Residents' Christmas lights plea
It's a phenomenom that's grown and grown and holds disproportionate fascination for bloggers. It's one of those things that somehow encapsulates...something.
It wasn't until the 1990s that I was even aware of it, and that was only because of a particular area of Essex I used to visit occasionally where the local custom was to keep up with, and, if possible, out-do the neighbours. In 1998 I saw a spectacular light show from a private house between Reading and Thale, and since then, it seems that media reports of OTT lights have grown and grown. There's a flat on Streatham Hill which can be relied upon to take the local biscuit each year, but it's not an attraction in itself. Personally, I think they look tacky, but there again, I'm not quite sure my illuminated Santa which goes in the window each year is really in good taste. And I'd hate to live near someone who attracts visitors from far-and-wide because I'm sure it really is an imposition and a nuisance.
Meanwhile, my local loony LibDem Council have renamed the Christmas lights as Celebrity Lights, or something. Their argument is that it isn't just Christians that have Festivals of Light, and therefore it's wrong to call them Christmas lights. Technically, they have a point, but are misjudging badly in three major ways.
The first is that their patronising multi-culturalism is spectacularly mistimed. If the 'Festival Lights' kicked off for Hanukkah and shone through Diwali and Eid, right up beyond Christmas, they would be right. But they don't start until December, so they are lying.
Secondly, despite the efforts of trendy guitar-strumming vicars to persuade us that the true meaning of Christmas is a Christian religious occasion, the reality is that way back in times forgotten, it was a religious festival imposed from above to wipe out the Bacchanalian feast of Saturnalia: main features, lights, music, dancing, eating, and, of course, drinking. So those of us that see Christmas as an excuse for lights, music, dancing, eating, and, of course, drinking are recapturing the democratic essence of a popular festival created to mark the shortest day.
And thirdly, history has an amazing cyclical pattern. Up until a decade ago, Lambeth had a reputation for administrative incompetence mixed with inappropriately patronising gestures masquerading as cultural sensibilities. Subsequently, it transformed, led by Lambeth Labour, with support from the Liberals and Tories when it was politically opportunistic to do so. The philosophy being that the best way to tackle racism and other forms of deprivation is by creating good schools, quality social housing, a functioning and responsive local authority. Now we have the amazing spectacle of a minority Liberal Democrat administration propped up by the Conservatives squandering and rejecting money whilst making empty condescending gestures.
Roll on May, and the local elections, when hopefully, the voters of Lambeth will not cast an empty protest vote against the Iraq war or against an unpopular Governemnt, but will ask themselves - "What sort of administration do I want to spend my taxes on my services?"
My mother says my neighbour was a vox-pop on Richard and Judy on Monday comemnting on the renaming of the Lights.
