Until this week.

On Friday, during the Chilcott inquiry, Brown described the decision to go to war in Iraq as “the right decision for the right reasons”. 

As chief cheque signer, he probably didn’t have much choice.  

Personal freedoms seems to be taking a bit of a battering too.

Britain seems listless. It is struggling to find a new identity and the apparent politico-cultural transformation that has occurred in the US is in stark comparison to an arrogant, out of touch and un-elected leadership in Britain. We’re stuck with two political classes that are yet to truly modernise in a way that seems relevant and compelling to the community and more importantly to the wider world, within which Britain has traditionally enjoyed leadership and great respect.

Vee are vatching you!!

The financial services sector represented a relatively large chunk of the total economy in the UK and Britain is suffering more than others as a result of the current crisis. In October 2008, a bank rescue package totalling pounds500 billion was announced by the British Government. More recently, Gordon Brown’s Government announced plans to print money with a quantitative easing program while The Guardian newspaper investigates the tax gap.

This is rightly a BIG issue in the UK but for many observers the financial crisis is a diversion from a m0re worrying trend.

My Mother has complained about the increasing prevalance of rules and regulations in British society. I remember her citing the example of our local supermarket, which had started to restrict the sale of alcohol to over-30s only. The store had been caught out by a few under-18s and responded in this way to ensure that it would not be caught out again.

CCTV is another cause for concern for many in Britain – as is the British Government’s commitment to data collection. There are 4.2 million CCTV cameras in Britain – approximately one for every 14 people.

This is a theme that has been picked up in the No Agenda podcast. John C. Dvorak is tracking news stories that demonstrate the increasing pervasiveness of the UK Government and the rise of the Nanny state. Here are some headlines and links from the Dvorak Uncensored blog.

It’s laughable but scary. I am always promising more and never delivering but I do intend to pick up on this theme with some follow up posts this week. One will paint a picture relating to the future of technology and another will discuss the medium to long term impact of the Government bail outs on personal freedoms and information in UK and around the world.

Here are the headlines:

• Cops Arrest ‘Terrorist’ Fisherman for Scaring Ducks Away with Laser Pen
• Stasi HQ UK… where your travel details are secretly logged and kept for a decade
• 2 Yr Old Sent ASBO Usually Reserved for Football Hooligan… Does it Really Matter?
• New Law in UK Makes it Illegal to take Pictures of Police
• UK’s New Food Police: Nanny State Sez You WILL Eat Everything On Your Plate

Are you concerned about a reduction in personal freedoms wrapped up as something else, e.g. anti-terrorist legislation?

The sad thing about this approach is that it doesn’t address real issues but instead attempts to deal with problems at a superficial or cosmetic level to give the impression that the Government is in control and relevant when in actual fact the opposite is true.