18. POLITICS
'A WISE MAN KNOWS AN IGNORANT PERSON BECAUSE HE HAS BEEN IGNORANT HIMSELF. THE IGNORANT MAN CAN NOT RECOGNISE THE WISE MAN BECAUSE HE HAS NEVER BEEN WISE'.
The time honoured rule is never discuss religion, sex or politics and probably, such reasoning is sound advice. The subjects are so wide, varied, controversial and encompass so many people in so many ways that varying views can create controversy with the minimum of effort. Not one person should embark upon a journey of the un-know unless the purpose is to promote and stimulate a little, light entertainment. Nevertheless, when motorist and driving a motor car are concerned, the people involved and the activates pertaining there-to, the subjects become inter-twined: details become concentrated and, until the picture can be viewed as a whole, it is important to see how one party inter-acts with another party and examine what responsibilities each person has - one to the other.
Perhaps it is a wonder, in itself, that the 'red flag' legislation was abolished in 1896.
If successive governments consider it necessary to continually constrain the activities of the motor car, what better legislation than governing all cars to a maximum speed equivalent to that of second gear only? The inference continually demonstrates a thinking that 'if it moves trip it, if it stops - fine it'. What the populous should be doing is ensuring that Britain leads the world with our ideas and not absorb all the bad legislation from over seas, and not have 'directives' thrust upon us by the European Community.
Party politics has little chance of achieving more than 5% efficiency, similar to the steam engine, because it is not difficult for the six hundred members of parliament to become mis-fits, squabbling over who sits where; children of three years old do this charade with assistance of music.
A topic to exercise the mind grows from the fact that, at the time of writing, there are 36.349.493 licensed holders using our roads. All these people have a common interest - independence. In reality, there are sufficient motorists to vote any political party in or out of a job.
What a job they do, allowing a car to be burgled every thirteen seconds!
'We are the good people of England and we have not yet spoken'.