EDITORIAL: No violins for Boris - let's hope for better
The biggest surprise was that Johnson's reign lasted for so long.
“All political lives, unless they are cut off in midstream at a happy juncture, end in failure, because that is the nature of politics and of human affairs.”
If ever a quote seemed appropriate to define the political career of UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, it is the one above from Enoch Powell.
Perhaps the biggest surprise though is that Johnson’s reign lasted so long in the first place.
Certainly, he has been no friend to Ireland and his buffoonery and downright idiocy has led to the disintegration of relations at social and political levels between the countries. It is unforgivable that his antics should have placed more than a question mark over the Good Friday Agreement - an agreement which was so hard to establish in the first place and which has required constant attention ever since it was signed, to keep the spirit of it alive.
It was particularly galling to see Johnson travelling to the Ukraine in the hope of promoting peace and offering support to the oppressed, while at the same time threatening to undermine those very same graces in his own neighbourhood.
Johnson managed to pull the wool over the eyes of the UK electorate with empty promises which have backfired spectacularly. However, it’s rather curious to see that his demise has come as a result of his lack of action following the antics of his colleagues and his acceptance of same, rather than for his failed political manifestos. It seems that there was a tolerance of sleaze, blatant disregard for the law; contempt for the general public; and well general buffoonery. Well, it eventually caught up with him, and not before time.
Perhaps the only saving grace for this slovenly icon of arrogance and contempt is that he was not quite as flawed as Trump!!
The UK is at an impasse, and while many might claim that it has nothing to do with us at this side of the pond, it most certainly does. Our nearest neighbour and biggest trading partner - we await with great interest to see who will be the next holder of office.