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.

The Guilty

James Delingpole posts on those he believes guilty of crass decision making and in so doing writes:

".....you can be sure that those Guilty Men won't actually be experiencing even the slightest frisson of guilt or embarrassment about the decent people whose reputations they have helped destroy, or the damage they have done to our economy, our democracy and our freedoms."

whilst making the point that there will be no pay-back for the public.

Harriet Harman is the subject of an 'interview' by Mary Riddell in todays Daily Telegraph in which she goes on record as stating that she is in the business of helping Ed Miliband take the Labour Party back into government. So the process by which a political party gains power is a 'business', is it? In which case why is it failed politicians do not suffer the same fate as failed businessmen and women?

In instances where those at the head of a business make bad decisions, resulting in the loss of income, or in some cases the total collapse of the company for which they are responsible, their services are promptly dispensed with. Yet in the political world those that take decisions to the detriment of the nation, taking the country to the point of bankruptcy for example, are allowed to continue, as Delingpole so rightly says, without any guilt, embarrassment - or even suffering the penalty of dismissal. Reading Twitter, the blogosphere and even letters in the press, the public were quick to condemn what they saw as rash conduct yet they appear to condone similar behaviour amongst politicians. Yes, the public were quick to castigate politicians over their expense excesses, but this then poses the question why similar crass behaviour over managing the finances of the country was not likewise punished?

The answer will no doubt be given that this is all down to 'tribal voting', yet surely amongst those 'tribalists' they must know that their party politicians have been remiss? Is it, as some will maintain, they feel it matters not who they vote for as nothing will change, that they cannot influence the end result? Or is it due to the fact they give not a damn, as long as they get their fixes of Corrie, Eastenders, X-Factor etc? Have the political elite managed to dull our senses that much?

Just asking.....................