FROM LIMBO TO RESIGNATION

There is a feeling that the whole world is in limbo. There is hovering uncertainty in our lives. That is not to deny the more positive and specific views being expressed by numbers of people who adhere tenaciously to particular propositions.

 

Tribalism is still the bedrock of the nation state.  The organisation, culture and beliefs of a country are embedded in its people from the time they are born. Loyalty to country is constantly being professed by citizens who put themselves forward as public servants and political leaders. In doing so, they usually refer to their country as the greatest country in the world. It is rare for a prospective leader not to profess her/his honour and privilege at being chosen to lead “this great country”.

 

In order to be chosen, they declare their allegiance to a particular method of governance which they believe will attract the greatest number in support, and which they believe will be the most efficient way to provide the population with a way of life that allows them to flourish. In doing so, the inequalities generated within the nation itself must be addressed and solutions found to redress those inequities and create a balance, i.e. to provide stability and social order.

 

The most prevalent approaches to governing seem to be from the political left or right. The right or conservative approach is to promote the existing tribalism by withdrawing into notions of sovereignty and separatism, with little or no interference in the interaction between its citizens. One is allowed to sink or swim with some minor assistance to those who might be drowning, relying on the charity of the better off to relieve the unfortunate. A trickle-down effect. The left, or socialist, leans more towards an altruistic approach, a more encompassing welfare state. This involves a larger and more regulating system. Measures are put in place for the State to alleviate the ills of the hapless. Either position can of course go to extremes.

 

The current conservative position can, in a way, be described as Charles Dickens does in a short bit of dialogue from his “Christmas Carol”:

Greater and external inequalities, numbers and technology however, are a collective fly in the ointment.  The tumultuous eruptions of violence, material scarcity and catastrophic climatic variations around the globe, have created a continually shifting population of refugees filtering in to seemingly wealthier and healthier countries. This is not without consequences. The difficulty of maintaining societal order and stability in the face of an ever diverse multicultural population is considerable. In addition the problems arising from the proliferation of technological progress are confusing.   

 

These global problems emphasize more than ever the need for a more collective and integrated method of problem solving.  Relations between nations can no longer be at arm’s length. Full cooperation is what is required. The odd climate conference, with nations pledging to abide by various protocols is insufficient. Economies are now so interdependent that to attempt to impose a laissez fair capitalistic system across the globe is untenable.

 

My train of thought has been disrupted, as I write this, the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom has resigned and a new leader will be imposed on us by the end of next week. I have made my feelings about Ms Truss known in previous blogs. What is outrageous under this unwritten British constitution is that the current number of conservative MP’s are to be the ones to choose the leader. It can hardly be called an election, it’s more like choosing up sides (teams) as to who gets to play minister.  

 

For the conservative party to claim they believe in democracy and carry on with this charade of governing “for the good of the country” is a disgrace. The voice of the country is clearly crying out for a general election. The garbage being spouted by conservative members to save their own skin is only making it worse for them in the long run. The vain hope that some new leader will somehow magic a new view of the government is offensive. They are on the whole displaying a degree of self-interest that is obscene. That they are blind to the reality of their situation is classic avoidance.

 

That this country permits this ridiculous constitutional anomaly is just as disgraceful. There must be a better mechanism to deal with the removal of representatives who no longer command the support of the governed. There must also be a change from the first past the post electoral system. All political parties should be on board with this proposition in the true interests of the country. Proportional representation, particularly in the light of the current makeup of the population and the differing needs and opinions of the various members of society.

 

In the meantime we are meant to wait for a Prime Minister to be named on Friday the 28^th October 2022, and for her/his economic program to be laid out before parliament on Monday the 31^st October, an economic program the new Prime Minister will presumably have to accept without any input, unless there is a meeting of minds at the weekend between the two dates. Am I wrong to think this a bit amateur given the likely eye watering austerity that is to follow.  

 

I live in the hope that a general election will take place very soon and that the new leader is a true democrat who understands the need for the entire country to be behind the leader and not just his party. Liz Truss claimed to be a true democrat at the dispatch box, all the while proclaiming she would carry on governing. The hypocrisy was palpable. She has at last done something positive towards democracy. She should have gone the whole hog and declared a general election. That would have been the most positive and memorable of her actions  as leader of the conservative party. She could have fnished with the line, "Good afternoon gentleman" and ladies.