Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

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Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Dominic »

I do hope he gets elected, though I doubt it.

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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Devil »

He would get my vote for treating such a prickly subject :)
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by living the dream »

And Boris got the rest, 114 nearest rival at 43. Trump for President and Boris as Prime Minister doesn't look so far fetched beyond belief now. I would love to be in the she's of anyone who had a few bob on that Bet.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Firefly »

Sorry, I've just lost the will to live !

When was this rubbish discussed in Parliament, If indeed it was, they are wearing poppies. If true, then our M.P.s are truly having a laugh at our expense.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by living the dream »

The worst thing is this MP is a contender for the PM's job - I suppose anyone who can discuss hedgehogs in a near empty chamber and keep a straight face and be serious must believe he can debate anything
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Jimgward »

Boris is well in front of votes of party members as well.

May the lord deliver us from evil.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Dominic »

https://www.thearticle.com/hedgehog-or- ... a-great-pm

A remarkable speech was made in the House of Commons on 10th November 2015. It’s a tour de force of oratory and erudition. In just 13 minutes, the orator ranges from the ancient cultures of Samaria and Greece, to legislation from 1566 and the science of Aristotle. It covers tales from Shakespeare and Beatrix Potter, British eccentricity, and even proposes a cross party consensus on national identity. Interventions from MPs are not only recognised, they are woven into a speech that demonstrates intellectual dexterity on the stump.

The speech was made by Rory Stewart in a debate to draw attention to the decline in hedgehogs. Ridiculous as this may sound, it is the perfect aperture through which to see Stewart as a future leader of the Conservative Party.

Stewart starts his speech off with a familiar quotation: “The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one important thing.” It comes from the ancient Greek poet Archilochus, but was famously expanded upon by the political philosopher Isaiah Berlin, who divided the world into those who see it through a single defining idea (hedgehogs) and those who draw on a wide variety of experiences (foxes).


For too long, most political leaders in the West have been hedgehogs. They believe that the electorate needs a singular world view, through which they can be sold a vision of how their lives can improve. This worked in the post-war world. Times have changed.

We now live in a highly individualised society and those singular defining ideas seem to be getting polarised into extremes. This is known as populism. We need someone who can see political issues from the wide variety of experiences that different parts of the electorate hold. This person needs to fight on all fronts in many different ways.

This is where Rory Stewart comes in. He’s the ultimate fox. Stewart read history and then PPE at Balliol College, Oxford. After graduating he joined the Foreign Office and was the British Representative to Montenegro in the wake of the Kosovo campaign. He was Deputy Governor of Southern Iraq, where he was responsible for holding elections, resolving tribal disputes, and implementing development projects, at one point being besieged by militia in a compound. After leaving the Foreign Office, he moved to Afghanistan and set up an NGO, the Turquoise Mountain Foundation, basing himself in war-torn Kabul for three years. After this he became a fellow at the Carr Centre for Human Rights Policy at Harvard University and lectured the American military on intervention in the Middle East.

As a Scottish MP for Penrith and The Border, Stewart is a Unionist by geography and conviction. He’s served as Chairman of the Commons Select Committee on Defence and as a junior environment minister.

To older cricket fans he’s known as the “Geoffrey Boycott of May’s deal”, continually and solidly defending it, but never compromising his own stance. He remains at heart a Remainer, but argues the case for compromise on Brexit. He recognises the flaws in the May deal but explains persuasively why it is the best outcome we can hope for. He comes across as one of the few grownups in the House.

To my mind there are three main issues with the man. The first is cosmetic: he’s posh. He has the look only generations of Anglo-Scottish noble interbreeding can create – more Downton Abbey than down town populist. The second is more serious. When given the prisons brief last year, he said he would get assaults on prisoners and staff down — or resign. Violence in prisons isn’t anywhere near under control —in fact, it has risen on his watch. His pledge is worthless now that he’s jumped ship, with his recent promotion to Cabinet office at the Department for International Development. Lastly, I have a personal sense of foreboding that he’s the first minister out the blocks to directly state his ambition for PM. I just don’t think it does much for his reputation as Theresa May’s loyal lieutenant. Her body is not even cold, let alone dead and buried.

