The day the wall came down – There are events that take place that we just remember. Some of them maybe do shock or surprise, especially at a young age. I remember Elvis passing away in 77, and Lennon in 80 just before my birthday. I remember Thatcher coming to power and the recession in 1980 that lasted for years and destroyed Scotland. There was Dunblane and the shock of that, I had just started my first post-Uni post based in a Primary School that very week. Of course, we have had 9/11 and 7/7, as well as, Covid-19.
But there have been events that I remember bringing with them a degree of hope. The first one for me was Live Aid in 85, the start of my political awakening in so many ways. The big ones that provided real hope were the Berlin Wall coming down in 1989 that signaled the end of the Cold War and the Nuclear threat that had always been there, another would be Nelson Mandela being released from Prison in South Africa in 1990, hope at last. September 2014 also being a day of hope that while it ended in sadness there was optimism that Scotland had changed, that real change was in sight, we just needed to reach out and take it.
Hope.
You might be wondering what is this about, what is he banging on about? Well, Lorncal commented on the blog yesterday and it got me thinking about hope, and the lack of hope I feel right now in so many ways, for Scotland, the UK, the EU, the wider world I guess.
Both hard left and hard right are a menace in their own ways, although their totalitarian approach often converges, and we are probably going to see a shift towards the right here in the UK, and in Scotland, even if that is New Labour. I’m no fan of extreme right or extreme left, and the stupid hard left always pushes things too far, allowing the hard right a foothold. They thought they could sneak their insanity in, under the radar via their Denton’s document. (Lorncal)
Events like the Berlin Wall, Live Aid, even going back as far as Tommy Sheridan, and the Anti-Poll Tax march in Glasgow demonstrate what we can achieve when we use the power we have by sheer numbers and determination to bring about change. I wonder where that hope has gone now, on reflection have I just been grasping at hope in the face of what appears the inevitable state of things right now. The Public Order Bill passed into law just a few weeks ago to protect the good and great brought in thought crime, just the act of the Police knowing you might attend a protest is now enough to detain and arrest you whether you protest or not, wow.
Even blogging gets harder and more difficult as we go around in circles talking about the same things and the betrayal of us all from all of the politicians but in particular the Scottish Labour Party and the SNP. When I read the blogs, and think about my own little blog it feels like we are circling the wagons against a growing right-wing nightmare that we appear unable to stop, and that far too many people are either indifferent about, welcome as we have seen with Tory votes down south, or are plain ignorant to what is going on around them and are more interested in the sex life of Philip Schofield, it is all so sad.
There is hope though, a tiny little bit I guess, I read Pete Bells blog yesterday and thought that provided hope. Robin McAlpine provides hope, either way, though Lorncal is correct the extremes of left with things like GRR and right with the Hate Crime Bill and Public Order Bill are issues that when put all together should be frightening all of us and especially those that will come after us. The shift to the right in Scotland, the UK, the USA, Turkey, Isreal, the proxy war in Ukraine, and the profiteering of the cost of living crisis should be a real wake-up call to all of us.
How we get the message out there I don’t know when there is no media or real journalism nationally anymore but something has to give and soon. We face a crisis on every front, environment, freedoms, living standards, it’s a long list and those of us in the middle I guess have to try to keep going as best we can even though it is tiring, and in many ways depressing.
The one good thing in it all is that independence is holding up against the drop in popularity of the SNP. The moral? When in politics, never go for the easy option because it will not remain the easy option for long. (Lorncal)
Time will tell where we all end up I guess but the wall can come down, we need that tipping point right now and the politicians to bring it about. The current lot is not the answer and I know before I vote the next time I will have a serious look if there is no one to vote for that is willing to go all the way it will be a spoiled paper for me, maybe that is part of the answer, none of the above.
Just some personal reflection, not very uplifting, just trying to keep going as best I can by thinking out loud.