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To The PM’s aura engineers,

5 janvier 2019, 09:40

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After all the PM’s good wishes, it would be churlish of Mount Olympos not to reciprocate. However, wishes won’t be much use if you promote the discredited strategies of yesteryear. We’ve therefore decided to offer a few thoughts on how to handle the battle for Government House. It may be a somewhat lesser affair than the Trojan War but there’ll probably be plenty of Trojan horses. There are interesting times ahead – and not just because Chinese New Year is approaching. Sadly, most of you seem to have learnt nothing from recent history, let alone Ancient Greece. What Lepep want is a trustworthy and thoughtful leader, not a reality show. 

MBC propaganda doesn’t work and the result of appointing cronies is plain for all to see. It might also be wise to avoid overplaying the India card as it could be seen as a ploy to appeal to a section of society, most of which is more concerned with not being dominated rather than dominating others – whatever roder bout and obscure sectarian lobbies say. Otherwise, you’ll have to arrange visits to France, Madagascar, Mozambique and Palestine during the year, to ensure everyone feels loved. For the moment, only the Disunited Kingdom’s already in the diary…

Admittedly, the Donald succeeded by playing to deep-rooted racial prejudices and xenophobia, leading to a deeply divided society. It’s not a path we recommend – nor that of the self-proclaimed rassembleur, who had the ability to say one thing and do its opposite without batting an eyelid. How much he and the Lady in Red assembled remains undetermined. With none of the Opposition parties likely to offer much new, your protégé has some good tales to tell, although making him deliver a New Year party message standing at a lectern hasn’t helped your cause, nor has the MBC’s repetitive coverage.

You seem a trifle over-influenced by the American battle cry of the stupid economy. While everyone likes to have a good helping of ambrosia, it’s not all there is to life. The Nymphs aren’t the only ones fed up with seeing the countryside concreted over and blocks of flats appear in the middle of their villages. Ignoring how the beaches are becoming swamped with hotels is equally unwise as Lepep love nothing more than days at the seaside. 

In ancient times, there was little of the greed that plagues modern societies, which today’s populists meet with free give-aways. It’s how modern governments thrive – until their economies collapse through excessive public debt. When that goes hand-inhand with venality, the result is Modern Greece. Most embarrassing – but others may soon follow…

Meanwhile, there are matters other than the economy and ethnic origins that can affect voting intentions. It was popular disdain for corrupt politicians and leaders at all levels of society, and the ever-mounting violence linked to street crime and the drug trade, that led to Brazil voting in a very right-wing president, not a happy precedent.

There’s also a general disdain for the forces of law and order, too many of whose members are criminal underperformers. Hawkers seem as immune as ever from prosecution and as for those importing illegal fireworks, dumping old fridges by the side of the road or blocking drains, there are lots of fine words and no arrests. C’est pas sérieux. There’ll always be crooks who feel aggrieved but it’s a pretty desperate state of affairs when their votes outweigh the common good. Mind you, it does need people with strong rhetorical skills to explain tough government action. They’ll be difficult to find anywhere, and certainly not amongst image builders sitting round a kitchen table studying last century’s battle plans.