I love the maturity of the English. There is an MP, a Conservative (right-wing) MP, who is also editor of a right-leaning magazine, and a columnist in the Daily Telegraph, called Boris Johnson.
Boris had an affair with a columnist at the magazine. His wife then (rather brilliantly) got herself a job as a columnist at a rival paper, and called her column "Diary of a Divorcee".
Can you imagine if this had happened in America? A congressman or senator having regular outside media jobs for one thing - a very public affair for another - removed from his portfolio... or in NZ, I don't think an MP doing that would last too long before becoming fairly well toasted. And yet in the comfortable maturity of England:
"Mr. Johnson once said of his political future, "'My chances of being prime minister are about as good as the chances of finding Elvis on Mars, or my being reincarnated as an olive." Now, it looks as if he is unlikely even to become the leader of the Conservative Party.
But he remains a popular figure.
"Boris is that rare creature," The Guardian said in its editorial, "a natural blond in show business; both clever and lively, with flair for publicity in a range of activities, some of them admirable.""
(quote from the nytimes.com website)
Aren't the Brits just so cool? They are like the well-travelled 60-year-old aunt and uncle that the kids in the whanau go to for wisdom of experience. America should shut its brash teenage mouth once in a while and listen to its elders...
Posted by phreq at November 20, 2004 07:03 AM | TrackBackBrit's kinda rock :). I do like that in Europe etc that political scandals tend to be about actual wrongdoing rather than fairly irrelevant stuff like blowjobs from interns (ok - so not irrelevant to the family, but has not a damn thing to do with running a country).
I believe about 10 years ago there were a serious of silly sex scandals to do with several politicians (were they Tories?) and their various mistresses - it seemed like every week a new one was getting lambasted in the papers. They do seem to have recovered from that phase and now express more concern about politicians getting fundamental facts wrong when they're drumming up a case for war...
Posted by: Rachel at November 20, 2004 01:05 PMYeah I remember when all the Tory MP's were stringing themselves up with silk stockings and accidently killing themselves Michael Hutchence style while dressed in women's underwear. Then there was the huge scandal when Tony Blair's wife dared to get pregnant when they already have 3 older children & she's, shock horror, in her 40's! I remember that at the time a big thing was made of them obvious not being smart enough to have protected sex.
Posted by: Chelle at November 20, 2004 02:23 PMOh yeah, I vaguely remember that, now that you mention it... bizarre. The women's clothing was just an extra layer of the surreal.
Posted by: phreq at November 20, 2004 05:08 PMThanks
Posted by: Online Home Loans at November 19, 2005 10:16 PMyes.this is my site http://www.hallkidstales.com/mortgage_loans/refinance_mortgage_loans_memphis_tennessee.html Thanks.
Posted by: ohio refinance mortgage loans at January 9, 2006 11:34 PMyes.this is my site http://www.hallkidstales.com/mortgage_loans/mortgage__loans.html Thanks.
Posted by: mortgage loans with low fico score at January 10, 2006 03:31 AMyes.this is my site http://japanime.net/home_loan/bad_credit_home_improvement_loan.html Thanks.
Posted by: jobs at countrywide home loans at February 7, 2006 08:08 AM