“I live in the Managerial Age, in a world of "Admin." The greatest evil is not now done in those sordid "dens of crime" that Dickens loved to paint. It is not done even in concentration camps and labour camps. In those we see its final result. But it is conceived and ordered (moved, seconded, carried, and minutes) in clean, carpeted, warmed, and well-lighted offices, by quiet men with white collars and cut fingernails and smooth-shaven cheeks who do not need to raise their voice. Hence, naturally enough, my symbol for Hell is something like the bureaucracy of a police state or the offices of a thoroughly nasty business concern.”
- C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters
A police state may be defined as "a totalitarian state controlled by a political police force that secretly supervises the citizens' activities". Irish Water has created a divide in our country, many opposed to the charges, many more opposed to the opposing.
Regardless of your opinion on the charge itself, it is important that we clarify a few matters.
- As citizens of this (alleged) democratic state, we have the right to a peaceful protest. I have looked long and hard to find a general consensus on what the exact definition of a "peaceful protest" is and I have been unable to find one. I hope we can all agree that a peaceful protest is, more or less, one which creates awareness, without violence or aggressive behaviour.
- With the hundreds and thousands of people who have peacefully taken to the streets in the last few months to express their concern, I find the amount of ink spilled over the events in Jobstown November 2014 to be simply astonishing. A water balloon, a brick hurler and a politician trapped for a few hours are the weapons your state and your media have used against the anti water charges movement. Not forgetting the latest verbal assault thrown at our president. Many are happy to agree, "Oh yes, that is AWFUL", painting the entire movement with the same brush. Thugs. Delinquents. If we were to draw up a pie chart (bar graph, whatever you'd prefer) to represent the vast numbers of people who have taken to the streets to protest peacefully, as well as those who have caused disruption, the latter would not even be visible.
- I am sure many of you are aware of the recent arrests being made in Jobstown, following Gardai investigations of the above events. These arrests include, but are not limited to, politicians and children. So far, they have all been released without charge (I am not completely certain of this, feel free to correct me). Under the guise of "The Awful, Disgusting Thuggery etc., etc., etc." on display in Jobstown, (arguably) innocent protesters are being arrested at the whims of our government. It seems that Joan Burton (and many of our politicians, for that matter) thought the life of politics meant a high wage and an easy life. Politicians are elected to negotiate the running of the country on behalf of the electorate. Instead, they run the country on behalf of the ECB. Our state is using the law encforcement (that WE pay, with OUR taxes), to intimidate and dismantle a growing movement. The people are obviously not happy. While I do not condone any of the events describe above, I still believe that instances such as this are part and parcel of the job and should not be used to damage what is evidently being sought by a large number of people.
Ask yourself why the media cares so much about the tiny, tiny, almost insignificant percentage of troublemakers found at these protests. As yourself why our law enforcers are hauling people off to jail, only to release them a few . Ask yourself who has the most to gain from Irish Water. Ask yourself. All too often, I meet people who believe the media has no reason to lie to us and take in every word, without query or any thought.
Of course, I could be wrong. Maybe the state and the ECB are right, maybe we should continue pumping money into a system that breeds back scratching and corruption, on a national, international and corporate level while increasingly trampling on the little people.
Who knows? We'll never have a straight answer. On either end of the scale. The closest we can get to the exact nature of something is to question consistently. Socrates did it, and he seemed pretty on the ball.
