More Plotting and the Big Idea 138 is Liberty

The right side of the 202a plot

Getting full on 202b

It's fun on the allotment we had our first (admittedly only 6) broad
beans at the weekend and there are peas are beginning to form as I write.
Recently Plot 202b has been getting increasingly congested with major diversions necessary to get from my compost heap to my broad beans (not to mention the railway sleepers that were intended for a raised bed), fortunately (I think it's fortunate) my borders have widened.

The other side of 202a

Plot 202a has been vacated and I've now been granted the old plot which has doubled my area and once I've cleared some of the weeds and accumulated baths and odds and ends I'll be able to start planting Tomatoes, Peppers, Cabbages and Cauliflowers in a home of their own - this will also I hope give me a chance to plan a little more efficiently and try a rudimentary rotational programme.
The plot has even more sun than my existing one and some of it has been cultivated quite recently so with a bit of weeding a bonfire and perhaps some rotted compost it will be productive

Big Idea 138  is Liberty

A symbol of Liberty

In the political lexicon Liberty is often tied to Freedom and Crofton points out that the two terms are sometimes hijacked for questionable causes. The USA's fight for independence might be celebrated as a campaign for liberty but at the time it provided little in the form of liberation for Women and Slaves.
In terms of defining Liberty The Declaration of Arbroath (1320) is a historic statement that iterates
the Scottish claim for Freedom from the English .
The modern concept of liberty held by 'liberals' may not always mean small government but can be more about the enabling people to progress with their aims hopefully without encroaching on other people's liberties.

William Burrell and big idea 137 is 'Progress'

One of the virtues of the BBC iPlayer is the ability it provides for watching out of region TV shows (e.g. Programmes made for showing in BBC Scotland become available).
Last week I watched a thoroughly fascinating documentary on William Burrell and the collection he bestowed on Scotland.
Kirsty Wark is almost a guarantee of quality in the TV shows she fronts and this was certainly the case here where the programme balanced the themes of the man and what he left behind.
Burrell was not a showy philanthropist but he was great collector with a curiosity that fuelled his esoteric accumulation of artefacts. In the age of Hearst and Carnegie he showed that philanthropy was not a solely North American phenomenon.

Glasgow home of the Burrell collection

big idea 137 is 'Progress'

Progress is a value that generally has associations with the left and is based on belief's that humans can improve themselves and the society they live in.
Progress probably assumes some sort basic shared values, the fact is that people are now living longer healthier lives, more people have freedoms (like for example in the UK  choosing their religion or choosing to have no religion)  than they did 100 years ago.
How we measure progress could be problematic and in some cases their is a price to progress- for example those with a 'green' agenda would say that the exploitation of the planet  to provide us with comfortable air conditioned offices is causing the ice caps to melt.
Progress does not always proceed linearly and conditions can cause temporary reversions.
Here's  Ronald Wright  who has written 'A Short History of Progress' answering questions on the topic on TV.

60 years ago revisited and Big Idea 136 is Authority and Authoritarianism

It was easy to forget that it was 60 years since the Coronation of Elizabeth II but I noticed in a side road of Ealing that the event was being commemorated - wouldn't be too surprised to find Coronation Chicken on the menu at this street party. If you have a look at the ingredients I think you'll be curious as to how the dish was arrived at by Constance Spry/Rosemary Hume and in fact is a version of an earlier  regal dish (George V 's Jubilee Chicken).

 

Authority and Authoritarianism

This topic is associated with the traditional political right. Following what some considered the anarchy of the French Revolution a body of thinkers to sing the praises of order  and traditional authority as embodied in Church, State and Family.
Joseph de Maistre (1753-1821) was a big figure in this philosophy having been a magistrate he turned to satire to critique the effects of the French revolution.
Edmund Burke was also critical of the anarchy of these times believing that culture was preserved under  Authoritarian rule and the loss of authority would lead to chaos with a counter reaction which would  ultimately lead to a dictatorship.
During the Cold War a distinction was made between Totalitarian regimes (often of the left) and those merely considered Authoritarian (like Greece's general) which were more acceptable to the USA.
Burke was an MP and his thoughts/works are a lodestone for the right (see below)

A great Pub, Ealing's Village Inn and Idea number 135 is Hierarchy

Nice Pub

Many years ago one of the first pubs I knew to get a radical makeover was The Grange on Ealing Common, it had been a cross between the bat cave and a gothic bikers hangout but it became a victim of gentrification and got comfy chairs and bookcases thanks to a Mr Duffy (the manager at the time).
After a while Tom Duffy moved onto his own place in  Pitshanger  Lane ( rather appropriately known as Duffy's (a great Pub too) after a while Tom Moved on to Northfields Avenue and got another pub T J Duffy's near the Underground station.

Well to cut to the chase, today we went to a Pub  now called The Village Inn which is what the first Duffy's has become and it's a great little Pub, nice sandwiches, good selection of beer and wine and various modern accoutrements that are expected   by the 231st century pub goer (like Wi-Fi).
If you're in the area and have some time to chill I'd recommend it.

 

Big Idea 135 is  Hierarchy.

The man for the job

Crofton says that Hierarchy (and inheritance to privileged status)  are generally associated with the political  right  (and North Korea) and are used to protect the status quo and hereditary principle.
Conservatives can use arguments about being born for power certainly the case can be made that Queen Elizabeth II's son Charles has spent his life being prepared to take the throne.
In times gone by  it was often the case that the elite ruled via blood lines and the systems of peerage in the UK is a classic example. Against this the argument of hierarchy is that  it  has been used to instil discrimination (including favouring the male offspring) and even atrocities when elites have fought to protect their 'god given' place at the top.