Bishop Hill Dellers on Huhne
Feb 4, 2013 Huhne Really good piece by James Delingpole on the Huhne case:
I feel about Huhne as I feel about all politicians: I really don't give a damn how many rent boys they sleep with or whether they're heavily into heroin or oranges or how serially unfaithful they are or how often they break the speed limit. Not even whether or not they beat their dogs.
What I do care about, very much, is the immense damage their ill-judged, ill-considered policies are doing to this country. Sometimes – especially in the field of environmentalism, for some reason – their incompetence borders on the criminal. Sometimes – naming no names, but I think we know exactly who we mean – their corruption and sleaze goes beyond it.
There are some very bad dangerous people in politics right now. But it's their policies I want them nailed on, not their personalities.
Reader Comments (64)
Naturally it already seems that, if Chris Huhne were run over by a bus tomorrow, the obituaries would focus on his extraordinary fall from grace in public.
I disagree. If he were run over by a bus, the obituaries would be about those Clapham omnibus drivers who never care about traffic laws.
Dellers is missing the point, I feel.
We KNOW we won't ever get him in the dock over his real crimes, so we have to take our vicarious joy in this one. Like Al Capone and his tax case.
I think we must applaud Peter Huhne's heartfelt character sketch of his father.
Big Yin
I agree. The best is the enemy of the good, and in this case, I'm happy to settle for the good.
What appals me is that someone who, save for a few votes, could have been our DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER, can stand in front of the assembled press on at least four occasions to my knowledge, and state categorically that this story was all 'lies' and he would be found 'innocent'.
Peter Huhne is spot on - he's a sh*t....
Plus of course he has PERSONALLY been responsible for much of the lunacy which passes for current and on-going government energy policy....
Julian Flood
Agreed. That’s why they should be pursued mercilessly whenever they do anything illegal or even slightly wrong, down to the last free toilet seat.I’ve got an Ordnance Survey map of Roman Roads, if that’s any help. It’s an official government document, after all.
How accurate is Huhne's Wikipedia bio? He seems to possess all the character defects one normally expects of politicians: narcissism, hypocrisy, deceitfulness, arrogance, dishonesty, pettiness, petulance and lasciviousness. No wonder his son loathes him. Did I miss anything?
Bernie:
'Did I miss anything..?'
Yes - he's a sh*t....
Dellers makes a valid point about speed limits.
Our local constabulary reported that they were 'saddened' by the number of people caught speeding on their patch over the last year.
So my - and Dellers' point is - surely the speed limits are wrong..?
How many times have you been motoring along - driving sensibly - watching out for all the usual hazards - suddenly you see the yellow back of a speed camera. Your immediate reaction is to slam on the brakes; and then check the speedo to see if you're withing the relevant limit.
In America they set speed limits according to the natural 'gait' of the road. Result..? The traffic all moves steadily but generally within the limit.
Problem is of course in the UK, this approach would play havoc with the Treasury's income from speeding fines...
Speeding in the wrong place may be all kinds of wicked, but a speed camera at the bottom end of the M11 is no more than a tax on the inattentive and the stranger.
I'm not defending inappropriately placed speed cameras of which there are many, but the one which got Huhne on that occasion was in roadworks on the M11 which is a little different.
Lapogus, you should submit that quote to the OBN column in Private Eye. If nothing else it will make Hislop think mightily over whether or not to print it.
NW is correct - this was a temporary speed camera in road works.
The camera at the bottom end of the M11 has the dubious honour of generating the most revenue from speeding fines of any camera IN THE COUNTRY...
And I think the one which finally got his license removed anyway was in an urban 30 limit, so we're not talking about someone who occasionally got caught by a camera placed to maximise revenue on an open road, more like he has no notion of appropriate speed for the conditions. In a BMW with a vanity plate, how surprising.
NW Huhne was a serial offender , a couple of weeks later he got caught using a phone while driving . The word we are looking at here is 'arrogance'