Thursday, January 17, 2008

Blair to Brussels?

John Laughland on Tony Blair and politics as escapism.
The politician in history who Blair most closely resembles is Oliver Cromwell. Both profoundly religious men, the religion of both men seems to consist mainly in their belief that they are themselves instruments of divine providence. Just as Cromwell leant over the body of the dead King Charles I and muttered “Cruel necessity!” – as if he himself had not strained every fibre to engineer the military coup d’état which created the Rump Parliament and the kangaroo court which tried the king – so Blair, when confronted with his own lies over Iraq, preferred not to reply but to say only that God would be his judge. In the mouth of a hereditary Christian monarch, that would be a laudable reply; but it completely incompatible with the dogmas of democracy to which Blair claims to adhere. According to the rules of democracy, indeed, it is the people who judge politicians, not God.
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

It can be scary when a politian thinks of himself an instrument of God, because, who but himself,is going to define for him what God wants. The will of the people is ignored and has no value in his/her eyes.

elena maria vidal said...

Yes, Cousin John really hit the nail on the head.