Democracy – Oi, Oi, Oi!

..however,
have a patently mad Abbott and a quite peculiar Bishop.
Corruption is relatively minor, flourishing at the local council level (how
else does a flood plain become a housing estate after all) but is not the rampant
pervasive cancer as in many countries near our borders. Governments change civilly
and without rancour perhaps because we generally see a change in style rather
than substance. When Whitlam was dubiously ousted in 1975 people were upset
and conspiracy theories flowered like clover in Ireland, but apart from some
rhetorical flourishes and general grumpiness the umpires alcoholic decision
was grudgingly accepted and we all went back to the polls.
How lucky we are to be part of a very fortunate minority of countries. Whilst
people may vote irrationally, the system itself is fair. But where do the politicians
and others in power come from?
‘The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy’, a source of great wit and
wisdom, has the ruler of the galaxy selected as the most capable man who least
wants the job. Not a bad criteria for, as a general rule, people who aspire
to power should never be awarded it. Power once acquired is hard to relinquish
and it is defended by all possible means. The desire to command is no measure
of ability and those who attain it often demonstrate no greater skills and abilities
than anyone else selected at random – except that they possess the ability to
claw their way to power and maintain it any cost. Was it not once said of Anthony
Eden “that no greater love hath any man that he lay down his friends for
his life” as he sacrificed his colleagues in order to stay tenuously in
power?
Take a random selection of American presidents, all of whom were voted into
office, and reflect on their summary capabilities. Clinton: charismatic lying
pants man. Nixon: criminal lying paranoid. George Bush: born again cretin. Sure
in themselves they were surrounded by sycophants and toadies as all those in
power are – a coterie of advisors, assistants, interns and secretaries
whose job was to constantly agree, defer and to polish the President’s
ego.
Yet all these quite peculiar people got to be President of the United States.
Not only were they themselves persuaded of their intellectual, philosophical
and physical fitness for one of the most responsible jobs in the world, but
thousands of others were also convinced enough to support them with time and
a great deal of money. It is all quite astounding that this happens, not just
once, but nearly all the time. What form of mass delusion allows them to get
away with it and not all be hounded from office ?
Dwight Eisenhower, who reluctantly accepted the nomination for President after
the Second World War, may have been the only one to buck the alarming and growing
trend of self delusion that started with George Washington, paused briefly with
Lincoln, and then resumed its self-inflated path.
Heredity position and dynastic succession has little to recommend as an alternative
apart from entertainment value – where would women’s magazines be
without the House of Windsor? Royalty is only a source of salacious gossip and
persistent scandal at one slight remove from footballers and cleavage stricken
women – with the possible exception of better manners. The concepts of
royalty and title should have no place in the modern world, apart from some
surviving legal relics in colonies such as Australia. I fail to see that being
born into a particular family qualifies anyone to any extraordinary position
of authority or power. There is no genetic code for ‘born to rule’
apart from various classifiable delusional mental conditions. A quick examination
of Queen Victoria’s abundant extended family should disabuse one very
quickly of hereditary capability.
Yet people are still quite delighted to bow and curtsy and let them reign in
well fed splendour.
The most egregious examples of in-place royalty would be the Saudi Royal family
that runs its country as a combination of royal privilege and Islamic fascism.
Women’s rights, independent judiciary, religious freedom, the slightest
trace of democracy? Dream on – as they do in the splendour of their air-conditioned
palaces.
I’ll miss out on the world of CEOs with large salaries, large reputations
and even larger egos. Just think of Sol Trujillo and Telstra ……… and wonder.
Worst are the strong men and dictators supported by institutionalised violence
and oppression, who often remain in power with the support of external agencies
in the name of stability and support for the interests of the left, the right
or the out-and-out criminal. Russia under Putin – a combination of rule
by the Secret Police and the Russian Mafia – is an example of the latter.
Yet Putin was voted into power more or less legally and willingly by those who
admired his strong personality, his ability to ride half naked and bare-back
on a horse. These days a Russian dissident will not find even exile is a safe
option and investigative journalism has become, literally, a dead end occupation.

Yet that pales by comparison with the state of terror of Iraq under Hussein
or Uganda under Idi Amin – the latter, a cannibal and murderer, was accepted
by Saudi Arabia as an Islamic brother when he was deposed. We can scarcely envisage
the true fear and horror of such a world.
I am writing this when what we strangely call the Middle East is in turmoil
and I would not care to predict any outcome. I can only hope that they get to
make their own decisions freely and that they will not choose some half baked
demagogue. One would hope that they select a wise and intelligent individual
who will only reluctantly accept the task at hand. And that task being completed
– i.e. the establishment of a free, honest and secular state – he will
step down .
I’m not going to hold my breath.