winston churchill was a drunk. Didnt stop him running the country. As for PR, Germany doesnt show PR's problems, it shows that under pr people of different political persuasions have to make accommodations with each other in order to form a government. Which is what democracy should be. trouble with 1st past the posters is that they think it gives "strong" government. It does. You also get strong governments in North Korea, Burma, Syria USSR, Nazi Germany, Saddam's Iraq, and Blair's UK, where the party in power does not have to listen to its opponents. As for globalisation, Thomas - wrong. It's got sod all to do with UKIP. Globalisation is ultmately a bad thing because it makes government too remote. EC proves it. How many people know who their MEP is? I don't. I have no idea. Nor does my wife or my kids or anybody I know (we did a straw poll a few months ago!!!). We all know John Leach, we knew (he he) Keith Bradley. But who the hell is our MEP? When did he/she/it last visit this area or send us any letters or write to the local paper? Anybody know? Does anybody know any of the European Ministers? Or what they do? Brussels, no matter how well meaning ends up remote and meaningless to the electorate. I love the idea of EU in principle, nad most of its laws , especially about human rights, labour laws, are bloody good laws which scare the hell out of Tony Blair, but it doesnt know how to engage with the public in practice. Maybe its best left as a free trade area and no more. After all, do you really want your laws to be drafted by people whom youve never heard of and whose language you dont understand? its nothing to do with putting the "great" back into britain a la UKIP. Its the simple practicality of managable size, and of maintaining identity. Trying to forge a political entitiy out of 300 million people with god knows how many languages and cultures is ultimately an impossibility

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