I have put this in The Written Word because he was reading out a prepared speech... a speech which I consider to be one of the most deviously self serving things he has ever done. For all his buffoonery BJ is a clever man when it comes to doing what's best for himself. Let's take a linguistic look at that speech. Remember it is SUPPOSED TO BE a resignation speech. First of all, here it is in full.

"Good afternoon everybody.
It is clearly now the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party that there should be a new leader of that party and therefore a new prime minister.
I agree with Sir Graham Brady, chairman of our backbench of MPs, that the process of choosing that new leader should begin now and the timetable will be announced next week.
I today appointed a Cabinet to serve as I will until a new leader is in place.
I want to say to the millions of people who voted for us in 2019 - many of them voting Conservative for the first time - thank you for that incredible mandate, the biggest Conservative majority since 1987, the biggest share of the vote since 1979.
The reason I have fought so hard in the last few days to continue to deliver that mandate in person was not just because I wanted to do so, but because I felt it was my job, my duty, my obligation to you, to continue to do what we promised in 2019.
Of course I'm immensely proud of the achievements of this government. From getting Brexit done, to settling our relations with the continent for over half a century, reclaiming the power for this country to make its own laws in Parliament, getting us all through the pandemic, delivering the fastest vaccine rollout in Europe, the fastest exit from lockdown.
And, in the last few months, leading the West in standing up to Putin's aggression in Ukraine. Let me say now to the people of Ukraine: I know that we in the UK will continue to back your fight for freedom for as long as it takes.
At the same time, in this country, we've been pushing forward a vast programme of investment in infrastructure, skills and technology. The biggest in a century. Because if I have one insight into human beings, it is that genius and talent and enthusiasm and imagination are evenly distributed throughout the population.
But opportunity is not. And that is why we must keep levelling up, keep unleashing the potential of every part of the United Kingdom. And if we can do that in this country, we will be the most prosperous in Europe.
In the last few days, I've tried to persuade my colleagues that it would be eccentric to change governments when we are delivering so much, when we have such a vast mandate, and when we are actually only a handful of points behind in the polls - even in mid-term after quite a few months of pretty relentless sledging, and when the economic scene is so difficult domestically and internationally.
I regret not to have been successful in those arguments and of course it's painful not to be able to see through so many ideas and projects myself.
But, as we've seen at Westminster, the herd instinct is powerful and when the herd moves, it moves.
And my friends, in politics, no one is remotely indispensable. And our brilliant and Darwinian system will produce another leader equally committed to taking this country forward through tough times.
Not just helping families to get through it, but changing and improving the way we do things. Cutting burdens on businesses and families and, yes, cutting taxes. Because that is the way to generate the growth and the income we need to pay for great public services.
To that new leader, whoever he or she may be, I say: I will give you as much support as I can.
And to you, the British public, I know that there will be many people who are relieved and perhaps quite a few who will also be disappointed. And I want you to know how sad I am to be giving up the best job in the world. But them's the breaks.
I want to thank Carrie and our children, all the members of my family, who have had to put with so much for so long.
I want to thank the peerless British Civil Service for all the help and support that you have given our police, our emergency services, and of course our fantastic NHS who, at a critical moment, helped to extend my own period in office, as well as our armed services and our agencies that are so admired around the world, and our indefatigable Conservative Party members and supporters, whose selfless campaigning makes our democracy possible.
I want to thank the wonderful staff here at Chequers, here at Number 10, and our fantastic prop force detectives - the one group, by the way, who never leak.
Above all, I want to thank you, the British public, for the immense privilege that you have given me. And I want you to know that from now on until the new prime minister is in place, your interests will be served and the government of the country will be carried on.
Being Prime Minister is an education in itself.
I've travelled to every part of the United Kingdom and, in addition to the beauty of our natural world, I've found so many people possessed of such boundless British originality, and so willing to tackle old problems in new ways, that I know that even if things can sometimes seem dark now, our future together is golden.
Thank you all very much."

But. bearing in mind the alleged purpose of the speech let's delete the following
1. Meaningless blathering.
2. Self-pitying whining of "oh woe is me, the beasts the beasts, why do they always pick on me"
3. Thanking people who he claims (often wrongly) support him
4. Self-aggrandising claims of how wonderful he is and what a great job he has done.

And let's see what remains.

"It is clearly now the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party that there should be a new leader of that party and therefore a new prime minister.
I agree with Sir Graham Brady, chairman of our backbench of MPs, that the process of choosing that new leader should begin now and the timetable will be announced next week.
I today appointed a Cabinet to serve as I will until a new leader is in place."

