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PROTECTING WESTMINSTER AND THE WIDER WORLD

WE'D ALL BE BETTER OFF IF SHE WAS IN CHARGE

A few days ago a person who was very angry at the state of the world, and who had determined to do something violent in the name of extreme views, went on a rampage outside of the British houses of parliament.
A terror incident, and awfully, innocent people were injured, and killed, including an officer guarding the home of democracy in these isles. Images of an heroic MP bloodied and unbowed, and talk of the Blitz spirit, boomed across the globe.... Britain is strong, and unbeaten.

Family members of the killer have apologised. Debates rage about his religious identity, and how someone "home grown" could end up so hate-filled - as if this was not also the country that gave us Cromwell and Jack The Ripper. Hate is often grown at home.

The new PM, Mrs May, spoke eloquently, and in rather rhetorical fashion, about the greatness of democracy and Westminster. True, but painfully ironic. For, while the terrorist in London has taken a few lives cruelly soon, and criminally, with evil intent, he has also vanished in the action himself, and his attack will, in the way of such things, only harden positions, and build tougher ramparts and road blocks; he cannot defeat the idea of British democracy with a knife and a car - even a bomb.

Politicians, however, even duly elected ones, CAN destroy democracy, or imperil nations, with their decision-making. There is no guarantee that democracy yields the wisest results.  Now, in BREXITRUMPLAND, the insane Western realm we post-truthfully inhabit, madmen and madwomen make decisions, trigger articles, cancel treaties, and deny global warming, at will - the age of the expert has turned to the age of the populist, out for nothing but raw power or personal gain.

I am not making a moral comparison between an armed killer and a president or prime minister. Our politicians, at this stage, have not crossed that rubicon....

But let us hope that Brexit does not one day destroy the lives, hopes, dreams, and opportunities of tens of thousands of young British, Irish and EU citizens over the next few years. And that the new revocation of environmental protection laws in Washington DC this week does not end up destroying all life on the planet, SOMEWHERE down the crazy river.
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