American Takes On British Parliament
Heather Brooke, a Pennsylvanian born reporter, took on British Parliament and seems to have been the driving force behind the recent revelations in regard to British Parliament members' abuse of power.
Three points that I would like to make:
1. It is in the public's best interest to have easy access to information when it comes to keeping an eye on elected leaders' behavior in office.
2. Dishonest people will adjust their behavior if they know that the things they choose to do will come to light.
3. Apathy is a freedom killer.
I realize that MP's are entitled to a certain amount of expenditure as a part of their benefits for serving - the important piece of this is: how they spend that money IS important to the people who have put them into office, and abuse of that privilege is probable if their spending is not a matter of public record.
I also have a question:
Is apathy toward government excess a common trait amongst our British friends? I only ask because this quote from the article caught my eye. The young lady, Brooke, was heard to say, "I think there's a culture of deference here, where the public believe that people who are in power — the great and the good — still know what's best for everyone."
This surprises me if true, and underlines a large difference between American values and British values. Americans are raised with the belief that our elected leaders are probably scum and one must constantly keep an eye on them. This would include vociferously standing up to the arrogance of those in office - and also NOT judging a person based on what 'class' they may belong to. We really are not impressed by a person's pedigree - beyond that it can be an interesting conversation to see how many nationalities are scattered in our various backgrounds.
Apathy, a condition found in abundance on both sides of the pond, will only encourage the unrestrained growth of corrupted government.
Monica
Cross posted at A Tangled Web.
Link
Three points that I would like to make:
1. It is in the public's best interest to have easy access to information when it comes to keeping an eye on elected leaders' behavior in office.
2. Dishonest people will adjust their behavior if they know that the things they choose to do will come to light.
3. Apathy is a freedom killer.
I realize that MP's are entitled to a certain amount of expenditure as a part of their benefits for serving - the important piece of this is: how they spend that money IS important to the people who have put them into office, and abuse of that privilege is probable if their spending is not a matter of public record.
I also have a question:
Is apathy toward government excess a common trait amongst our British friends? I only ask because this quote from the article caught my eye. The young lady, Brooke, was heard to say, "I think there's a culture of deference here, where the public believe that people who are in power — the great and the good — still know what's best for everyone."
This surprises me if true, and underlines a large difference between American values and British values. Americans are raised with the belief that our elected leaders are probably scum and one must constantly keep an eye on them. This would include vociferously standing up to the arrogance of those in office - and also NOT judging a person based on what 'class' they may belong to. We really are not impressed by a person's pedigree - beyond that it can be an interesting conversation to see how many nationalities are scattered in our various backgrounds.
Apathy, a condition found in abundance on both sides of the pond, will only encourage the unrestrained growth of corrupted government.
Monica
Cross posted at A Tangled Web.
posted by Grizzly Mama | 15:54
3 Comments:
I agree, Rev. People seem to let stuff slide as long as it doesn't affect them too much. Then - things have to get real bad before they do anything about it. I think that things will get much worse before they get better and things won't get better without a painful episode or two.
More reason we cant have an unchecked political party in this country if you ask me--too many people here in the U.S. just let things slide as it is. Hopefully the Tea Party movement will continue to get more people to vote.
I hope so, Mr GG. People are getting pissed off - which is good!
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