Race across water or sit and snooze
GREAT to see Nick Gillingham and Duncan Goodhew have spoken out about the baths closure, and I'm happy the Chronicle, Express and Star and Stourbridge News have all mucked in the campaign to save the baths. But where were YOU when the baths actually closed on December 31st, 2005? I was IN the baths, swimming, protesting IN the pool itself, not talking but swimming.
Communicating a message, but unfortunately nobody seemed interested in my protest.
I had the plug pulled on ME, as I swam, and a British Steel fence erected around me, leaving me caged in like a shark. The police were called and I just continued swimming, such is my passion for the baths I was willing to risk jail!
I challenge any MP, ex-Olympic athlete or Snoozepaper to a race across the Waterfront in Merry Hill and into the offices of Westfield. And I challenge you to publish this letter.
This is just the tip of the iceberg and an example of the kind of newspeak I have come to expect in Dudley Metro Parish. How long can we sit around and snooze while politicians and church councils dictate our futures?
Put your trunks on, grab some goggles and I'll meet you waterside!
STEVEN JAMES PRATT
Brierley Hill
West Midlands
United Kingdom
Europe
Earth.
Stourbridge News Letters
1 comment:
4.57 PM. 31st december. 2005.
15 Sorrel Walk, Brierley Hill. West Midlands, England. Europe.
Steven Pratt.
I just, literally had the plug pulled on me at my local swimming baths in Brierley Hill in the West Midlands of the United Kingdom. I was also literally "penned in" by large steel barricades. The water being drained from the pool either was or was not drained into the local Brierley Hill cannal.
My thoughts are with those who will not get to experience the pleasure of swimming at the baths, its a great feeling. people having good clean fun and also learning an important skill which someday may even save their life. If they fell into the cut, or even got into deep water abroad while on holiday.
As a past lifeguard at the Crystal leisure center i fully understand and ask for forgiveness from the Dudley metropolitan staff at Brierley Hill swimming baths and swear that it will not happen again. Ever again. Sorry for questioning your authority and not following your orders to "leave" the pool, i also would like to apologize for diving in the shallow end and petting once or twice in the pool some years ago. I have even felt, squeezed and massaged female breasts at Brierley Hill baths. forgive me farther for my sins.
I am a big supporter and interested participant in health and fitness around the black Country, West Midlands and In Great Britain generally. In fact i would like to see the whole world become more able to experience the pleasures and envigerating qualities of such sports as swimming, football, cricket, basketball, track and field I hope in the future that our representatives everywhere in the world will factor in the need for investment and facilities for sport and leisure activities.
Today happens to be the last day that Great Britain holds the presidency of the council of the Knu-European Union. To commemorate this historic event in passing i would once again like to draw attention to the closure of our local leisure centre and swimming pool and contrast it, if you will, with the ever expanding economic growth and retail industry that has been born from the corporate capitalist venture called "Merry Hill". Please take note that the Merry Hill center is situated upon the environment which previously was home to Round Oak Steelworks. Oak Steelworks if you are paying close attention is a massive contradiction in terms. Before the Oak steel works, perhaps their were Oak trees?
The Merry Hill center has unquestionably brought thousands of Pounds of wage labour to our surrounding community, myself, my family and my friends have all benefited from this mass of service industry opportunity and the Odd shop space or two with which to "Sell" locally manufactured produce. I am grateful for this opportunity and sometimes wonder about how i could survive in this work consume dichotomy called life, without Westfields Merry Hill shopping center.
As an artist, musician and poet of considerable proficiency i often wonder how i could find an outlet at the Merry Hill center for my own crafts, creativity and spoken word, i once had a dream that the whole of Merry Hill was turned into a "free" festival, all the shops were closed, but food, music and edutainment were provided "free" in the spirit of community fellowship, and good will. For everybody. For Free.
Money does not grow on trees, did you know that? but fruit and berries and food does grow on trees and remains much more valuable than money. We need money to buy the fruit and vegetables that grow for free thanks to our sun, clouds and earths water cycle. Without money we starve and our family staves and soon we find ourselves in a strange predicament. Nature has been bought by huge Global Corporate Capitalism and sold with the same cut-throat salesmanship as automobiles, life insurance, timeshare and armaments since Thatchers privatization scheme. I feel that something is wrong, but i have kept quiet about my thoughts and dreams for the most part, i fully understand the difficult situation we are all in together and so did Karl Marx, but i shall refrain from spouting other peoples rhetoric and dogmatism in favour of a more personal and up-close reflection of a Black Country Citizen/artist going about my life day to day, without judgment, moralism, or blame.
We are all born into this life and we have to make the best of it, in the face of adversity i find myself thinking and writing the most all around beneficial solutions to the challenges i face. I shall continue swimming and meditating upon mind, body and speech. Then, and only then will i have a centered state of mind, critical yet not overly dogmatic, try this; you may find clarity and understanding where before lied confusion and hopelessness. Where do your thoughts "Go", for instance? Are they the "Things" you think about? Does money grow on tree's?
Maybe its because of the chlorine, maybe the weightlessness? but swimming helps me personally work out many of the frustrating conclusions i often come to about our "wage labour" culture and Global Corporate Capitalist 21st Century invasion and consumer Americanisation: the great Godfarther of Global Corporatism, Great Britain being the old God mother. Who can deny that most people will choose Coca Cola, Nike, Disney, and Sony before they choose a more locally manufactured product, if there is even any local products to compete in these areas. And who can blame relatively poor shoppers from going to WALL MART and spending half the money they would at a local produce store, or general store? I know its a large and hard pill to swallow coming from an artist/musician not a steel slitter, industrial laborer etc, but we must support our local community, we must support our local community with our Pounds and sense. The consumer has the power. Use it. Therefore, our only way out of this crooked corporate consumer mess is to use our own personal discretion and community money mindedness to make our collective thoughts felt. Vote with your Pounds and common sense. I should also add that if you vote for a representative to spend your tax contributions, look into their economics, ask questions about how your community will benefit, who issues it? how? will you or your family and friends have a share of the profits from the sale of goods?, will you get a part of the loot which we import from the rest of the developed world?, will you have adequate sports and leisure facilities for you family, friends and loved ones?
[Conclusion written 27th January 2006] However you view this situation, Dudley Metropolitan council allowed this leisure facility to close down, the police were called by them to eject me from the unplugged pool after i swam 78 lengths in protest, refusing to leave on the grounds that the chlorinated water was to be drained into our historic local canal network. So far no newspaper or countsailer or swimming club member has thanked me or acknowledged my voluntary protest to help save our local swimming facility.
Steven Pratt.
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