Legacy of a life

A send off for Maggie Thatcher.

We mentioned the anthem of the anti-Thatcher sentiment in the earlier post "Ding Dong" and figured we did not have much to say about the discussion.

Almost a week later and after many more articles and comments in the British and the German press, our outlook has changed. We have witnessed the making of a legacy.

In the UK, the Tories decided to celebrate Maggie as the first female leader of a major Western country. Labor decided to get on board with this. The smallest common denominator.

So far so good, so true.

At the  same time, may voices have been critical of the witch image of the song, with some pointing out that Mrs. Thatcher is being attacked because she was a woman. The argument was made that Ronald Reagan's policies were very similar to Mrs. Thatcher's, and that Reagan was not attacked in a similar way.
In the diversity of reactions within a population the size of Britain plus the neigbors, we will certainly find examples of "beat up the girl because we can, leave the guy alone". A German commentator says that one reason she gets treated harshly is because she was a woman. Let's simply accept this, after all it is "one" reason.

Many German writers have drawn the comparison between her and Reagan, just like many US conservatives have.

That's a huge fallacy. Reagan, despite his policies, was so much less all out confrontational, and as rumors of his illness spread, even critics took that into account. Mrs. Thatcher showed none of the restraint of old Ronald. She acted much like the bully this blogster knows from the school yard, so those hurt can be expected to show it.

And there is another difference to former American presidents who still had productive years once they had left office.

Which is that they make an effort to contribute to the good of society, or stay out of politics. The Democrats Carter and Clinton are do gooders of the first order, kudos. The elder Bush was engaged for a while. Ford did a little bit. The younger Bush is laying low.

Mrs, Thatcher became a Baroness and moved to the House of Lords, fighting the same fight, just a little less visible.

But what's worse, there was no mellowing out, no real or perceived reflection. Journalists who were granted interviews when her memoirs came out have not regaled us with stories of humor and insight, of awareness that she might do a few things differently.

Maybe, just maybe, her memories contain some of these reflections and it is the fault of this blogster to not have read them. To contemporaries, Mrs. Thatcher's unbending demeanor suggests more the retired Richard Nixon than any other recent US president.

Another aspect not given real attention in the German press is that the current British government policies of austerity are something of a deja vu to the older folks who went through the Thatcher government as adults.

Britain is still a class conscious country, to this day you can get an extremely good idea of someone's place in society by listening to just a few sentences and watching a few mannerisms.

And if you think that Maggie broke up some sort of worker's paradise, you have not lived in council housing 15 m from a busy rail line. You have not walked the stairwell, made out of bare concrete, the front of the steps sloped, a bit rounded for water to run off, or for vomit or blood to be hosed off easily.

Be it as it may, rest in peace, Mrs. Thatcher.