It was nearly a month ago that politicians and the media were filling us with details of VE Day, asking what it meant to people and interviewing old men and women who had served in a variety of ways and of course those who had stayed back and kept the home fires burning.
Anybody thought of all that since – truly?
I have to say on a personal level I have. For two reasons, my Dad, who served in World War II. and a Grandad who was part of what the Kaiser referred to as the “Contemptible Little Army”, the British Expeditionary Force of 1914 having been a boy soldier since the age of 16.
I am surrounded by their images not as the Grandads they became but rather the young men they were – my Grandfather in the Royal Horse Artillery photographed at Olympia with the Life Guards in 1906 and with his battery in Bangalore in 1907 all proud in dress uniform, then a rather more dour picture from France in September 1915.
And Dad, a proud young man in naval uniform at his wedding in 1942 before he and his young bride made their way to Felixstowe and while he went out on patrol in MTB’s (the picture is Dougie Hunt’s MTB245 – my Dad had MTB’s 32,223,389) while his wife sat just hoping he would come home safe.
Two very ordinary blokes from Mitcham, Grandad was a post war postman in Tooting – but heroes in the way they, along with countless others of their generation, stood up to tyranny.
So why I am writing this on what is essentially a political blog?
I was prompted by the two local by-elections that took place in the Borough around the time of VE Day – it is not the results that appal me, it is the turnout of the electorate. Even at the last local election the turnout for the London Borough of Sutton was 40% – and I’m afraid modern politicians play on that – small margins make a difference on low turnout so overt support to a special interest groups will pay dividends.
But it is not just elections – the structure of our local Council comes down to a local level with Local Committees and further to, in our instance, the Beddington Neighbourhood Forum. Each has a potential platform for change but these local meetings have been usurped by WhatsApp Groups and Social Media But what is needed is involvement not the expectation that someone else will do the job.
As those By-elections advanced, I saw lots of people calling “Vote Reform” – anyone who does not realise that our political system and, by natural progression, society needs change, is living in a fool’s paradise. But change doesn’t come from soundbite politics, it comes from a solid, sustainable and moral template with terms of reference that you can set policy by.
Every one of our main political party websites (including Reform) don’t lead with ideals – the dominant feature on all their websites is called the DONATE button – we have seen the insidious influence of very rich donors on the American political system and we don’t need it here.
If you want to know how low it has got – the name calling and shouting on Question Time is mirrored in local politics at Council in Sutton’s Civic Centre – real change will come when the next generation of heroes step up, just like my Dad and Grandad did, and make the change that needs to happen.
Mainline politicians think they know better – they don’t, they follow trends rather lead and without clear moral compasses their opinions are as changeable as the weather.
The only person who can change the future for you and your family, is you!