What changes would you like to see in today’s society?
The term society has no general application. Every country differs from every other, however subtly, so answers must relate to a particular country. This answer relates to England, not even the whole of Britain.
Perhaps the first point to acknowledge is that in comparison with many other countries, England has an overwhelming number of good features. Yet there are several aspects of our society which I would like to see changed. Some of these changes could be effected immediately. Others would take longer. Society does not exist, said Mrs. Thatcher. She was wrong. Society consists of an aggregate of families. The first change I would like to see is the reversal of the current steady breakdown of family life. In Britain, the monarch stands at the head of the state and of the Established Church. In return for the privileges of their position, it has been generally expected of the Royal Family that they set an example to the country, and in the case of the Queen this example has undoubtedly been set. Not so, in the case of most of the other royals. In 1992 the so-called example set by this family has been appalling. This need not be spelled out. The world media have done this very effectively. The Queen herself described last year as an ‘annus horribilis’. Many responsible people rightly wonder about the future of the monarchy, and their thinking tends to move in the direction of a republic. In the modern world, there is a strong case to be made for the abolition of hereditary privilege. However, the breakdown of family life cannot be attributed to the poor example of the minor royals. It actually stems from the permissiveness of the 1960s. The result is much suffering caused to children and young people, some of whom leave, or are virtually forced out of their homes, only to live in one of the cardboard cities , or to be put into care, or to join the drug scene and commit crime.
Unemployment, currently standing at 3m plus, is another aggravating factor. The present government has no policy to deal with this, and gives every indication of being quite indifferent to the problem. Interim measures could be taken until the world trade recession eases. Much work is needed on local environmental projects and on the updating of the country’s infrastructure, which has been grossly neglected for decades. This could be financed by a modest increase in income tax, a measure which I believe would be generally acceptable. We have an uncaring government, the result being that many once prosperous areas are now centers of poverty and despair. Throughout the country, small businesses are being forced to close at the rate of hundreds per day. This is because the government refuses to impose controls over rent and leasehold increases and to reduce the swinging industrial rate. The net result of all this is that people are reluctant to spend, because they live in fear of redundancy or unemployment and, even worse, house repossession, in cases where heavy mortgages were taken on in better times. The house market is a good indicator of confidence in the future. It has now been at a virtual standstill for five years.
Thirdly, crime, especially violence. Due to the decline in religious faith and the consequent lack of moral training in home and school, crime levels have become appallingly high over the past few decades. Bad social conditions in many areas exacerbate the problem. Prisons are overcrowded, so the judiciary is encouraged to minimize custodial sentences. The fundamental remedy is a return to Christian moral standards, or those of the other great religions, now represented among the large immigrant population. Many of them are setting the native English a good example. The latter offer young people little help, and certainly little discipline at home, and the reputation of teachers in the state sector has never been lower.
Much is being done to stamp out the evils of hallucinatory drugs in Britain. This country would do well to adopt some of the draconian measures which are proving successful in some Far Eastern countries.
In the case of child sexual abuse and violence occasioning actual bodily harm, custodial sentences are now mandatory. This is justified, since such offences have greatly increased in recent decades. At one time, children were safe to roam their own areas without fear of molestation. Today, this is impossible.
Next, housing. Good neighborliness was the prime feature of pre-war terraced housing, now replaced in many cities by tower blocks and complexes of maisonettes. These concrete monstrosities eliminate family identity and encourage crime and vandalism. This is now realized. Much of this post-war building is now being demolished, and domestic architecture is reverting to old patterns. More low-cost or rentable accommodation would ease several social problems.
England welcomes immigrants, and laws have been passed to outlaw discrimination. Most immigrants provide an enriching contribution. Their churches, mosques and temples are acceptable to most people. However, there is a down side. Numbers have to be controlled, and this leads to disputes. A bad mistake was to allow ‘ghettoes’ to be formed in the early post- war days. An even distribution of this influx should have been made mandatory in the early days. The basis of that is the immigrants, while preserving their social and religious identities, must also accept and respect British traditions. Agitators operate much more easily in areas of dense population, often inciting violence between groups in the wake of violence overseas.
To believe that all these defects in English society can be changed is to live in cloud cuckoo land. All the same, these are the objectives which we must all work for.
