Still well into the wizard, he's been getting me to and from work the last few days as well. Had a pretty stressful day today, not helped by the fact that the office heating and windows combined much like an oven and a greenhouse meaning dull aching heads and forgetfulness all round.

Fell asleep watching TV on the sofa earlier so thought I'd just write a quick post and tumble into bed. Recently I mentioned this report that's been published about the state of our democracy etc. I suggested that the biggest problem, which was also being completely ignored, was that the three main parties are too few and too similar. Simple as.

I don't feel this post necessarily contradicts these comments though some might when I spoil the end and reveal the gist: we don't actually have a clue about the political systems we allow to run our lives.

A couple of examples: One of the many insights I gained from reading Orwell's 'Homage To Catalonia' was my own blind acceptance of an utter myth, namely the position of Communism on the political spectrum.(1)

The Cold War was surely one political situation that reached the masses, with it's super simple blue vs red, cap vs com, us vs them layout. It's an established fact to us all the Communism represents the extreme left end of the political spectrum, the anti democratic extremists of their day.

The only thing is that that's bullshit. Despite years of hysterical propaganda, Communism isn't actually that far left of our own beloved, and inherently fascist, capitalist system. At one point Orwell describes Communism as 'right wing socialism' and, when you think about it, it clearly is.

While Communism may espouse similar noble ethical arguments of fairness and justice, it's methodology it unmistakeably fascist, ie. brutally authoritarian. What's my point? Be patient damn you.

Even longer ago I added the Lib Dems to our League Of Swine because I felt cheated that they weren't the party I had thought them to be. Today's announcement that Mengis Campbell is the new leader of the party has only compounded this feeling of resentment.

What these things have in common for me is not simply that in both cases a lot of people got the wrong end of the stick about these political movements, but rather that they were supposed to.

I often write and talk about furnishing people with thinking skills and political knowledge on a par with literacy and numeracy. While I stand by this to leave it as a single course of action is to blame all our problem on our own ignorance. This would be fine if it were simply a case of us not understanding, but as it is we are actually being actively deceived.

That's it for now, I'm knackered. I've got the George A Romero all-nighter at the Hyde Park Picture House tomorrow too so I'm off for some kip.

footnote

(1) have to say I don't feel the whole 'left-to-right spectrum' is actually a very accurate construct but it's valid here as we're considering popular opinion,