Farce, Absurdity and the Three Princes

Sometimes farce and absurdity reign in the affairs of humankind.....

The Trickster was abroad during the 2010 British elections, and the chaos began when one politician literally fell out of the sky and walked away relatively unscathed.

All the former ministers of the Health Department – a service no longer fit for purpose – lost their seats. The night ended in neither of the two dominant political tribes being able to claim outright victory.

A notable event was that the electoral system preferred by the two old tribal protagonists - 'first past the post' - designed to keep outsiders out, not only produced an unexpected bi-partisan-ship, but also elected an environmental champion. This was the first time a member of the British Green Party had entered the corridors of power at that national level. 

In some other places in the world, ballot boxes would have been tampered with, or outright war waged. Thank God for true democracy I say, it’s such good fun.

In the face of the unimaginable, many politicians and commentators initially took refuge in the phraseology of a former US President who, when describing a previous election result in his own country said: ‘The people have spoken, but it will take a while to determine exactly what they said’.  Many (unfortunately not a majority) of the British people had indeed spoken, loudly and clearly. They said we’ve had it with politicians who operate in their own interest, not the people's; a pox on both your houses. 

In the end, one of the two dominant political tribes had to make common cause with outsiders. It was clear that there was little choice but to instate a coalition government.

Some politicians found that difficult to countenance because it would take them to a place they did not want to go.  It is said that politics is the art of compromise, and those who refuse to do so seldom end up in the winners’ enclosure. Of course there is little evidence that coalition has worked in the people’s interest. As is the way of politicians, election promises on both sides of the coalition were reneged upon, and proposals to tackle some of the major issues faced by the country such as the need to regenerate the economy, regulating a rampant financial sector, action on global warming, education, the health service, infrastructure improvements, were either botched or jettisoned.

Last week the Foremost among the Triumvirate of Princes leading the Government said, with great earnestness and deep feeling, that marriage is such a wonderful institution that his greatest wish is for members of the gay community to participate. What? He must have lost his rightful script.  Anyone would think he was a democrat, and a liberal one at that. But no, I did not hear right; didn’t think so. Today, there is greater clarity.
Actually, what he meant to say was gay marriages could take place, but not within the Church of England.  In fact it is exempt, forbidden by law, from conducting any such ceremony; and other denominations will have to ‘opt in’. Well there you have it – fudge and mudge; farce and absurdity.

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