‘It reveals their pointlessness and lack of character, integrity and moral substance.’ Which is precisely what happened 2010-15 when they spectacularly failed to implement their manifesto, unexpectedly finding themselves in government.
Thank you. I love your amoeba comparison which very accurately describes exactly how I have felt about the LibDems for at least 12 years - since I returned to this country from the US.
I would like to point out - along these lines especially since you talk about character - the existence of Nick Clegg. He did have a little mini taste of something approximating power as deputy PM then acted true to amoeba type by completely messing it up and betraying everyone who voted for him. Losing nearly all LibDem MP’s from that debacle he threw the towel in and landed a much more powerful position at Meta where I believe he is in charge of something or other.
In the last day or two Instagram has kicked off all prominent Gender Critical feminist accounts from the platform. Including Sex Matters which is Helen Joyce’s organization. They are very mean to all the poor men pretending to be women in order to get in women’s prisons and women’s sports apparently. It definitely connects with Ed Davey and his “Clearly women can have penises” stance.
I just detest the LibDems so much and cannot understand how people cannot see their complete lying grifterness. In this election I am just giving points to each party of how much I hate them on various issues and then I will vote for the party with the least points. Which makes me sick that it has come to this but here we are.
Surely, now (since yesterday) it has been made illegal to own (if one does own) a cat without having had it microchipped, in order to ensure that if lost it can be found and restored to us, the process of governing us for our own benefit is complete? (But, as far as I know, this wasn't a libdem policy.)
This is quintessential modern government, per David’s exposition: make a pointless law that should you not comply, it is impossible to enforce. Responsible cat owners will get a chip regardless and irresponsible cat owners will not and having not, there is no way to prove the cat is theirs.
Well it's certainly easy to kick the Lib Debs post-Embarrassment, but I don't think your potted history is entirely fair, David. I think there was a progressive thread uniting the various incarnations of the party, cohering around electoral reform, for quite some time. But the Embarrassment (the uneasy coalition in government with the Conservatives) ended this illusion. After this, they are rudderless.
The lack of fairness lies in the point that since Blair, Labour has been in the same boat, and if I cannot put my finger as to exactly when the Tories boarded that boat, they either muscled in after Blair, or Blair followed the Tories in clambering aboard.
I grew up on the Isle of Wight where our Liberal Democrat MP was a very reliable representative for the region for many years, so I perhaps have a more positive view of the past of the Lib Dems than most. I don't refute that they, like every other British party, represents nothing much of anything now. It just seems unfair to single out this one party in this regard. Maybe you don't mean to, and other pieces of yours have certainly pointed the finger everywhere.
I suppose my position is that once realpolitik takes over political parties, which Blair was the standard bearer for (and Sir Starmer the exemplar par excellence), expecting anything principled or coherent from any party is a stretch. We might do better to establish which principles we, the citizens, care about, because once we can do this at a sufficient degree of solidarity, all the parties are forced to adopt the same view, the way they were forced to adopt green politics after the Greens 'won' a surprise EU election.
Your writing sometimes seems to claim the parties themselves can be rehabilitated... I am at a loss to understand why, let alone how, although part of me admires your faith in this regard. But then, I put my faith in the citizens, which is arguably just as fanciful a concept! 😄
A very perceptive insight. I'd argue that the 'princely' style of government has in turn cross contaminated the general populace, so various milli-princesses and micro-princes protest for the continuation of their protesting, signal their virtue for the sake of maintaining their public virtue.
I could go through the article substituting 'Woke' for 'Government' but that would leave a comment as long or longer than the article itself. But if you view Peak Protest as Peak Nihilism it could explain a great deal.
Superb analysis of the collapse of politics in the UK. On the matter of the old pre "Lib Dem" mould, we were brought up in the North West, near Stockport, which back in the day was an old school Liberal stronghold. Mum & Dad always voted Liberal, until Thatcher came along.
