Today’s press leaves me supremely uninspired.

More than faintly disgusted with John Reid, faintly amused at Nick Clegg’s comparing him to Alf Garnett, but not shocked enough by ‘tough talk’ segueing into bigotry to rant about it. Likewise ‘Tory front-bencher sparks race row with “black bastards” gibe’ and ‘PC admits using “brute force” to arrest woman’. So far, so depressingly routine.

Camilla Cavendish in The Times caught my eye though, with ‘Will someone look beyond their nose?’ This is the latest of several recent musings on short-termism. My first encounter with the subject was a speech by David Willetts MP on intergenerational fairness. The essential point was crystallised in the idea that no one these days can resist a biscuit now in order to achieve two biscuits later. We live in a culture of instant-gratification, live-now-pay-later, high-yield, selfish short-termism. Our children are miserable, our government will not commit to genuine, sustainable climate change policies, consultation is substituted for change on infrastructure and the personal debt storm is building, ready to break over our heads. Etc, etc.

All this may seem to have little to do with today’s big story on Lords reform but the slow progress of democracy does give me some hope. When a 700 year old, previously unassailable edifice of undemocratic privilege finally falls, with overwhelming support for a wholly elected second chamber, it demonstrates a recognition that long-term change is possible. It remains to be seen whether anyone can translate the idea from revising the past into preserving the future.

Also in the news:

• Brown plumps himself down on the other side of the fence to Cameron on family policy.
• The Telegraph officially becomes the most depressing read today as Professor David Coleman defends MigrationWatch and the readership defends Prof. Coleman.