"We are coming, I think, to yet another turning point in our long history. We can go on as we have been going and continue down. Or we can stop and with a decisive act of will we can say “Enough”."
Margaret Thatcher - Tory Party Conference 1975*
Matthew d'Ancona has his usual Sunday op-ed piece in today's Sunday Telegraph, an article which is no more than an attempt to 'big up' Dav il Cam's New Year Message due to be released tomorrow. Being one of the 'Westminster Bubble', a self-serving, self-promoting clique, d'Ancona naturally wishes to continue with a failed model of government, one that serves no purpose other than to continue our system of representative democracy - aka democratised dictatorship.
Let us, briefly, examine the existing model of government. It is a system that provides for the use of patronage in the hands of whoever secures the position of Prime Minister; it is a system that allows the leaders of our political parties to control the selection process of their candidates, who once elected are then subjected to pressure from 'enforcers' (party whips) to toe the party line in any vote that may be required to pass government legislation; it is a system that allows political parties to publish manifestos, come elections, the promises contained within which can be - and often are - reneged upon; it is a system that allows government by 'fiat' through the use of Statutory Instruments; it is a system that, currently, hands unlimited power to a political party for a period of 5 years, during which time they can do just about what they damn well please, without the electorate having any means to 'bring them to heel'; it is a system which allows politicians to control the content of media output; it is a system that allows politicians to cede governance of this country elsewhere, thus making a mockery of 'sovereignty'; it is a system that has allowed the practice of fraud - and continues so to do - by those entitled to the use of the prefix 'Honourable'; it is a system that allows those elected to 'govern' to pass laws to which they themselves are not subject; it is a system that allows political parties, once elected to government, to present a blank cheque to the tax-paying public with the instruction that it has to be paid; it is a system that permits Common Law to be overridden by Statute ('English Legal System'' Elliot and Quinn 11th Ed page 64: 'Presumptions: The courts assume that certain points are implied in all legislation. These presumptions include the following: statutes do not change the common law); it is a system of democracy which, frankly, is well past its sell-by date.
We can, as the Maggietollah said, continue down the path of servitude or we can cry "Enough" - all things considered, did our nation not fight against the practice of slavery? Are we not subjected to slavery under the present system of democratised dictatorship? In the context of that last statement, I can but once again repeat the question posed by Ian Parker-Joseph: Name 6 everyday activities, yes, just six, that you undertake that does not require a. permission, b. licence, c. regulated action, d. regulated packaging, materials, ingredients, tools etc. i.e. 6 activities that never touch the state or a regulator.
There is a better system of democracy available, one that combines 'Referism' and 'Direct Democracy' - and you will have the opportunity shortly, via talkconstitution.net, to discuss the benefits of that system.
* Not that the Maggietollah would wish to be reminded that she also said: "And of Edward Heath who successfully led the Party to victory in 1970 and brilliantly led the nation into Europe in 1973" - but I digress..........
Let us, briefly, examine the existing model of government. It is a system that provides for the use of patronage in the hands of whoever secures the position of Prime Minister; it is a system that allows the leaders of our political parties to control the selection process of their candidates, who once elected are then subjected to pressure from 'enforcers' (party whips) to toe the party line in any vote that may be required to pass government legislation; it is a system that allows political parties to publish manifestos, come elections, the promises contained within which can be - and often are - reneged upon; it is a system that allows government by 'fiat' through the use of Statutory Instruments; it is a system that, currently, hands unlimited power to a political party for a period of 5 years, during which time they can do just about what they damn well please, without the electorate having any means to 'bring them to heel'; it is a system which allows politicians to control the content of media output; it is a system that allows politicians to cede governance of this country elsewhere, thus making a mockery of 'sovereignty'; it is a system that has allowed the practice of fraud - and continues so to do - by those entitled to the use of the prefix 'Honourable'; it is a system that allows those elected to 'govern' to pass laws to which they themselves are not subject; it is a system that allows political parties, once elected to government, to present a blank cheque to the tax-paying public with the instruction that it has to be paid; it is a system that permits Common Law to be overridden by Statute ('English Legal System'' Elliot and Quinn 11th Ed page 64: 'Presumptions: The courts assume that certain points are implied in all legislation. These presumptions include the following: statutes do not change the common law); it is a system of democracy which, frankly, is well past its sell-by date.
We can, as the Maggietollah said, continue down the path of servitude or we can cry "Enough" - all things considered, did our nation not fight against the practice of slavery? Are we not subjected to slavery under the present system of democratised dictatorship? In the context of that last statement, I can but once again repeat the question posed by Ian Parker-Joseph: Name 6 everyday activities, yes, just six, that you undertake that does not require a. permission, b. licence, c. regulated action, d. regulated packaging, materials, ingredients, tools etc. i.e. 6 activities that never touch the state or a regulator.
There is a better system of democracy available, one that combines 'Referism' and 'Direct Democracy' - and you will have the opportunity shortly, via talkconstitution.net, to discuss the benefits of that system.
* Not that the Maggietollah would wish to be reminded that she also said: "And of Edward Heath who successfully led the Party to victory in 1970 and brilliantly led the nation into Europe in 1973" - but I digress..........
4 comments:
Well written, but the article omits to mention the one thing that will prevent any better system being implemented.
VOTER STUPIDITY.
TTT: Thanks - voter stupidity only due to lack of knowledge any other system exists?
Those to whom I have spoken who knew nowt quickly converted.......
You cannot operate direct democracy in a Unitary Centralised State drawing its legitimacy from The Crown.....simply because all legitimacy flows from The Crown just as all land in the country belongs ultimately to The Crown as do mineral rights.
You need to prize regions away from the Unitary State to create pluralism and competing centres of power. Economic Power was centralised finally once Thatcher privatised electricity RECs instead of creating Regional Conglomerates able to re-generate areas.
The only way the British Unitary State will be controlled is by subsummation into a bigger entity such as the EU. The other alternative is to break apart the Unitary State by destroying its London-based political, media, and economic system.
It can only be done by Armalite and Ballot Box
TT: "The other alternative is to break apart the Unitary State by destroying its London-based political, media, and economic system."
Exactly!
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