Actually I don't - I just thought as it is Martin's birthday I should pay him some respect. Personally I do not dream as he did...he had a vision, of a united people sharing mutual respect and harmony. Perhaps if he had spent a Friday in December 2011 queueing in Asda at peak time he would realise that the prospect of a united people was delusional. In fact an afternoon in the Ford household would also prove his theory wild. Harmony between most human beings is unfeasible.
Just today I was driving home, along my usual route; and for some reason - probably my lack of concentration whilst fantasising about a lottery win and a full body massage from Eddie Iz, I was slightly inattentive and being a bit of a 'woman' driver. Hence at a mini roundabout I failed to indicate my intention to turn. As I completed this manoeuvre I noticed the driver of the car to my left (his responsibility to give way to me) gesturing, shouting and pulling faces displaying his venomous intent (OK so I don't actually know that's how bad he was feeling but allow me some poetic licence). He looked so angry I couldn't help but laugh -because somehow in this crazy world people have become internally wound so tight that the slightest inconvenience, mistake or mishap catapults them in to a violent rage. It isn't amusing of course, I realise this but it is comical.
I nearly entitled my article 'the beast within' - that wouldn't be relevant to MLK's birthday though so could make me appear less cultured. There is a beast within all of us (in my humble opinion) - whether it be rage or some other vice, it is definitely there...nesting and waiting to erupt at the moment it's development is complete. Sometimes I feel my own beast growing - when I contact British Gas or British Telecom (note the pattern....British) about a service complaint and I am passed from department to department, to Newcastle to Dublin, to Deli and back to the UK only to be told that the 'computer is down' and I will need to try again at a later time. It makes me feel murderous. I fantasise about stamping my feet on the inadequate heads of all those who have failed to resolve my issue and whose English lacks the necessary level of comprehension requisite for the task. I wonder if I am becoming a racist....a closet Nazi opposed to the nations of call centre operatives who answer the phones but fail to answer the problem. And I wonder is it really a surprise when people flip.
I'm not surprised. Not that I am planning to flip myself, but I totally get the mentality of having had enough. Perspective is hard to maintain and occasionally people lose sight of the end game.
I'm glad Martin Luther had a dream. I'm glad he managed to set in motion the resolution of a huge social injustice, but I wonder what would people like him make of the world today. I have no doubt he envisioned something far more beautiful than it has become.
Personally, I dream of a world with no automated call services, where sentences such as "you are currently in a queue and will be answered as soon as the next operative is available" are banned and where chocolate is completely calorie free.
Am I asking too much?
Yes
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