A well-known quote by
Margaret Thatcher. It's often misquoted or truncated. Here is the original version:
"Too many
people have been given to understand that if they have a problem, it's the
government's job to cope with it ... They're casting their problem on society.
And, you know, there is no such thing as society. There are individual men and
women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except
through people, and people must look to themselves first. It's our duty to look
after ourselves and then, also, to look after our neighbour. People have got the
entitlements too much in mind, without the obligations. There's no such thing as
entitlement, unless someone has first met an obligation."
===End of Quote==========================
===Beginning of subjective content=======
Given what British society was when Mrs Thatcher took power, and what it is right now, one must admit that this speech was not mere
philosophy: it was a
political programme, in which the essentials of
Thatcherism were clearly described. Today, saying that "there is no such thing as (a British) society" would be
stating the obvious.
The worst thing is that Thatcherism has not only imposed an ideology: it has eradicated any
alternative. Today's choice for the UK elector is between traditional Thatcherism (see
William Hague) and flashy Thatcherism (see
Tony Blair). Differences between the
New Labour and the new
Tories, if any, are scarce. Mrs Thatcher's vision has taken over British
politics, and there doesn't seem to be any major change in sight for the foreseeable future.