So which newspaper shall I read today..
On a day when the Times seemed obsessed by avian flue (dead swan in Scotland) and pensions (politicians pay lip service to expensive 'independent' report), I was mightily impressed by two pieces in the Guardian. Were it not for Polly Toynbee's kneejerk Labourism; not socialism because Tony Blair has long forsaken that ideal; I would certainly become a Guardian afficianado. The articles I so heartily recommend are this fantastic piece by Jenni Russell on how New Labour are eroding, even demolishing, our political checks and balances and this article by a well known and respected Clinton advisor on how the celebrated ethnic musician and Republican apologist Condominium Rights is sending her public servants into battle with no body armour. This is good stuff people. Read and, if you can be arsed, comment.
posted by MikeS at 7:27 pm
6 Comments:
"What you don't seem to understand is that we are good people!" Hmm, now didn't Pinochet or some other South American dictator say something similar? And weren't the Spanish Inquisition doing what they did so the souls of their 'customers' could get to heaven. And aren't all the current batch of fundamentalist loonies from the various religions doing what they are doing for the good of us all too?
That has always been the fundamental problem I've had with Bond villains and such like, they seem to want to be naught for… well… for naughtiness' sake, when it seems to me the real villains are the ones who believe in what they are doing because it was/ is a 'good thing'.
Sorry for mentioning him, but didn't Hitler believe that by 'getting rid' of the Jews he was doing the world a big favour?
Absolutely. And is it coincidental that some of the worst, including Adolf, believed they were doing good because God told them so?
I have vague memories of Graham Greene once saying something along the lines of, one of the most important parts of [Greene's] Catholicism was the doubt that it was true. I also remember someone saying to me that the thing he most admired about Thatcher (spit) was her certainty, her conviction, while - to me that was the most dangerous thing about her.
The thing about belief seems to be the NEED to shape the world so that it fits in with the belief, rather than the other way around. And if - as the young Dylan said - if you have god on your side, then how can you possibly be wrong? It is the world that is wrong, not you, and you have your god telling you to fix it - so how can you refuse?
The big pity is that it isn't the voice of god at all, just an echo of your own ego.
So, while folks like me stumble about doubting everything and not doing very much, those with conviction go straight to the top and do all the damage.
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This has no relavance at all to your post but hey, at least I'm actually commenting for once!
Just informing you that I have doned a new layout for the website so if of course it is worthy of your approval, I now need lots of content to put in it. Which is where you come in, sir.
Thanks Grim. I'll have a look. We've loads of photographs which will need hosting and I'll redraft the 'about us page'.
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