Jacqui Janes - Counterfactual

Enough - more than enough - has been written about Mrs Janes, Mr Brown and their hugely public spat. But CF can't resist just one more look at this, from a slightly different angle.

Imagine if the story had started in a different way. Imagine a parallel universe, where things panned out ever-so-slightly differently.

Imagine if Jacqui Janes, on receiving that letter, was very moved by the personal touch and decided to ignore the spelling and focus on the sentiment.

Imagine if she had decided that her son had died fighting to defend his nation, and that these thanks from the nation's leader were heartfelt and entirely appropriate.

Imagine if the emotion that dominated within her was one of tearful gratitude.

Much as you may disagree with the above - and CF certainly does - you can see how easily that could happen, in this parallel universe. Jacqui could easily have come down on the other side of the fence.

Had Mrs Janes thought all of that, she would doubtless have told family, friends and neighbours. The story would have spread. Perhaps the local press might have got wind of this tearful gratitude.

Had that happened, the never-sleeping, always-hungry Labour PR sharks would certainly have found out, and leaped on the opportunity, grabbing and spinning for all they were worth.

A Labour-friendly national newspaper - probably the Mirror - would have been fed this, and promptly made it a front page story: 'Gordon's words to Brave Mum'.

The letter would have been shown, evidence of the PM's very personal concern. Other bereaved mums would have been found, trotted out to say how moved they had been by their letters.

Sarah Brown would have tweeted about this 'brave, noble' mother, and how her 'marvellous' husband had 'reached out' to her. A twitter campaign, #godBlessGordon, driven by Labour's tireless astroturfers, would have quickly followed.

A 'phone call would have been arranged - this time recorded at the Downing Street end. The transcript would have been passed to the Mirror, and made a second day of front page news. The bereaved mother's tearful words, and Gordon Brown, his voice cracking with emotion, trying clumsily to comfort her.

Psychologists on numerous television sofas would have reminded us over and over again that Gordon too had lost a child, and that was why he could empathise so very well.

Mrs Janes would have been invited to Downing Street for tea with Sarah Brown, and photographed on the doorstep with her: 'Two brave Mums, united in sorrow'.

CallMeDave and the Tories would have stood mute, teeth clenched with frustration, on the sidelines as the circus rolled on, unable to call this for what it really was, not daring to be seen to be criticising a poor bereaved mum.

Polly Toynbee would have wittered on for thousands of words about the new 'human face' of the beloved Brown, and how perhaps, after all - changing her mind for the 50th time - he was the man to lead the nation into a bright new dawn.

Many of us would have blogged angrily about the cynicism of this, about how the use of a soldier's death for political purposes was totally unacceptable. We would have been wasting our time. The right-wing blogosphere would have been dismissed as 'nasty' and anti-our-boys.

It would, eventually, have been leaked that the unfortunate soldier had actually died owing to lack of equipment, but this would be relegated to page 12, lost in the general positive uproar and relentless spinning of the slick Labour PR machine.

How easily this could have been a nauseating triumph for Labour spin.

How easily Mrs Janes could have been the poster girl for caring new Labour, a platform for Gordon's comeback, had she just made up her mind slightly differently.

And that, Gordon; that, Mandlesnake-crying-on-the-Today-programme; that all you left-leaning, Labour-puffing media puppets, is why you really can't complain when for once the tide goes against you, and you get your nasty interfering little fingers caught in the spin machinery.

Can you?


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