Carry on Communities : Postscript
No Peace for the Wicked Blair Wizard

For the full story of how what follows came about, please read the pantomime in full in this and my other blogs.

Happy New Year...

"It's been a disaster !", said the wicked Blair Wizard as he prepared to conjure up the demon, Peter Mephistopheles. "Frankly, the only good thing is Gordon Brown's expulsion to a remote Scottish island. John Prescott should have gone by now. But worse, by far the worst of all, is that Clare Short is now heading up the new English Parliament in Birmingham : a mother of all parliaments indeed. My dreams of becoming first British President, with Cherie as First Lady - the beginnings of a great political Blair dynasty - are all come to nothing..."

At this instant, Peter Mephistopheles, attired in elegant designer horns and forked tail, appeared in a large puff of smoke.

"....We had a deal, Mephistopheles", said Blair Wizard, " and now my plans are all come to nothing !".

To which Mephistopheles responded : "Well, you should recall the old soviet saying : 'Plan too much and things go wrong". Although in your case, you had the wrong plans, certainly as regards land use planning, and those misnamed Communities Plans. The fact is the British don't like US, anymore than soviet-style planning". He continued : "Anyway Blair, I've enough of my own problems. Gordon "Big Clunking Fist" Brown and John "Falstaff" Prescott have upset all sorts of people in the underworld, including a number of important European friends, and its only my great diplomacy which maintains order down there just now. You, of all people, Blair should know that's there no peace for the wicked !"

With these words, Mephistopheles once again disappeared in a large puff of smoke.

"There he goes up in smoke yet again !", said Blair : "Still, I'm sure there will be a great opportunity for me somewhere in the global media industry, spinning stories around the world. I've still got friends in high places !"

And then a voice spoke, as if from the wilderness : "Yo Blair ! We still gotta whole lotta community-building to do. Wars and environmental disasters are good for the re-construction business".