I know that one's supposed to decry the use of blind quotes from anonymous sources. But they have their uses you know. Take, for instance, this delicious prediction from a "Downing Street advisor" analysing the likely course of Gordon Brown's ministry:
"I actually think he'll go mad, he'll be the first prime minister to be carried out of No 10 by the men in white coats."
That's just a marvellously spiteful and utterly gratuitous verdict, delivered, presumably, by one Blairite advisor whose had enough of the Chancellor's frequent tantrums.
Then there's the "former Cabinet minister" who observes that:
"Gordon's idea of a debate is to talk to a mirror."
Yes, yes, this is all taken from an entertaining piece in the Telegraph, a paper which holds no brief for Iron Broon. And yes, you may say that it's not terribly high-minded or complain that this sort of anonymous sniping and back-biting does little to elevate politics or advance the public interest. (Except in as much as it shows us how much the Blairites and Brownies hate one another.) But come off it. Politics should be entertaining; it should involve intrigue and drama and treachery. It should, in other words, be rather like going to the theatre. The psychological quirks - or, if you prefer, flaws - ought to exercise the press.
PS: I confess I also enjoyed this aside:
Even Mr Brown's closest friends admit he has a furious temper. "He will shout and scream - but after a few days he calms down," says one. His emails are written in angry capital letters and are full of spelling mistakes as he bashes the keyboard with two nail-bitten fingers.
"Bashes" and the specificity of "two nail-bitten fingers" are what makes it work, of course.
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