When Sir Douglas Black died last week we lost a
powerful advocate for our cause. It is interesting
to speculate on what he might have made of this
week's speech in which the Prime Minister talked
of his aspirations for a country 'in which we
achieve true equality - equal status and equal
opportunity rather than equality of outcome.'
What on earth have Mr Blair's spin doctors been up
to? How could anyone think they have the right to
claim that equality of outcome 'is not true
equality'? When did we last have a Prime Minister
(or the daughter of one) dying of asbestos
poisoning, unsafe equipment on the production line
/ construction site, or traffic injuries sustained
while playing out in the street? Try telling the
victims of such injustices that we don't need
equality of outcome.
And what exactly is equality of status?
Socioeconomic status? We can only achieve that
through UNequal opportunities - through giving
greater opportunities to those who are currently
denied them. And while it was indeed interesting
to see the government once again espousing
egalitarian values, I would guess that the spin
doctors were unable to resist this 'fixing of the
language', perhaps in order to create a get-out
clause for when the demands for equality become
too strong....or am I just a pessimist?
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