Living now in the South West, I would think we are about to go back into one of those stronger Lib Dem periods. Apart from Bristol, Exeter and maybe one more town, NOBODY votes Labour down here, we've neem her 20 years and not once can I recall a Labour canvasser knock on our door.
Greens usually look to do well and don't.
Some years back, canvasser comes to the door. My wife answered, and asking who he represented, he said "The Lib Dems"
"Oh you poor dear" my wife responded, to peals of laughter from me inside the house.
I think with the arrival of Farage, both of us who were not going to vote will be voting for Reform. Had they not a candidate, and had Kellie-Jay Kean's "Party of Women" a candidate here, we may well have voted for them.
David - I would think so. Soft spot for Methodists, despite parents being 100% in between the wars atheist. Went to a Methodist Public school; The Leys, in Cambridge, full of sons of Lancashire businessmen. Lord Soper was one of the governors, and once a year preached the sermon. Fantastic bloke, bless him. And of course, a regular at Speaker's Corner.
Another great piece, thanks. I have my doubts on returning to a republican government in Britain. 76 years of immigration has left Britain culturally, ethnically and religiously diverse, which allied with the various ‘liberation’ movements, as left little, if anything normative in modern Britain. Just look at the farrago around whether a woman has a penis or the ire when Farrage tells some basic truth. Consequently and depressingly, I do not see how our governing system can be reconstituted in a republican manner, drawing legitimacy from enforcing societal norms. Short of some pretty muscular assertions of right and wrong, which flies in the face of the only normative value we appear to have left. Which is: you cannot tell anyone their mode of being is wrong.
The immigration issue is nuanced. Both sides of my family are of Irish immigrant stock. So I have a hard time accepting immigration per se is a problem; I think the decay in social norms is much more to do with home grown failings. But I take the wider point - we may be in a position in which the only way a republic can be restored is through the actions of a prince-like figure.
Part of Ireland still is Britain and the peoples have a shared past. Moving to a similar culture poses few integration challenges; I have fond memories of 2 Polish teachers, who other than their surnames, were indistinguishable from anyone else. Scale, pace and origin matter. Living in an Islamic country for the last 2 years, my local friends and colleagues conceptualise the world in a very different way. That is not to say wrong, just very different. Changing base priors is hard but possible; until there are enough immigrants like you it is no longer necessary. We have seen this in the weekend protests since last October and shifting attitudes to Israel and British Jews. Perhaps a diverse society needs Princely government, or it risks the fate of Lebanon.
I’m not sure that’s how either the Irish or English would have seen things in the 19th century. They might very well have said that the arrival of Irish immigrants was importing sectarian strife, was the arrival of a fifth column who would act in the interests of continental powers, was an intrusion of foreign Catholic impulses into the body politic, etc. And they would not have been entirely wrong about any of those things. Knowing both Liverpool and Glasgow intimately, I think it’s safe to say that mass Irish immigration changed the complexion of the country irrevocably. I completely share your concern about the manner in which immigration is currently being managed and controlled but I think it’s important not to fool ourselves into imagining the British Isles were ever homogeneous or unaffected by this issue. My next post will address this.
Regarding your next post, if you have not already, Linda Colley’s ‘Britons: Forging the Nation 1707 to 1837’ is worth a read. Her conclusion is a bit dated, as we have left the EU but Britain was such a poor fit and duly exited because she nails the locus of British identity.
But the Irish and British are culturally alike, and almost all Irish immigrants were white. More recent immigrants are largely non-white, and our unwillingness ‘to go there’ inhibits our ability to confront the cultural differences; differences which are having dire consequences.
I think your amoeba comparison works well. It reveals their pointlessness and lack of character, integrity and moral substance.
‘It reveals their pointlessness and lack of character, integrity and moral substance.’ Which is precisely what happened 2010-15 when they spectacularly failed to implement their manifesto, unexpectedly finding themselves in government.
Thank you. I love your amoeba comparison which very accurately describes exactly how I have felt about the LibDems for at least 12 years - since I returned to this country from the US.
