Who’s to bless and who’s to blame?
It is a tough but fair question. But the answer is right there, next to you at work; or, sitting in the pub; or, at the BBQ, even in your front room watching the TV. People; every single solitary last one of ‘em and their quest for a peaceful life are the real root cause of today’s troubles. Beer up tuppence a pint, OK have one less; bread up a penny a loaf; OK, movie tickets up 10%; OK, we’ll go once a month instead of every fortnight; income tax up a cent in the dollar – groan, moan and cough up. Why do we put up with it? Well after a 14 hour shift, traffic chaos going home, one kid with colic, t’uther with toothache, the neighbours cat digging up last weeks planting and the car’s needing new brakes, and the football team is dragging it’s arse and the horses are all donkeys and the arsehole at work is making your life a misery. Who wants to get involved with anything other than a hot shower, a cold beer, spot of dinner and a quick, advert ridden episode of MKR before bed? No one does. People have enough to do just keeping body, soul and family together.
The empirical evidence for this may be seen every evening on the TV; shocking often horrific tales from home and abroad in graphic detail; but, fixing the dishwasher is ‘real’, now and in the kitchen. But, but War, pestilence and the four horsemen of the Apocalypse ride, unchecked, throughout the world, you cry: even so; the dog needs a walk, dinner is nearly ready, dancing with the stars starts soon and Mum’s cranky.
Priority to scale; but can forbearance, acceptance and a desire for quiet life be described as apathy? I think not; indeed, watch how quickly people become ‘un’ apathetic when their own way of life or their children’s well being is at risk; hell they’ll go to war in court over a droopy back fence; or indulge in suburban warfare because ‘her’ in number 23 has told the kids off; or, ’him’ next door uses a leaf blower at 0700 every Sunday. No, you can’t blame ‘apathy’.
The point of this ramble is that aviation – as we know it – is in a terrible state and something major needs to be done. But what? I suggest the answers are abundantly clear, well enunciated and widely published. So why has nothing been done? There are 60, that’s five dozen, ‘recommendations’ made by two separate, expensive government inquiries, these have been gathering dust for two years or more. These recommendations are not the ramblings of a few disgruntled, slack jawed, drooling inmates of the local nut house. They are the stated demands of an industry which, quite rightly, may claim a fairly high level of intelligence and heavy investment. So why then has nothing changed?
I dearly wish I knew; but one thing I do know is that unless you can generate a simple, easy to follow campaign to place the safety of the travelling public ahead of Pizza and MKR; then reform never get started, let alone fail. Without that reform, industry will not prosper. How much longer can we tolerate an extra tuppence a pint on beer, before we kick up a row? I’d bet a long time; but not because of apathy, but of fear of rocking boat and having our quiet, ostrich like life disturbed.
Aye, just who’s to bless and who’s to blame is a puzzle. No matter the kettle has boiled, coffee becomes #1 priority, then things to do, best get a wriggle on. Not to worry, it will all sort it’s self out soon enough; won’t it? Must dash.
Toot_Alt_file_delete_toot.
It is a tough but fair question. But the answer is right there, next to you at work; or, sitting in the pub; or, at the BBQ, even in your front room watching the TV. People; every single solitary last one of ‘em and their quest for a peaceful life are the real root cause of today’s troubles. Beer up tuppence a pint, OK have one less; bread up a penny a loaf; OK, movie tickets up 10%; OK, we’ll go once a month instead of every fortnight; income tax up a cent in the dollar – groan, moan and cough up. Why do we put up with it? Well after a 14 hour shift, traffic chaos going home, one kid with colic, t’uther with toothache, the neighbours cat digging up last weeks planting and the car’s needing new brakes, and the football team is dragging it’s arse and the horses are all donkeys and the arsehole at work is making your life a misery. Who wants to get involved with anything other than a hot shower, a cold beer, spot of dinner and a quick, advert ridden episode of MKR before bed? No one does. People have enough to do just keeping body, soul and family together.
The empirical evidence for this may be seen every evening on the TV; shocking often horrific tales from home and abroad in graphic detail; but, fixing the dishwasher is ‘real’, now and in the kitchen. But, but War, pestilence and the four horsemen of the Apocalypse ride, unchecked, throughout the world, you cry: even so; the dog needs a walk, dinner is nearly ready, dancing with the stars starts soon and Mum’s cranky.
Priority to scale; but can forbearance, acceptance and a desire for quiet life be described as apathy? I think not; indeed, watch how quickly people become ‘un’ apathetic when their own way of life or their children’s well being is at risk; hell they’ll go to war in court over a droopy back fence; or indulge in suburban warfare because ‘her’ in number 23 has told the kids off; or, ’him’ next door uses a leaf blower at 0700 every Sunday. No, you can’t blame ‘apathy’.
The point of this ramble is that aviation – as we know it – is in a terrible state and something major needs to be done. But what? I suggest the answers are abundantly clear, well enunciated and widely published. So why has nothing been done? There are 60, that’s five dozen, ‘recommendations’ made by two separate, expensive government inquiries, these have been gathering dust for two years or more. These recommendations are not the ramblings of a few disgruntled, slack jawed, drooling inmates of the local nut house. They are the stated demands of an industry which, quite rightly, may claim a fairly high level of intelligence and heavy investment. So why then has nothing changed?
I dearly wish I knew; but one thing I do know is that unless you can generate a simple, easy to follow campaign to place the safety of the travelling public ahead of Pizza and MKR; then reform never get started, let alone fail. Without that reform, industry will not prosper. How much longer can we tolerate an extra tuppence a pint on beer, before we kick up a row? I’d bet a long time; but not because of apathy, but of fear of rocking boat and having our quiet, ostrich like life disturbed.
Aye, just who’s to bless and who’s to blame is a puzzle. No matter the kettle has boiled, coffee becomes #1 priority, then things to do, best get a wriggle on. Not to worry, it will all sort it’s self out soon enough; won’t it? Must dash.
Toot_Alt_file_delete_toot.