This past weekend marked the culmination of a curious week in London. Called the Big Dance, it sought to get people dancing en masse in the streets for the purpose of 'promoting dance as a social and physical activity.'

Call me a killjoy, but I find this idea weak—minded. It strikes me as exceedingly silly that we should hop about like an army of monkeys in the streets of this venerable city.

It is rather telling that the event was organized by two ultra—liberal outfits — the Mayor of London and the Arts Council of England. The Big Dance happens to be precisely the sort of idea that liberals and assorted leftists find infinitely profound and appealing. The more perceptive may have noticed that there can be nothing silly or inane enough which these people would not embrace with awe and enthusiasm. Said London Mayor Ken Livingstone:

'As a city where 300 languages are spoken, London is the world in one city. Every culture dances and the great thing is you don't have to speak another language to understand it.'

These words of wisdom come from the same man who is trying to impose a $50 congestion charge for SUVs driving through central London. It is now widely recognized that the congestion scheme which the mayor instituted three years ago has had bad consequence for business. But as a good leftist Livingstone is wholly oblivious to the disastrous results of his policies and seeks to further enlarge the scope of his failure.

Londoners, however, should not be too angry with their mayor, since he has also provided a means of coping with the pain and hardship resulting from his misguided schemes — by jumping around in the streets.

Vasko Kohlmayer    7 25 06