The Quality Of Our Leadership

[poliphilo]

According to WikiLeaks the incoming Tory administration was falling over itself to fawn on the Americans. William Hague proudly told Richard LeBaron, deputy Chief of Mission, that he and Cameron and Osborne were all "children of Thatcher". Their anxiety over the possibility that Obama might downgrade the "special relationship" was so febrile that (in LeBaron's words) it "would be humorous, if it were not so corrosive".

What Hague and his colleagues don't seem to have grasped is that the relationship between Reagan and Thatcher (whatever you may think of them) was based on mutual respect. Maggie thought nothing of ringing Ronnie up and giving him an earful

It's nice to know the gambolling of these little dogs amuses their American masters.

Comments

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Blair set the precedent for cosying up to the US government no matter what. He positioned himself as Clinton's best friend- and then as Bush's. The relationship with Clinton one could understand- both were supposedly men of the centre Left- but Bush?!

[veronica-milvus.livejournal.com]

It has been going on a lot longer than that. World war 1 perhaps. We are one of about ten significant "special relationships" the US has. They are dating several countries, they never said we were "exclusive".

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Blair was the first British PM whose cosying up to American power felt like a national humiliation. Churchill and Thatcher acted- in public anyway- as if they were the equals of the American president, Macmillan mentored Kennedy, Wilson kept us out of Vietnam.

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

I agree: it seems that Blair was the first. His relationship with Bush is more easily understood when one realizes that the differences between Bush and Clinton were more cosmetic than substantial. Both were card-carrying members of the ruling class and served its interests to the best of their ability. In every way that mattered, they both sang from the same page of the hymnal. Bush was a front man for the energy sector and the Western elites, Clinton for Goldman-Sachs and the Eastern elites. What does it matter which faction has its biblical way with the rest of us?

And, yes, I am damned bitter, these days.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I believe Blair is still a bit of a hero in the States. Over here he is deeply hated- and can't show his face in public without being yelled at or mobbed.

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

I have no idea how the public feels about Blair, over here, since I no longer follow the media, not even vicariously online. No doubt the media still loves him.

Personally, I hate the bastard and always will. Blair was a figleaf for Bush's obscenity, used to create the illusion of adult supervision. It is difficult to imagine an educated man sinking so low.

[michaleen.livejournal.com]

Tangentially related, but James Wolcott brings a nice article to my attention this morning, about Wikileaks and the state of modern journalism -- and journalists.

I thought it a nice antidote to the gaseous twaddle issuing from Megan McCardle's lower colon, the other day.