The Politics of Dancing

Denial is the art of attempting to conceal from your self the truth. Families where the father is a violent and abusive alcoholic often desperately pine to be ‘normal and consequently pretend that their domestic life is characterised by harmony. This denial has been likened to placing a tablecloth over an irritable rhino, pretending that it is in fact a coffee table. In dealing with Putin western European diplomats seem intent to engage in a similar form of denial, treating Putin as if he were just another politician like themselves. The British government’s current supine position, all the more reprehensible for representing an about face from the previous stance taken by the Labour government, is part of a much older political tradition going back to the 1930’s. When faced with the murder of a British citizen on the streets of London using highly radioactive material by agents of the Russian state, the previous Labour administration, not unreasonably, thought a line had been cro...