Thatcher's Last Stand

From Margaret Thatcher's last House of Commons Speech on November 22, 1990, where she addresses income inequality and a single currency.



Thatcher was a Whig more than a Tory, very much a philosophical heir to Gladstone and 19th century classical liberalism and who had very little in common with the aristocratic conservatism of Salisbury, her great Tory predecessor. Whig or Tory, the greatest leaders (the ones who hold our respect even if we don't agree with them some or all of the time) are the ones who know where they stand, have honest opinions and defend them with a conviction akin to moral absolutism. Moral relativists don't know where they stand, and therefore are forced to rely predominantly on spin to defend themselves along with the clever use of other highly skilled confidence tricks to deliver the message. That's the real difference between Thatcherism and Blairism, and we all know which camp Nick, Dave and Gordon belong don't we. Those three follow the politically correct fashions of the day - they don't swim against the tide like Thatcher did. It's called leadership, and Britain hasn't had it in twenty years.

Hat tip: Brits at their Best