It’s been said before that no-one
can properly gauge the seriousness of our beliefs until they really count. Armchair politicians, saloon-bar
revolutionaries and water-cooler football managers abound, because it’s
easy. What we say or do doesn’t matter.
Today, fuel tanker drivers go
on strike. We’re told only one in ten
petrol stations will be affected, and that there’s no need to panic-buy. But do any of us really believe that the great
British public (including ourselves) will heed that admonition? I’m probably not alone in anticipating long
queues at petrol stations up and down the land, as we rush to ensure that our
weekend fuel needs will be met. Of
course we all deplore panic-buying, and want the emergency services and key
workers to have access to all the fuel they need…but not at our expense. Religion, politics, social policy and Scolari’s
transfer targets for Chelsea can be grist to the mill of idle chatter, but any
threat to our comfortable, car-centred lifestyle gets us moving faster than an Olympic
athlete (with our without chemical enhancement).
This raises huge questions
about the world we want to live in – the environmental sustainability of
modern, western lifestyles. As we refuse to take notice of this, there are
strong elements of 50 million Neros playing away on their violins while the
world burns (or, at least, warms up dangerously). It is fast becoming clear that serious
adjustments will be needed to the way we live.
However, the first thing that occurred to me was a question of our
priorities. Seek first the
As we enter a weekend of fuel
anxiety (will anyone cost that for the NHS, I wonder?), wouldn’t it be good to
see some panic-righteousness instead of panic-buying – some panic-seeking of
the