Charles Clarke - Text: Things Are Dire, Subtext: Things Are So Dire I’ll Lose My Job
Charles Clarke has taken to the New Statesman in order to…Well, its not clear exactly. The content is muddled and unclear in intent. Knowing Clarke my imagining was that it might live up to the hype which The Guardian dutifully gave it. In reality it seems not to be about the future of Labour, but rather an attempt at apologism for Blairitism. He segues between arguing that we shouldn’t be blathering on about the past (Blair), blathering on about the past (Blair), pinning down precisely what he thinks the term means and pretending that he thinks the term is meaningless.
There are some snipes at Gordon Brown though, described as, in reference to Blair, “His Chancellor” and blamed for Britain not joining with the Euro. There is also a spot of self-analysis that is amusing when the context is considered:
The rise of terrorist atrocities, including London in 2005, identified Tony Blair with tough efforts to strengthen security, sometimes at a perceived cost to liberty.
“Perceived”, yes. Because house arrest does not constitute a true breach of liberty, its just that people might see it that way. I would suggest that Taking Liberties be viewed by anyone fooled even for a moment that Clarke is some form of cuddly teddly bear. The scenes with the fellow locked inside his house and restricted to an entirely arbitary section of his surroundings especially.
But if there is some actual point to the article its that we all have to stop being mean to the Blairites which ruined the party. Otherwise Labour will face oblivion. One can not help but think that perhaps Clarke’s position on his party’s future is inspired by his own position. Come the next election is seems increasingly unlikely that Clarke will be unseated by no other than a Green Party candidate. Yes, the unreconstructed leftist Greens with their plans to nationalise and set up people’s banks.
So the notion of this unrepentant rightist tossing in his hat to any forthcoming leadership race, or even triggering one, is surely one which can only be met with wry amusement. Brown’s position does seem dire but he, at least, looks set to retain his seat. I suppose in this respect, though, he is not representative of the average Labour MP, and thus Clarke may have the edge within the PLP purely on grounds of empathy.
Clarke describes the suggestion that “Labour under Blair became a party of the centre right” is “deceitful nonsense”. It seems only fitting that he, as the man who served as Blunkett’s follow-through and actually appeared to have done his (futile) best to outdo the raging reactionary adulterer that he should lose his seat to some genuine socialists. This article demonstrates exactly why he deserves what is (hopefully) coming to him.
Posted in: Bullshit, Greens, The New New Labour Project
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