In signing this petition (and I would urge you all to follow suit) https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/235138 I came across this extraordinary response, date 30 January and purporting to come from HM Government, though the fact that almost all the arguments it contains have been heard repeatedly before that date in the mouths of Jacob Rees-Mogg and his … Continue reading A tissue of misinformation, non sequiturs and falsehoods, brought to you by HM government
Category: MUSINGS ON . . .
occasional effusions on every subject under the sun
Was there ever such a fine piece of nonsense?
I am grateful to Caroline Flint MP for providing such a clear and succinct statement of the nonsensical 'second referendum = betrayal of democracy' argument that we hear so often. Pause this clip after the opening sentence and ask yourself what exactly she is saying https://www.facebook.com/Channel4News/videos/297638354287769/?t=73 "The breakdown of trust in politics if we … Continue reading Was there ever such a fine piece of nonsense?
The danger of licensing ignorance
Suella Braverman is not someone I had heard of (and I doubt if I shall hear of her again) but I am grateful to her for a classic instance of the besetting sin of our age – licensing ignorance. Ms Braverman popped up the other day on the Today programme, just after John Major had … Continue reading The danger of licensing ignorance
A most ingenious paradox
There has been a lot of talk recently about how this is a 'Remainer Parliament' that is doing its best to stop Brexit by whatever means and so 'thwart the will of the British people'. If that were the case it would certainly be grounds for feeling aggrieved – yet another instance of the know-all … Continue reading A most ingenious paradox
Misread from the start
It is hard not to admire Donald Tusk and to wish that our own politicians could be as succinct, understated – and right. https://twitter.com/eucopresident/status/1085260488903090176 Courage is certainly needed. Let us suppose for a moment that in 2016 'the British People' really had 'voted overwhelmingly' to leave the EU: would we have arrived at the place … Continue reading Misread from the start
The curious monomania of Mrs May
It may be that Theresa May finds Tony Blair uniquely irritating – a position with which I can sympathise – but her condemnation of his call for a second referendum is uncharacteristically intemperate: "For Tony Blair to go to Brussels and seek to undermine our negotiations by advocating for a second referendum is an insult … Continue reading The curious monomania of Mrs May
Mogg Mendax
Jake Mogg is associated, in the popular mind at least, with Latin, so perhaps we can open with the Latin axioms suppressio veri and suggestio falsi : the one means to suppress the truth, the other to suggest a lie. They are often coupled, the action of suppressing some truth – e.g. omitting key facts … Continue reading Mogg Mendax
Where now?
Given her past form, it is reasonable to assume that Mrs May's assertion that she will fight the leadership contest with all she's got is a sure sign that she'll be resigning shortly; but however it plays out, it is difficult to see how the Tories will this time avoid the split they have postponed … Continue reading Where now?
When simple arithmetic is the elephant in the room: the collective failure of press and politicians in the Brexit debacle
It should be remembered that David Cameron became Conservative leader by being more interesting than David Davies in a couple of speeches. The bar was set low at the outset and his subsequent career was consonant with that. It is likely that he will be remembered as the worst British prime minister of modern times**: … Continue reading When simple arithmetic is the elephant in the room: the collective failure of press and politicians in the Brexit debacle
Mogg the Mendacious
We know Jacob Rees-Mogg to be a consummate liar – much like Mr Bernard Jenkin, dishonesty and false representation are his stock in trade -– but in this short interview he excels himself. In the course of a minute and a half, he makes the following six claims, all of which are demonstrably false or … Continue reading Mogg the Mendacious
COMPLEAT TROWZER 