The Cruelty of Political Cynicism

A good day down on our little allotment is one in which we get a lot done - digging, planting, and so on. A bad day is arriving one morning to find that inclement weather or trainee yobs have wrought havoc on our little plots. Of course, neither happens very often, and each is something we simply have to learn to live with. For American readers I should add, by way of explanation, that foul-mouthed destructive yobs are now a permanent feature of life in the good old Dis-United Kingdom, and very few are apprehended by the local constabulary, and even when they are, they are given a light slap on the wrist by the Courts, and then allowed to continue on the career ladder of crime so that they soon turn into violent thugs.
The situation is very different, of course, if things go wrong and you're fighting on the front line in Iraq or Afghanistan, as I discovered one afternoon when Nosher suddenly drove his spade with unaccustomed violence into the ground.
'Those bastard politicians have got me going again!' he declared, his face tight with anger.
'What is it this time?' I inquired, hoping that years of allotment working had given Nosher's cardiovascular system the strength to hold out against the onslaught he had unleashed.
'Did you know' he went on 'that the MOD has been paying more in compensation to their office workers for repetitive strain injury to a typist's finger or a strained back than they do to the seriously injured and permanently disabled service men and women coming back from the front line?'
As I struggled to make sense of the political cynicism of this situation I leant on my spade and watched the willows fluttering in the refreshingly cold north wind, the sunshine making the spindly pale green leaves glitter as they moved. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan seemed far away, and suddenly I felt very lucky to be able to live in a country that has not experienced a war fought on its own soil for over sixty years.
'I regret to say that it does not surprise me very much at all' I said after a few minutes. 'Throughout history political leaders have manipulated the patriotism of their followers in order to get them to fight for unworthy causes, and then neglected them when the worst happens. That the self-deceiving idiots who currently rule over us should be doing the same thing is a case of them knowing they can get away with it'.
Nosher's face reddened with anger.
'But why? Why?' he blurted out 'Why would any decent human being knowingly inflict cruelty upon another, especially one who has risked life and limb on the battlefield for his or her country, and come home injured and/or disabled? The Government knows that compensation payments are grossly inadequate to provide a lifetime's care with dignity to a permanently disabled serviceman or women, and yet they persist with this cruel system whereby the total amount is deliberately held below the level a typist can obtain for a strained finger! It's political cynicism at its most cruel and contemptible!'
'Because they know they can get away with it' I repeated slowly. 'Gordon the Moron might ooze sincerity at remembrance services, but as Chancellor of the Exchequer he was responsible for setting limits for military expenditure, and it is simply impossible that he cannot know the current system of compensation is grossly unfair, cruel and contemptible. This is a clear case when the person at the top cannot pretend he doesn't know the appalling consequences of his decisions - there has, after all, been enough publicity about them in the media.'
'That's why I think he's a cynical bastard' said Nosher 'if he had a shred of decency he would change the compensation system immediately - he's the boss, so he can do it!'
'But he's also a politician in office - arguably they all become cynical bastards the instant they achieve power, even if they weren't beforehand' I said. 'Admittedly, our forces are at last beginning to receive some better equipment on the front line, but to provide proper and adequate compensation for those injured and disabled would cost very little, in real terms - maybe Gordon the Moron could skimp a little on the next planned redoration of his offices and Prime Ministerial premises - come to think of it, why do these egocentric bastards have to spend so much on office carpets and flock wallpaper?'
'I neither know nor care!' Nosher said angrily 'but I know what I'd be tempted to do if Gordon Brown appeared here right now in front of me!' As he said this he once again drove his spade into the ground with such force the earth shook and clods of soil flew in all directions.
'Let's get the rest of this digging done' I suggested, wanting some quiet in which to think things over.
Our once great country, the now Dis-United Kingdom, is now a place in which unruly children are permitted to become trainee yobs, rewarded by kindness so that they progress to being violent thugs, drug addicts, robbers and murderers, and then, when they are eventually released from the prison sentence they worked so hard to achieve (to get jailed in the UK these days requires a serious and consistent commitment to illegality) they are provided with all sorts of services and support from literally hundreds of charities that exist for the benefit of ex-jail-birds.
In contrast, the number of charities that support victims of crime or injured police officers can be counted on the fingers of one hand, as can the number of charities that provide support for disabled service men and women returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
There's something terribly wrong with the values of a country that gives far more attention to those who would destroy anything worthwhile in their lives and in society at the slightest opportunity, whilst this same country neglects those who give so much and who make great sacrifices to sustain the civil society our politicians claim to be protecting.
Too many excuses from bleeding-heart liberals, not enough insight into what makes a society worth living in, or worth making sacrifices for. No wonder so many don't want to work for a living, no wonder so many prefer to commit crime and take drugs rather than face up to the challenges of living a decent, law-abiding life.
I guess Nosher and me, well, we're simply too old and too old-fashioned in our outlook to want to exploit the system for all it's worth whilst making sure we give nothing in return.
Meanwhile, if you're thinking of joining any branch of the British Armed Services because Gordon the Moron says your country needs you, first give a thought to how this same Gordon the Moron will treat you when you need his help. It might put you off the idea. Politicans get the armed services they deserve, and our current crop of cynical self-deceiving politicians deserve merely our contempt.
More from www.overthegardenfence.blogspot.com soon.
To find out more go to www.paulsturdee.co.uk
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