Ode to the Iron Lady
The Iron Lady is no more. And parts of UK are celebrating her death! Other than being a very sad thing to do, it makes you wonder about her, what kind of a person was she; how extraordinary would she be (not necessarily good or bad) that her death brings out such kind of emotions in some people.
Hearing about it led me to research her views, her actions and her decisions, to understand how can people either hate her so much or not hate her (I still haven't found people who love her yet, but think its the same as don't hate!). And so I realised how split the country is when it comes to her. On the one side, there will be a ceremonial funeral for her (something rarely accorded to politicians) and on the other side, there are street parties on her death. Just goes to show what an extraordinary woman she was!
Hearing about it led me to research her views, her actions and her decisions, to understand how can people either hate her so much or not hate her (I still haven't found people who love her yet, but think its the same as don't hate!). And so I realised how split the country is when it comes to her. On the one side, there will be a ceremonial funeral for her (something rarely accorded to politicians) and on the other side, there are street parties on her death. Just goes to show what an extraordinary woman she was!
And as I learnt more about her, I realised what she stands for, is taking decisions, and bold ones at that. They might not necessarily have been all correct (this can be debated endlessly), but it is not for their correctness or incorrectness that she is disliked. It is just because she had the guts to take strong decisions which most politicians rarely or never do.
And that made me a bit sad. Politicians are meant to bring change, take the country forward whatever it takes. And a person who does exactly that has to face such strong resistance and dislike in her own country. She is remembered today for a lot of positives; bringing change to the country and moving it out of its imperialist past towards a modern nation. Surely, people could have ignored her wrong decisions for the rights she did?
'But no, she took strong decisions and that cannot be ignored or forgotten!' - That's what I found what was the basis for the celebrations at her death.
Anyways, I respect her, for being a strong person, a strong woman and a strong leader. I don't agree with everything she did, but at least she had the courage to stand up for what she thought was right. And when it wasn't, she lost out. But at least, she did it. The country should be proud of having a leader like her, even if rare.
(And I admire Indira Gandhi for the same, for being a strong person, even if incorrect at times. Strength of person seems to be a rare commodity in leaders/politicians nowadays. Would be good to see someone like that again.)
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