Stimulating Debate - The Lasting Legacy of Margaret Thatcher

Poor Maggie. If ever there was a polarising figure, it would have to be her. 

I’ve been mulling over this post for a while now, but I wanted to let a little bit of the hyperbole surrounding the news of her death die down first. All these insults and praises being thrown left, right and centre does get a bit tiresome and repetitive, even if it is highly amusing at times.  

I first heard about her death via a post on my new phone. My new phone which is entirely built and designed in Asia, just like all its competitors. But that’s ok, it’s a free market, and it means the phone was relatively cheap. One point for Madge. 

Her death wasn’t, or at least shouldn’t have been massive news though. The woman had been living with dementia for a number of years, and was slowly suffering and fading into nothingness. She wasn’t in the public spotlight, and it must have come as a welcome relief for those close to her. The BBC and other news outlets had clearly been expecting it; pre-recorded programmes about her life were ready to roll within hours of the news breaking. 

Naturally, when someone dies, we remember what they did. Well, we do if we were alive then. Lots of people talking about her probably don’t have the foggiest about what she did. They’re just following the crowd.

Hence the street parties to celebrate her dying. Whatever you think about her policies, this is probably a tad harsh; she was just a person after all, and she wasn’t exactly Hitler. 

Though I suppose that depends on who you speak to. She undoubtedly caused a lot of people a lot of heartbreak and suffering. There’s no denying that. She did ruin lives. But was it really one woman that did that? 

It’s easy to pinpoint Thatcher as the figurehead of Conservatism in the 1970’s and 1980’s, as she was the leader of the party. But were the policies she implemented solely her own? 

Short answer: No, of course not. In actual fact, if you look at the policies she proposed and implemented, and the Conservative Manifesto under Ted Heath in 1970, the similarities are massive, if not identical. Yes, she followed her beliefs, but her beliefs were no different to anyone else in her party really. She was not an ideologue. It it wasn’t her that did it, it’s very likely someone else would have. 

That’s not to say she was right of course. In fact I think she made a number of terrible decisions and grave errors, and did set Britain on a path to what it is today...not so great. At the time, her economic policies may well have pulled Britain out of a rut, but she gave us the freedom to dig ourselves into an even bigger hole. 

Though again this is a tad hyperbolic, I am inclined to agree with Morrissey’s way of thinking about Margaret Thatcher. 

 "Thatcher will only be fondly remembered by sentimentalists who did not suffer under her leadership, but the majority of British working people have forgotten her already, and the people of Argentina will be celebrating her death. As a matter of recorded fact, Thatcher was a terror without an atom of humanity." (From an old interview before her death)

"Thatcher was not a strong or formidable leader. She simply did not give a shit about people, and this coarseness has been neatly transformed into bravery by the British press who are attempting to re-write history in order to protect patriotism...The fact that Thatcher ignited the British public into street-riots, violent demonstrations and a social disorder previously unseen in British history is completely ignored by David Cameron in 2013." (Upon hearing the news) 

And maybe even Frank Turner too, moderately famous folk singer who represented Britain in the opening ceremony of the Olympics. Ironic. (Warning: May Contain Strong Language)

She was nothing if not strong willed, following her beliefs on an unstoppable, un-turnable, iron-clad course. Was she confrontational? Yes, of course, but it’s her blunt remarks which led to many arguments in the House of Commons and amongst the general public that may well be her lasting legacy.

She stimulated debate. On both sides of the political divide, she got people talking - and arguing - about the issues. With her death, I’ve never seen so much political talk in the social media and amongst friends before, and generally it’s quite substantive policy talk too. It was very intriguing to hear everyone’s thoughts about her, and about what she stood for, especially from those people who I didn’t think were the least bit political. And interesting to surmise their party affiliations too based on their comments. I didn’t know that many of my friends were Tories at heart. (Now, where’s that de-friend button gone...) 

Her legacy for women remains to be seen. She stood tall amongst men, but had to act like a man, and a strong brutal man at that, in order to do so. She fought for Britain yes, but maybe Britain needed a woman to be compassionate, caring and nurturing, not aggressive and confrontational. Perhaps we are scared of having another female Prime Minister for this very reason. There’s an argument that the current women in politics had to fit into the Margaret Thatcher image in some way in order to get where they are today. There’s no room for softly spoken in British politics. 

A good point, or a bad point? Either way, it’s a result of Maggie, and it’s something we’ll probably continue to talk about for decades to come.