I think it is a pretty safe bet that the vast majority of you, when you read a newspaper or watch the news on TV, think the world is going more insane by the day.
Let’s look at a number of examples. Perhaps the maddest thing that’s happened in the past fortnight is that kiss. Probably it will be remembered as the kiss which rocked the world.
I suspect that Luis Rubiales didn’t put his brain in gear before he kissed Jenni Hermoso on the lips after Spain’s Womens World Cup win. He shouldn’t have done it, it was stupid – he should have done what so many Spanish do and kiss on both cheeks.
And when he saw the tidal wave of female outrage heading his way he could, so easily, have apologised, said he did it without thinking, on the spur of the moment, consumed with monumental national pride in the Spanish women’s team.
That would have gone down so well and taken the heat out of the situation. Instead, in ridiculous macho, matador style he tried to pretend the kiss was consensual and refused to apologise. Jenni, instead of being hailed as one of the heroines of the hour, found herself at the centre of controversy, not of her making, and was even threatened with legal action.
Madness? Yes, total madness, compounded by women marching in the streets, in effect saying, oh woe are we. Yes, women have suffered for generations in not being treated as equals but that is changing. Not quickly enough in my view, but we’re getting there. But please stop trying to be martyrs – it’s getting most boring, like minorities banging on about injustices and trying to get reparations at every turn.
Madness number 2. A glitch in air traffic control over the UK brought flights to a standstill and chaos at airports. Thousands of holiday makers were left stranded in airports around the world and thousands more were unable to start their holidays on the busiest day of the year. The madness is that we have become almost totally dependent on computers – so much so we have lost the ability to do anything manually any more.
It’s the same obsession with iphones – if the system went down, how many teenagers or 20 somethings would be able to read a map or find out the most basic information about anything? If an enemy managed to shut down the UK’s National Grid, the country would be totally in the proverbial.
Want more madness? How about the newly-introduced Greater London ultra-low emission zone, requiring drivers of older, more polluting vehicles to pay a 12.50 pound per day charge. Ask Londoners whether they want cleaner air and the majority would give a resounding yes, because living close to main roads stinks.
But it should have been handled far better, with several years’ notice and a meaningful scrappage scheme, to help poorer people who rely on their cars with some financial help.
My daughter helps run a riding stable giving rides for disabled children and those with learning disabilities. She lives outside the zone, as do many other volunteers and parents with disabled children. The stables are a few hundred yards inside the zone. Is it fair that they should pay 12.50 pounds a day to help give disabled and children with learning difficulties more confidence?
Of course, one of the greatest UK madness examples is the way the NHS is being destroyed. The number of patients whose appointments or procedures have been cancelled since industrial action started now stands at 850,000. Any government which is not around the bend would have held discussions with doctors and nurses and got a solution.
World-wide madness? It’s got to be the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the continued religious conflicts in the Muslim world causing thousands of refugees, many trying to cross the Channel in flimsy boats and risk their lives. Madness, madness. In my book it’s the Muslim world (and some are obscenely rich) which should look after its own, it’s not for the West to provide an open door for the rest of the world.
How about more madness? The government has been under fire for allowing water companies to pollute rivers. Now the government is proposing scrapping EU-era water pollution restrictions for housing developments in a bid to build more homes, Up to 100,000 new homes could be built by 2030 if rules around building houses near waterways in protected areas are loosened say the Tories. If it happens, just don’t go anywhere near rivers!
Want more madness? A police officer died when he was hit by a train trying to save a man who was attempting to kill himself on a railway track.
Britain should have properly controlled euthanasia as other countries do – It should not be the job of rescue services to try to stop a person hell bent on suicide, and by so doing put their own lives at risk.
I am sure you could bombard with countless more examples of modern-day madness – these are just a few examples from listening to just one day’s TV news.
But I will leave you with just one more example. In the UK we live on a mobile home site which is governed by many rules for the well-being of residents. We are unfortunate enough to live close to someone with a yakky dog, which goes berserk whenever anyone passes. The owners do nothing to control their beloved pet.
On one particularly warm day we had the door open and the dog was more noisy than normal. During one long outburst my wife shouted “shut up”. The husband bounded over the road and shouted “don’t you speak to my dog like that.”
When we suggested he keep his dog quiet he threatened to report us to the park owners. The rules say dog owners should keep their pets under control and not allow them to annoy neighbours.
Here’s an example of madness which comes from people who put their pets before the well-being of people.
