A Notion of Patriotism
London.
A second reason, however, was that I am indebted to the British welfare state; the very one that Mr Cameron would like to replace with charity handouts. When my life hit rock bottom, that safety net, threadbare though it had become under John Major’s Government, was there to break the fall. I cannot help feeling, therefore, that it would have been contemptible to scarper for the West Indies at the first sniff of a seven-figure royalty cheque. This, if you like, is my notion of patriotism."
-- J.K. Rowling, on her reasons for not decamping for a tax haven after the success of Harry Potter, in the Times.
*(Her anti-Tory op-ed "The Single Mother's Manifesto," is well worth a read. Other gems: "If Mr Cameron’s only practical advice to women living in poverty, the sole carers of their children, is 'get married, and we’ll give you £150,' he reveals himself to be completely ignorant of their true situation. How many prospective husbands did I ever meet, when I was the single mother of a baby, unable to work, stuck inside my flat, night after night, with barely enough money for life’s necessities? Should I have proposed to the youth who broke in through my kitchen window at 3am?'")
