curiosity about the ways of the world

Can cafe culture beat Tesco in Broughton?

Just for the record, I did write a letter to Edinburgh’s Head of Planning to register my concern over Tesco’s plans to open a new store at 8 Picardy Place.  As it happens I wrote it the same day I went to see the Edinburgh premiere of the Age of Stupid.  Make of that what you will.

By the time I posted the letter I didn’t have much hope that it would make any difference.   But I had discovered the power of Twitter.   Greener Leith supportively tweeted my Facebook rage against the mighty Tesco and suddenly  there was a flow of traffic to my blog that I am not at all used to.  Some left comments, a few made  very good points but to  my amazement there was  a depressing number in favour of the superstore colonising our neighbourhood. Or, almost as bad, couldn’t care one way or the other.

I have a new pessimism about the ways and wisdom of humanity since seeing the Age of Stupid and discovering that 60% of the population do not believe climate change is a man-made problem. With the chance of man-made solutions.

But maybe all is not yet lost.  Every time I look at the ‘dashboard’ of my blog I see two stories battling it out for top place.  So far Cafe Culture Thrives in Broughton is still well ahead of  Stop Tesco Destroying Broughton.  What would you make of that?

[See also Crumbs of Comfort]

2 Comments

  1. Despairing

    I agree about The Age Of Stupid. I’ve seen it twice now, and it’s well worth it. It has it’s bad points but they’re overwhelmed by the stuff that makes you think. And if I’m as sprightly at 82, then I’ll be a lucky man.

  2. Administrator

    By the way, I think Age of Stupid is well worth seeing – and maybe it can help change people’s minds. It is beautifully made, doesn’t preach but tells lots of very human stories.

    Pete Postlethwaite is terrific as the voice from the future but I lost my heart to the mountain guide from Chamonix. He’s 82: still working on the mountains, still growing his own veg, and cycling down into the valley to campaign against the heavy traffic of lorries on the road while the glaciers up above retreat further and further every year.

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