Fair enough. These folk are all named.
"We have talked to scientists, academics, doctors, emergency planners, public officials and politicians about the root of the crisis and whether the government should have known sooner and acted more swiftly to kick-start the Whitehall machine and put the NHS onto a war footing."
), but I wouldn't want him in a senior position in this either.
Yep. A government that will not or can not govern is not a government.
)
He didn't say we had over-reacted; he said that some people (so called 'experts' of one kind or another, I guess) are saying that we over-reacted.
I'm going to stick mine out as well then, as this is the appropriate thread for such things. Society has changed massively from the one I was born in and grew up in during the 1970's and 1980's. Community spirit and social conscience are not what they are. A lady that wasn't for turning started it. What patriotism there is has veered toward nationalism. It'll be interesting if what's now occurring alters anything in regards to the course The UK was headed toward in regards to its existential future, but that's an aside. We now live in a selfish, self absorbed, individualistic society where people will not take diktats as they would have done in the past. For example, my brother is a teacher and he tells me at his school they have to ask parents permission now to put a kid in detention?! I remember getting a hard back smacked on my head by my teacher in my last year of primary school! I know which world I prefer. My opinion on why some of this has led us to here, is as follows:
35+ years of vilifying people on benefits, and the journey toward Universal Credit and a system designed to hassle people into work, not provide support. This has been done by both left and right - 'I'm alright Jack' Sun readers and sneering Guardian readers are both to blame. Benefit fraud = front page news in this country. Too many people therefore are looked down on by both society and the state. They are made to feel lesser equals. Too many people grow up with the ambition of simply wanting to win the lottery or marry a footballer. What is the state and society to a lot of people now? Why should they care?
The internet, social media and smartphones = a more selfish, self absorbed, individualistic society. That was inevitable sadly.
The years of austerity and what that has done to public services and their capability to deal with the current crisis. People voted for this, as you say though. They want Scandinavian style public services, but they 'aint paying for it or voting for anyone who might propose doing it.
The populism of Brexit that has now dominated the life of this country over the last 5 years has unfortunately in my opinion played a part in this and the seeds of that came from austerity too - Don't listen to the experts. Don't listen to The PM or every other former living PM. Don't listen to every other world leader, bar Putin and Trump. Don't listen to the CBI or The TUC - you believe what you want and you vote and decide what you want, because you know best. Now it's listen to the experts because they know best, stay indoors, do this, do that, listen to the politicians who told you 4 years not to listen because although you knew best then, now you don't. (I can't believe, because that's all I have to do now, that Macron threatening to close the border jolted Johnson into the lock-down, because it was never going to be an issue due to Brexit, was it? Johnson said so himself. It's just the French media telling lies. I only watch RT and don't trust the MSM now. I know best you see and I use the term 'woke'
So many people didn't see this coming because they weren't being told. You only had to look south at France, Spain and Italy, but hey ho - keep clam and carry on because we're British, don't you know. Now they have and despite this being unprecedented, plenty of people think they know best and think they know how this will play out. It'll all be fine in a couple of months v we're completely doomed forever. People stuck in high rise flats v people who live in a very big house in the country etc, etc - so many things to divide us v something that could actually unite us. So many imponderables.
So in the grand scheme of things, based on the few reasons I've given above and the general state of Westminster and the quality of politicians now compared to those back in the yonder, because frankly who the hell would want to go into politics after the last few years and the overall state of this country as a whole, I agree with you. For what it's worth, I do actually love The Queen, but her speech 2 weeks would be wasted on too many people now. It wouldn't have been in the past - that's the sad thing, but we are where we are.
Anyway, I think I'm now going to make myself a nice toasted, bacon and egg sandwich for lunch. I'll obviously wash my hands thoroughly with soap and hot water and sing the national anthem first though.
