The fall of aristocratic truth-telling

Last Spring, Peter Oborne wrote a book entitled The Rise of Political Lying. Documenting the sheer volume and brazenness of the lies told to us by politicians of all stripes, it was supposed to be impartial, objective and non-partisan. Considering that Oborne is fairly well known as a right-wing journalist, these claims were probably necessary to forestall accusations of bitterness-inspired anti-Labour propaganda.

Unfortunately, the book is simply impartial to the point of surrealistic comedy. Judging by its contents, literally everyone lies and there is damn all anybody can do about it (after all, offering a solution would be “partisan”).

The first of these impressions is accurate to what is, when you consider it for the first time, a stupendous degree. Are the liars just traitorous and nation-despising Labourites? What about the Jeffrey Archer, John Redwood and Neil Hamilton? What, for that matter, about the cornucopia of X-rated escapades indulged in and then covered up by various Tory MPs?

Are the liars elitist and plutocratic Tories, caring nothing for the common man and democracy and believing only in their own droite de seigneur? What, then, about the Labour party’s habit of dispensing peerages for cash and visas for sexual favours? What could reek more of the maligned droite de seigneur then David Blunkett’s and Peter Mandelson’s abuses of their positions for the sake of their lovers?

Is it perhaps just the two major parties that are too complacent in their power and so contemptuous of the electorate? I’m sure Mrs Oaten and Mrs Hughes would both be very interested to hear about Lib Dem probity (if that isn’t too ambiguous a word). Political mendacity is one of those values which all sensible parties share that Cameron and Blair never stop twittering about.

Combine these facts with a refusal to make any suggestion for improving the situation whatsoever, and it becomes necessary to check that the book is not by Kafka, so bleak and hopeless is the vision conjured up. This is only the case, however, because the man dubbed O’Bore by Private Eye does all he can to live up to his name and to avoid controversy. This would have been an infinitely less depressing and more practically useful read had it been written by Peter Hitchens or Hans Herman Hoppe, rather than by the human cure for insomnia.

Obviously, if politicians lie shamelessly and voters leave them unpunished for their mendacity, this can be the result of two factors: either the politicians are untrustworthy or the public are gullible. That nowhere does Oborne note this seemingly obvious fact shows just how afraid he is of saying, well, anything of any interest or consequence.

One of the reasons for the politicians’ growing disloyalty to the public is the permanent sexual revolution. The more liberated women and sodomites infest the halls of power, the greater the potential for romantic entanglements between political colleagues. Once these occur, the politicians’ loyalties become less to the laws or the nation or an ideology, and more towards their lover. This creates a government of men, not laws, and opens the way towards the unrestrained abuse of power.

The reason why the public seem to be have become more gullible over the past century or so is simple: the removal of property qualifications and the lowering of the voting age have worsened the quality of the electorate. Power flows not to the people but to those most skilled in deception when the feckless and the irresponsible are allowed to vote.

I think you’re getting why Oborne couldn’t bring himself to think his book’s central idea through to its logical conclusion. After all, had he mentioned any of the above he would have almost certainly been excommunicated from the human race by the Guardian and the Independent. How would he live that down at the next Spectator cocktail party or the next time he visited Alice (they’re all called Alice)?

This should have been a book about how modern, egalitarian politics actually takes power away from the people and encourages mendacity. Instead, because Oborne is too cowardly to speak truthfully about the demons leering before our eyes, it instead is nothing beyond a practical demonstration of Zeno’s paradox: a politico telling us that all politicos are liars.

Posted by Alex Zeka on Tuesday, April 4, 2006 at 03:10 PM in Books
Comments (6) | Tell a friend

Comments:

Next entry: Brainless Leftists

Previous entry: Recent articles from the CIS