British Values

I've been pondering the stupidity of identity politics recently, both the far left and the far right at the moment seem to be keen to engage in this kind of blunt (but popular) form of discourse. We have the left accusing everyone who doesn't agree with them of being racist or sexist and on the right we see lines being drawn around race and nationality. More often than not, these accusations are simply aimed at convenient straw-men, carefully crafted to be impossible to tolerate.

The game is played by making one group, or identity, the oppressed and another (i.e. the people who disagree with your position) the oppressor, it's a very common thread that runs through the core of the worst atrocities in history. From the middle-ages when the manufactured identities tended to pivot around religion (Muslim, Catholic vs. Protestant etc.) through to the last century when man-made identities tended to pivot around things like Communism, Nationalism or even Imperialism. In the end it's just a tactic for one group to gain dominance over another, a way of de-humanising your opposition which in turn justifies (bad) actions to the foot-soldiers.

We're often told by politicians these days that what we should do is focus on "British values", although I'm not entirely sure what that means? If I'm honest, it smells a little "identity-politic" Why not just say ethical values? It's a bit like saying what we all need is Catholic Chemistry, one of the words is almost certainly unnecessary.

Fortunately there seems to be a bit of a backlash going on at the moment against identity politics, a core of support is definitely forming (mainly online) against radical feminism, social-justice-warriors and people who claim the right not to be offended (especially in universities) These proponents of identity based discourse tend to come from the left of the political spectrum, but there's also danger from the right. I sense that many ultra-right wing agitators are looking at the tactics of the ultra-left and concluding that if identity-politics is the game then fine, they simply stake their claim as white nationalists and set their sights on "winning", usually by jumping straight to violence or intimidation.

The remedy, to this slippery-slope of identity politics leading to conflict, is to talk and listen to each other more. This doesn't mean having to accept unsubstantiated nonsense, more a simple realisation that conservatives need liberals and liberals need conservatives and by always assuming that the other person/team/side may just know something you don't. For me the term "British values" has a rather comical, self-depreciating feel to it, for me it means polite but also socially awkward, traditional but also adventurous, fair but also sometimes stubborn. In true Barnum fashion of course, these descriptions could apply to every human-being there's even been, given the right context.