Magna Carta, David Starkey and Fracking

All this David Starkey
malarkey
About Magna Carta,
The Great Charter,
And Life, Liberty and Property;

I saw him on the telly,
With his usual pomposity,
But without a hint of irony,
As he talked of ending tyranny;

For as a consequence of fracking,
Our homes now face ransacking,
And so pockets can be lined,
Our homes are undermined.

An English home is your castle?
Why, that’s oh so medieval –
Magna Carta’s not for us,
Our basements turn to dust.

Oh brave new world that has such mining in it.

1066 And All That

Here are a few of the comments of Sellar and Yeatman, from their 1930 classic, on Magna Charter (‘on account of the Latin Magna (great) and Charter (a Charter)’):

1. That no one was to be put to death, save for some reason – (except the Common People).
2. That everyone should be free – (except the Common People).
3. That everything should be of the same weight and measure throughout the Realm – (except the Common People).
4. That the Barons should not be tried except by a special group of other Barons who would understand.

Magna Charter was therefore the chief cause of Democracy in England, and thus a Good Thing for everyone (except the Common People).

And, for 2015:

1. That no one’s home should be subject to fracking – (except the Common People).