I would like to point out - along these lines especially since you talk about character - the existence of Nick Clegg. He did have a little mini taste of something approximating power as deputy PM then acted true to amoeba type by completely messing it up and betraying everyone who voted for him. Losing nearly all LibDem MP’s from that debacle he threw the towel in and landed a much more powerful position at Meta where I believe he is in charge of something or other.
In the last day or two Instagram has kicked off all prominent Gender Critical feminist accounts from the platform. Including Sex Matters which is Helen Joyce’s organization. They are very mean to all the poor men pretending to be women in order to get in women’s prisons and women’s sports apparently. It definitely connects with Ed Davey and his “Clearly women can have penises” stance.
I just detest the LibDems so much and cannot understand how people cannot see their complete lying grifterness. In this election I am just giving points to each party of how much I hate them on various issues and then I will vote for the party with the least points. Which makes me sick that it has come to this but here we are.
"Sorry!"
Surely, now (since yesterday) it has been made illegal to own (if one does own) a cat without having had it microchipped, in order to ensure that if lost it can be found and restored to us, the process of governing us for our own benefit is complete? (But, as far as I know, this wasn't a libdem policy.)
This is quintessential modern government, per David’s exposition: make a pointless law that should you not comply, it is impossible to enforce. Responsible cat owners will get a chip regardless and irresponsible cat owners will not and having not, there is no way to prove the cat is theirs.
"But, as far as I know, this wasn't a libdem policy.)"
Well, they don't have any policies, anyway.
Us next, for the micro-chipping...
“Like an amoeba groping its way through pond scum for edible substances”
😂😂😂
Well it's certainly easy to kick the Lib Debs post-Embarrassment, but I don't think your potted history is entirely fair, David. I think there was a progressive thread uniting the various incarnations of the party, cohering around electoral reform, for quite some time. But the Embarrassment (the uneasy coalition in government with the Conservatives) ended this illusion. After this, they are rudderless.
The lack of fairness lies in the point that since Blair, Labour has been in the same boat, and if I cannot put my finger as to exactly when the Tories boarded that boat, they either muscled in after Blair, or Blair followed the Tories in clambering aboard.
I grew up on the Isle of Wight where our Liberal Democrat MP was a very reliable representative for the region for many years, so I perhaps have a more positive view of the past of the Lib Dems than most. I don't refute that they, like every other British party, represents nothing much of anything now. It just seems unfair to single out this one party in this regard. Maybe you don't mean to, and other pieces of yours have certainly pointed the finger everywhere.
I suppose my position is that once realpolitik takes over political parties, which Blair was the standard bearer for (and Sir Starmer the exemplar par excellence), expecting anything principled or coherent from any party is a stretch. We might do better to establish which principles we, the citizens, care about, because once we can do this at a sufficient degree of solidarity, all the parties are forced to adopt the same view, the way they were forced to adopt green politics after the Greens 'won' a surprise EU election.
Your writing sometimes seems to claim the parties themselves can be rehabilitated... I am at a loss to understand why, let alone how, although part of me admires your faith in this regard. But then, I put my faith in the citizens, which is arguably just as fanciful a concept! 😄
All the best,
Chris.
I hope I wasn’t so much singling them out as using them as an exemplar of something much wider.
Thanks for clarifying!
Chris.
A very perceptive insight. I'd argue that the 'princely' style of government has in turn cross contaminated the general populace, so various milli-princesses and micro-princes protest for the continuation of their protesting, signal their virtue for the sake of maintaining their public virtue.
I could go through the article substituting 'Woke' for 'Government' but that would leave a comment as long or longer than the article itself. But if you view Peak Protest as Peak Nihilism it could explain a great deal.
Yes, I’ve been thinking about a short post on that.
Brilliant.
Superb analysis of the collapse of politics in the UK. On the matter of the old pre "Lib Dem" mould, we were brought up in the North West, near Stockport, which back in the day was an old school Liberal stronghold. Mum & Dad always voted Liberal, until Thatcher came along.
