Many statesmen and stateswomen are defined as much by how
they are perceived and portrayed as they are by what they say. Moreover the
problem with politics, more or less the world over, is that it tends to be very
tribal and governed by straw men mentality. That is to say, in isolation, if
one broadcasts an agreement with a particular remark made by a well-known
politician of the day, one can expect to be labelled with everything that
politician stands for.
Further, opinions can, and often are, extrapolated by the
recipient to mean something quite different from their basic meaning. For
example, Euroscepticism (which is criticism of the European Union) is taken to
be anti-European, and even racist (neither of which is true). This is the straw
man argument – inferring or exaggerating a point of view to something which it
is not. Benn was a Eurosceptic, but, maybe because he was part of the Labour
movement and identified with the Left, he was, albeit quite rightly, never
accused of being anything more than that.
Notwithstanding the left-wing pigeon-hole that received opinion
would place him in, Benn held a number of views which fit quite comfortably in
today’s fast-emerging Libertarian movement. Politics would be (and I think is gradually
becoming) much more engaging and far less intellectually lazy if we recognise
that those who have the courage to challenge the status quo, defy the
prevailing orthodoxy, and refuse to be constrained by existing paradigms, may
not curry 100% with our own opinion, or existing groupthink, but inspire us to
think for ourselves and hold those that govern us to account more often and
robustly.
Tony Benn was, like other politicians I admire, outspoken
and a ‘convictionist’. For that reason alone, I have always held him in esteem,
but, I’m happy to say there are numerous views and sentiments he held with which I agree,
which are neatly articulated in his own following quotes:
“It is no good
talking about being a good European. We are all good Europeans; that is a
matter of geography and not a matter of sentiment. Are the arrangements under
which we are governed such that we have broken the link between the electorate
and the laws under which they are governed?”
“If one meets a
powerful person--Adolf Hitler, Joe Stalin or Bill Gates--ask them five
questions: "What power have you got? Where did you get it from? In whose
interests do you exercise it? To whom are you accountable? And how can we get
rid of you?" If you cannot get rid of the people who govern you, you do
not live in a democratic system.”
“I think there
are two ways in which people are controlled. First of all frighten people and
secondly, demoralize them.”
“First they
ignore you, then they say you're mad, then dangerous, then there's a pause and
then you can't find anyone who disagrees with you.”
“[Edward Heath],
who sold out Britain's interests to the Common Market and gave our sovereignty
away without our consent—with support of Mr Thorpe and the Liberals—is not
entitled to wave the Union Jack to get himself out of the mess.”
“The key to any
progress is to ask the question why? All the time. Why is that child poor? Why
was there a war? Why was he killed? Why is he in power? And of course questions
can get you into a lot of trouble, because society is trained by those who run
it, to accept what goes on. Without questions we won't make any progress at
all.”