That's all. Everything else disappears. Now quite apart from the fact that there is not one word even acknowledging why the party has turned against him there is something else rathe remarkable about this.
It doesn't say that he has resigned. The first sentence just says, in effect, that people think he should resign.
The second sentence could be taken as implicitly resigning but actually just says that the party should choose the next leader but doesn't say when, or even if, that person would become leader.
And the third sentence says, in essence, I will carry on as normal until I decide that there is a new leader,

I have read this transcript several times and I don't think he has actually resigned at all. I think he has bamboozled people into thinking he has resigned when in fact he has done no such thing.

I predict with some confidence that his subsequent words and actions will follow the tried and tested route of denying that what he said means what you think it means. He will, within a few weeks be claiming that he didn't resign, that you all misunderstood his words, that he was simply saying the party should prepare for the distant future, that nobody wanted him to resign anyway, that he is the people's and the party's choice and that he is going nowhere.

Whatever I think of him as a man and as a PM I have to admire what a first rate dissembler he is. There has never been a more accomplished liar in the history of Parliament.

Oh, and one more thing... that sentence "I today appointed a Cabinet to serve as I will until a new leader is in place." has two plausible interpretations. It could mean "I today appointed a Cabinet to serve as I will (ALSO SERVE) until a new leader is in place." but it could equally well mean "I today appointed a Cabinet to serve as I will (THEM TO) until a new leader is in place." Just a thought.

All the more reason to toss him out and rejoin the EU - IF they'll take the UK back. It does seem that they've become an island both literally and figuratively. For all his erudition BJ never seems to have read Donne.

quote:

Originally posted by Geoff:
For all his erudition BJ never seems to have read Donne.

Probably not but he has done red. And blond and brunette.

quote:

Originally posted by Geoff:
All the more reason to toss him out and rejoin the EU - IF they'll take the UK back.

Much though we might wish otherwise, that's never going to happen... at least not in the foreseeable future because it would just divide the country again. The rich Brexiteers are making money from it while the poor Brexiteers are losing more money and social benefits every day but as I have said from the start they could end up living in cardboard boxes and eating toasted rat and the faithful would still claim Brexit was a good thing. And I choose the word "faithful" deliberately because the cult of Brexit is far more like a religion than anything else. It is an article of faith that Brexit is good. It is an article of faith that Europe is bad. It is an article of faith that no matter how bad things get we were right to leave. And above all it is an article of faith that BORIS GOT BREXIT DONE. (Even though he now wants to ignore many of the things that were agreed in his so called "oven ready deal" even though that means breaking international law.

Here's The Guardian's take on it: https://www.theguardian.com/co...son-lies-brexit-exit

“Cutting burdens on businesses and families and, yes, cutting taxes. Because that is the way to generate the growth and the income we need to pay for great public services.”
Hahahahaha. Didn’t know Boris was such a trickle-downer. What a joke. “Cutting taxes” is the way to “grow the income we need to pay for great public services.”

Thank you, Bob, for clarifying this speech. I do love the parliamentary system, & wish we had it here. The point is: you lost the support of the public, so bye-bye. Would that we in the US could say bye-bye to the minority tail wagging our dog. But I do take hope from UK that this is perhaps a sign that the conservative wave, with us since 1980, may begin to decline. If for no other reason than that they can’t seem to get a damn thing done in the public interest.

But sadly, our Trump-cult are well-described here: “they could end up living in cardboard boxes and eating toasted rat and the faithful would still claim Brexit was a good thing.”

A lot of people commented on how short Boris's (possibly not a) resignation speech was but I have discovered the answer. It was short because someone had gone through it with a marker pen and deleted alternate sentences. Here is the full text as it was intended to appear with the deleted sections in CAPS.
.
.


