Re-awakened

Time was (back in the early cretaceous) I was quite politically aware and interested.

Rampant socialist, having been influenced by my much-loved aunt.

I was also influenced by some of the General Studies lessons we had when I was in the sixth form at school.

A visit by the three major parties to talk to us had its effect...although I only remembered Dawn Primarolo - but that's at least in part because she was a Tony Benn protégé and in part because she was married to a teacher a the school.

My antipathy to proportional representation definitely dates from that time.

But once I settled down with Idiot Boy, my interest in politics took a back seat. I don't really know why. I still believed in the socialist ideal. I still voted (generally Labour but drifting towards Lib-Dem as New Labour drited rightwards) but I didn't actually take an interest.

This election has been different.

I enjoyed the leadership debates not for the rhetoric - none of them said much of interest - but for the interesting debate it sparked amongst my firends via Twitter and with other friends in person, by email, by text message...whatever.

For the first time I can remember, I actually looked forward to listening to the results coming in.

Obviously it wasn't going to be a good result for my political preferences...but I was wholly taken aback at the rage I felt when I picked up a text message from S during the interval at the theatre. "We have a new PM...".

I was so upset, that when I got to ma's on Wednesday I had to ask her to turn off the TV news and stop her when she started talking about immigration policy.

Now there's just a dull annoyance and an uncomfortable feeling that whilst the regime for the last few years hasn't been entirely to my taste, there may be tough times ahead for anyone who isn't white, middle-class (or more), straight, married or possibly even a man.

They're right "May you live in interesting times..." is a curse....



.