Let's at least be civil

Well, here's a thing.  

Ghandhi was once asked "What do you think of western civilisation?" His reply ? "I think it would be a good idea."

Lytton Strachey, a famous and surprisingly vigorous opponent of the First World War, called before a conscription tribunal, said “I am the civilisation for which you are fighting”.

It makes me wonder what we are fighting for currently, and how civilised we actually are.

The sadly tired line is that killing people around the world makes us safer, makes our society safer. At the moment, our government seems almost disappointed that it has lost the chance to blast off a few missiles to solve all the political problems in Syria. It seems sometimes that our 'national interest' is in nobody's real interests at all.

And that's even before I get started on whether the idea of bombing ideologies is ever likely to be effective.

It's before I start to wonder aloud about how we aim a Trident missile at al Q'aeda, or any other non-state opponent in the asymmetric conflicts we keep hearing about. If there was ever a blatant and wrong-headed waste of money, Trident must be a fairly good example.

It seems obvious to me that a government, any government, has more chance of influence and control at home rather than abroad. It also seems obvious that sorting out our values at home might be a good idea, and especially at a time when the bankers have forced us all into the exigencies of belt-tightening, aka austerity.

If every last pound is going to count and be counted, I'd like to feel that the society we are defending so militarily is at least on the right lines, that we look after people here. That we care about every member of society, young, old, sick well, homeless and housed. 

That we govern as if the electorate mattered.

That would be innovative. That would be aspirational. Civilised, even.

Now that would be a good idea.