Instant Gratification

Over my lifetime the world has moved on in ways I could not have imagined. I expect my parents generation felt exactly the same. It's a mixed picture, some things are much better, technology for example. Some have stayed the same like the disconnect between the rich & the poor. Some are worse I think, homelessness, the employment situation for the young & the NHS spring to mind.

One huge difference I see is the unrealistic expectation that our desires will be met instantly as a right. I think my post war generation was more stoic, self reliant & accepting. I think the majority of people did just get on with life. I don't think we had high expectations of what would be provided for us by the state. Support from the family, yes. From friends & neighbours too. But not handed to us by an overarching state. 

If that is what you want then someone has to pay - the only way, apart from credit card debt, is from taxes. So the tax system has to be fair & equitable. Data suggests the lowest income households may pay a disproportionately high percentage of their income in total taxes—including VAT and council tax—due to the regressive nature of consumption taxes. The tax system often treats unearned income (capital gains, dividends) more favorably than income from employment, which is seen as unfair to people who rely on wages rather than accumulated or inherited wealth. Although high for the UK, tax-to-GDP ratios remain below the average for many other advanced Western European economies.

Undoubtedly the ridiculously complex UK tax system needs complete overhaul & simplification. "Patriotic Millionairs" research shows that 9 in 10 UK millionaires are proud to live in Britain and three-quarters would be willing to pay more tax to ensure public assets get the funding they need. Great!

But the rest of us also need to understand that we need to let go of the idea that the State will provide. That we can have all the trappings of modern life - mobile phones, computers, huge TV's, disposable fashion, the latest kitchens & bathrooms...on demand. We need to go back to the idea of funding our own lifestyle according to our means. Yes we need to give help to the poor, the ill & the disposessed. But we need to accept that a welfare state cannot & should not fund huge, unrealistic sums of money.

There needs to be a contract between all of us, that as far as possible we will not expect instant gratification, state sponsored, funding. The state should be a safety net for people in real need. Things have got out of hand. We need to accept that some things take time to achieve & that is no bad thing. We need the basics. Everything over & above that is a bonus not a right.

  

We all need to see tax as a duty not something to be evaded at all costs. We all need to really believe in fair distribution of wealth.  

 

 

 

Icons

There have been a few people that I have hugely admired in my lifetime. Two obvious ones, Nelson Mandela of South Africa & David Attenborough of the UK. Both are men who have had vision & determination to effect change for the better in different spheres. Both have literally given their lives to their goals. Without ever meeting them, both seem to be truly remarkable & genuine people who care for others & the world around them. Both worked selflessly & tirelessly for the causes they espoused.

There are sporting icons, great actors, leaders, musicians, dancers. People who have worked exceptionally hard to achieve in their chosen field. It takes effort, dedication & sometimes privation. I admire many, but the ones I admire most are the ones who are prepared to speak out against injustice & wrong. Often that takes great bravery.

We are at a stage in the history & development of our world when we need more people who are prepared to do this. People who don't set out to be icons. They just follow a path of truth & justice wherever it leads.

We have a plethora of paper tigers, influencers, politicians, pedlers of lies & conspiracy theories. Their voices are heard, but they are not acting in our interests or the interests of the planet we live in. 

 

Then there are those who remain silent when they should speak out. If you see a wrong & do not act what sort of human being are you? Taking the easy way is not taking the right way. We may not all have the charisma to be an icon, but we can all openly support truth & justice. We can all influence the thinking of others by providing reputable sources & evidence to oppose lies & conspiracy theories. We can all stand up to bullies & loud voices trying to override the majority of decent people. 

We cannot expect someone else to do this for us. We cannot expect the problems of the world to be sorted out by someone else. Every voice & every action supporting fairness & right is important.

 

Tradition & Politics

I am not convinced that being tied to tradition is such a good thing. Theoretically traditions help create cultural identity, social cohesion & continuity. Really? There are British traditions which seem anachronistic to me, like Black Rod banging on the doors of an adversarial English parliament summoning MP's for the King's speech for example. Does that happen in Scotland or Wales? No wonder they want independence. I also seriously question the singing of Rule Britannia, Land of Hope & Glory & Jerusalem at the last night of the proms. To me they are outdated celebrations of colonialism in a multi ethnic & cultural society.

