The British Psyche:As Interested in the USA Elections 2008 as Americans

Got a call from the BBC this morning. I’ll be on BBC radio here in just a little bit to speak about “Should Hillary Clinton Quit?” I’ll post the article on what was said on the show, later tonight. I’ve been writing an article for TMV on just that topic. Generally, it’s a critique about the MSM’s perseveration re telling a candidate what they ought do next. Irritable back seat drivers, I’d venture. An odd surge toward ‘making news happen,’ as opposed to reporting news.

I look forward to engaging with media people from Britain again. I’ve a British book publisher, Rider, and my work has been on the bestseller lists there. From my conversation with various colleagues in Britain, what I keep hearing is that ‘the British have never seen such a race before as that occuring between Senators Obama and Clinton” and that the Brits are keeping their ears tuned keenly for the latest.

The British are an odd, wonderful lot.

Many still often stiff-lipped on the surface, but just underneath the surface, I often find particularly in the men, a giggling boy who sees the ironies of life… and loves to laugh over them.

The women may often be a different story. Not so closed mouthed from the get-go. Especially since the Queen, some years ago, broke usual royal protocol about not saying personal items in public…. she let it be known that she’d had an ‘annus horribilus’ … “a horrible year,” what with the fire at Windsor Castle and her poppetts jumping about publicly doing all manner of things that allowed the citizenry to tsk tsk– or chortle– about.

Just as an aside to HRH, the Queen, many of we parents and grandparents here in the USA really really do understand attempting to inspire ‘proper formation’ in family members… and that it’s often enough like trying to give cats a bath. All you’ve got to show sometimes are lots of spilled water and lots of mad cats.

But, too, I remember the Brits for who they have incubated in their portion of the world: C.S. Lewis,* Tolkein, Gladstone and Irish home rule, and the likes of our founding fathers and founding mothers who came on boats, here to what is now the USA. I also remember the British incursions and wars, their occupations, their failures.

Quite generally, the Brits are a completely stalwart, secretly sybaritic, overtly brash, competitive, visionary, violent, massively creative group of people.

Um… like, someone else we know. Yes, like us Americaners.

Heritage is more than just blood.

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*C.S. Lewis, born Irish son, migrated to England, age 19 on university scholarship, and then enlisted in the war effort for Great Britain in WWI.