Hi Jim, how ya been, you old rascal
I see we still agree on many things chap. The problem is that us old 'uns see the issues confronting our country now in all their ugly, stark reality....or so it seems to us. The younger generations were by and large weaned on the madness of the 'politically correct' way of seeing things...but is that better...or worse? What is or is not acceptable is now an utterly different beast to the one you and I grew up with...and are we certain which version is the right one? It goes without saying that each side in this debate sees their opinions as being the way forward...time will tell mate.
What IS a fact though is that we now live in an age of excuses. Whatever wrongdoings...or poor life choices others take...whatever the huge problems being caused by greed, laziness, stupidity, overindulgence....or the horrors resulting from the desensitising effects of things now available to all on the internet etc...or the just plain evil in people we see ever more of now...we just seem to trot out an ever expanding set of excuses as to why it is not the fault of the person/persons concerned/involved. Whatever else...I am fairly certain that no good will come of that nonsense.
Cheers, Dave.
Seems about right to me Dave. Personal responsibility, accountability, integrity and a genuine willingness to do your very best and contribute something to your community and society in general. All have become rather blurred and out of shape. They may seem almost outdated sentiments but they should be the spine of any community, irrespective of how sophisticated and technologically evolved that community has become.
Perhaps we are currently experiencing a transition. In the same way that the birth of the railways and motorised forms of transport may have done-ultimately expanding our horizons and bringing other communities within reach. Currently, communities have become far more diverse in their form and the pace of change is rapid. There are upsides of course and I love some of the technogy changes we see and that sense that little is fixed and everything can be challenged in terms of what is possible. And perhaps somewhere,in there, is part of the issue for large, often disaffected elements of our world. Trying to make snense of where you fit into this expanding world of ours can, for many, lead to total disengagement and rebellion (in all its forms).
Progression is so central to human nature because of its power to protect and ensure survival that when that path of progression shifts and accelerates I think we have to expect casualties-the disaffected and disengaged.
Of course we employ politicians to elevate themselves above the day to day to make sense of it all and ultimately act as our collective moral conscience and ensure that we keep honest to the core values that the majority of us would hope to live by. But sometimes that process can breakdown....
I sometimes look back at some of the letters I have received over the years to remind me how mad we seem to have become:
"If the best things in life are free, how come the ten pints of lager and chicken madras I had on Saturday night, which were fuc*ing great, cost me nearly 40 quid?" HRH Harry Windsor
"SO the chairman of Yorkshire Water washes his hands, groin and feet using one cupful of water? Big deal! I can clean my whole body, including my arse, using only my tongue, and no water at all. Mind you, I'm a cat." Tiddles, Weybridge.
