Sunday, January 18, 2009

Gordon Brown, The Fencepost Tortoise

Taken from a comment in a previous post by regular commenter Travis Bickle...

While stitching up the hand of a 75 year old Devon farmer, who cut it on a gate while working cattle, the rural doctor struck up a conversation with the old man. Eventually the topic got around to Gordon Brown and his appointment as Prime Minister.

Well, you know," drawled the old farmer, "this Brown fellow is what they call a fencepost tortoise." Not being familiar with the term, the doctor asked him what a fencepost tortoise was. The old farmer said, "When you're driving along a country road and you come across a fence post with a tortoise balanced on top, that's called a fencepost tortoise."

The old farmer saw a puzzled look on the doctor's face, so he continued to explain, "You know he didn't get up there by himself, he definitely doesn't belong up there, he doesn't know what to do while he is up there, and you just have to wonder what kind of idiot put him up there in the first place.

(probably a very old story, but not one I can remember having heard, but very true nonetheless)

Many a true word...
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10 comments:

  1. AnonymousJanuary 18, 2009 8:51 pm

    Spot on.

    Tortoises are also reptiles - another similarity.

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  2. UnsworthJanuary 18, 2009 9:06 pm

    Not new - but entirely apposite.

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  3. Not a sheepJanuary 18, 2009 9:23 pm

    My that is an old joke, but still quite apposite.

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  4. Tory BoyJanuary 18, 2009 9:56 pm

    Even a tortoise has more charisma and has made more decisions than our beloved Prime Minister

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  5. AnonymousJanuary 18, 2009 10:11 pm

    Gordon off the fence?

    http://delivernothinglabourparty.blogspot.com/

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  6. Jonathan explains it allJanuary 18, 2009 11:19 pm

    This was used extensively about Sarah Palin in the recent U.S. Presidential election and has been badly adapted to fit The Scottish Prime Minister(it is bad luck to use his real name). Since when has a Devon farmer "worked cattle" or "drawled". Very poorly covered up plagiarism.

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  7. Martin SJanuary 18, 2009 11:27 pm

    Yes. Describes Mr Brown-Tortoise to a T.

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  8. AnonymousJanuary 19, 2009 12:09 am

    Nice picture of Mr Brown!

    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_VtzJPpPxkgw/SXOnBB5xi_I/AAAAAAAAAFM/k7G874tOg5k/s1600-h/Gordon+Brown+shell+shocked.jpg

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  9. AnonymousJanuary 19, 2009 8:15 pm

    must be that well known Devon gopher tortoise ...heh

    Jonathan nailed it !

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  10. AnonymousJuly 18, 2009 11:39 am

    Which also reminds me of the Marchmain's tortoise with the diamond set in its shell in Brideshead Revisited.

    When the question of what will happen when the tortoise dies arises, Mr Samgrass says: "Can't you just have another one fitted into the shell?"

    Again, a bit like New Labour.

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