Living now in the South West, I would think we are about to go back into one of those stronger Lib Dem periods. Apart from Bristol, Exeter and maybe one more town, NOBODY votes Labour down here, we've neem her 20 years and not once can I recall a Labour canvasser knock on our door.
Greens usually look to do well and don't.
Some years back, canvasser comes to the door. My wife answered, and asking who he represented, he said "The Lib Dems"
"Oh you poor dear" my wife responded, to peals of laughter from me inside the house.
I think with the arrival of Farage, both of us who were not going to vote will be voting for Reform. Had they not a candidate, and had Kellie-Jay Kean's "Party of Women" a candidate here, we may well have voted for them.
I wonder if the Stockport thing is also to do with nonconformism. From what I gather the Liberals were the party of methodists.
David - I would think so. Soft spot for Methodists, despite parents being 100% in between the wars atheist. Went to a Methodist Public school; The Leys, in Cambridge, full of sons of Lancashire businessmen. Lord Soper was one of the governors, and once a year preached the sermon. Fantastic bloke, bless him. And of course, a regular at Speaker's Corner.
Another great piece, thanks. I have my doubts on returning to a republican government in Britain. 76 years of immigration has left Britain culturally, ethnically and religiously diverse, which allied with the various ‘liberation’ movements, as left little, if anything normative in modern Britain. Just look at the farrago around whether a woman has a penis or the ire when Farrage tells some basic truth. Consequently and depressingly, I do not see how our governing system can be reconstituted in a republican manner, drawing legitimacy from enforcing societal norms. Short of some pretty muscular assertions of right and wrong, which flies in the face of the only normative value we appear to have left. Which is: you cannot tell anyone their mode of being is wrong.
The immigration issue is nuanced. Both sides of my family are of Irish immigrant stock. So I have a hard time accepting immigration per se is a problem; I think the decay in social norms is much more to do with home grown failings. But I take the wider point - we may be in a position in which the only way a republic can be restored is through the actions of a prince-like figure.
Part of Ireland still is Britain and the peoples have a shared past. Moving to a similar culture poses few integration challenges; I have fond memories of 2 Polish teachers, who other than their surnames, were indistinguishable from anyone else. Scale, pace and origin matter. Living in an Islamic country for the last 2 years, my local friends and colleagues conceptualise the world in a very different way. That is not to say wrong, just very different. Changing base priors is hard but possible; until there are enough immigrants like you it is no longer necessary. We have seen this in the weekend protests since last October and shifting attitudes to Israel and British Jews. Perhaps a diverse society needs Princely government, or it risks the fate of Lebanon.
I’m not sure that’s how either the Irish or English would have seen things in the 19th century. They might very well have said that the arrival of Irish immigrants was importing sectarian strife, was the arrival of a fifth column who would act in the interests of continental powers, was an intrusion of foreign Catholic impulses into the body politic, etc. And they would not have been entirely wrong about any of those things. Knowing both Liverpool and Glasgow intimately, I think it’s safe to say that mass Irish immigration changed the complexion of the country irrevocably. I completely share your concern about the manner in which immigration is currently being managed and controlled but I think it’s important not to fool ourselves into imagining the British Isles were ever homogeneous or unaffected by this issue. My next post will address this.
Regarding your next post, if you have not already, Linda Colley’s ‘Britons: Forging the Nation 1707 to 1837’ is worth a read. Her conclusion is a bit dated, as we have left the EU but Britain was such a poor fit and duly exited because she nails the locus of British identity.
Thanks!
But the Irish and British are culturally alike, and almost all Irish immigrants were white. More recent immigrants are largely non-white, and our unwillingness ‘to go there’ inhibits our ability to confront the cultural differences; differences which are having dire consequences.
If the Irish are immigrants, so must the Welsh and Scots be; and then surely the English too? And therefore ...
Seems like it's important to determine whether the population is indeed virtuous.
It's impossible to know the answer without behaving as though it is.