This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/mar/21/in-praise-dates-diary-editorial

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
In praise of … dates in the diary In praise of … dates in the diary
(6 months later)
Gridlocked as American democracy is, the certainty that a new Congress will be elected on 4 November 2014 and a new president on 8 November 2016 somehow fosters confidence that it will grind out a future. As David Runciman points out in the London Review of Books, the presidential timetable has survived one civil and two world wars. But in commitment-phobic Britain, election 2001 was postponed by a less-than-lethal disease among cows. Our historic aversion to getting dates in the diary has done our politicians no good. James Callaghan and Gordon Brown both paid a price for pratting about with elections that never were. Time will tell whether the coalition's sensible fixed five-year term sticks, but Thursday's announcement that Scotland's independence vote will take place on 18 September 2014 increases confidence that it will happen – and frees the country to debate something more substantial than the timing.Gridlocked as American democracy is, the certainty that a new Congress will be elected on 4 November 2014 and a new president on 8 November 2016 somehow fosters confidence that it will grind out a future. As David Runciman points out in the London Review of Books, the presidential timetable has survived one civil and two world wars. But in commitment-phobic Britain, election 2001 was postponed by a less-than-lethal disease among cows. Our historic aversion to getting dates in the diary has done our politicians no good. James Callaghan and Gordon Brown both paid a price for pratting about with elections that never were. Time will tell whether the coalition's sensible fixed five-year term sticks, but Thursday's announcement that Scotland's independence vote will take place on 18 September 2014 increases confidence that it will happen – and frees the country to debate something more substantial than the timing.
Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning.