Stop Blaming The Politicians - they are the symptom, not the disease.

With 'villains' like Donald Trump and Boris Johnson, it's easy to see why we believe they are the problem. However, a different framing should allow us to acknowledge that they are brilliant opportunists. In May 2021, Dominic Cummings (another villain for many, but an introspective one) said,

“Any system that leaves people with the choice between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn is, obviously, a system that's gone extremely badly wrong”.

He also described it as “completely crackers” that someone like him—and Boris Johnson—could have held such senior positions in government, suggesting deep flaws in the political system.

In America, the tribal divisions that Trump has exploited so successfully are at the root of the problem, not Trump himself. If we allow political systems like these to continue, why would we not get the politicians we deserve? They are simply behaving completely rationally and 'playing the game' to the best of their ability.

People will argue that our system in the UK (as in the US) used to work, so it can't be the system; it must be the people, and we will get better leaders after the next election. If contemplating Nigel Farage running the country does not give you pause .... The argument might be tenable if most people today behaved in the way they did decades ago, if the character traits of service, restraint and moral courage were as prevalent today as they were in years gone by. But societies evolve, and now, being Prime Minister appears to be a ticket to a well-paid speaking career, or as paid advocates for institutions and governments whose values we do not share. We need to evolve our politics to recognise who we are today, not who we were in 1970.

It's no use just complaining; we need practical solutions. The problem is, the solution requires us to change a system that has been in place for centuries, and vested interests in our current political ecosystem will resist change. I believe there are practical solutions available to us, and with care and over a generation, we could shift to a political system that deals effectively with the growing slew of problems facing us today. But before we can move in that direction, we need to acknowledge where the problem lies, and as odious as some of our politicians are, they are the symptom, not the disease.