Hail golden oldies, the guardians of society

IN one of the greatest character assassinations of all time, former prime minister Margaret Thatcher is quoted as saying: ‘There is no such thing as society.’

She did say that, in an interview with Woman’s Own. But the sort of people who called her ‘uncaring’ before they danced in the streets after her death ignore what came next.

‘There are individual men and women and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look after themselves first. It is our duty to look after ourselves and then, also, to look after our neighbours.’

So Mrs T grasped that society does exist – found at local level, not in government edicts and schemes.

her words came back to me at the 227th (there are younger countries!) annual dinner of the Galloway Association of Glasgow.

here were a group of people, all successful in diverse walks of life, taking out time – and money – to support a charity that has been aiding Gallovidians since Pitt the Younger was cooking up a new-fangled thing called ‘income tax’ at 10 Downing Street.

how humbling to meet the likes of a woman who was selflessly promoting her unique corner of Scotland and its people, and her cancer and her husband’s heart attack be damned.

how fascinating to meet a former policeman who repurposed his forensic skills to dive deep into local history to bring closure to relatives of nearforgotten tragedies.

And while the Association goes about its good works in the shamefully forgotten South-West, there are hundreds of similar groups doing much to maintain the fabric of society right across Scotland. There’s an army of people who, unsung and seeking no reward, help neighbours near and far.

Many are retired and few things make my blood boil more than youth-obsessed politicians who consign ‘the elderly’ to the scrapheap.

Alex Salmond – no spring chicken he – set this hateful ball rolling as he surveyed the wreckage of his independence dream after decisive defeat in the 2014 referendum.

‘Scots of my generation and above have impeded progress for the next generation,’ he said. The insinuation was clear – oldies were too selfish/addled/ afraid to deliver the ‘right’ answer.

It never crossed his mind that these same oldies were sharp enough to recognise a snake-oil salesman such as him and long enough in the tooth to be concerned about the insane risks of the leap in the dark that was independence based on the fictional Scotland’s Future document (co-sponsor: N. Sturgeon).

ThE dog-whistle was heard by other Nationalists who latched onto the excuse that the grey brigade cost them independence and soon MP Pete Wishart was making snide jokes about older people being mere care-home fodder.

They were as wrong as former prime minister David Cameron was when he thought he was forging his Big Society via ‘country suppers’ among his elite Chipping Norton set.

No, society abides in the members of unassuming groups such as the Galloway Association of Glasgow who are – regardless of their age – savvy enough to take care of themselves first but altruistic enough to consider others.

The kids are alright, sang The Who. Their elders are admirable, too.