CALLUM MCCAIG - A WORTHY EXCEPTION TO THE PRESUMPTION TO VIEW POLITICIANS WITH MISTRUST?

The future belongs to the young and they will need honest and capable politicians to guide and lead them.

Of recent years - yes, you might consider me a late starter - I have formed the view that, politicians, and their profession, politics, are to be viewed with utmost distrust, and should carry a health warning for the electorate.

When, quite by chance, I decided to briefly watch the televised transmission of the  British Parliamentary Committee on Energy and Climate Change, debate.  Standing in the chamber delivering his speech, impeccably, except for the occasional repetition to emphasise the key points he was making, was a smartly dressed young man, who I presumed to be no more than in his twenties. It would later transpired that this young man, and young politician, is no other than, as they might have said in days gone by, Esquire Callum Mccaig, who happens to 31 years old. Callum Mccaig, I found out, is the Scottish National Party's Energy and Climate Change Spokeperson i the House of Commons.


Thanks to this man's age and articulacy and his grasp of his subject matter, I decided to reflect on my not favourable disposition towards politicians and their profession

And so it seems to me that, it is a common aspect of how we humans think, form our attitudes and use them to inform our actions, that we tend to 'generalise', which, at times and in certain situations, can lead us to the more detrimental position of 'stereotyping' people. Here we need to look no further than how many people use the debate about immigrants, refugees and Brexit as a euphemism for something insidious. 

No reasonable person would deny that hundreds of thousands of honest and well-meaning men and women voluntarily and professionally participate in politics, girding with the motive to achieve power for themselves or others,in order to realise their political objectives.  Similarly, I would not argue with the contention that many, if not most of them had the intention to use that power to better the living of the electorate and those over whom they desire to acquired the privilege to serve and/or exercise that power.

My contention is to do with the corruption which is endemic in politics and governments, and how it is very difficult for honest politicians to remain honest while operating in a corrupt system or organisation.  There are, of course, always exceptions to the rule. It also seems to be the case that, depending on the integrity of the individual politician, he/she can resist succumbing to the corrupting influences of the system, for a longer period of time.

As despicable and distrustful as many politicians and politics can be, it is a fact of life that politics are, at best, a necessary evil, as are politicians, and we just have to contend with them until humans and society have evolved something better; if possible.

It is probably mainly the old guard politicians whose ideals have become corrupted by power,vested interests and money, who are the cause of most of the problems caused by politics and politicians.

It is, after all, essential that we encourage idealistic, honest and motivated young men and women to place themselves in positions which could prepare them to become leaders of the world which they will inherit.  As soon as their obstructionist elder incumbents  move over or have been pushed out of the leadership roles some of them have held on to for far too long.

And so, to Esquire Callum Mccaig and the thousands of other well-meaning and competent politicians and aspirant politicians all over the world, I salute you and wish you all success in your altruistic aspirations, and that you will be much better than those who have preceded you.