It is no surprise to me that an Etonian of Boris Johnson's generation and political leaning wants nothing more than to "get Brexit done" Just as he and others like him have been educated to get good qualifications, employed to earn obscene amounts of money and elected to achieve an objective or "rather be dead in a ditch". Brexit itself has become so singular in its goal and definition that we all seem to have forgotten what we wanted it for in the first place.
This single agenda goal is symptomatic of the major flaw of capitalism - the pursuit of profit above all else. As a sustainability professional I've made a career from explaining the benefits to businesses of taking a more holistic view. Its generally not an easy sell - for the majority of business leaders are also the type of people who have had lifelong encouragement to pursue narrow goals. Academia, sporting wins, profit margins, career accolades, self interest and wealth, more often than not at the expense of everything else.
It seems as though the current political situation in the UK is such that we are all either "for" or "against", "leave" or "remain", "winners" or "losers" defined in binary terms that are easy to explain. But none of the outcomes of this general election will be so extreme or so simple. This is an election with a polarized agenda and yet at best striving for a marginal majority.
We have learnt nothing from previous attempts to "get Brexit done" as we have learnt little to nothing from banking collapses, austerity measures and the final death of the high street. Businesses and governments alike chase these narrow goals - more money, more profit, efficiencies, speed, lay offs, outsourcing, privatization....
And the manifestation now of this relentless pursuit of wealth and power at all costs? Babies are dying in boats to get here, the economy flounders, jobs are lost, kids sleep on hospital floors and the prime minister hides in a fridge.
My argument is that these one dimensional targets and the people who strive for them, aren't working for us any longer. I hope that my children never know poverty, hunger, fear or pain, but I need them to be empathetic enough to understand it when they see it. And for them to recognize that inequality is not a given, nor a deliberate, decision based outcome, driven by "Ill-raised, ignorant, aggressive", "drunk, criminal, aimless, feckless" people.
I want my kids to do well at school, and pass all their exams, but I want them to have friends, and love nature and art, and for them to know how to fail.
I want them to love sport, but to know that winning is an outcome not the goal and that activity and competition and team playing are good for our health and humanity. I want them to know that love and charity will provide more purpose than money in your pocket and that to know weakness is to know how to help others.
I want the businesses I work for to value their employees, pay fair wages, respect the environment that supports them and give back to the communities that they operate in.
I want my government to understand that society is a complex, changing, breathing thing that must be viewed as a whole.
Is that too much to ask?
Sanna Marin, the youngest sitting Prime Minister says "the government's responsibility is to create stability in society" Jacinda Arden stands for a" government that looks to the next 10 years not the next 3 years" and
Nancy Pelosi says "each generation is responsible to make the future of the next" Their messages are about society, sustainability, stability, the future, long term goals. A stark contrast to our seemingly rolling monthly goal that speaks of delivering an outcome that not everyone wants. And our third general election in five years.
Leaving the EU has been sold under many guises and every one of them is financial.
Because let's not forget that Brexit isn't being led by you and me. It is being led by those people who have been taught to pursue singular goals that benefit themselves and no-one else. Saving face, coming out on top, profiting, power, these are motivators that they understand.
I don't see anyone who represents me in this election. I don't see anyone with a multi faceted agenda that I think will fix this. So I can only vote with my values. And for the political party I think is most likely to look out "for the many, not the few "(catchy line) even if I find their leaders to be more of the same short term, goal led, self-interested old men.
Voting is our greatest freedom and choice. Whether we vote tactically, or in line with our values, or to deliver on an outcome, voting allows us to express an opinion on how we want our country to be run. I don't have an opinion on how you make yours. But to vote for a one dimensional agenda and expect that the those behind it are anything other than self-serving is a mistake in my view.
