Hovering Pencil Syndrome Overcome - Boris Johnson Voted Mayor of London

So, the pencil hovering didn't stop Boris Johnson being voted in as the new Mayor of London, without doubt the greatest city in the world. Yes, I am biased! London was my home town for many, many years.

It's funny, we're no longer living in London en famille and I miss it. I miss the action and excitement. I miss the drama. I miss the snacks! But I don't miss the violence and the air of menace around so many of the streets in this great city. And believe me, as a dog - and a big dog at that - I can still be intimidated.

I don't know what I think about Boris Johnson to be honest, which isn't like me at all. The Mistress used to ADORE Ken Livingstone when she was younger. The highlight for her was sitting next to him in a restaurant in the South Bank when he was still leader of the GLC! She even voted for him to become Mayor, first time round.

As a great advocate of public transport, she thought Ken was King. But the death of the Routemaster and the introduction of the Congestion Charge in the West (but not in the East) were too much. As they made their speeches last night - Ken and Boris - it was clear who really loved London the best! Did you know that Boris was born in New York?!

I'm not sure that a clarion call of "Let's get cracking, let's have a drink!" was quite what Londoners were looking for last night from their new Mayor. It smacked of 1980s City boys to me. I half expected Harry 'LoadsaMoney' Enfield to pop up at the side of the stage and do a sketch.

Boris really is unchartered territory - for London - but the rest of the UK, hey, the rest of the world will be watching with interest.

I've realised that I don't even know what Boris's views on dogs are! This is crucial stuff. A quick search on the internet revealed a big fat nothing. My only hope is that if he has the ear of his sister, columnist and sometime-novelist, Rachel Johnson, he WILL think about the plight of the capital's canines. I've seen Rachel with her own dog, in Kensington Gardens, which is good news. Why? Because dog owners always know what's really going on. Even in Kensington Gardens! If you're out and about with your dog, you've got your ear to the ground of what life on the street is really like. Even in Notting Hell.

With Ken Livingstone as an out and proud newt and toad man (and a destroyer of pigeons!), maybe it's time to give someone else a chance? I've got half a mind to write to Boris to see what he has to say about dogs in the city.

There will be many people waking up this morning wondering what on earth the city has done (by voting in Boris). Well, let's see. The Mistress was on tenterhooks last night to see who won; it was the first time she really felt left out of her beloved London.

There was a great Gerald Scarfe cartoon on TV last night that showed Boris sitting on top of City Hall; it read - "Be careful what you wish for...you might just get it."

Let's hope that both London and Boris don't regret yesterday's election result and realise it simply was a joke that went too far.

Woof Woof

Comments

[USpace]

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YEY BORIS! Boris may be a buffoon, but at least he's not a communist one.

Bloody good news! Praise the Lord! Thank God! There is hope for Londonistan. What will Red Ken do next?

:)

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absurd thought -
God of the Universe says
elect a communist

someone who will work full-time
to destroy your country

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http://haltterrorism.com

http://lulu.com/uspace
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[The Rough Diamond]

As another ex-London canine, Woof, I share your concerns. My mum said she felt left out too, especially as our local politicians are the pits. (As in rubbish not bulls.) That's country life for you. She thinks that if you're a born and bred Londoner, you should have metropolitan voting rights for life. But she wouldn't have voted for Boris or Ken.

You're right about the alcohol thing as well. But it was in the air. When Ken was asked what he was going to do,if he lost, he said he would have 'a bloody good drink'. And then repeated it because the interviewer couldn't quite believe what they'd heard. (Ken's penchant for a drop of the hard stuff was beginning to be a bit of an embarrassment, so maybe the interviewer didn't think Ken would be so blatant or so foolish as to refer to it. . . )

So, win or lose, the London mayoral priority was to get smashed. Mum and I think London and Londoners deserve better.