AIBU to worry for my kids that leading politicians today are exceptionally thick?

[Fillies4DeclanRice]

The sheer level of gormlessness from politicians doing media rounds these days is starting to worry me for my kids.

We’re supposed to be raising the next generation to be thoughtful, competent and honest, yet look at the examples they’re seeing from the very top.. it’s embarrassing.

Take David Lammy, who thinks Libya is next door to Syria, or Lisa Nandy, who said this weekend that our priority for British defence should be on making sure the BBC is well funded, or Emily Thornberry, who doesn't know what a woman is.

They're the embodiment of the metropolitan elite looking down their noses at everyone else, but they can’t open their mouths without a U-turn, a diplomatic incident or some tone-deaf comment that makes you wonder if they’ve ever met a normal family.

We’ve got economic chaos, endless rows over defence spending, winter fuel messes and now they’re coming for what our kids can watch on the family TV while half of them can’t even get basic facts straight.

How on earth are our children supposed to respect authority and strive to do better when the people running the country act like this? It’s setting a terrible example - that bluster, incompetence and being “one of the club” matters more than actual ability or common sense. Am I being too harsh?

YABU - Politicians today are no more stupid than they used to be.
YANBU - They are thick and this really is a worry.

Absolutely. When we look back at past intellectual powerhouses like Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Jeremy Hunt and Therese Coffey I despair at how far we have fallen.

With some exceptions, the days of politicians being intellectual powerhouses and high achievers are pretty much over.

Why would anyone with talent, intelligence, and drive go into politics? The pay is crap compared to what you could earn in the private sector, you get nothing but abuse, and it’s a thankless task.

People we made fun of at the time like John Major just seem like titans these days. I reviled George W Bush at the time but I saw an interview with him the other day and I was almost nostalgic.

Farage is a stellar example on how one can be bought by foreign money, important life skill

And how you can skive off without consequences.

So why don't you become a politician and show them how it is done?

Who would go into politics? If you’re smart and intelligent, then the money is shit, it’s a massive intrusion into your personal life, and no one person can really ever effect change anyway.

All that’s left is the ones who never had a real job and wouldn’t make it in the real world.

Can't believe you forgot Gavin Williamson.

I'm so impressed with John Major, these days. He was mocked for being too boring and serious when he was leader (remind you of anyone?) but I find him a really good and rational speaker/writer when I come across him now

Social media and 24 hr news has destroyed politics. Voters are ill informed and woefully ignorant about how politics works which means politicians are constantly battling the stream of misinformation and “baying for blood” feeds of the masses and can’t actually govern sensibly. The whole system is fucked.

Or Andrea Jenkyn and her middle finger greeting