The British tend to think of their politics as urbane and fairminded. In large measure, they are. But at times the heirs of Cromwell and Pitt are apt to be more virulent than the heirs of Jackson and Truman. British political leaders can deftly cut each other's throats with the most brutal verbal slashes, and British political crowds can raise the fine democratic art of heckling to riotous dimensions. This happened once again in the windup of Britain's election campaign, suggesting that beneath the initially apathetic contest there was really a good...
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