There now follows a partyless political broadcast on behalf of the WannabeScot

When I started this, I did say it was to be light hearted with nothing contentious and I stick by that.  But really, there are limits.

It’s rant time. 

After a particularly exasperating drive to work, affording lots of time to listen to the news, the question has to be what on earth is going on back home in the UK?

Sitting in my sandy Dubai Tower gives me an interesting perspective of the UK. I do look forward to getting back to dear old Blighty.  I can’t think of anywhere else I would even consider retiring to, (well, possibly Margaret River in West Oz, but my liver wouldn’t thank me. All those vineyards). I love Scotland, it’s where we have our home and it definitely is where our heart lies and it’s where we will be someday.

My, perhaps outdated and slightly rose tinted view of Britain, is of a doughty country, well imbued with an innate sense of fair play, a large dollop of common sense and a stoic pragmatism. Yes, as far as we British were concerned, there is nothing that couldn’t be made better with a nice cup of hot, strong tea.   Well that’s definitely a thing of the past.  Give me some Jazz hands if you agree.

I mean what is that all about? Jazz hands, because applause is non inclusive and may cause anxiety?  Really?  Who thinks these things up?  And this from Manchester University.  British universities seem to be in terminal decline. What with safe spaces and trigger warnings?? Universities. They used to be forums for free speech, where established ideas could be challenged. Differing opinions were not only tolerated, but by and large expected and respected as this is what enables debate.  Some times this could be quite  heated debate but that was ok too. But now, our universities appear to have become homes for institutionalized intolerance of anything but the latest politically correct trendy ideas. Free speech is suppressed and anyone daring to challenge this is ‘no-platformed’  or accused of whatever phobia fits the bill. Homophobia is old hat.  Now it’s transphobia and good old racism is making a strong comeback hot on the heels of mysogeny. #metoo. What’s going to be next?

I know we shouldn’t be disparaging of the so called snowflake generation and their delicate sensibilities. But they make it so easy. It’s probably largely the fault of my generation.  Most things seem to be.  I guess I am a generation X. Coming after the baby boomers, Generation X is considered a bunch of largely apathetic, cynical skeptics. Doesn’t sound the best recipe to produce well adjusted offspring does it? And so now we have the millennium snowflake,  Generation Y .    I suspect we spoiled them too much as they were growing up.  They also arrived at a time when communications were changing the world we knew. Mobile phones appeared and are now embedded into society. Tablets, the World Wide Web, 24 hr tv with multiple channels, You Tube covering anything and everything and of course, the real biggy.  Social Media.

Nothing wrong with social media. It’s fine in moderation. But it’s not really moderated is it?  Wifey and I went to a stupidly expensive restaurant in the UK not long ago. We actually chatted to each other and enjoyed a very pleasant meal in each other’s company. Elsewhere in the dining room we noticed mobile phones were everywhere. There was much texting, taking of selfies and I assume much updating of status on facetwittergram to say how fab it all was to their world wide circle of followers.  However, there didn’t seem to be much social interaction going on in the actual restaurant. I think that’s sad. We have lost the art of face to face communication. It’s been replaced by texting,  tweeting, FaceTiming, Whatsapping and probably a few more I don’t even know about.  That can’t be a good thing can it?

It strikes me that this constant 24 hr access to social media, sharing your every waking thought; craving  ‘likes’ and ‘friends’ and ‘followers’ is actually very unhealthy and the source of much of the grievance culture prevalent in the snowflake generation.   Selfies of their peers, of the rich and famous and of their role models in exotic locations, with the latest designer must haves has to breed feelings of why not me? Why can’t I have that too?  There has always been ‘haves’ and ‘have’ nots.  There are probably more ‘haves’ now than ever before.  But in the past you only got the occasional glimpse of them and had to imagine what their world was like. Now it’s thrust down your throat 24/7.

Previously, unless you came from a wealthy family and inherited that wealth, you had to work. The idea was the harder you worked the more successful you became. Of course that not exactly true. Nurses work hard, as do teachers,  policemen, firemen, shop workers etc etc, but they are never going to become millionaires.  Luck, a good idea and the right opportunity or possibly all of the above are required. But it was and is possible to succeed in life, but it will generally require an awful lot of hard work.  My impression is that this current Generation don’t want the hard work bit. They just want to skip to the rich and famous bit.  You have it, we can see it and we want it otherwise it’s not fair.  A generalization I know, but does it not ring true?

I do empathize with them to some extent.  I want my offspring to own their own homes. They don’t yet and are going to struggle unless we help them and that’s pants all around. They see people becoming rich and famous. Not always by hard work but by setting out to be rich and famous on reality tv.  I still don’t get reality tv.  I watch tv to escape reality unless it’s a good David Attenborough nature spectacular. But we are in an era where it is possible to be rich and famous for …..nothing. Other than being famous and then rich. Weird.

So what do we do about it?  I haven’t a clue. But something has surely got to change.

