Look back when angry

2014 was not a good year internationally. We have a new cold war on our hands, and let us not pretend that the plummeting oil price is anything but a cynical play against Russia, one that might provoke a desperate response. Across Asia, nationalism and suspicion are on the rise as China flexes its new-found power and others try to react. The Syrian civil war is left to fester by outside forces, despite the immediate tragedy and the likely longer-term consequences. The post-war European consensus is breaking down rapidly and no relief from economic gloom is in sight. Meanwhile, democratic accountability seems weaker than ever in the US, while inequality continues to grow.

At times like these, it is tempting to be angry and to despair. My last blog in 2014 was an angry one, provoked by the horrible cynicism of the congress budget agreement and other erosions of democracy.

One response that I try to follow is the opposite of the advice of John Osborne in the play that took London by storm sixty years ago, Look Back in Anger. I also try to look back, but in attempt to mollify anger. Because, in general, even if things seem terrible now, they were worse in the past. Despite all the setbacks and the apparent unstoppable march towards doom, actually humanity has made remarkable progress. Looking backwards helps to remind us of this. There are examples everywhere we look.

Start with democratic accountability in the US. I had three examples: unaccountable police, CIA torture and congress swallowed by money. Well, the police may have many weaknesses, but the laws they are trying to uphold are much stronger than they were a generation ago. We forget that African Americans did not have a vote until surprisingly recently, while workplace and school discrimination was normal practice. If the CIA erred under Bush, then let’s also remember agent Orange, and the utterly cynical participation in proxy cold wars all over the globe, and the murderous regimes propped up by CIA money and weapons. As for congress, Robin Williams was right when he suggested they all wear sponsorship logos on their jackets, but at least now there is a modicum of diversity in congress, and a lot more openness: they may not be acting in our interests, but at least now we can see that if we care to look.

Over Christmas, my family enjoyed a holiday in Peru. There were things there to get depressed about. In common with other places with Spanish then American colonial history, such as the Philippines, institutions seem weak, while exploitation is apparent, as are the less salubrious consequences of free markets, such as Casinos and brothels. Especially in the mountains, there is something in the economy that didn’t add up. With two thousand visitors paying top dollar every day, Cusco should be a rich city. But outside the centre we saw only deprivation, and a lack of basic services such as rubbish collection. I could only conclude that some mafias were creaming the incomes due to the general public.

But as I was getting angry, I chose to look back, helped in this case by our young guide to Cusco cathedral. He told us that the former Pope had visited Cusco in the 1980’s – but had never made it to the cathedral, because it was not deemed safe. Then I recalled the shining path guerillas, one of many groups fighting the corruption across Latin America at the time with their own indefensible campaigns. The Pope could travel pretty freely around South America now, indeed even President Obama could. Things are not perfect, but they used to be worse.

There were other examples of a half full glass from the trip. Clearly in Lima and in Cusco there is a generation coming through with education, ambition and opportunity. And also consider the holiday itself. I booked it through a web group called Tripmasters.com, whose service was magnificent. Twenty years ago, that would not have been possible except at crazy prices.

Looking back when angry is a reliable tonic. Over Christmas, Jeremy Thorpe died. He was a former leader of the liberal party in the UK, quite successful until his career was derailed when his undercover homosexual life was revealed. Now we have a few openly gay politicians. But what I remember most about Thorpe was the court case that gripped the nation in 1978-79, featuring some heavies reputedly hired by Thorpe to silence a former lover (and his dog). For the trial, the entire establishment rallied behind Thorpe, and a favourable verdict was dutifully delivered – though his career was ended by the disgrace anyway. That was only thirty-five years ago. We easily recall that the place was a stitch up in the era of Suez and before, but this was much more recent. Such anti-democratic behaviour by agents of the state would not be possible now, and we should celebrate that.

One smaller example comes from sport. One evening in Peru, I happened to end up watching a re-run of a Brazil-Argentina soccer match from the 1990’s. It was terrible! The pace of play and level of skill was chronically inferior to today’s games. Greats such as Simeone and Veron were playing, and were indeed slightly less bad than the others on display. When we fall into the trap of complaining about games today and deifying former players, we should look back to remember how much progress has been made.

The greatest progress has come in the social sphere. Older folks, kids and women have much better chances nowadays, and, in our watery eyed nostalgia, we should remember the dysfunction that used to be tolerated in families. Court cases against pedophile priests, and also against former icons like Savile, Harris and Hall can help us to count our modern blessings even as they appall us.

Even in more personal situations, looking back can help. Learning to sing is one of those frustrating journeys in which the goal always seems to be getting further away. The more I sing and the more I know about singing, the more I realize how limited I am as a singer. Especially at my age, such thoughts could be very dispiriting. So every so often, I get out a piece that I learned a couple of years ago. Invariably, I find I can sing the piece more easily and strongly than I ever could at the time I learned it. That way my spirits are restored. Yes, the goal is further away, but I’m heading in the right direction.

So, in my faltering quest for optimism, I resolve to look back this year whenever I get angry. Most of the time, I expect this to help temper the anger. I recommend you try the same.

As with most anger, the goal should not be to remove it completely. We have to be careful to avoid complacency, and anger can help us to do that. Dammit, we should be angry about the bahaviour of congress and the CIA and even the police. If none of us got angry, progress would be even slower. But, especially after a depressing year like 2014, we can also reward ourselves by looking back, and celebrating the progress humanity continues to make.

I wish you a healthy, thoughtful and optimistic 2015.