Useful Idiots

From time to time, the Maltese simpleton is treated most generously to the wit and wisdom of a enlightened foreigner, more often than not an English pensioner from Blackburn. Occasionally, the topic of their letters to the Times will have something to do with Malta, though this is hardly mandatory. Indeed, the letters page of the Times is usually is a surrogate for their own British newspapers, which would not dream of printing these senile ramblings. On Thursday, Gerry Cowie from Surrey wrote in on the flimsy pretext of having recently visited Malta to rail against the evil of political correctness. As the completely sane Mr. Cowie argues:

Here, political correctness has gone mad in some spheres. While Britain has welcomed those of other faiths with open arms and allowed freedom of speech and freedom of worship, there are still people who would stifle Christian expression with the excuse that we must not cause offence to those of other faiths, no matter who got here first!

Sadly for Mr. Cowie, this sits uncomfortably with a more sensible, if overlong, letter from Stephen Farrugia, who lives in Ilmspan, Germany. Farrugia discusses what he perceives to be the growing scourge of racism on the island. It is sad that it has taken Lowell and his pathetic band of eunuchs for the Maltese to come to terms with the latent racism that has always existed in the country. I cannot imagine that there is a single person in Malta who has not at some time or other witnessed or taken part in a base display of xenophobic contempt towards some unfortunate Libyan, most of whom are respectable law-abiding people.

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On a lighter note Louis J. Bartoli of Iklin writes to complain about the slowness of Maltese postal services:

I am interested to know how Maltapost plc can explain why a letter I posted at 7 a.m. on January 3 in Iklin was delivered to a Balzan address, hardly two kilometres away, on January 6.

What I'm interested in knowing is why he couldn't just deliver this letter by hand, if its recipient was damned close to him. It's a shame this letter ever got to the newspaper. Mind you, if it hadn't that would have been something to write about. Except the letter would not have got to the newspaper. Louis Bartoli's life must be a never-ending hell of possibilities.