I am writing this down as an immediate impression of something Ijust read on CNN. Iam putting it down so when I say in the future, “I’ve been saying it,” I can point to the moment I saying it. Britain is doing something stupid.
Alan Turing will be the face printed on the £50 note. Alan Turing was of course the father of modern computing, but he was also convicted and castrated under Victorian law. Castrated. Those were laws in place to prevent someone who was gay from reproducing. Naturlly, that makes no sense at all. But it is a physical attack on someone for being something.
Anyway, you probably get all that. What you many not get if you don’t live in the UK is that the £50 note is the least common bill exchanged in the UK. In fact, I lived in the UK for eight years, and even worked a job for over a year that required cash handling. In that entire span, I only once even saw a £50 note. So, basically, what they have done is said, “well, we’ll acknowledge him. We will give him a place of honor. But only if he stays in the closet.” It is reminiscent of the story of the English gentleman who kept a portrait of George Washington in his water closet. Honored with a portrait, but kept in the least prominant place in the house!
Britain, you have dissapoointed me with your two edged wisdom. Irony is your forte, so surely this has not gone over unnoticed on you! If you want him seen, put him on the £20, which everyone sees, for a moment or two, anyway!
KJB