With
the recent media frenzy over Tony Blair's resignation from office,
onlookers may have noticed the actual absence of mention of any actual
effect Tony Blair has had on people's lives. It is without a doubt that
the issue of Iraq was given some amount of prominence, but it is
integral to assess in what context this was used. Carefully looking at
the coverage, there was not one solitary mention of the consequences
the decision to wage war had on Iraqi people or the division and
destruction it has caused. Instead, commentators were whipped into a
gleeful frenzy of hyperbole the Iraq war would have on poor Mr Blair's
'legacy'. After all, why should the mainstream media be concerned that
we can't afford to give students a free education or to give pensioners
a decent living standard due to the fact we've had to pay billions of
pounds bombing Iraqi students and pensioners?
Interestingly,
the same lack of substance was used when assessing Mr Blair's successor
Gordon Brown. People in Britain were constantly exposed to assessments
of his personality including the type of person he is and the
relationship he has had with political colleagues. Fair enough, why
would voters need to know about his continuation of policies, which
include strong support for a renewal of a nuclear arsenal,
privatisation and the civil liberties busting compulsory ID cards
scheme.
With some indication that there was some lingering
remainder of the decent principles within the UK Labour party, the
little known John McDonnell announced his candidature. When lucky
enough to be mentioned in the mainstream press McDonnell was described
as having 'no chance' and lacking support due to him not being
'moderate' enough. His committal to trade union rights, solidarity with
the oppressed and peace wasn't even hinted at. The mainstream media had
decided Brown, they wanted Brown and therefore they must have their
chosen one. The Labour party elite, who have spoken so fulsomely about
the virtues of democracy in Iraq, quickly followed suit and showed
cowardly contempt to ordinary Labour members by denying them a vote by
refusing to nominate McDonnell.
As a young person, it is
vastly worrying to see the media pushing personality over policies.
Screaming to the electorate to ignore impoverished pensioners and debt
burdened students when they should be concerned about whether Gordon
Brown likes the popular rock act the arctic monkeys. This barrier can
be overcome, but not without pressing the message that the pursuit of a
world dominated by unbridled capitalism and imperialistic war cannot
simply cannot sustain itself and will remove the human races right to
take their destiny into their own hands.
