Kemi should prepare for a political pounding

It is extraordinary to remember. When I was a small boy in Scotland, Christmas Day was not a holiday. My father almost closed his office, but someone was on duty. The main festivity was Hogmanay: not a holiday in England. Now the whole country closes down for a fortnight. A friend who is a serious industrialist says that far from afflicting productivity, this is a good thing. After two weeks, apart from those who have gone in search of sun or skiing, most people are fed up with family life. Even the brats cannot wait to get back to school. So his employees return to work with renewed vigour.

We started with oysters, followed by sashimi, then turbot, and for pud a chocolate mousse

Despite that, I have never known a year more overshadowed with apprehension and gloom. There appears to be only one major country where optimism prevails: the USA, courtesy of the re-elected President Trump. The American economy appears to be indestructible, buoyed by animal spirits. We must remember the vital unwritten items in the American Bill of Rights. First, that this year shall be better than last year, and next year shall be better than this year. Second, that each and every American shall have the right to work his or her butt off and keep a goodly proportion of the proceeds.

That makes one think of Jimmy Carter, who did not believe in either item. He was obviously a decent old stick, but he had no gift for uplifting his fellow Americans: cf. Keir Stumbler over here. President Carter had been a peanut farmer, and no doubt a competent one. In 1980, a bumper sticker was popular: Roast Jimmy’s Nuts. So the electorate did, calling into service instead a great and gracious president who made his fellow countrymen feel good about themselves.