Universal suffrage and the voting age

It is a fundamental of the UK voting system that most seats in Parliament are inexorably tied to one party. What follows can only apply to the remaining minority.

Daily, the ‘creatureness’ of the Westminster Creatures becomes more apparent to the voter-citizen. Daily it becomes clear that MPs represent an alien sub-species. But the uninspected belief that party politics is the only way to effective governance (democracy takes a little longer) feeds the continuance of the ‘rosette ploy’ at general election: vote rosette, get creature. Under this system, what is the likelihood that an average voter has made sound judgement of the aspirant MP, lurking under the rosette? Currently the minimum age to vote is 18, and there are moves afoot to reduce it to 16. These are embryonic, institutionalised school-children! And MPs are devious, manipulative power-cravers. Only party politics would seek to gerrymander the ‘borders of age’!

Only Westminster Creatures would presume to calculate an advantage accruing to their party from such change! However, just review the stunts Dave has pulled so far (we will try to forget Tony’s appalling acts) and the full horror of the ultimate creature-mind becomes apparent.

But, beneath it all lies universal suffrage. What immutable Cosmic Law says ‘all must have votes’ (except those disenfranchised on various grounds)? Incompetence can be a legal bar to voting, but only a very narrow sort. All the ‘incompetents’ scattered across the nation, who may not drive a car, fly a plane, tinker with someone’s brain or teach in a state school, may vote, simply by virtue of breathing.

Is it me?