No More Heroes

It's easy for baby boomers to identify with heroes; Shackleton, Bader, Scott, Churchill, Monty. These were ordinary people doing extraordinary things and they were celebrated in the papers and in the pub and became part of our popular culture – a culture of service, not self; dedication to a cause which was not expressed as a bank balance.

These people felt they belonged to something bigger than themselves and they worked some until they dropped in their tracks to serve.When we look for heroes today we get pop singers and sports stars. You say there are no wars to test our metal but there is only one calendar year since the Second World War when the British Army has not had fatalities in action. OK so not every family has someone at the front as in WWII but there are real heroes being made in Afghanistan and Iraq – and some of them are dying for the honour too.

No, we prefer to follow the fortunes of footballers and pop stars. Footballers and pop stars provide a role model for us to break into the world of glamour and celebrity that fills their eyes and ears from every information channel. These modern day heroes are characterised by people who have done well for themselves, not people who have done well for others. Self sacrifice has been replaced by self-aggrandisement.

Modern Heroes reflect the isolation of The Tribe of One.