I thank Dr Alf for reblogging the Economist article entitled British politics: Machiavelli’s memorandum to Cameron, and concluding with the open question:

Do you think that David Cameron has the strength of character and the stomach to deploy Machiavelli‘s black art?

Dr Alf’s question about David Cameron goes to the heart of our present problem which is vacuous and muddle headed leadership.

Machiavelli is still much maligned and misunderstood by those who imagine that the world is as they imagine it to be rather than the way it is.

He wrote the Prince with that in mind but still people are shocked by his directness and the truths they are unable to handle.

Politicians like David Cameron try to tap into that psychology by using NLP and rhetoric with a view to tricking people into believing he is doing a great job.

He does this as a substitute for delivery and then he pretends to be concerned about issues which he says are important, like Gay Marriage and foreign aid whilst ignoring employment,exports,enterprise creation and making people face up to difficult truths about defense, food security, energy security and our place in the world.

A Machiavelli would look at our bloated public sector and decide “Do your worst”, guided by the principle that”There is nothing so difficult as bringing about a new order of things”.

He would then act ruthlessly to cull all but 15,000 civil servants, reduce councils to just 15 unitary authorities, outsource all the functions of Districts and Boroughs to credible providers, merge the NHS and Adult Social Care budgets, reform our NHS, reduce police and fire commands to 15 for the entire country, give the Scots and Alex Salmond an ultimatum and eliminate the Barnett Formula.

David Cameron in contrast has done and will do none of these things and surrounds himself with mostly equally useless and out of touch people who with few exceptions also do nothing.

When the medical profession and NHS managers opposed the Lansley reforms, Cameron said “We have to listen to the medical profession” and threw his minister to the wolves.

Instead of preparing to win the next election, he is already acknowledging defeat by contemplating yet another Coalition.

On almost any issue, you care to name, he is cowardly, indecisive and essentially useless and the quicker he goes the better.

When he passes from this life who is going to remember him?

Answer

Hardly anyone!

Who remembers Machiavelli and his writings 600 years after his death?

Almost everyone in the world who can read!

John Gelmini

Related articles

• British politics: Machiavelli’s memorandum to Cameron| The Economist (dralfoldman.com)
• UK Healthcare Reform: 25 Proposals Towards Real Effectiveness – John Gelmini (dralfoldman.com)
• Some thoughts on the UK, Empire and geopolitical reality – John Gelmini (dralfoldman.com)
• David Cameron calls Labour’s tax policy ‘nuts’ – The Guardian (vote-pedia.com)
• If Cameron is ousted as PM, it will be by his own hand – Lord Tebbit – Telegraph Blogs (dralfoldman.com)
• Stewart Patrick on Machiavelli (globaldiplomacy.wordpress.com)
• Machiavelli: Still Shocking after Five Centuries (ivoter.com)
• Salmond accused of ‘silly posturing’ over demands for TV debate with David Cameron (telegraph.co.uk)
• A Hard Look at Jeremy Heywood Cabinet Secretary Downing Street – John Gelmini (dralfoldman.com)
• NHS: Top doctor accuses ‘Vampire’ David Cameron of sucking the lifeblood out of service (mirror.co.uk)