Misery loves company

So, a great day out was had by all. The attendees at Labour Live clapped and danced and changed the world. The gurning totems of Corbyn, McDonnell, McCluskey and their puppets and cheerleaders told their tales of a future of equality and opportunity and wealth for all. And why not let them dream, eh? Even though thousands of years of recorded human history demonstrate that humans, just like most other animals, naturally form into groups of the many led by the few and are rewarded accordingly; twas, literally, ever thus.

Life is pretty good for most of us in the west. For every downtrodden, dejected loser in life’s lottery there are a thousand, ten thousand, who have little to fear. We eat better, work less, live longer and are entertained in ways which could not even have been contemplated even fifty years ago. So why are we never happy? Or, more pertinently, why do movements like Labour want to portray us as miserable, in every sense of the word?

It’s ALL Project Fear, isn’t it? You might be happy now, but what about after Brexit? The Tories/far-right/elites/pan-global conspiracists will creep into your lives and steal away your freedom/security/ livelihood/children if you take your eye off the ball. And who will protect you? This seems to be the ethos of the left-inclined; you are all children and you must be protected from your own gullibility. And what

A capitalist job with prospects? It’s a trap; here take one of the nicer jobs we made up. Science and technology based education? Too difficult; we have lovely foreigners to do all that for you. You put your feet up and go for ‘life sciences’; the portfolio of disciplines where nebulous opinions rank just as high as demonstrable facts. And even higher if your opinions are the right ones. Critical thought is a tool of the right and will enslave you in a world where you have to stand on your own two feet and pursue your own happiness. Don’t fall for it.

But from whence comes such great wisdom? Turns out, that all you need to qualify for engagement in the world of politics is a self-declaration of your allegiances and your competence is assumed. That and the assistance of a political dynasty – a little nepotism goes a long, long way – and you’re in. Pull up a chair, join the talking shop, persuade others of the veracity of your theories and brainwash yourself to become a cog in the machine.

Is this the real life, or is this just fantasy?

We are all parts of the world machine, but some of us are working parts while others exist more for appearances. Do you want a vacuum cleaner that actually sucks, or one that looks pretty... and sucks? This is your choice: a world of hardship and toil, but rewards for all that hard work and pride in achievement. Or do you want a world of supposed ‘equality’ and ‘diversity’ and a lot of back-slapping pretence that prosperity for all is just around the corner? In short, do you want the red pill or the blue?