When I was in my early 20s and quite conservative I assumed I was just an anomaly, someone who develops these traits earlier than normal, and conservatism was like baldness or impotence or the other bad things that get you in middle age; most of my friends and contemporaries would catch up at some point, because these things just develop at different speeds.
Now in my late 30s I realise it’s worse than that and almost none of my friends and acquaintances are going to become more conservative; if anything, they’ve become more left-wing than they were 20 years ago, as the barometer of what is progressive and therefore acceptable has shifted. Many of them would have been among the 40 per cent of the population who voted for Corbyn last week, and the 50 per cent aged 35-44.
Despite all the liberal lamentation about Brexit and Trump I saw those as mere blips in the onward march of progressivism; the former supported by the old and the latter by the prematurely dying. In reality, the future still belongs to the Left, because the young tend to be of that tribe but also because, if my generation are anything to go by, this is not merely a stage they’re going through.
Of course there is the issue of house-building, illustrated by the voting
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in