I’ve chosen a beautiful drawing by Andrea Bowers, which is based on Walter Crane’s 1894 Offering for May Day as the photo for this piece on purpose. Walter’s original was published in a socialist magazine and Bowers reimagined version can be seen in London’s Tate Modern. Theoretically this should be seen as a progression because the symbol has become immortalised in art and lauded as a masterpiece in the modern day. However, in reality, it seems to symbolise society’s desire to romanticise symbols for their aesthetic beauty and not their message.
Tag Archives: politics
Politics as Reality Television
The recent political protests in Romania have really got me thinking about the way that we elect leaders. In a matter of days a number of peaceful protests topple more and more politicians, beginning with the Prime Minister himself! Perhaps, it’s got me thinking, we should rethink the way that politicians are elected. We should make it more people-centred. How about a reality TV show?
Filed under Observations
Austerity, Fear and Britain’s Politics of Destruction
I’ve not posted any entries for a few weeks as I’ve been struggling to acclimatise to British society once again. I’m spending a couple of months teaching in a school outside London. It seems that no matter how often I spend time in the UK, I still need to adapt to the culture here. I’ve chosen to write my first post on the morning of – Cameron’s government’s latest assault on the people of England – the London tube strike.
Filed under Observations
The G7 and Political ineptitude
Image From: http://thecoloradoobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/global.jpg
‘The G7 leading industrial nations have agreed on tough measures to cut greenhouse gases by phasing out the use of fossil fuels by the end of the century’[1].
Is this really something that we, as a society, should be celebrating? We are talking about a political promise that will not even come into effect in the lifetimes of those who pledged it! Doesn’t this seem deeply flawed at its very heart? How many political pledges from the early 20th century can you remember? The time that lapsed saw two world wars, countless social and technological revolutions and the entrance into a whole new age of humanity.
Filed under Observations
Gay marriage is legalised in Ireland – Finally!
Ireland – the home of my formative years – has become the first country to legalise gay marriage through referendum. This has been a great step forward for a country that only officially legalised homosexuality twenty-five years ago. It’s a victory for Ireland and a further loosening of the grip that the Catholic Church holds on the throats of Ireland’s people. However, it must be analysed what a vote against gay marriage actually advocates.
Filed under Observations
Istanbul: A City of Paradoxes
I feel like a re-ignition of this blog has been long overdue and I’ve finally found the time and inspiration. I was in Istanbul for the New Year and found that the celebration in the main square there is devoid of a countdown. Instead the festivities consisted of one lone cheerer who caused a ripple effect across the crowd. This was followed approximately thirty seconds later by fireworks. It struck me as very usual how a festival which revolves around the celebration of time could be so badly, as it were, timed. However, I came to realise during my time in Istanbul that this was just one of many paradoxes that coloured the city’s streets.
Filed under Observations