How nice to hear Tories called stupid, not evil

The most significant bit of Ed Miliband’s speech last week (which I bet you watched in the office, from beginning to end, like I did, because that’s not weird in most jobs at all) was the bit where he called David Cameron an idiot. Did you catch it? Very stirring.

‘Have you ever seen a more incompetent, hopeless, out-of-touch, U-turning, pledge-breaking, make-it-up-as-you-go-along, back-of-the-envelope, miserable shower?’ he said. As he said it his spine straightened out of that frowning crouch he goes into sometimes, which can make him look as though he’s about to drop a poo on the stage, and he soared up onto his tiptoes. ‘Good on you, Ed Miliband,’ I thought, as the crowd went wild. ‘Bravo.’

It’s not that I agree. I mean, I do, a bit, and naggingly have done ever since the shambles over tuition fees, where they introduced a tax which they called a debt, and then were surprised when people who don’t pay tax, but do have debt, didn’t like it much. Mainly, though, it was that I appreciated the tone of the assault. I don’t mind at all when Tories are called idiots. It makes such a nice change from them being called evil. In ‘Working Class Hero’, John Lennon sang that ‘They hate you if you’re clever, but they despise a fool’. Personally, in keeping with my general watery wetness about almost everything, I can deal with being despised. Perhaps thanks to my concealed raging ego, it merely makes me think people are mistaken, and invigorates me to prove that. But being hated? That keeps me up at night.