Hot air

On March 22 2006 · 2 Comments · In Diary

Listening to the budget being delivered by Gordon Brown today, then to the responses of David Cameron and Ming Campbell, I was left with a profound feeling of disappointment in just how tired and cliched modern politics in the UK is. Do politicians realise just what a turn-off their waving of ballot papers, shouting and booing, here-here-ing and general pomposity is? Do they care that a session of PMQs or the budget speech doesn’t seem to have evolved beyond the days when people wore dusted wigs to attend sessions?

In the modern, multi-cultural society that Britain is supposed to be, it seems ridiculous that a bunch of predominantly white men should be making such tits of themselves with such gay abandon, in what looks more like a juvenile point-scoring exercise and recitation of rehearsed put-downs than any real political process. David Cameron so conspicuously reading from a script in response to Gordon Brown’s budget speech today was a prime example of theatrical posturing over immediate, relevant debate and comment. Has it always been this way, and if so, how the hell have we got anywhere? Is it more appropriate to ask if we’ve ended up where we are because it has always been like this?

What’s even worse is that programmes such as The Thick of It show that the political process behind the scenes is yet more hot air, confusion, compromise and back-stabbing. The Thick of It, by the admission of people who are very close to the political process in this country, is alarmingly accurate, even though it is supposed to be a comedy – the politics is just as bad behind the scenes as it is on BBC News. Just the word ‘political’ has poor connotations – divisive behaviour, partisan activities and manipulation come to mind. ‘Political’ is a dirty word in a business environment.

“Calling a meeting is a political act in itself” – Daniel Goleman

On the other hand, maybe all the shouting, paper-waving and booing isn’t such a bad thing – maybe it’s the sign of a healthy democracy, not smug showboating to an apathetic electorate that doesn’t really give a damn because they think all politicians are the same anyway. It goes without saying that the political situation in the US is as unhealthy as it could be, in Cambodia I spoke with people who dare not criticise the government openly for fear of their lives, and in China I was kicked out of Tiananmen Square on the anniversary of the massacre there by soldiers with orders to prevent any demonstrations. It could be worse here, but it’s certainly bad enough, and just because our liberty isn’t under threat doesn’t mean we have to put up with the windbags that sit in parliament claiming to represent us.

Maybe it’s just Britain that’s getting to me, I think it’s been building for days. Customer service is utterly useless, we pay a fortune for shoddy goods and flaccid vegetables that have been jetted in from Israel, the media bombards us with sad talentless preening morons, footballers flounce about fields kicking balls for fifty times the wage of nurses who get spat at by drunken schizophrenics every other night, and idiots are everywhere.

I must stop watching telly, it just gets me steamed up like this.

Buffer

Possibly related posts:

http://www.spikydog.com/ Nathan

A friend asked a few questions after reading this – thought I’d put my responses up here. Feel free to respond.

1. You don’t like the current political system? Are you going to do anything to change it? Stand for any party, or just write a few lines and forget about it?

No, I don’t like it much. The UK political system is worst portrayed in the average parliamentary debate, but that is the most visible part of our political process. I think it turns people off politics to see the paper-waving and booing, when they don’t feel reassured that there’s real work going on behind all of the bluster – when it comes to budget time, most people are watching what’s going on in parliament and would probably rather be reassured that government has their best interests at heart than see Brown, Cameron or whoever else trying to score cheap points or lay the groundwork for their election. The problem has been referred to in the news as Punch and Judy politics – I’m not the only one to point it out.

If perception is the worst problem there is, maybe parliamentary reform addresses it, maybe the business of parliament needs to be better represented in the media, but maybe politicians just need to behave better. I don’t honestly believe, whatever I said, that all MPs subscribe to all of the paper-waving pomposity, but there’s obviously still an unhealthy amount of it going on, and people are smart enough to distinguish authentic debate from opportunist name-calling. The main danger of poor perception of government is precisely the problem we have in the UK – an apathetic electorate and low voter turnout. What’s the point in voting, they’re all the same, that kind of thing.

Am I going to do anything to change it? I’m not sure that I could – I never said I had all the answers. Of course one thing to do if you are that determined to change things is stand for a party – I’m not sure if I’m qualified to do that, but would never dismiss the idea completely. I just have that old adage along the lines of ‘If you want to get into politics you shouldn’t be allowed’ ringing in my head. It’d be interesting to know what drove our current MPs to do what they’re doing, and how much of a difference they feel they’ve managed to make.

There are a heck of a lot of other ways to change things, not all of them are party political, and many of them never even make it on to the news. Maybe just writing a blog seems inconsequential, but if the process of doing it sparks any kind of debate, if you’re willing to think about things, document what you think, question what other people say, back up your arguments and accept when you’re wrong, it’s a start. If enough people do the same, it’s got to be healthier than dismissing the whole business as a lost cause. The trickle effect is where enough people do small things that add up to making a big difference – anything from shopping a particular way to offering their time to a voluntary project – I’m writing, it’s just another blog, but I’m also giving my time and money for things I believe in, I want to study, and I do want to do more to make a change. I’ve got a plan around here somewhere…

2. You criticize the politicians for compromise. Should they ride rough shod over everybody who does not agree with them?

I’m not suggesting an autocracy, certainly not, and I appreciate that compromise is an essential part of politics – so it’s not the best word to have used. I was trying to suggest that maybe the effectiveness of policies and initiatives was likely to be diluted by endless debate, chopping and changing – not always good if you don’t manage to achieve what you set out to do – but I wouldn no sooner deny anyone the right to question something they disagreed with than I would be denied that right. I’ve already used the quote in this blog "I may disagree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it".

3. What does the US political system have to do with it? Why would you care about it? Why not care about the French, Germany or Spanish system.

I used the US as an example of a country with a political system that I believe is in a poorer state of health than ours. If you want to get into a debate about the relative state of health of the US and UK political systems I’m more than happy to, but the main problems appear to be endemic corruption, rampaging religiosity, record debt, the absence of an effective opposition in the weakness of the Democrats, violation of human rights and privacy without congressional or judicial intervention, and a media that leaves most of the population in ignorance. I didn’t meet a single American last year that wasn’t deeply worried about the state of their country.

Why would I care about the US political system? Well, what happens in the US has ramifications all over the world, current events are proof of that. I’m not ignoring Germany, France or Spain, merely suggesting that in the UK we are not alone in having problems with our political system, and while they are not as severe as in other countries, relatively speaking, that is no cause for complacency.

4. What veggie do they fly in from Israel?

Organic tomatoes I think.
http://theanswers42.blogspot.com/ Margaret

Have responded on my blog. Feel free to comment.