Polly Toynbee’s fortunate deaths
Can I just say again how bloody horrible it is when pampered members of our so-called editorial elite revel in the fact that Alan Johnson’s parents died when he was a kid?
Last time it was the awful John Rentoul saying Johnson’s childhood loss gave the Secretary for Health ‘a biography to die for’. Now it’s the Guardian’s Polly Toynbee licking her chops over the graves:
Orphan boy, genial postman, self-made, clever but modest, he has the grace and charm to match his perfect backstory.
You hear that? A perfect backstory. Thank Christ for the sacrifices all the Johnsons made, eh Polly? They’ve given you a new hero to credulously rally around now Gordon’s let you down. Now go and count your money.
Rentoul and Toynbee blithely talk about this apparent determinism in Johnson’s upbringing (though not the pain, you’ll notice) like its some kind of weirdly prosaic remake of The Boys from Brazil. It makes me want to puke.
Update: And you know, Johnson hasn’t been a postman for over 20 years. Since then he’s been a machine politician who’s slavishly voted for war, ID cards, internment and nuclear weapons. How this makes him the working class hero of popular wishful legend is anyone’s guess.
Posted on May 12th, 2009 at 9:11am under Culture, media and sport, New Labour
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• 3 Comments |
As one of the comments says:
It was David Milliband last time. Then you returned to Brown, oh how we chuckled. As for Alan Johnson:
# Voted strongly for introducing ID cards.
# Voted very strongly for introducing foundation hospitals.
# Voted strongly for introducing student top-up fees.
# Voted very strongly for Labour’s anti-terrorism laws.
# Voted very strongly for the Iraq war.
# Voted very strongly against an investigation into the Iraq war.
# Voted very strongly for replacing Trident.
…no thanks.
But Justin, think of the headlines: ‘Labour Goes Postal’…
Indeed, orphan and postie… Pulls at ya heartstrings (or is that just indigestion??!!) Good wholesome ‘ard workin’ class chap. So wot he supported the abolition of Clause IV and he is a spineless NL war-wongering apparatchik… He’s a workin’ class fighter like his fellow cabinet colleague Hazel Blears. Champion…
Alan Johnson: Oliver Twist meets Postman Pat!!