A Parlour Game

Mary Riddell's usual Tuesday op-ed in the Daily Telegraph is headlined "The (Liam) Fox hunt is a parlour game compared to the financial crisis". Riddell may be correct; although not for the reasons that she puts forward, she must be slightly confused when she writes:

"Such momentous times demand politicians who can be both masters of the universe and servants of the people. Instead, we are witnessing a re-run of the pygmy politics that brought the system into disrepute and convinced the public that the governing classes are dominated by self-serving figures neglectful of the public good."

One cannot be both master and servant -  politicians are not masters of the universe (although when considering their environmental policies, they think they are) neither are they the servants of the people (although when considering their behaviour and attitude, they seem to have this quaint idea they are). Time, whether momentous or not, does demand individuals who have some element of expertise in their chosen field; and events have shown that where the governance of this country is concerned, unfortunately those that may have any expertise are most prominent by their absence.

It is frequently said by members of the electorate that there is little point in voting and one can see their point when considering we have the situation whereby the choice is between three parties with but one single thought; control of the people they are meant to serve. That they have no intention of controlling themselves is illustrated by their insistence that only they should be able to set the rules governing their remuneration, coupled with the fact that they enagage in sports that are forbidden to us mere mortals - namely that of fox hunting.

Our democracy is a farce, likewise our system of politics - and the sooner both 'farce forwards' to a situation whereby change is introduced, the better for us all.