Quote of the day
"What can you do against the lunatic who is more clever than yourself, who gives your arguments a fair hearing and then simply persists in his lunacy?"
George Orwell
George Orwell
Nick Herbert on his visit to flood hit areas of Cumbria
Please note that the post below was published more than ten year ago on 21st November 2009 Nick Herbert MP, shadow cabinet member for the Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs, was in Cumbria this morning to see the areas affected by the flooding. He writes on Conservative Home about his visit. Here is an extract. I’ve been in Cumbria today to see the areas affected by the floods. I arrived early in Keswick where I met officials from the Environment Agency. Although the river levels had fallen considerably and homes were no longer flooded, the damage to homes had been done. And the water which had got into houses wasn’t just from the river – it was foul water which had risen from the drains. I talked to fire crews who were pumping flood water back into the river, and discovered that they were from Tyne & Wear and Lancashire. They had been called in at an hours’ notice and had been working on the scene ever since, staying at a local hotel. You cannot fail to be impressed by the
Comments
I have met many people who are indeed more clever than me, they are scientists, and researchers, and doctors of medicine and stuff.
But I have yet to meet a lunatic more clever, I guess cameron and milliband and clegg all fall into that bit, so does osbourne (and I dont mean ozzy) but they only think they are clever, have no life and have never had a life out of politics, There is the difference.
So there you see the on ground problem, Cameron and the conservatives are as weak as ****, labour - well no thank you, never again after that performance
Lib Dem - is this a joke
UKIP - Sounds good, till you see what it is
BNP - Er, No, Just NO
Greens - more left than labour, very dangerous.
So after all i think i shall vote UKIP this time, not because I want them to do well, but to give the tory party the boot up the bum it really needs.
I think Orwell was being ironic when he referred to a lunatic more clever than oneself - the implication being that we have a tendancy to assume that someone who has a different opinion is being a lunatic. But what if it isn't the "lunatic" that is being silly?
It's like Ambrose Bierce's definition of a bigot, which is the way all too many people use the word in practice - one who is obstinately attached to an opinion that you do not agree with.