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Too late to save Britain — it’s time to emigrate

17 July 2010
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We have lost our political probity, our social harmony and our moral integrity, says David Selbourne. There is nothing for it but to leave the country

Part of me feels that those who have helped to bring the country down — venal politicians, false educators, degraders of the media, thieving privatisers of the public domain — need to be fought to a standstill, here on this battlefield, by those with the energy, strength and clarity of mind to do so. For no one wants to believe that the country of his birth, language, upbringing and way of thinking cannot be redeemed.

But the thousands, and tens of thousands, leaving Britain — another million and more will be gone in the next five years, the largest category of them the young, the skilled, the professional — are not wrong. The country’s dilapidation has gone too far. Britain has been impoverished by the mismanagement of the national economy, the running down of manufacturing, and the voraciousness of free-market ethics.

‘Greed is good’, said the Daily Telegraph in October 2006. ‘Without the City’s enterprise, ambition and, yes, greed, the country would be considerably worse off’, its editorial declared. Today, too late, we have learned that such crudity does not serve.

Now, Britain has passed out of the hands — one hopes forever — of ‘New Labour’, the party’s grand Nonconformist moral inheritance ravaged by Blairism and Mandelsonisation. But what is the overarching ‘New Conservative’ project? Mr Cameron has declared it to be the creation of a ‘big society with big citizens’. There has been no idea so vacuous in the history of political thought. It cannot check the strides of those heading for the doors.

Yet is it not ‘treason’, as vox pop sometimes asserts, to leave this unholy mess behind? It might be considered so, if there had remained a nation towards which to feel patriotic. It might be treason to leave if there was a real nation to betray. In the era of the ‘global market’, with its flux of capital, goods and labour, there isn’t. And most, whether they are staying, leaving, or merely thinking of going, know it. British citizenship signifies less today than at any time in its history.

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Comments Post comment

Kevan

July 27th, 2010 8:31pm Report this comment

Sorry David, but you are so wide of the mark.

The UK is currently more exciting than its ever been, despite its current, temporary, financial troubles.

It enjoys the most multi cultural community in the entire world, and, contrary to the defeatist's belief, this community is poised to fly.

I love living in my country (the UK) and intend to be a part of its great sucess story for the rest of my life.

We're setting the foundations, in the UK, for the most amazing adventure we've experienced so far, in the whole of history.

Let those sad individuals who aren't up to the job leave, let them run away, say I, we're better of without their type.

Billy the Kidder

August 8th, 2010 5:27am Report this comment

Kevan, I suspect you are wide of the mark.
Social decay is now the hallmark of British cities. Schools are a mess (thanks to socialists and hippie types), streets are unsafe (thanks to soclialists and their legal friends). There is highly restricted freedom of speech (thanks to.. oh you get it) such that you can't question multi-culti without howls of racism and a possible visit from the local bobby.

The Tories are better than Labor but need to shift back to conservative proper, not conservative "lite". Until then, Britain cannot recover. No one has the balls to confront the herd of elephants in the room because of political correctness.

Patriot

November 14th, 2010 10:27am Report this comment

Kevan, your living with the fairies in respect of your comments - you really have no clue!
Billy the Kidder I second what you say and unfortunately without the charasmatic leadership and integrity that this country so desperately needs it is going to continue to sink! Shame on our so called leaders! I'm off to Oz with my family as soon as we sell our house - at a loss I might add!!!

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