A moo point, basically …

Here’s Bill Bryson in “Notes from a Small Island” talking about Britain and Communism -

It has long seemed to me unfortunate – and I’m taking the global view here – that such an important experiment (Communism) in social organization was left to the Russians when the British would have managed it so much better. All those things that are necessary to the successful implementation of a rigorous socialist system are, after all, second nature to the British For a start, they like going without. They are great at pulling together, particularly in the face of adversity, for a perceived common good. They will queue patiently for indefinite periods and accept with rare fortitude the imposition of rationing, bland diets and sudden inconvenient shortages of staple goods, as anyone who has ever looked for bread at a supermarket on a Saturday afternoon will know. They are comfortable with faceless bureaucracies and, as Mrs. Thatcher proved, tolerant of dictatorships. They will wait uncomplainingly for years for an operation or the delivery of a household appliance. They have a natural gift for making excellent jokes about authority without seriously challenging it, and they derive universal satisfaction from the sight of the rich and powerful bough low. Most of those above the age of twenty-five already dress like East Germans. The conditions, in a word, are right.

It manages to poke fun at Communism, Britain, Russia, East Germans and a whole lot of things without being offensive, and conveys something which seems so obvious in hindsight – writing at its supreme best.