The 2nd Cowes (St Mary’s) sea scouts on their litter-clearing mission.
THE VIEW FROM HEREA MOST heartening story in last week’s CP of 2nd Cowes (St Mary’s) sea scouts, who had organised a tidy-up along the cycle track next to the River Medina.
Joined by parents and friends, the scouts collected 21 sacks of mixed rubbish, five sacks of empty beer cans for recycling, and three car tyres.
I never quite got into Baden-Powell mode (I lasted just one week in the guides) but scouting initiatives like this make me wonder if I was not a little hasty in handing in my lanyard. If I had only stayed around to do some litter-clearing, instead of sloping off with the fifth-form’s contraband copy of Lady Chatterley’s Lover, I would have been a better person and the world would have been a tidier place.
But it is very pleasing to see our sea scouts doing this excellent work on behalf of the community. Litter is one of the major bugbears of our society, not just because it’s a blight on the landscape but because the very act of dropping litter denotes a mindset devoid of consideration for others or respect for oneself.
Unfortunately, you are unlikely to incur any penalties if you chuck your empty beer cans or chip wrappings on the ground. Local authorities have the power to hand out fines but these are seldom imposed. This, in turn, means people drop more litter, because they have no fear of repercussions.
Psychologist Dr Jack Lewis explains why an indifference to dropping litter is prevalent in youth culture. "Young people no longer learn punishment follows the act of dropping litter … in the absence of any negative emotions associated with the act of littering, or positive emotions associated with putting litter in the bin, rubbish ends up being lobbed around willy-nilly, even when a bin is just a few steps away."
But our sea scouts have bucked the trend and deserve congratulations for doing a terrific job for the community. Not only have they made our Island look more pleasant, their initiative may even encourage people to become more responsible citizens.
Dr Lewis, summarising the findings of a study published in Science, says: "Evidence of other people’s antisocial behaviour can make others more likely to be antisocial themselves … environments in which antisocial behaviour was evident not only made people more likely to (drop) litter themselves but also to commit more serious antisocial behaviours, such as theft."
In other words, if you’re surrounded by mess, you’ll behave like a lout.
Litter isn’t just a bit of a nuisance, it affects our lives and our attitudes. So well done, sea scouts. You’re doing a much better job than I ever did.
Keep up the good work and don’t bother about Lady Chatterley. It’s actually a rubbish book.
Pupils make the change happen
WHILE we’re on the tidiness trail, let’s also have a look at the students at Ryde Academy. Before this year’s school reorganisation, they used to slouch around the streets as the generally unenthusiastic representatives of Ryde High School.
Indeed, Shakespeare’s whining schoolboy "creeping like snail unwillingly to school" was an absolute whizz compared to many of the Ryde High lot, who, trailing clouds of fag smoke as they meandered along, would have lagged far behind the slowest snail.
But that was then and now it’s all change, with the students stepping along in their lovely new uniforms, transformed in a quite astonishing manner by their elegant blazers, smart badges, and neat little ties. Indeed, the first time I saw them, I thought they must be young scholars on a day trip from Roedean and Eton.
I hope they’re all as wacky and original as can be when they’re out of uniform. But in the classroom environment, a smart appearance leads to smart minds and a sense of pride and that’s exactly what it looks like this term at Ryde Academy.
I see the quote of the week on the school’s website is Gandhi’s "Be the change you want to see in the world." The Mahatma favoured the loincloth look, but he might have done even better if he’d changed to a Ryde Academy blazer.
Beware explosions
MY crush this week is on Prince Philip, who has labelled wind farms "absolutely useless" and "a disgrace" and says their supporters believe fairy tales.
Spot on, your royal highness. Being a sensible man, you’re probably an advocate of nuclear power, too. But take care. There may be something of a nuclear explosion if you expound your views on wind farms to your eldest son.
Either that, or he’ll wave his arms around so much, it’ll power up the lights at Buckingham Palace for at least three seconds.