A few days ago, I commented on the decision of local Tory MP, Simon Hart, to vote no in the upcoming referendum. Whether it was an entirely wise thing to do or not, he has chosen to expand on his reasons in this week’s Carmarthen Journal.
He’s also used another opportunity to do the same thing in his weekly column for the same paper – I can’t find it in the online section, so I’ve reproduced it below. His pearls deserve more attention.
Sometimes, it’s hard to know where to start, when faced with quite so many contentious and outrageous statements. His view seems to be underpinned by some strange paranoid belief that the evil nationalists have far more influence than is actually the case (I wish), and have hijacked the referendum as a means of dragging Wales kicking and screaming into independence. And surely, his two final paragraphs are a classic example of what happens when a politician gets carried away by his own rhetoric.
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8 comments:
John
As you say it is difficult to know where to begin so probably it is wisest to say nothing and carry on.
I suspect that the early signs of paranoia may be emerging as there is a perception amongst MP,s that they are in charge of everything therefore what they say and do is all that matters.
In Devolved terms we see similarity with the Midlothian question
Why do we need Tory AM,s when I YES I am in charge of Pembrokeshire as your Tory MP
ie the more they say the less I get to say ---- on anything
Mp,s and Am,s are there to represent all constituents
In the referendum as in any election they like anyone else gets one vote and only one vote thereforeto say that I am voting one way so you must also vote that way is the root of dictatorship and indicates the desperate need to control others which is pure paranoia
I rest my case
"there is a perception amongst MP,s that they are in charge of everything therefore what they say and do is all that matters"
It's a bit more than a perception, it's a constitutional truism. All power is given by God to the monarch who graciously allows her government and parliament to exercise it on her behalf and in her name.
It's one of the reaons for the huge gulf in political perspective - I start from the presumption that power belongs to us, and we can decide how and where it is exercised.
What he, as other NO campaigners are saying is that the Welsh are too stupid and naive to understand and answer a simple question in the referendum without being guided by a shaman like him who understands the black arts, and can help them.
The sad thing is that a small proportion of us are that stupid. However, I am confident that he will find out in March just how small that proportion really is.
It's a real shame that you are not a Labour Party member, John. That's your true politicial home. The Labour Party may not be perfect but it's the nearest we have to the radical party you're looking for. You could defend Wales and the Welsh better as a Labour activist.
For every David Melding there's a Simon Hart lurking in the shadows.
Gwilym,
"It's a real shame that you are not a Labour Party member, John. That's your true political home"
Thanks for the invite, but somehow I don't think that you can have been reading this blog for long...
"The Labour Party may not be perfect"
True, but then, no party is perfect. For anyone who has thought long and hard about his or her political standpoint, the decision to join any party is about making a compromise between political purity and effective collective action. But it's not a static balance - sometimes parties can move in ways which increase the degree of compromise and leave people as members of a party that they might never otherwise have joined. Some are even to be found in the Labour Party.
Ramblings,
I think you're using the wrong exchange rate. In terms of members of the Conservatives-in-Wales, I reckon there's at least 5 Harts to the Melding.
I think your MP is realling taking the Mick, John. Today's Western Mail reports that he's managed to rack up £35,256.26 in expenses in his first few months in Parliament!
What is he doing? Commuting First Class every day from Whitland to Paddington, with a taxi thrown in to Westminster?
I thought Hart had already thrown his rattle out of the pram after Cameron decided to ditch the Countryside Alliance.
Thank goodness I live in Carmarthen East - Jonathan comes in at a third of price, £12,610.68 (the train must be that much cheaper from Ammanford).
article also available on his official website http://www.simon-hart.com/simons-work/267-simon-hart-to-vote-no-in-march-referendum
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