The Virtue of Inertia Has Kept the UK Sane
In a world driven increasingly mad by technological innovations, from Twitter to TikTok to ChatGPT, the immutability of Britain’s institutions has never looked more attractive.
The new boss is not the same as the old boss.
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In the novels of Thomas Hardy, small lapses have dire consequences. In Jude the Obscure it is the cerebral Jude Fawley’s ill-advised lust for the vacuous Arabella Donn that dooms his ambition to become a “Christminster” scholar. Gabriel Oak’s misfortunes in Far from the Madding Crowd begin with a novice sheepdog and end with an amoral sergeant. The plot of The Mayor of Casterbridge hinges on a moment of drunken bravado.
There is something very Hardy-esque about Britain today. Nearly seven years ago, a majority of voters — 51.9% of the 72.2% who voted — opted to take their country out of the European Union. A significant number of those who voted “Leave” now seem to feel the same way about Brexit as Jude felt about Arabella. It was a terrible mistake.