After crossing the river, I headed down toward the beautifully restored area called the Várkert or Castle Garden, rescued by the Hungarian government as part of its Hauszmann programme, (which, mysteriously, the opposition parties plan to cancel if they win power, because they regard it as harking back to the Fascist horrors of the second world war; I don’t understand this rationale, given that the buildings and other structures in question date from an earlier century, well before the second or even the first world wars.)
Anyway, as I drew near to the Várkert I spotted a huddle of people with cameras and microphones surrounding a figure at whom they were yelling questions. Curiosity got the better of me and so I joined the crowd. The figure at its centre was speaking French and I soon realised that this was none other than Marion Maréchal, niece of Marine le Pen and now, it seems, involved with Eric Zemmour and the Union des Droites.
Mark Latham, an erratic Australian politician, once said that politics is showbiz for ugly people. What he ought to have added is that, on the rare occasions that a beautiful person wanders into politics, they dazzle even more effectively than they might on the silver screen. This was the secret, I believe, to Barack Obama's meteoric rise to become President of the United States. He'd hardly done anything politically, no one really had a clue what his plan was - if there was one. The great thing about him was that he looked absolutely gorgeous.
In Notes on the Death of Culture Mario Vargas Llosa wrote, "Today images have primacy over ideas." If he is correct - and I think he is - then strategists on the right in politics need to nominate Ms Maréchal as a presidential candidate very swiftly. Who cares what she believes in; after just a glance, a majority of the male population of France will surely be keen to put their tick in her box (on the voting paper, I mean, of course, you smutty minded person):
I suspect Mr. Latham of adapting an American quip to the effect that Washington is Hollywood for ugly people.
ReplyDeleteBut in fact looks have never hurt in American politics. Years ago, a labor leader drew abuse by his explanation of Jack Kemp's election to the House of Representatives from the Buffalo area: a lot of women, he said, wouldn't mind having Kemp's shoes under their beds. But looks certainly didn't hold back JFK. Lyndon Johnson may or may not have been handsome, but he was tall. And this is hardly an American thing: a Taiwanese-born co-worker remarked on the looks of the two candidates for the presidency of Taiwan, some elections back.
I think you are right about Latham pinching his material. As for Lyndon Johnson, I think he may not have been handsome, myself. Thank you for alerting me to a spelling error the other day, by the way.
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