Wednesday 13th May
Well, how was it for you – the Tory victory on May 7th? Were you like me, at first shocked, despondent and finally resigned, or did it pass you by? Are you one of those who feel that politics doesn’t matter? That all political parties are the same, perhaps – or on a more personal level that it won’t really affect you. Well, of course, I lived through 18 years of Tory rule and the sky did not fall in; we survived. But somehow the world became a bit meaner, a bit nastier; greed was good and society was not a collective endeavour but individual people looking after their own interests. And the country, generally prospered. Except….
In the sixties and seventies kids like me from poor working class backgrounds could and did do relatively well. There was massive social progression, huge changes in public opinion over racism and sexism and giant leaps forward in the idea that the future would be better for everyone. The mood now is far more defensive, protect your family, look after what you have got because there are hordes of less-fortunates just waiting to take it away. Or are we actually a happy nation, despite the Scots wanting more and more to be apart from us, despite massive poverty in certain inner cities, despite the huge rise in food banks (unheard of in the much ‘poorer’ sixties) and despite the disabled facing even more stringent ‘tests’ to see if they are fit to work.
Despite massive inflation, income tax at 33%, far too many strikes, the three day week and all I think that people were actually far happier in the sixties and seventies than they are today. And I wonder if this is a natural progression, that it would have happened whichever party was in power, that it is somehow an unstoppable movement in History, that we are all being swept along regardless, the rich getting massively richer and the poor – well the poor remaining poor of course.