How refreshing that new boy on the block Barack Obama felt it acceptable to give an octogenarian grandmother an iPod as a gift. The Royal iPod, perfect. Apple must be cock-a-hoop.
Yet across the Pond our American cousins are falling over themselves to apologise and detach themselves from what some see as the President lowering standards. It smacks of inverted snobbery to me.
That Her Majesty is reported to already have an mp3 player is hardly a surprise to any who have met her or have taken an interest in the Royal household. The cute touch from the President was the ready loaded content ~ video footage of her previous visit to the States ~ which made it a personal and thoughtful gift for the Monarch.
Put his in the context of The Queen’s gift to him: a framed picture of herself and Prince Phillip (the done thing for visiting dignitaries apparently) and you begin to truly appreciate the clever (but not smarmy) thinking behind his petite cadeau.
And on the age issue…
At a Fabian Society gathering this week, the ‘think tank’ hosted a lively discussion about age as part of a series of workshops aiming to address the key issues facing older people in the UK. Not least of all the issue of care and how older people are treated by the state, the community and the media.
During the discussion one of the panellists ~ a delightful lady called Dorothy ~ referred to her concerns about ageism and the effect this has on how the rest of us treat older people. As a rather superbly titled ‘Expert By Experience’, she made one very interesting point. In her mind, ageism is the new racism.
I can see where she is coming from and there was little more than tacit nodding round the table as she spoke. I guess to her and many millions of older people the reality is of positive discrimination because of their age. However I cannot see that ageism, as bad and pathetic as it is, is any comparison to the loathsome nature of racism.
My sympathies over age are firmly with Dorothy. Change needs to occur if we as a society are to begin to address the massive issues of age and aging, particularly in the area of health and social care. It is rumoured that by 2025 there will be more people over the age of 50 in the UK than under. As we all are aware, the demand on pension funds will also create a massive problem. By living longer, more people will need primary care for longer, especially those who live with conditions like dementia and who choose to exercise their right to be cared for at home rather than in a care home. The government must act soon before it’s too late.
Mange Tout 