Let’s put democracy on hold for a while

Hope Change has just returned from a trip to see activist friends in Washington. Flush with the enthusiasm generated by the passing of Obama’s health care legislation, she is aghast to discover the results of last week’s European Council.

“And what do I find when I get back? Europe can’t even agree on a target for reducing poverty!” A representative of social justice NGO Solidar at the next table is equally disgusted at the attitude towards Greece. “We’re very disappointed by this lack of solidarity from Germany. It’s endangering the European social model”.

“This is the problem,” says Hope, “Just as Americans are waking up to how important it is to make sure everyone has the right to healthcare, in Europe we seem to be forgetting that all people are entitled to a decent life. We know now it isn’t enough to tax the rich: they just leave anyway. We need to force the middle classes to pay.”

Referring to James Lovelock’s recent interview in the Guardian, she goes on: “If people are too stupid to elect leaders that will really do something about these social issues, then that’s another reason to do what James said is needed to tackle climate change. Let’s put democracy on hold for a while!”