"Good afternoon everybody.
I CAN’T SEE WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT IT BUT HERE WE ARE.
It is clearly now the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party that there should be a new leader of that party and therefore a new prime minister. OF COURSE IT’S NOT MY WILL AND THAT’S REALLY THE ONLY THING THAT COUNTS, ISN’T IT?
I agree with Sir Graham Brady, chairman of our backbench of MPs, that the process of choosing that new leader should begin now and the timetable will be announced next week. THOUGH THE IMPORTANT QUESTION OF WHEN IT WILL END IS NOT TO BE ASKED OR ANSWERED
I today appointed a Cabinet to serve as I will until a new leader is in place. BY THAT I MEAN, OF COURSE THAT THEY WILL DO MY WILL.
I want to say to the millions of people who voted for us in 2019 - many of them voting Conservative for the first time - thank you for that incredible mandate, the biggest Conservative majority since 1987, the biggest share of the vote since 1979. MANY PEOPLE SAY THIS WAS MOSTLY BECAUSE OF JEREMY CORBYN'S EXCELLENT EFFORTS TO MAKE HIS PARTY UNELECTABLE BUT IT WAS REALLY THE RESULT OF MY OWN PERSONAL ALMOST GOD-LIKE ABILITIES AND LIMITLESS CHARISMA.
The reason I have fought so hard in the last few days to continue to deliver that mandate in person was not just because I wanted to do so, but because I felt it was my job, my duty, my obligation to you, to continue to do what we promised in 2019. THAT DOES NOT MEAN THE THINGS THAT WE PROMISED TO YOU, THE PLEBIAN HORDE, IT MEANS THE THINGS WE PROMISED TO OURSELVES AND TO ALL OF OUR VERY RICH FRIENDS AND DONORS.
Of course I'm immensely proud of the achievements of this government. WE HAVE SUCCESSFULLY LINED THE POCKETS OF MORE OF THOSE DONORS THAN EVEN I HAD DREAMED POSSIBLE. From getting Brexit done, to settling our relations with the continent for over half a century, reclaiming the power for this country to make its own laws in Parliament, getting us all through the pandemic, delivering the fastest vaccine rollout in Europe, the fastest exit from lockdown. THESE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE THINGS WE HAVE SUCCESSFULLY CLAIMED TO HAVE DONE IN SPITE OF ALL THE EVIDENCE TO THE CONTRARY.
And, in the last few months, leading the West in standing up to Putin's aggression in Ukraine. WE HAVE MANAGED BY THIS MEANS TO OBSCURE OUR PREVIOUS TIES WITH RUSSIA, AND TO BURY THE REPORT OF RUSSIA’S INTERFERENCE IN OUR ELECTIONS. Let me say now to the people of Ukraine: I know that we in the UK will continue to back your fight for freedom for as long as it takes. YOU SHOULD NOT LISTEN TO PEOPLE ASKING WHY WE PUT EVGENY LEBEDEV, THE SON OF A KNOWN OFFICER OF THE KGB, INTO OUR HOUSE OF LORDS - IT ISN’T RELEVENT IN ANY WAY TO THIS DISCUSSION.
At the same time, in this country, we've been pushing forward a vast programme of investment in infrastructure, skills and technology, the biggest in a century. WE HAVE PUSHED THIS FORWARD MAINLY BY TALKING ABOUT IT AND FUNNELING FUNDS TO MARGINAL CONSTITUENCIES AS BRIBES TO GET THEM TO VOTE FOR US. Because if I have one insight into human beings, it is that genius and talent and enthusiasm and imagination are evenly distributed throughout the population. YOU MAY BE WONDERING IF THAT IS THE CASE, THEN HOW CAN I HAVE CHOSEN TO FILL THE CANINET WITH PEOPLE SO SINGULARLY LACKING IN ANY OF THOSE QUALITIES - IT IS OF COURSE SIMPLY THAT I LOOK SO MUCH BETTER BY COMPARISON.
But opportunity is not. I HAVE ENSURED THAT THE TALENTLESS GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO JOIN THE GOVERNMENT. And that is why we must keep levelling up, keep unleashing the potential of every part of the United Kingdom. THERE IS, AS YOU HAVE SEEN, VERY LITTLE DIFFERENCES TO A GARDENER BETWEEN LEVELLING UP THE GROUND AND FLATTENING IT DOWN. And if we can do that in this country, we will be the most prosperous in Europe. THOUGH WE ARE NOT IN EUROPE, OF COURSE.
In the last few days, I've tried to persuade my colleagues that it would be eccentric to change governments when we are delivering so much, when we have such a vast mandate, and when we are actually only a handful of points behind in the polls - even in mid-term after quite a few months of pretty relentless sledging, and when the economic scene is so difficult domestically and internationally. MY COLLEAGUES, WHO ARE A BUNCH OF TURNCOATS AND FAIR WEATHER FRIENDS HAVE FAILED TO SEE THE SIMPLE TRUTH OF MY POSITION.
