Time to cheer up, Britain will be fine

By Bagehot

AFTER the first fortnight or so, constant gloom and indignation loses its charm. My print column this week argues that, in fact, there are reasons to be optimistic amidst all the depressing revelations about Britain’s press, police and politics. Why? Well, instead of drifting into a sort of helpless fatalism, the signs are that the British want to fix this mess. We are not ready to live in a country where official corruption is greeted with shrugged shoulders. British political leaders signal that they don’t want to live in a country where governments exert a tight, often unseen grip on what is reported. Good.