Revolutionaries love the idea of chaos and disorder, and perhaps to the middle class corporatist stuck in a vile job that frisson is all that keeps them going as they negotiate the daily grind. But in a world ripped apart by wild weather, energy shortages and uncertain economies surely we'll crave stability far more?
The Beano book symbolises stability to me. It speaks of an endless procession of Christmases and a half hour of daftness. The anticipation each year from probably 1965 through to 1980 was unbearable, and it never let me down. And the annual still appears, though you'd be hard pressed to recognise most of the characters in it, they've been fucked up and dumbed down for today's kids. So we have the impression of stability but not the substance.
Go back in time twenty years and write a list of 20 things that will still be there in 20 years' time. Woolworths ... MFI ... The News of the World ... Jim'll Fix It. You get the idea.
Perhaps it's just creative destruction in action? Or we need change to keep going. But in an energy constrained future, buffeted by wild weather and worrying about where the next pound is coming from, I suspect the decadent need for change for change's sake will become far less attractive, and we'll crave stability in its place. And you have to wonder what demons that craving will release ...
I also wonder what the Beano Annual 2050 will look like ...
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