I regret not to have been successful in those arguments and of course it's painful not to be able to see through so many ideas and projects myself. AMONG THE PROJECTS I WILL NO LONGER BE ABLE TO SEE THROUGH THERE ARE, FOR EXAMPLE, THE £150,000 TREE HOUSE I WAS DETERMINED TO HAVE BUILT AT CHEQUERS AND THE WEDDING PARTY I WAS INTENDING TO HOLD THERE.
But, as we've seen at Westminster, the herd instinct is powerful and when the herd moves, it moves. CUM ARMENTUM MOVERET, ARMENTUM MOVERET
And my friends, in politics, no one is remotely indispensable. NO ONE, THAT IS BUT ME. And our brilliant and Darwinian system will produce another leader equally committed to taking this country forward through tough times. THAT WILL BE IN THE DISTANT FUTURE, IF I HAVE ANY INFLUENCE OVER THE MATTER.
Not just helping families to get through it, but changing and improving the way we do things. WE HAVE ALREADY CHANGED THE WAY WE DO THINGS BY DOING AWAY UTTERLY WITH HONESTY, INTEGRITY AND ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR AND WE INTEND TO CONTINUE THIS PROCESS. Cutting burdens on businesses and families and, yes, cutting taxes because that is the way to generate the growth and the income we need to pay for great public services.
DO NOT LISTEN TO THE NAYSAYERS WHO POINT OUT THAT WHEN WE GIVE WITH ONE HAND WE TAKE AWAY MORE WITH THE OTHER HAND BECAUSE WE HAVE UNDONE THE ROBIN HOOD INJUSTICES BY REDISTRUBUTING WEALTH BACK INTO THE HANDS OF THE ALREADY WEALTHY WHERE IT RIGHTLY BELONGS. To that new leader, whoever he or she may be, I say: I will give you as much support as I can. YOU CAN ESTIMATE FOR YOURSELF HOW MUCH THAT WILL BE BUT A KNFE IN THE BACK WILL HOLD YOU UP AS SURELY AS AN ARM AROUND THE SHOULDERS.
And to you, the British public, I know that there will be many people who are relieved and perhaps quite a few who will also be disappointed. MORE OF THE LATTER, I FEEL, IF THE CULT OF BORIS HAS BEEN AS WIDESPREAD AS I, AND MY HIGH PRIEST AND PRIESTESS, JACOB AND NADINE, HAVE INTENDED. And I want you to know how sad I am to be giving up the best job in the world, but them's the breaks. THE ALLOWANCE OF UP TO £115,000 A YEAR THAT EX-PRIME MINISTERS CAN CLAIM WILL GO SOME WAY TO SALVING MY WOUNDED PRIDE.
I want to thank Carrie and our children, all the members of my family, who have had to put with so much for so long. THEY WILL CETAINLY BE UNSURPRISED TO HEAR THAT THEY WILL HAVE TO CONTINUE PUTTING UP WITH IT FOR A LONG TIME YET.
I want to thank the peerless British Civil Service for all the help and support that you have given our police, our emergency services, and of course our fantastic NHS who, at a critical moment, helped to extend my own period in office, as well as our armed services and our agencies that are so admired around the world, and our indefatigable Conservative Party members and supporters, whose selfless campaigning makes our democracy possible. MOST OF ALL I WOULD LIKE TO THANK ME FOR JUST BEING ME AS WITHOUT MY IMMEASURABLE TALENT, SUPERLATIVE GENIUS, AND GENERAL ALL ROUND MODESTY I COULD NOT HAVE DONE ANY OF IT.
I want to thank the wonderful staff here at Chequers, here at Number 10, and our fantastic prop force detectives - the one group, by the way, who never leak. SO MANY OF THE OTHERS SURROUNDING ME HAVE TURNED LEAKING ABOUT MY SMALL INDISCRETIONS AND PECCADILLOS INTO A HOBBY.
Above all, I want to thank you, the British public, for the immense privilege that you have given me and I want you to know that from now on until the new prime minister is in place, your interests will be served and the government of the country will be carried on. YOU CAN BE ASSURED THAT WE WILL CARRY ON EXACTLY AS BEFORE.
Being Prime Minister is an education in itself. AS MY TIME AT ETON AND OXFORD TAUGHT ME, EDUCATION IS UNIMPORTANT COMPARED TO WEALTH AND A DEVIOUS NATURE.
I've travelled to every part of the United Kingdom and, in addition to the beauty of our natural world, I've found so many people possessed of such boundless British originality, and so willing to tackle old problems in new ways, that I know that even if things can sometimes seem dark now, our future together is golden. FOR ME THE GOLDEN PART HAS COME ALREADY AND FOR YOU, OR PERHAPS NOT FOR YOU BUT FOR YOUR CHILDREN OR THEIR CHILDREN OR THEIR CHILDREN UNTO THE SEVENTH GENERATION I PROMISE IT WILL COME EVENTUALLY.
Thank you all very much. THIS WAS NOT A RESIGNATION."

Good job, Bob! Love it.

I am sure you are relieved for your country.

quote:

Originally posted by Kalleh:
Good job, Bob! Love it.

I am sure you are relieved for your country.

I would be if I didn't know who is lined up to replace him. (See my comment on another thread)