Self-Responsibility

I'm not the only one saying it. My friend in the US complained about the nanny state; I told her "you have no idea". Americans may think that the government is a nanny state because of speed cameras, signs warning people against gridlock, and CAUTION HOT on coffee cups, but they honestly have no idea how bad it could be.

One of my old flatmates (Scottish) once told a story about a neighbour she had that would call the council for everything. Crack in the pavement? Call the council. Bag of rubbish on the curb? Call the council. Snow? Ice? Call the council. Apparently she had the best-looking sidewalk on the entire street. Shame they had to waste their time fixing every little thing for her, though.

But as Hamish McRae points out in the Independent, this difference between self-sufficiency and responsibility can even be seen in how politicians communicate. Would a modern British politician ever ask people to take more responsibility in their lives? They ask us to wash our hands to prevent swine flu, and stop smoking to prevent cancer, but a general "take responsibility!" is absent.