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You are here: Home / London Blog / The Nanny State

The Nanny State

August 30, 2009 by Grant Bushby

Is it just because I come from Africa and have pretty much fended for myself shortly after changing out of nappies, or is England (and other parts of the world) in danger of becoming one big, over-protective nanny state? I’m so fed up by being told what to do all the time, what is good for me, not good for me, safe to do, unsafe to do, what to eat, not eat etc. Last Friday I woke up and switched on the news as usual. The forecast said it was going to be a warm weekend and the weatherman was at pains to stress that I shouldn’t forget to apply factor 30 if I was going to be out in the sun for more than 15 minutes, that I must remember to wear a hat and to make sure that I did not venture out between midday and 2pm. Er … who is he talking to? Five year olds? People who have never seen the sun before? A lunchtime appointment dictated that I had to venture outside at midday – gasp! – and make my way to the city centre by tube. Entering the Underground I was bombarded with a booming PA system that told me that in this hot weather I should be carrying a bottle of water with me at all times and that if I felt “overcome with the heat” I should sit down. Um, okay. Firstly stop charging exorbitatnt prices for bottles of water at the station kiosk and, secondly, if you need to sit down, good luck if you can find a seat on the Central Line! Thirdly. Stop. Treating. Me. Like. An. Idiot. I’ve hiked the Fish River Canyon in mid-December, driven up and down the Skeleton Coast in a bombed out old Beetle with no air-con in 40+ temperatures and camped out in Botswana and Mpumulanga at the height of an African summer. But even if I hadn’t done any of these sweat inducing activities, surely as an adult I am savvy enough to take care of myself by now? Who appointed these messengers the parents and guardians of us all? If there’s going to be a heatwave, tell me so I can dress appropriately and plan a weekend braai but that’s all I need to know. The rest I can manage by myself thank you.

Addendum: Slightly in the same vein but on a different note, this small piece in today’s Telegraph caught my eye. “Highway officials banned villagers from decorating a roundabout with flowers over health and safety fears.” Seems residents in the Cornish village of Dobwalls wanted to spruce up the new traffic measure which is covered in weeds, but the Highways Agency have stopped them doing so because “the plants could catch the eye of passing drivers and cause an accident.” Strange but true.

Filed Under: London Blog

Comments

  1. a4away says

    December 28, 2009 at 2:38 pm

    A bit late to comment but I have only just found this site so will carry on.

    Nope – Britain is not in danger of becoming a Nanny State. It is already one. The worst part about it all is that if you criticise some of these stupid rules/laws in a debate with a youngster, they think they should be in place for their safety and secuirty.

    Like you, I have also had adventures, driven through Africa from Egypt to CT, slept rough all the way. Very few of the young Brits would even consider sleeping rough in the woods here let alone going on a trek. They are too scared of their own shadows because that’s what society has done to them. I feel very sorry for them with their restricted mind sets.

    It is excruciatingly painful to have to abide by and live with some of the idiiotic rules and regs but it seems to me that most British adults hate what has happened to their country and their lifestyle.

    However, unlike South African’s that Toy Toy for something they want, or the French that strike and generally perform until they get what they want, the Brits just do what they are told.

    I would just like to know who these people are and what positions they hold that make these stupid laws – are they actually laws?

    I have just spent 4 weeks in Germany where riding a horse without a helmet is fine, riding a bicycle without a helmet is fiine, people drive fast in the fast lane (around 200 ks/hr) – a case of it it’s too hot in the kitchen, get out.

    I heard yesterday that Teacher’s are not supposed to use red pens anymore as it is supposed to be insulting – what is so insulting about a red pen?

    As you indicate, we do not need nursing, we need freedom to make our own choices and take the consequences.

    Isn’t it strange that children are encouraged to have freedom of choices to encourage their development, somehow the entire picture is scewed.

    ciao

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About Grant

Grant Bushby has been in London for almost 13 years (lucky?). A Rhodes University graduate, he's ex-Ster-Kinekor, ex-M-Net and ex-BBC Worldwide – and now works as Head of Marketing & PR for Impossible Pictures, an independent television production company. He's married to a gorgeous Kiwi (but still a Springbok supporter), has a young son, Finn, and lives in Twickenham – right across the road from the rugby stadium. Loves London but the weather needs to improve. Grant doesn't get to go back to SA as much as he'd like, but when he does, he stocks up on biltong (the Butcher Shop & Grill in Sandton), rusks (Woolies) and Milky Bar Crunch (Pick & Pay).

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