Can’t just blame the snowflakes. Society in general seems to be less tolerant. Despite all this tosh about inclusivity, it seems to me we are far less tolerant than ever. The trans lobby seems to be particularly aggressive in its intolerance of anybody who just wants to ‘be’ and not be part of the trans lobby. A vicious tail wagging a docile dog. But they are being allowed to get away with it and are forcing society to reshape in the image they want and to hell with what anyone else wants, even if everyone else just happens to be the majority. Being different is the new normal and god help you if you want to just be you and normal. Thinking about it, god help God too.  Very unfashionable. Or at least where some religions are concerned. Being a white Anglo Saxon Christian makes you somehow  suspect. Maybe even a  little racist. Definitely a phobic  of some kind.  That said you can be as religious as you like providing it’s the right religion. Then we will defend your right to practice whatever you like. Tolerance, common sense, fair play?  See what I mean.

So what are our legislators doing about all this?  Oh dear That’s where it starts to get really, really bad.

Poor old Mother Theresa. I think she is well meaning and has an impossible task. She must hate Brexit with a passion.  Trouble is by trying to deliver a Brexit to keep everyone happy or at least away from each other’s throats in her fractious party, she is steering a mid ground that seems to be having the opposite effect. Everyone is hacked off.  It also makes it hard to figure out what she really believes in making her seem shallow and a bit false.  She shows the odd spark that we expect from a prime minister. But they are rare and short lived. Looking at the wider government, who could replace her?  They all seem to be a bunch of self serving arrogant half wits with not a statesman between them.  So is it time to kick them out and get a new government?   God no. Not at the moment. Her Majesty’s opposition under Mr Corbyn more resembles a student union pressure group than a government in waiting and as for their policies??

I lived through the 70’s. I remember rolling power cuts, rubbish piled high on the streets, the army manning green fire engines. 4 day working weeks, even 3 day weeks. Wouldn’t have minded that so much if it wasn’t for the fact no one had any money, the shops were closed and tv didn’t start until after tea time and went off before midnight – assuming there wasn’t a power cut first. All in all it was pants. Even made my life long labor supporting grandparents turn Tory. I was shocked, but not surprised.  And that’s what they seem to want for us all with their student union fantasy politics policies. A return to the good old days – for some, mainly them and their backers and total misery for the rest of us.

Lib Dems?  Under uncle Vince? As arrogant stuffed shirts go, he takes the biscuit. A more self important twerp I have yet to meet. I can forgive him a  lot,  but his arrogant dismissal of the leave voters in the 2016 referendum is too much.  That’s democracy chum. I may not like the outcome but I certainly don’t dismiss over half the electorate as uneducated bigoted racists who got it wrong because I don’t agree with them.  Tolerence, Respect and FairPlay?? Poooof. Gone.

At least it’ll be better in Scotland. But no. If anything it’s worse.  Scottish labour, once the only force in Scottish politics is completely out of touch and largely irrelevant as they transform themselves into a regional branch office for the Corbyn  party.  It seems like  a very long time since they presided over the first devolved Scottish parliament. Their doing so again looks a distant and fantastic dream at present. Poor old Richard Leonard.  I have never seen a man more out of his depth and wracked by self doubt.

Willie Rennie is another seemingly pleasant and well meaning but largely irrelevant individual in a largely irrelevant party.  Don’t even get me started on Harvie and his Green avengers.

And then there is Nicola’s SNP. At least no one can accuse St Nicola of hiding her principles. Her one overriding principle is Independence.  At the moment things are not going well so let’s take the easy road and look as though we are governing by issuing easy legislation. Let’s ban stuff.  Gets headlines, seems progressive and makes everyone’s life just a bit more miserable which is good, because then we can blame Westminister and the Tory’s.  Let’s ban, minimum pricing on booze. Lets ban smacking to discipline Children. Let’s ban 2 for 1 food deals and if we can figure out how to, let’s ban free poppadoms and prawn crackers too. And wolf whistling. It’s a hate crime you know.   So whilst policing, the NHS, schools, transport and infrastructure all go to hell, at least no hairy arsed builders will be able to express their misogynistic appreciation for an attractive possibly non binary pan sexual being with a pleasing disposition and visage.

As for the Scottish Conservative and Unionists. I like Ruthy babe. No, I really do. I mean she has it all. A seemingly normal, grounded and sincere pregnant lesbian Tory. Wow. I actually think she could be the best thing to happen to Scotland for a long time. Only she won’t be. Come on. It’s Scotland and she is a Tory, albeit a very able and likeable one. There is too much history and too little trust. Whatever the alternative, I simply can’t see her making it to Bute House.  Which is a shame.

Regardless of their flavor, one thing all of this shower, Scottish and Westminister based seem to have in common. A healthy disregard for the electorate. Rather than being in power to serve the people, you can’t help feeling the people are considered a bit of a nuisance. Just shut up and do as we tell you. Nanny knows best.

As I said, I love Scotland and Britain, but I really do despair at this lot. I think we all need as well as deserve much better, but I think we are going to have to wait for quite a long time before it happens.