I’m angry. Yes, the sentence I have decided to use to break my extensive bloging silence is admittedly not the most enticing one in the world to make you want to read on but as we know, what’s written is written and can’t possibly be undone. It’s the only plausible explanation for the Twilight ‘saga’.
I’m now about to make mistake number two which is inadvisable at best. I’m angry about politics. This blog introduction is much like stepping into a hot bath. You had the disappointment of knowing that this will be a rant and then you had the ongoing suffering of hearing that it’s a political one. However, I urge you to submerge yourself and hopefully it won’t be too unpleasant an experience.
Unless you have been comatose for the last few months, nay, years (and I must say I’m honoured that you chose to visit my blog of all things) you will know we are in the throws of an election. Unlike America our elections are far less glamorous and we don’t have the joy of a choice between Obama and oven chips but a decision that seems one Irishman short of a bad joke.
I think it is interesting how people handle politics. I certainly don’t see it in the same way I say religion/belief (or lack thereof) in that I don’t think it’s a fundamental right to not have your political beliefs questioned. One of the great things about democracy is that we can all support who we like and have heated discussions about why we feel how we feel. Having said that I don’t think that screaming at people in the street to vote one way or the other is good either but a healthy debate about the options is a good thing in my opinion so drop yourself deeper into this hot bath of political anger.
I am angry about one man. Well, one man and his party. You may or may not have heard about Chris Grayling’s comments the other week. For those of you who didn’t I shall briefly summarise what happened. Chris Grayling, the shadow Home Secretary (i.e. the person who will become Home Secretary if Conservatives come into power) was secretly recorded saying that he believed B&B owners who run their business out of their own homes should be free to turn away gay couples. He has also previously voted against gay adoption. Now, I could write a long piece disagreeing with that but I’m not going to here. What has got me angry is not these comments (flawed as they may be) but his ‘apology’ for them. He appeared about a week later on Channel 4 news and said (after much coaxing) that he was wrong. In fact it wasn’t clear if he admitted he was wrong or if he admitted the view he had expressed was wrong but nevertheless he now says he believes that anti discrimination laws should apply to B&Bs and that he supports gay adoption. Great. Case closed. He supports the right thing, let’s all go vote Conservative. As the slogan says; “I’ve never voted Conservative but…”!
It may be unclear about why this has got me so riled. In order to understand that one needs to consider what he has actually done. Let’s forget the gay adoption thing for the moment and concentrate on the B&B issue. We must assume that if he was being secretly recorded that what he said was what he thought. If it wasn’t then he’s a liar before we even start considering the issue and to be honest I really doubt that’s the case. That is to say, I don’t doubt he’s a liar, but I doubt that he was lying when he made the offending comments.
Now, if it is the case that he was telling the truth and now he has apologised one of three things can have occurred:
- He has had an epiphany and realised the error of his ways. Something so drastic and life changing happened to him that he could change his moral views in less than a week and he wanted the whole world to know.
- He didn’t mean for this to get out and would never had viewed his true opinions in public. He apologised to cover up a view of his that he realised, or was told to realise, is not in keeping with Conservatives new campaign of alleged support of LGBT people.
- He doesn’t consider this a moral issue. He doesn’t really see the significance of this and therefore when there was public uproar he thought he might as well change his mind.
Well I’m pretty sure we can rule out the first one. I think he would have mentioned if this had been an epiphany and to be frank I don’t think it’s all that likely that this was one. I think that leaves us with the conclusion that is must be a combination of the second and third. Both are equally as worrying.
This is not a debate about whether B&B owners should accept gay couples. That is an important debate but inconsequential in this instance. It is undeniable that this issue is a moral one. It is the question of who has the greatest trump card; LGBT people as a whole group or individuals who oppose them within their own homes. What Chris Grayling has done is flip flopped on a serious moral issue. This is quite frankly intolerable.
How can we trust a man, or a party who supports said man, whose moral compass is either so crooked that he can change his view based on saving his own skin or so weak that he can’t see this for the complex moral issue that it is. It is this way of thinking that reflects the current state of the Conservative party. They have mastered the art of spin at the cost of realistic promises or moral fortitude.
It doesn’t matter what your morals are as long as you have them and you stick by them. Obviously this isn’t always going to win you public favour. If you look at the BNP no one can argue they don’t stick by their views. The fact that they are hideous, bigoted views means that (hopefully!) they stand little chance of gaining power but at least they stick by their guns. Chris Grayling can’t even do that. He is able to flip flop on something as fundamental as morals. How the hell can we trust him to be Home Secretary? How the hell can we vote for a party that allows one of their most senior members to do this? How the hell can we be expected to vote Conservative?
I’ve never voted Conservative but… now I know I never will.
I see trees of Blue,
Flip flopping too,
I see the doom,
For me and you,
And I think to myself…
What a wonderful world.