Posted on 05/25/2009 2:19:26 AM PDT by Scanian
'DEMOCRACY," said Winston Churchill, "is the worst form of government except for all those others that have been tried from time to time." Well, the Mother of Parliaments in London -- where Churchill experienced historic victories and defeats -- is testing his theory to the limits.
Britain's biggest-ever political scandal began when The Daily Telegraph acquired a disk listing the expense-allowance claims of all "honorable members" (as they used to be called) of Parliament.
Details of what every MP had spent and claimed back from the taxpayer have been released day by day over the last two weeks -- and they are far more explosive than the gunpowder Guy Fawkes smuggled into the cellars under Parliament in 1605. In fact, they may cause something of a revolution in the way Parliament is run.
Sometimes, the sums were large, the benefits luxurious. A government minister, one of the richest men in the House of Commons, claimed $150,000 from the taxpayer to finance the mortgage on a "second home." (He already had seven.) A leading Tory repaired the moat around his stately home on expenses.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
at least they’ve been catching them, over there though. I think there would be a spate of journalist suicides before similar details came out in America
Just goes to show, where money is concerned there are no “gentlemen”.
This is a very curious episode. Every single shred of evidence lies with the Telegraph (British daily)...and they have parceled this up into bite-sized portions to dump on a daily basis. So you can’t be sure when this might end or even if they’ve peaked out on the stories.
I suspect that within two weeks...Gordon Brown will find several of his major players who have resigned from the party, thus forcing elections by August. Because the news efforts are aimed at all of the parties...there just might be a massive turn-over, with no real ability of the media to predict any outcome.
Sure there are.
Just not where money and politicians come together.
I’d surely like to see a similar expose of the congresscritter whores on this side of the Atlantic.
Of course, a journalist would actually have to do some work to get the goods instead of just re-phrasing the latest talking points fax from the DNC.
bad attempt to link corruption to democracy. As if corruption dont occur in any other systems
* - qualified in the Tim Geither/Tom Daschle/Hilda Solis/Nancy Killefer means of being qualified
government=corruption
And you wonder why people run for political office. It’s always about the money.
Reading this now as dawn breaks on Geo. Washington’s Little Hunting Creek.
“Prime Minister Gordon Brown claimed $8,000 to pay for his brother to clean his London apartment. My favorite example, though, is the case of Sinn Fein MPs from Northern Ireland who claimed about $750,000 in expenses to attend a Parliament that they refuse to attend on principle.”
If they were truly sincere in wanting to do good, & if it wasn’t about “the money,” they’d join the Peace Corp or enter a religious order of some denomination.
It’s the money & the power.
If the main party leaders, Labor's Brown and the Conservative Party's David Cameron, don't respond to this bitter public mood by forcing many resignations, the voters will either vote for other parties or for independent "reformers" -- or not vote at all. So the party leaders will respond.
A few powerless minor-party members, a few equally powerless reformers (both groups soon to be corrupted), the principled voters staying home... where's the problem for "party leaders" in that?
Aye, they were repatriating money stolen from the Ol' Sod, dinna know, laddy?
FINALLY, this story has broken into the US Drive-By Media.
I wouldn't have a problem with that.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/5379843/MPs-expenses-Alistair-Darlings-claim-for-help-with-his-tax-return.html
MPs’ expenses: Alistair Darling’s claim for help with his tax return
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/5380121/MPs-expenses-Ministers-caught-claiming-for-party-political-propaganda.html
MPs’ expenses: Ministers caught claiming for party political propaganda
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/5380122/MPs-expenses-Cabinet-members-spent-hundreds-on-adverts-to-win-support-of-sports-fans.html
MPs’ expenses: Cabinet members spent hundreds on adverts to win support of sports fans
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/5380748/MPs-expenses-Alan-Johnson-and-Ed-Miliband-heap-more-pressure-on-Gordon-Brown.html
MP’s expenses: Alan Johnson and Ed Miliband heap more pressure on Gordon Brown
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/
MPs’ expenses
“dump on a daily basis”
Why would this be a bad thing. It gives every scumbag their own 15 minutes of fame so that the public can come to know them without being “hidden” amongst a story on 30 others that day. The difference being between Brits and Americans is that people like rangel and frank have the full support of the media and the dimwits that vote for these criminals.
It would be the few good ones though..
If the main party leaders, Labor's Brown and the Conservative Party's David Cameron, don't respond to this bitter public mood by forcing many resignations, the voters will either vote for other parties or for independent "reformers" -- or not vote at all. So the party leaders will respond.The result will be parties with many new MPs -- almost new parties, in fact -- committed to reforming not only Parliament but also the wider political system. In the least worst system of government, scandal equals reform.
Sounds like the House Banking scandal and the House Post Office scandal of '94, on steroids.Just think of it as term limits . . .
Doubtful in this case. In most of the instances reported, the sums involved are ludicrously trivial - and it needs to be remembered that an MP's salary is lower than that of their equivalents in most Weastern legislatures. Few if any people go into Parliament with a main aim to make money. Power, however...that's a different matter. The more serious failing of MPs is that they allowed such a ludicrously lax system to continue.
Doubtful in this case. In most of the instances reported, the sums involved are ludicrously trivial - and it needs to be remembered that an MP's salary is lower than that of their equivalents in most Weastern legislatures. Few if any people go into Parliament with a main aim to make money. Power, however...that's a different matter. The more serious failing of MPs is that they allowed such a ludicrously lax system to continue.
Apologies for double post
Bobby Sands took it to the wall so Mr Adams can live large?
Think how many suicide bombers it took to keep Arafat in Hennessey and little boys.
“Liberty cannot be preserved without a general knowledge among the people, who have...a right, an indisputable, unalienable, indefeasible, divine right to that most dreaded and envied kind of knowledge, I mean the characters and conduct of their rulers.”
“I believe that all government is evil, and that trying to improve it is largely a waste of time.”
H. L. Mencken
I direct you to one item in particular: "Reconnoitre Staten Island: $10,000." GW was working for "expenses only" during the Revolution. Worked out to +-$400,000.
Similar details “have” come out in the U.S.
Look at Charlie “Rent Control” Rangel. Nothing happened!!
Mencken was 100% right about that. We should be imposing regulations on politicians, not the other way around. The pols have lost their fear of us because they can see the apathy.
I’ll accept that correction :)
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