Samuel Johnson once said that "patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel." In modern Britain, where patriotism has ceased to have any real meaning, it now seems that religion is taking its place as David Cameron has called for a return to Christian values to cure the country's "moral collapse." We asked our philosophy correspondent for his view; "It makes you laugh when a Tory starts talking in terms of morality - as if they have any concept of such a thing. Essentially he's asking us all to find inspiration in an irrational belief system that had its origins in the Bronze Age and that led to one of the longest periods of oppression in the history of the world. No wonder he wants to get back to it - it has all the ingredients the Tories love; outmoded tradition, unthinking obedience and irrational thought. No doubt he sees God as a sort of banking executive who, like them, "works in wondrous ways" and whose ultimate aim "passeth all understanding." All we have to do is worship from afar and accept what's handed to us."
No comments:
Post a Comment