In 1936, Margaret Mitchell won the Pullitzer Prize for her novel "Gone With The Wind". Released as a film on the eve of the Second World War, it tells the story of the unrequited love of Scarlett O'Hara set against the backdrop of the American Civil War. At a cost of 3.5 million dollars, it was a very expensive film for its time. That said, it returned receipts in excess of 390 million dollars at the box office. A sound investment. The principal roles of Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara made huge stars of Clark Gable and Vivian Leigh. Hattie McDaniel became the first African-American to win an Oscar for best supporting actress. The film depicts the racial segregation then prevalent in the American South. As late as 1968, Martin Luther King was being shot for his efforts to address the blatant racism which so tarnished the United States. Given that the American Civil War didn't start until 1861, it is sobering to reflect how long it took to address the racial inequalities which had come to dominate American society.
It was in 1936 that an 18 year old embarked on his Secondary Education in Engcobo. This was the largest boarding school for black Africans in Thembuland, South Africa. As I write, the life of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandella appears to be nearing its conclusion. Like Martin Luther King in the United States, he was instrumental in addressing the injustice of a society which chose to promote a system of apartheid. I can recall speaking at Debating Society in 1984 about the prospect of apartheid being abolished in South Africa. The subject was as emotive then as it is today. Perhaps the success of Gone With The Wind is related to its subtext which depicts such an open social injustice.
In her novel, Margaret Mitchell uses a phrase which has been repeated often and seems to become more pertinent by the day."Death and taxes and childbirth. There's never a convenient time for any of them!". As the health of Nelson Mandela deteriorates, so too does that of Prince Philip. Born just three years apart, the lives of these two men could scarcely have been more different. That said, Prince Philip was hastily rushed out of his native Greece as a small child in an orange box because the lives of his family were in danger following a military coup. His has been a life of duty quietly standing in the background while the Queen remains the focus of attention. To have stuck to this role for so long is to his credit and he is perhaps entitled to the odd faux pas when letting off steam.
Birth, death and taxes continue to dominate national debate. This week, it was announced that by the year 2020, half of the population will receive a cancer diagnosis. This is attributed to the fact that we are all living longer. This is not in dispute. I wonder though whether other factors might also be playing a role? It was also proposed this week that we all need to reduce the amount of meat we are eating. It is difficult to ignore a link here. Although we hear constantly about austerity, all things are relative. The last time we had genuine austerity in this country was from 1939 until the mid 1950s. During the war, eating too much meat wasn't even optional. There is no doubt that we are all eating too much meat now and it is difficult to ignore this fact when set against the future predictions for cancer diagnoses. The Mediterranean diet about which I have written often is low in meat and high in fresh vegetables and fish. Unsurprisingly, people living in rural communities in the Mediterranean are well documented to live much longer. I don't doubt that living longer increases the risk of things going wrong with our bodies but do cast doubt on the reasons why.
On the subject of taxes, this week has seen the Labour Party hell bent on seeking another five years in opposition. So goes the old saying, "it is sometimes better to just stand there and look stupid rather than open your mouth and remove all doubt". If I was the Labour Party chairman, I would e mail a copy of this wisdom to all MPs. I would personally deliver a copy by hand to the two Eds. The Labour Party which for so long has stuck rigidly to the principle of universalism has this week sought to distance itself from such thinking. As such, they now intend to support the Coalition policy of removing the winter fuel tax benefit from those pensioners rich enough to not need it. Personally, I would have thought this common sense. The Labour Party which left us in such a mess though was quite happy to give benefits to anyone - hence the mess. They didn't seem to appreciate the basic economics of there only ever being a finite pot of money from which to allocate resources. Changing tack now is all well and good but people have longer memories than that and are all too aware of the roles played by the two Eds in the doomed Gordon Brown government.
Doubtless, Prince Philip would quote that famous line from Gone With The Wind -"Frankly my dear I don't give a damn".
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