History is important if we learn the lessons that it teaches. But so much of what we should have learnt we haven't & we just repeat the same mistakes in a never ending "groundhog day", where tedious, monotonous or repetetive situations happen over & over. We are still a hierarchical, male dominated, class ridden, society according to the 2023 Great British Class Survey. 

https://revisesociology.com/2023/04/07/the-great-british-class-survey/

Elite (6% of the population): the most privileged class in Great Britain who have high levels of all three capitals which sets them apart from all other classes. Typical jobs include lawyers, doctors and higher-level managers. Much of their wealth is in property (they are typically home owners), and their income and wealth are double that of the next class down. Also one of the oldest classes in terms of age with an average age of 57.

Established Middle Class (25% of the population): members of this class have high levels of all three capitals although not as high as the Elite. They are a gregarious and culturally engaged class. Average age of 46.

Technical Middle Class (6%): a new class with high economic capital but seem less culturally engaged. They have relatively few social contacts and so are less socially engaged. Average age of 52.

New Affluent Workers (14%): this class has medium levels of economic capital and higher levels of cultural and social capital. They are a young and active group with an average aged of 44.

Emergent Service Workers (15%): a new class which has low economic capital but has high levels of ‘emerging’ cultural capital and high social capital. This group are the youngest class with an average age of 32 and are often found in urban areas.

Traditional Working Class (19%): this class scores low on all forms of the three capitals although they are not the poorest group. The oldest class with an average age of 66.

Precariat (15%): the most deprived class of all with low levels of economic, cultural and social capital. These are the most likely to rent and will typically be in unskilled temporary jobs, with an average age of 50.

  

The Precariat is new to me. How sad that we have had to create a new even lower class. 

 

Yesterdays election results just indicate to me how unhappy the British electorate is with the status quo. Populism or a different way forward seems to be what people want. I do think we need to really look at ourselves & compare what & who we are with Europe, Scandinavia & the rest of the world. We need to find a way to retain some good traditions & finally get rid of the ones that prevent us becoming more in tune with the challenges of todays scientific & technical world. 

 

If we don't I fear we will go the way of the Dinosaurs, because we will no longer be "fit for purpose" in todays fast moving world. 

 

 

Little Pleasures

Ageing means changing, adapting & accepting. Both mind & body change, which affects what you can & can't do. There are two ways of dealing with this, you can accept & modify, or you can refuse & fight it. Accepting & modifying does not mean giving in & becoming isolated, insular & self absorbed. It means knowing the things you cannot change or do and finding "work arounds". It is important not to just lay down & give in, but you do need determination to continue to live a good life, whatever the challenges. 

Several previous pleasures are no longer open to me because of pain, stiffness, fatigue & breathlessness. Hill walking is a long lost pleasure. Pacing is important because stamina is non existant. Gardening & housework are difficult & some things are even impossible. Showering & dressing is a challenge, either my arms are shorter or my legs are longer & I can't reach my feet! Sitting for extended periods in the theatre or cinema is painful. Cooking from scratch is painful & exhausting. Visiting art exhibitions is difficult & tiring. Walking for more than 5 minutes is a challenge. Walking & talking even more so....I could go on, but how boring would that be?

I do think that you have to accept some of the challenges of ageing. I also think that mindset is really important. If you only see the negative you become someone who is not a pleasure to be with. You become a "drain". Self absorbtion is not a pleasant characteristic. Always focussing on your conditions or the aspects of your life you don't like will not endear you to those around you.

So, providing you don't have a terminal condition, (although we all do in a way), or you aren't suffering from a really serious illness, I think you have to be aware & outward looking. You have to find the things that give you pleasure. Little pleasures like enjoying good food & not eating rubbish. Finding a way of keeping fit you enjoy, (I love swimming). Keeping interested in what is going on with family & friends & the world. (You are not the centre of the Universe). Listening to the radio, (I love Radio 4).  Volunteering & helping others, (beneficial because you are actually meeting people). Doing things to keep your mind active & distracting you from the day to day difficulties of life - Puzzles, reading, games like solitaire & mahjong on an Ipad or phone....

