Summer of discontent

Time will tell
And so one year on from the (dishonest) EU referendum:

• the Brexit negotiations have begun with a weakened Tory PM who has yet to agree a “confidence and supply” deal with the DUP
• traumatic terrorist events in Manchester and London have tested the stretched NHS and the cut police forces and depleted emergency services
• the burnt tomb of the Grenfell Tower stands as a metaphorical testament to government and council priorities
• the gulf between rich and poor in the UK remains wide and is getting wider

Déjà Vu
These days feel like the late 1970s and the “winter of discontent” and I have an abiding feeling that we are heading towards social riots like the ones in the early 1980s. The government needs to restore all the public services to a positive footing where they are not constantly pressured by overwork and diminishing resources. Otherwise, even the heroic emergency services and police forces will struggle if the country descends into riotous anarchy. England has a long history of outbreaks of anarchy. This (potential) summer of discontent contains all the requisite ingredients. Maybe everything will settle down….

Nil desperandum (don’t despair)
I’m finding it hard to maintain my Glass Half Full approach to life at the moment. I need to remember that the sun (sometimes) shines, gardens grow, water runs, food is delicious, wine beckons at the weekend, beer goes well with barbecues, books can be read, pianos can be played, culture continues to entertain and provoke…. I’ll write some non-political blogs after this one…. for a while at least…. Nil desperandum.