It's been an extraordinary few days, hard to take in. Since 2019 politics in the UK has become increasingly depressing, with arrogance, corruption and ineptitude mixed up in the ugliness of the far right. Social media was full of anger, some of it a fight for social justice, some of it with a sinister agenda, opposing social justice. With so many wars going on and the far right traction in Europe and the US, the world felt like a very unsafe place.
When the election date was announced, the campaigning became almost unbearable as pundits and even the liberal media tore into Keir Starmer and the Labour manifesto.
In the face of such negativity and relentless accusations of being boring, uninspiring, vapid, bereft of hope, Starmer could have resorted to playing the snake oil salesman, offering miracles he knew Labour couldn't deliver on.
But he didn't do that. He and all the Shadow Cabinet stayed focused and never lost sight of their integrity. Starmer's former Chief of Staff Sam White likens Starmer's achievement to the Avengers' fight against Thanos. Dr. Strangelove sees a million possible futures. They win by taking "an incredibly narrow path full of self sacrifice and bravery. That's the path that we decided to take."
Many didn't see it and, believing they were terribly clever, underestimated Starmer. That's an age-old story. People told Einstein he was stupid. They told Elvis he couldn't sing. Record labels rejected the Beatles. Publishers rejected J.K. Rowling. A black American President? Never! Keir Starmer revive Labour in one term? Absurd!
But, like Sam White, millions of us believed in Starmer. On the 4th of July, we were vindicated. Britain regained its independence from the stranglehold of Conservativism. The ugly, egomaniac, divisive, racist element in government is gone. It was like a menacing dark cloud enveloping everything, creating so much anxiety. An anxiety that we all lived with without always perhaps realising how much it was affecting us.
It's gone. In its place a government filled with intelligent, capable, integrity-driven, hard-working MPs, many of them with a lot of experience, who have transitioned from their posts in the Shadow Cabinet. And we finally have a real statesman for a Prime Minister who we can be proud of, who's respected internationally.
Social media is alight with sheer joy and relief. As Gary Lineker said last night when England beat Switzerland in its nail-biting penalty shootout, "the world is a better place at the moment." I don't think he was referring just to football.