Yet I still believe we need someone who can fight the Unionist cause and negotiate credibly with the EU. We also need someone who can offer a multifaceted vision of what Britain is and can become, who can fend off populism, Right and Left. I believe Stewart is that man. He hasn’t just studied history, he’s lived it. He doesn’t just talk about “the Art of the Deal”: he’s negotiated for the lives of men and women. He’s written books, advised US presidential hopefuls, educated princes (of the William and Harry type), written leaders and presented documentaries. Alone among the Tory hopefuls, Rory Stewart is a true thinker and communicator. He is, perhaps, the Renaissance man for Britain’s hour of need.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Jimgward »

Choosing a potential PM from the candidates is a bit like choosing an STD - which one is potentially the least devastating?
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by living the dream »

Dominc - that is a well written, thoughtful and balanced piece of writing, Rory Stewart obviously has more about him than meets the eye. I do not like Boris for the same reasons most people don't like him but he look like he is going to romp home at the moment and I do stress at the moment.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

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Firefly wrote: Thu Jun 13, 2019 6:49 pm Sorry, I've just lost the will to live !

When was this rubbish discussed in Parliament, If indeed it was, they are wearing poppies. If true, then our M.P.s are truly having a laugh at our expense.
No, no, no! Rory's speech was a masterpiece of oratory, worthy of the Greek philosophers. You obviously cannot recognise oratorial greatness and it shows the man as one of the few thinkers who warm their bottoms on green leather. With his experience in life and his talent, he is a cut above any of the other contenders, worthy of a hundred Borises or Goves.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Firefly »

Devil

No I don't see him as one with oratorical greatness, I see him as a complete time and money waster. You see him as a man equal to Greek philosophers, that's your view and in spite of what you say, I disagree.

Each to their own.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Devil »

Firefly wrote: Fri Jun 14, 2019 11:03 am Devil

No I don't see him as one with oratorical greatness, I see him as a complete time and money waster. You see him as a man equal to Greek philosophers, that's your view and in spite of what you say, I disagree.

Each to their own.
complete time and money waster??? You obviously know nothing about the man; Have a look at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rory_Stewart
Before election as MP, he did a helluva lot more hands-on for the UK than Johnson, Gove, Hunt, Javid and Raab put together. Since election, he has done even more. In all his career he has shown himself as a pragmatist.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Firefly »

Devil

As I said you see him as one who has achieved greatness, that is your opinion, I do not share your view, that does not mean to say that you are necessarily right, nor I.

He has been held several positions within government, for which no doubt he has been very well financially rewarded. He has worked in Afghanistan, so have hundreds if not thousand of our troops.

If he cares to waste our time and money on such speeches, I have no interest in the man at all, he will not become P.M.

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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Firefly »

He will.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Devil »

I see the bookmakers have now put Rory Stewart in 2nd place, behind Boris, quite a leap of faith.

'
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Jimgward »

Boris will be the last PM of the UK. Guaranteed. He will also cause a fractious split int he Tory party that may end the Conservatives as the largest party and hand right-wing power-sharing to the idiot Farage.
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Firefly »

Last PM of the UK ?
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Devil »

Let me speculate. As I said, RS has been put second to BJ by the bookies (and they are usually pretty good at forecasting).

Imagine BJ wins/RS second; RS has said he would not serve in a BJ government, so he will become a powerful backbencher opposed to the BJ no-deal. I can foresee fireworks in Westminster.

OTOH, IF RS wins (unlikely), he would move heaven and earth to negotiate amendments to May's futile ideas to find a solution before Hallowe'en, while BJ would sit in a corner, wound licking, wondering why he is not a Rt.Hon!

All speculation!
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Jimgward »

Firefly wrote: Mon Jun 17, 2019 1:11 pm Last PM of the UK ?
Within the parliamentary term, Scotland would vote leave as boris would take a no-deal brexit and Scotland would overwhelmingly vote independence. End of UK
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Re: Rory Stewart gets the Hedgehog Vote

Post by Firefly »

Well I suppose it's a bit like the remainers view on Brexit, keep voting until you get the result the politicians want ;)
It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog.
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