The original concept of democracy as envisaged by the ancient Athenians was a society which governed itself under the guiding hand of citizens who were the contributors to that society.To use the American expression, they had ‘skin in the game’. In theory a responsible, plausible & pragmatic system of government. It had its detractors, led by Plato who felt it would be too easy to abuse, a view taken by contemporary philosopher Hans Hoppe, indeed he believes democracy is permanently doomed because corruptibility is hard wired into the system.
It would seem today he is right. Great Britain had a system of representative government. Yet most British law is subcontracted to a continental bureaucracy with a European parliament reduced to an amending chamber & Westminster with no role at all. We continue the charade & vote for an MP who supposedly represents our constituency, but in reality represents his own interests or political eccentricities. The governing Conservative party send only head office candidates to the constituencies, so the MP has no serious endorsement or legitimacy by the grass roots members. MPs are therefore selected by probably no more than twenty people, screened by half a dozen, voted on according to the colour of their rosette. This absurd system ensures that the House of Commons grows even further from those they are supposed to represent. Hence the ‘noddy dog ‘ or misfit political lobby fodder phenomenon.
The UK, like America has but two parties, red & blue. The modern politician is a professional insofar as he is paid a good salary, pension & expenses. No boat rocker he. The party whips make sure he stays in line with the usual tactics of bribery & blackmail. This ensures party policy, but not necessarily manifesto commitment is adhered to. The system has been thus for over one hundred & fifty years. However, the concept of the unemployable journeyman politician is relatively new. Pre Great War parliamentarians were men of private means or conviction, sometimes both. They were traditionally educated. The modern politician admittedly with some exceptions is woefully uneducated. In this definition I do not regard a modern university degree to indicate education, it seems rather a completion of complex box ticking exercises monitored by the State. Robert Peel, William Gladstone, Lord Salisbury or Herbert Asquith would regard most of today’s politicians as laughably ill educated.
So the politician today is intellectually weak & unrepresentative of society, (how many have had a real job?). But since the last war the electorate springs from the same well, the average voter is incapable giving even vague outline of the British constitution or the principles of English law, this makes it easy for their birthright to be stolen by unscrupulous governments. It is no accident law, constitution & British modern history are not part of the State curriculum. Parliamentary democracy could still work if honour, conviction, honesty & genuine life experience were its bedrock. But recent events show an appalling lack of all three. Imagine explaining recent events to that mythical man from Mars.
A prime minister, endorsed by a massive parliamentary majority mandated the electorate to decide on a major constitutional issue, he wrote an historically unprecedented letter to every household in the land guaranteeing their decision would be unequivocal & final. That decision was confirmed again in a general election by main parties committed in their manifesto to carry out that mandate. Indeed another massive parliamentary vote triggered the first step. Yet two & a half years on the government of the day & its civil service have carefully sabotaged the negotiations to create as much confusion & fear as possible, the implication now is that the electoral decision is simply not deliverable. Yet no such claim was made by any side before the referendum & general election. Nor when Britain originally acceded to the Treaty of Lisbon.
Individual politicians openly reject their own party manifestos. For no apparent reason recent advocates of one side suddenly volte face. No explanations are given nor asked for by main stream media. Suspicions of bribery or blackmail naturally manifests itself. Television is owned & controlled by an alliance of big business & the establishment, they conspire openly to defy the will of the people. The British have long been sceptical of politicians & governments, but not since the repeal of the Corn Laws has the establishment been so at odds with ordinary working folk. The concept has failed therefore in Britain, so called mother of parliament. But the system is failing regardless of which brand is adopted. Failing in Europe & America where people got the leader of choice but Deep State & MSM still hold sway.
It seems only revolution is the option. From which historically no one ever wins. But the British government might do well to understand that the decision that so shocked it & indeed the ‘metropolitan elite’ was heavily supported by the working class, ignored & abandoned to the political wilderness in both Europe & America for decades. The middle classes don’t go to the barricades with mortgages, two cars in the garage & college fees to find but a frustrated working class might feel they have little to lose. They certainly have no one for whom they can safely vote. Great Britain could still step back from the abyss. Delivering a WTO Brexit which the electorate voted for can rescue the system. This is looking increasingly unlikely as the divide between the establishment & people grows ever wider & MSM remain complicit & social media increasingly corrupted.
Originally published on: Going Postal
