Olympics rant – I wasn’t going to watch the Opening Ceremony, because I am very angry about so much to do with the Olympics in London: the huge amount of public money being spent on it when our public services are being destroyed around us; the gentrification of working class areas of the capital; the forced removal of social tenants to make way for Olympic venues; the massive increase in surveillance; the ridiculously over-played security presence; the siting of missiles on top of residential accommodation; the closure of public roads for Olympic officials; the immense disruption caused; the ridiculous over-commercialisation; the horrendous corporate sponsorship scandals; and so on and so forth…

I ended up turning the TV on because my social media feeds were getting swamped by other people’s comments, and the first thing I heard was Huw Edwards talking about the NHS – having not seen the rest of the show up to this point, this infuriated me even more, hence my first FB post/rant. Perhaps our most important public institution which is being systematically and ideologically ripped apart by this Con-Dem coalition government.

I then watched the rest of the show, and my impression changed. Danny Boyle presented a flamboyant and glitzy slap in the face to the Conservatives by showcasing so much of Britishness that truly is great, and that the Tories are trying to sell off and take apart.

I have just watched the show from the start on the BBC iPlayer, and it truly was a great spectacle. I love a good piece of theatre as much as anyone and so there ya have it.

What I hope, is that the millions of Britons who watched it – the electorate – will have taken in the meaning behind it. This is what is great about the UK – all of our achievements, all of our creativity, our diverse communities. I truly hope that those who loved it will be spurred into action by it.

To get up off their sofas, to wipe the Con-Dem sleep out of their eyes and see the truth about what is happening to our country.

And to do something to stop the destruction.

To get out there and put the “Big Society” into action.

To make the difference, to be the change, to save our public services from being pulled apart and sold of to the highest bidder.

Get involved. Vote. Join a trade union, community association, whatever. Anything. Everything. Something.

Not nothing.