A friend of mine could be considered as too cynical, for this is how he replies to points raised.

Some people declare they are sufficiently well off; then you find them quite prepared to cut corners in order to hold on to what they have and to get a bigger bite.

His reply: The more you have, the more you’d like to have, and forget about cutting corners.

This cultural trait of ours by which if you rub my back, I’ll rub yours, has become too widespread. It’s causing huge damage to the national fabric.

His comment: To the contrary, it’s the best cement we have to maintain solidarity in our society. It goes beyond partisan stand-offs. It provides the basis on which when deals cannot be confirmed on the basis of good faith, they can be locked in through blackmail.

At least, Europe is helping to introduce a more correct behaviour in the conduct of public and commercial affairs.

His reaction: I doubt it. The signals we get from Europe merely provide evidence that while we are sinful in our own way, others sin differently.

It would be a pity if the decisions that we as a people have to make, remain limited to a choice between different forms of cynicism. This also applies to other European peoples.

***

Presentation

I understand why – and do agree that – in the presentation both abroad and locally, of the Maltese scene, the emphasis had better be placed on what is contemporary and “new”. That’s how it should be.

Even so, I think it would be a mistake if traditional and picturesque elements of Maltese life, even though they are lost and forgotten in the way we live now, are ignored completely.

It’s true that their presentation may have become stereotyped and saccharine. Still for those seeing them for the first time, they still hold a certain charm. No matter how repetitive and monotonous it may appear to those long familiar with it, such a presentation could be experienced as something “new” and amusing by foreign visitors, official or private.

In projecting the cultural and social context of this country, an emphasis on everyday life today should be a central concern; but enough space should still be reserved for the “saccharine” commemoration of the past.

***

Double standards

One of the worst defects of the Nationalist Opposition is that it applies double standards. Its behaviour prior to 2013… and its behaviour since then… reminds one of somebody who is throwing stones while seeming not to care that he/she is living inside a glasshouse.

PN frontliners have been as lax in their behaviour, today and yesterday, as those they seek to condemn. The party itself promotes policies (as in fund raising or in the protection of the environment) that are less than straight forward and quite clearly, bend the rules. Such a state of affairs is creating huge credibility problems for the Opposition, and in defending its own position, the government is naturally taking advantage of this.

The PN’s double standardsreinforce in the minds of peoplethe belief that no matter how you look at it, Maltese politics are a dirty business. For some in my generation, that such a conclusion has become widely accepted only gives rise to great concern.