Doing the voluntary work I do clearing the streets of rubbish every week as 'The Clean Up Man', I get to see and witness both the changes in society's attitude to life and the worst of the human race. it never ceases to amaze me what people throw away or where when they do they throw it! I once famously found a crash helmet next to a pregnancy detection kit under somebodies hedge! Another time I found a full length dead (thankfully!) snake in a white material sack and I am always coming across intimate items of clothing that just seem to have been discarded casually in the street! How jolly it must be to toss your underpants into the gutter or chuck your bra up into the trees...
Anyway, all of these experiences do give me a unique perspective on the thinking of people today and their lack of care or thought for anyone other than themselves is the one thing which shines through more than anything when I really think about it. Community in general seems to be in steep decline as people spend less and less time with real people and more and more time on their phones. This 'singularity of mind' also seems to have given the green light for a drop in general moral standards and today it is now seen as o.k. to peddle Christmas scratch cards. That Jesus himself was dead against gambling and that Christmas (even the non-Christian version) is meant to be about thinking of others, celebrating what and who we have and giving thanks for it/them has obviously not been considered worth worrying about.
Yes, I know you can say 'Oh, just lighten up for goodness sake' but just hang on a minute there! I am not a religious man myself but I do have enough respect for those who are to be mindful not to deliberately upset them or 'pour scorn on their beliefs'. What does the existence of scratch cards like these say about how us Brits value Christmas these days? Is all Christmas is to us now a 'brand' to be exploited for financial gain or personal greed? I know that essentially these cards are meant to be fun and I also take on board the fact that the National Lottery does not intend to incite people to spend money they cannot afford on gambling but the fact is I find LOADS of losing scratch cards (and the odd winner as well would you believe!) every day when doing my rounds and I often think to myself about how much good could have been done with the money someone has casually spent on them and wasted...
It is true that the National Lottery helps to fund many worthwhile causes and I'm sure that at least some of the money raised from festive scratch cards like these will go to help poor and disadvantaged people but I still feel uneasy about Christmas scratchers on a moral basis.
What do you think?
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