which render the party unrepresentative and unelectable."
What the fuck do you mean "unrepresentative"?! It is representative of the people you described. It is not the job of a single party, nor is it even possible for a single party, to be representative of the entire population.
This is what pisses me off about the whole Corbyn situation: the approach of many Labour MPs appears to be "What's the point of having these policies/principles/approaches if you're not electable?", which is completely arse-about-face. The real question is "What's the point of being electable if you don't actually espouse Labour values and present a real alternative to (as in being noticeably different from) the Tories?" The only conclusion I can draw that I can draw is that a huge number of Labour MPs are just chancers who want to use the traditionally tribal nature of British politics to get power/stay in power to further their career.
ffm-
I personally don't have the faintest idea how 'electability' is measured (as I can't vote in general elections in this country, I've never yet begun to get well-informed about it). I just keep thinking that while this may well be true now (and is, of course, of relevance to next year's GLA elections and by-elections happening soon, such as the one currently going on for Michael Meacher's former seat)--but who can say where the electorate is in five years' time? Are all the political commentators just assuming that nobody's going to change?
and present a real alternative to (as in being noticeably different from) the Tories
Bear in mind that the world 'alternative', although I agree with your gloss on it, always has a whiff of 'secondary' about it. I personally think that Labour should avoid it and make sure that other positions are no alternative to theirs. :)
Oliver Schick
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/datablog/2015/nov/30/labour-losing-touch-public-opinion-research-suggests