I think I am saying look honestly at your thoughts & personality. Would you want to spend time with yourself? Yes, if you live alone I know you do most of the time. But would you enjoy a conversation with yourself? Are you interested in other people, new things, events in the world, life itself? Or are you trapped in a mindset that has unrealistic expectations of others & is negative about everything & everyone?

Actually, I don't think this is just about ageing. It's about just being a nice human being & really valuing how lucky you are in small ways. Accentuate the positive, a song from 1945, the year I was born. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3jdbFOidds&t=60s 

 

Women & Religion

I went to college in Cockfosters North London. It was close to Barnet & Finchley, a Jewish area, & I used to baby sit for Jewish families to earn money to see me through college. 

Orthodox Jewish religious law says that women should cover their hair when in the presence of men other than their husband or close family members. This can be a scarf, hat or wig. Not all Jews are orthodox. 10 - 15% are, with most in Israel. But the population is growing faster because of high birth rates - projections suggest 1 in 5 by 2040. Israels orthodox Jews, particularly the ultra orthodox Haredim, are growing rapidly & follow strict interpretations of Jewish law (Halakha), often living in segregated communities, wearing distinctive, traditional clothing, and focusing heavily on religious study. Women are not confined but they are expected to dress and behave modestly in public. When I was in Israel & the West Bank it was easy to see who were the orthodox Jews. They are very distinctive.

Muslim women are instructed to dress modestly, covering their entire body except for the face & hands, to honor principles of piety and privacy. This usually involves wearing loose-fitting clothing that does not reveal the body's shape and a headcovering (hijab), though interpretations vary regarding the strictness of covering. I have travelled in the Middle East extensively & always felt very uncomfortable seeing the women covered from head to toe in black flowing robes, often made of polyester. I adopted the covering rule, but wearing lightweight cotton & was still uncomfortably hot. In Yemen I was spat at & harrangued because my headscarf had slipped showing a little hair. But that was fairly isolated, most Middle Eastern countires were really hospitable.

Christians are not as focussed on modesty in women, but Amish, Mennonites, and some Catholic or Orthodox traditions encourage modest dress (e.g., covering shoulders, long skirts, head coverings). Historically, women wore chapels veils or head coverings

Hinduism & Sikism also emphasise modesty in women, hijab in Hindu traditions & humility with garments like the ghunghat or chunni often covering the head. 

Ostensibly many faiths use head coverings to symbolize humility and submission to God or higher spiritual authority. Additionally supposedly covering curbs the male gaze & disrupts objectification signalling the woman is not available.

I have a real difficulty in accepting that this fairly universal religious treatment of women is anything other than a form of patriarchal control and a means to blame women for male behavior. Some interpretations suggest the historical, cultural roots was to mark women as "respectable" (owned by a man) versus "unrespectable" (uncovered). 

There is argument as to whether the bible or the quran actually unambiguously requires women to cover their hair & bodies. The interpretation of the texts has been done by men. Men have dominated religion for milennia. I remember being in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela after travelling the Way of St James. The only woman among a lot of clergy, in embroidered robes, officiating at the service, was a nun, in a plain grey habit, who led the singing. 

Some religions have become more female friendly, but there is still has a long way to go. Mary Magdalene was a prominent disciple of Jesus & was told by him to announce his resurrection according to the bible. But she has largely been dismissed as a prostitute rather than a model for redemption. 

Until religion really treats women in the same way as men & gives them equal standing, freedom & power in all ways I will continue to feel that, at it's roots, religion is misogynistic.

 

Therapy

I swim 3 or 4 times a week. Even if I feel rubbish I still go because I know that when I've swum I will feel better in both mind & body. Half an hour, 26 x 25m lengths of back crawl, and I'm physically freer & mentally relaxed. 

We all have to find ways to deal with 21st century life. Many of us have to find ways to deal with physical or mental issues. Having tried both conventional medicine & many alternative therapies for pain & fatigue, I do know what works for me & what doesn't. Having also had thankfully few periods of quite severe depression, I also know how that feels & what to do & what not to do. 

For example I am a great believer in osteopathy & chiropractic. I feel that practitioners know far more about the skeleton & muscles than GP's. That is not to denigrate GP's, they are what the name implies - general practitioners. Their job is to signpost where patients go next & hopefully give some relief. I also believe in accupuncture, good nutrition & the right exercise. Distraction technique & pacing works for me as well.

