Anthony Barnett (London, OK): Peter Oborne's new book The Triumph of the Political Class has a very insightful analysis of the relationship of our rulers to ideas. Because they are professionals their training in political thought and their fluency with ideas "far surpasses that possessed by any previous governing elite". But this fluency is - irony, tragedy - used to shut down all challenging ideas and turn those who express them - in both parties - into mavericks. He quotes John McDonnell who tried to run against Gordon Brown for the Labour leadership on the party's "issue avoidance". So let's hear it from soemone who was right and was angry with the seductions of a snap election, He has has published his statement to the press on his website and says,
"We promised change but we are back to spin and a continuation of the same policies. As many of us predicted we are sleepwalking towards a Tory government if there isnt real change in both policies and also in the attitude towards democracy and how we govern. The only way forward is to demonstrate real change by withdrawing from Iraq, ending privatisation, tacking inequality and restoring civil liberties and rights, and reasserting democracy in both our party and in our country. If we do this people may start trusting a Labour government again."
PS: Sunder Katwala has just emailed me. He was against going early and he points out that at a Fabian fringe at the start of the Bournemouth conference, Blunkett, Giddens and the historian Linda Colley as well as himself all advised Fabian chairman Ed Balls against it, 'we want to win the next election not on a bounce but on an agenda' Sunder said. It seems Balls thought he knew better.
