Pointless Politicians

I'm finding it increasingly hard to like any politician of any hue any more. In fact my favourite politicians seem to be those that are in the later years and either retired or shuffled off to the Lords. And amongst them I count members from all parties. I am uncertain as to whether this is just because I am getting old and this is some kind of age thing or whether politics has changed.

I recall being an 'angry young man' myself and remember how passionately I felt about aspects of politics and would regale my friends with my drunken opinionated blatherings about how the world would be better if... And yet today I find politicians way too shouty, nearly all of them!

Even when they are not being shouty they are bending the truth in such a manner as a balloon artist would be proud of. Taking a serious subject and manipulating it into somethings that come out looking like a giraffe with a pink body and green ears!

I can no longer watch the programs that I enjoyed where politicians are questioned because either they simply say black is white without a hint of irony, paradox or satire and straight facedly say something that even they do not believe. In fact some interviewers are on record as saying that immediately after an interview some interviewees have stated as much but that they are toeing the party line or simply saying what is necessary to get elected or into government.

Either the quality of interviewers are dropping or the skills of the media advisers that accompany every politician these days are so good that they can run rings around the interviewers. But then as many of these media advisers have in fact worked with the other side at some point as well then they know the trade and weaknesses and strengths of the 'opponents' to manipulate any five minute interview to their benefit.

The purpose of interviews is ostensibly to hold the politicians to account. To question them about promises they, or their party, have made at some point and then have not achieved. And yet, what we actually get is the answer to a question that has not been asked, an attack on the opposition, a rationale about how the previous government was responsible for the issues that meant the target was impossible to meet or they misuse statistics to claim they have achieved their goals after all, for instance claiming that more money is being spent on x than at any other time whilst completely ignoring little things like the effect of inflation or the average spend per person, both of which invariably bring a lie to the bare faced claim!

What really concerns me, as much as I get 'concerned' about anything any more, is the state of the country. Some people seem to think the UK is doing well, but everywhere you look the state has withdrawn support from the country and has been imperceptibly allowing the people of the UK to take care of themselves. That might not sound like a bad idea but it is not how the UK works best, in my opinion. The crumbling can be seen everywhere, local services being cut year after year with local government continually restrained from raising more more money but at the same time forced to sell assets and take on more responsibilities such as old age social care.

Then there is every aspect of the law, from the police who are short of numbers and infrastructure dealing with an ever more volatile society, no cells to keep those apprehended following arrest, an increasing number of mental health cases ending up in prison cells to be cared for because the NHS systems for helping these people has been cut in spite of bare faced lies that it is a priority of the government. And the list goes on and on!