One attribute shared by many of those vying to become the next leader of the Conservative Party, and thereby Prime Minister, is that they are utterly devoid of trustworthiness. One look at Dominic “cash-flow problem” Raab, Sajid Javid, London’s formerly very occasional Mayor Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson, Jeremy Hunt (the former Culture Secretary) and Matt “press stooge” Hancock is all you need.
The impression of serial villainy is inescapable. In the case of one allegedly leading candidate, it has extended to a vomit-inducing confession before the Daily Mail’s deputy editor Simon Walters. Michael “Oiky” Gove has clearly had words with Mrs Gove, otherwise known as Sarah “Vain” Vine, who has in turn bent the ear of Geordie Greig in a way that she might not have managed with the legendarily foul mouthed Paul Dacre.
This has resulted in the front page splash “GOVE: MY COCAINE CONFESSION … Leading PM contender: ‘I took drug on several social occasions. I deeply regret it”. And although the Mail has the exclusive, the story has also made the front page of the Murdoch Sun (wonder who tipped them off, eh, Mike?) which tells readers “Top Tory Bombshell … GOVE: I TOOK COKE … Wannabe PM confesses … Used drug ‘several times’”.
And while some readers may see this as an honest confession, many will smell the rank whiff of bullshit. Because Gove is full of it. He is only confessing because of two impending events: one is the Tory leadership contest, and the other is the certainty that his past use of cocaine was gong to be exposed in a manner over which he had no control.
As the Guardian has noted, “The environment secretary’s declaration comes ahead of the publication of a book about him by the journalist Owen Bennett titled Michael Gove: A Man in a Hurry. According to the book, he admitted to having used cocaine to his advisers during the 2016 Tory leadership contest … An inside source reportedly said Gove replied: ‘Yes, cocaine,’ when he was asked if he had ever taken drugs”.
The article adds “The former news editor at the Times was never asked the question publicly after May beat him in the second ballot of the race … ‘Gove was instructed not to give that answer in public, and told to fall back on the words David Cameron had used when he was running for leader, namely that politicians are entitled to a private life before entering politics,’ the book claimed”. So he intended to bluff his way out of it.
All that Gove’s confession tells us is that the Tory leadership contest is going to be a very dirty contest indeed. It is totally unconvincing: we know that those who work at the Murdoch titles include significant numbers of Charlie’s pals, and it is widely suspected that many MPs, and indeed Tory MPs, are habitual cocaine users. The idea that “Oiky” suddenly stopped using the stuff is not even slightly credible.
Did he suddenly change his social circle completely, avoiding at a stroke all those gatherings where things went better with Coke? And if he took it regularly when a “Young journalist”, why the pretence that he now “deeply regrets” it all?
And to think our free and fearless press got so worked up over Pa Broon allegedly smashing his Nokia. But then, Gove is one of their own. Can you smell hypocrisy?
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14 comments:
You can smell the desperation can't you? Rory Stewart had opium, Jeremy Hunt a cannabis lassi, Gove coke...it's what all the cool kids are doing...admitting to a drug past *sighs*
How come they all deeply regret it? It'd be more honest if one of them said they did drugs to get off their tits and bloody loved it.
Does use of "it" qualify him to be a Tory Chanceller of the Exchequer if he fails to make it to top spot of the Illegality Cool Chart?
If you wanna be PM, you've gotta take'm Cocaine
If you wanna play cool, make 'em all drool, Cocaine
They all lie, they all lie, they all lie
Cocaine
(h/t Eric Clapton)
At least it would explain his range of bizarre facial expressions: one part Pob to two parts Prince Edmund Blackadder.
So the current tory MP's took hard drugs and were, in pleb parlance, smack heads... and the press fronts it as "meh, these things happen, youthful indiscretion". Diane Abbott drinks a single can of Gin and Tonic and the press screams as if she had murdered someone. I wonder what it is about a black woman that makes the press lose its shit in comparison to a bunch of posh white smack heads?
@5
Mojito. Ms Abbott was drinking a can of M&S Mojito.
And isn't "Smack" heroin?
Yes, but we used to call anyone who took any kind of drugs (bar weed) or drank white lighting in the park smack-heads even if it wasn't technically correct.
Weird.....
Apparently sales of cocaine have completely tanked over the last few days. My local dealer says he's going to have go and sign-on if this keeps up.
Christ, with those nostrils I'd be pissed off he was hoovering up my share
The entire political and media elite have been corrupted by drug use for years. Politicians of all colours have been and are at it. The police and courts long ago lost the will to fight it because they too have been corrupted by drug use. Our streets are awash with drugs and marijuana is commonly smelt in public places without a plod to be seen.
Our modern masters don’t want any fuss about drugs. If the law was to be enforced not just Cabinet Ministers, Privy Counsellors and MPs, but police chiefs, judges, vicars, heads of schools, University professors, senior civil servants, newspaper editors, BBC executives, CEOs, minor royalty etc would find themselves in choky. We can't have that, so to fair to us plebs just let everyone off, unless it suits us if a political point has to be made.
And when politicians or police chiefs talk about drugs they simply lie. They talk of prohibition then claim that the existing laws when enforced are ruining young lives by "criminalising" users. But it is the drugs that are ruining young lives, the drugs they allow to suit their needs and those like them. Never mind the lives ruined elsewhere by this trade they allow and sustain. Drug corruption is being enforced by fear. These elite drug users, who reckon it is okay because they can handle it, know that amongst them there are many witnesses to their open criminal behaviour and could be used against them. Therefore, rather like car drivers used to get away with murder on the grounds of 'there go I', they would rather see drug laws weakened, damaged or not applied than act against drug use, despite the damage it is reeking in society. And isn't it about time records were kept about criminals who are also drug users to show this clearly?
Amongst the elite Gove will get away with his confession of drug use, but out amongst the grass roots where it's a different story. Most ordinary people are not drug users, I have not taken tea for sometime and an odd single malt and a cigar is not akin to drug use; I have hurt no-one in the process.
I see the Saj is on the money about the hypocrisy of middle class drug use, shame that his tinge means him not having a chance to be PM even though he is one of the few politicians that speaks the truth about drugs and about islam, what an irony.
Opium is now the religion of the people.
Time to bring in drug testing for those white collared folk in spheres of authority and not just for those blue collared ones in safety critical work.
Though personally the Phillipines solution would bring quicker and more effective results.
I suspect many more lives have been lost or damaged by the gang culture associated with the drug business than by the drugs themselves. The damage caused by alcohol and tobacco probably outweighs all that even so, and our addiction to the internal combustion engine even more. Politics and politicians are totally irrational when considering issues like risk.
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