The Peasants are Revolting!!!

AD1381, and the peasants of England were getting a bit upset with their rulers. In the Essex village of Fobbing, they were so upset that they forcibly evicted the visiting tax collector. So started the Peasants Revolt.

Fast forward to today. An on-line petition, on the government's own web site, had over 1.6 million signatories rejecting the notion of even greater 'stealth taxes' intended for the motorist. Notably, that of charging the driver to use public roads. The Prime Minister has already made it clear that he will ignore the call from a sizeable proportion of the country, for no such tax, and that he will enforce any damn tax he choses to foist upon us.

Back to 1381 again. The taxes that had caused so much contention, went to the funding of the continuing war against the French. This might have gained some sympathy then, and probably would now, but the problem was that this particular tax was regressive in nature. The authorities had deemed it fair that the highest in the land should pay the same as the lowest. One shilling!

Any road charging, that this government intends to introduce, will mean that the richest can continue to travel with little meaningful inconvenience, whilst us mere peasants will have our travels restricted by the grasping minions of New Labour. We will all pay the same, despite income or need.

Once again, as I have written before, this government fails to learn the lessons of history. Those revolting peasants murdered the three establishment figures considered most culpable; Simon Sudbury, the Archbishop of Canterbury and Robert Hales (the King's Treasurer).

Now, I'm not advocating that we all descend on London and 'top' the Prime Minister and Chancellor in a fit of pique. But what is clear, from the ICM poll today, is that Gordon Brown's reign will be a short one indeed! No doubt, both Blair and Brown will be calling us, the plaebian electorate, revolting.