Thursday 9 April 2009

In Whose Name?

President Obama did not speak to the most important people in England - the people themselves. Jealously clutched to Gordon Brown's bosom he was directed from venue to venue, photo opportunity to photo opportunity, all for the greater glory of New Labour and their Leader.

We would have liked to see you and the First Lady, Mr President. We have a wonderful open space with fountains and statues of our leaders of the past. You could have stood between Nelson's lions, high above the thousands who would have been honoured to listen to you,



just as you stood in Prague, before the castle and before the Czech people.

Or you could have filled the Royal Albert Hall, as you did the Town Hall at Strasbourg, with people proud to queue for hours to see and hear you - we do good queueing at the Albert Hall and would have sung you your national anthem and ours - we do good singing at the Albert Hall too.

So why didn't you, Mr President? Why did you lend your prestige and the esteem all Presidents of the United States are held in here, but most of all you with the hope you have brought after the years of war and contempt for world opinion practiced by the Bush presidency, why did you lend all that so narrowly? To an unelected Party Leader, imposed upon the country without benefit of democratic vote. A coward who has starved the UK forces of the means to fight the wars for which your country has asked our help. A liar who has led the United Kingdom to financial and economic disaster. A secretive political manipulator with a vicious retributive streak for all and any who oppose him. A private bully who offers physical and verbal aggression to those who have to work with him. Were you taken in by his sycophancy towards those who bear elected office, and yours of global power, but pushes the clerk from in front of her computer with contempt, and throws phones and staplers in his workspace?

While you were limousined and helicoptered from cabal to cabal the people were being beaten and killed on the London streets. The people were being cornered by violent riot officers who beat those who chanted 'this is not a riot, this is not a riot', even as they were beaten.

You were used Mr President. The abused people should be told it was not done in your name.

8 comments:

dearieme said...

"We would have liked to see you and the First Lady, Mr President." Suit yourself, but I think that the American gush about the First Lady - any First Lady - is odious.

hatfield girl said...

Do we not learn a great deal from looking at spouses, D? Gush, you're right, it's odious. But physical appearance, body language, dress, intellect, manner, manners, failings.

A spouse is for life, chosen as such. And is the fastest crib to another person imaginable.

Sen. C.R.O'Blene said...

Hats, that's a good piece, I hadn't thought of all that detail. Thanks!

It'll all change when he gets home though, Obama that is, not Brown the Failure.

Nomad said...

Thoughtful piece - as usual.

Someone should email it to the US Ambassador for onward transmission. You never know (given that Obama clearly has little or no time for our Great Helmsman) you might even get Hilary to respond!

hatfield girl said...

Were we not assured, warned even, Nomad, that every thought we have is uploaded as it falls from our minds onto our keyboards and passes under the scrutiny of the CIA? Don't tell me that we are competing for their attention. Surely at least MI5 (or is it 6?) is reading us all already?

That's the problem with constant surveillance. It's only as good as what it can manage to survey, catalogue, and retrieve. The shame of it, not even reaching a Lives of Others threshold. Poor Angels.

hatfield girl said...

Snot fair Scrobs, the continentals get all the cheering and flag waving and hats thrown in the air jollity.

The English are always told to get out of the way or we'll whack you, let the important people past to have another meeting, dinner, private shindig.

I wanted to sing 'Oh say can you see by the dawn's early light' and I wanted to sing 'And did those feet in ancient times' (much more uplifting than that 18th century dirge). For that matter I would have enjoyed 'Rule, Britannia!' and Bobby Shafto. We could have done Waltzing Matilda, and 'Allons enfants de ma patrie', done chorale perfection with Tannenbaum - all fine singing stuff in the world's number one sing-along-feeling-lovely venue but greedy Brown was keeping President Obama held close to his swollen-bodied self.

President Obama would have enjoyed himself much more with us.

dearieme said...

"A spouse is for life, chosen as such. And is the fastest crib to another person imaginable." Jesu, then you must take a particularly dim view of Toni Blair.

Nomad said...

HG: Indeed, but what if they've all knocked for for Easter? The belt and braces approach might be more effective.

Furthermore, may I take this opportunity to wish a happy Easter to all our readers, watchers, snoopers, taggers, recorders, analysers, paranoids etc etc... At least you will be aware of what ordinary people think instead of what your "superiors" tell you to think.