I feel that we all need to be aware of our bodies & take responsibility for our own health. Some things are very difficult, if not impossible to cure. So you do have to learn to live with some things. You also have to accept that you will die. That isn't being dismissive, it's being realistic. Sometimes our expectations of what the NHS can & should do are unrealistic. It isn't a cure all for everything. Sometimes life is just a bitch. 

I feel that we all need to be more pro active about our health. We should know if anything we are doing or not doing is contributing to illness. The information is out there, we just have to access it. We need to take responsibility for ourselves & not expect the "state" to solve our problems. There are limitations to what can & should be done for us. We need to be prepared to make changes to our habits if they are harming us. That really isn't easy. I doubt I will ever grow to love the Gym.

I think there needs to be a clearly understood contract between individuals & medics. Also between the NHS & the State. We all need to know what is possible & what is not & who is responsible for providing or not providing it. Our expectations are sometimes simply not realistic. Unless we are all prepared to pay more for the NHS it will continue to fall short of our expectations. 

As of December 2024, the NHS in England employed approximately 1.5 million staff. It is the largest employer in the country. As of July 2025, there were 6,229 open and active GP practices in England. As of early 2024, there were over 700 hospitals operating, (excuse the pun), in England. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) professions are not subject to mandatory state regulation, so it is difficult to pinpoint an exact number of alternative therapists in England. The NHS generally recommends only evidence-based complementary therapies such as acupuncture for chronic pain (headaches, migraines, back pain), and manual therapies like chiropractic or osteopathy. They are expensive & not many practices provide them. You can get free, confidential therapy on the NHS, primarily for anxiety and depression, through NHS Talking Therapies (formerly IAPT). Options include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), counselling, and guided self-help for those aged 18+ registered with a GP. But there are long waiting lists. 

 

We seem to be a sick society. Approximately 2.8 million working-age people in the UK are economically inactive due to long-term sickness. Everyone needs to feel that they are valued & contributing. Everyone needs the social benefits of working with colleagues. Being isolated & without purpose is not good for us. The NHS is struggling to cope & is a political football. We all need to look after our own health. 

   

Dear God.....

Although I don't believe you are sitting there in heaven, at the pearly gates, waiting to tell me whether I can come in or not, I do think there is some sort of amazing grand design to the universe. I do believe there are lots of things we do not know or understand. I do have a spiritual side to my personality.

So, hedging my bets, I'm hoping that you will read this & maybe get your act together to sort out the mess we, so called sentient beings, have made of this wonderful world we live in. We have royally f..... it up.

I don't want to be vindictive, but there are so many people today who are really not following your directions about how we should live. Personally I wouldn't just consign them to hell. I'm really not into burning & torture, although it is possible that they deserve it. But really, couldn't you just send a thunderbolt or lightening to take them out painlessly & quickly? Surely that isn't beyond a god? I could easily give you a list in case you haven't noticed, or are really busy? Maybe you don't you think it's your job to re-balance good & evil?

 

Another thing that might help get us out of the deep s... we are in is if you could send a few more really intelligent, curious, caring babies to grow into people who might just help us accept that we know what the problems are & in many cases we know what the solutions are. We just need to actually do what is necessary & b..... quickly. I can't believe that this "tipping point" "end of the world" scenario is what you had in mind. Or maybe you think the natural world will just be better off without us? Armageddon & all that. But that does seem a bit drastic for a god.

That leads us to religion, god. Did you really intend there to be so many different monotheistic & polytheistic, male dominated, faiths? They just end up arguing & even warring. That doesn't seem like a good plan for a god to me. Did you think it through? If you are really omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent, surely you could have worked all of this out? I would have thought you didn't even need to do a risk analysis, can't a god see the future? I suppose you thought choice would be a good thing for us. But it really hasn't worked, has it? It's like the supermarket aisle with dozens of yoghurts to choose from. We just end up glazed over & confused.

I'm really not sure we are going to be able to sort this out for ourselves. I do think you should consider stepping in. My grandchildren & children everywhere deserve a non distopian future. 

Just give it some thought. But don't hang about. We don't have centuries.

 

Inspiration from Greenpeace "Letters Live" @ the Royal Albert Hall on April 22nd.