Britain Through The Medium Of A Supercar In A Layby On A Sunday Afternoon

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

Well I'm driving on my way to work in the Bridgend area yesterday afternoon. The sky is blue at that moment but it has changed throughout the morning. At least it's dry though.

I notice on this journey that a car with it's bonnet open is by a lay-by. The car itself is a Ferrari.

Now let me quickly go on a literary layby myself in this post. I'm not personally bothered by supercars, indeed I'm not a fan of big cars either. I'm perfectly happy with my mighty Kia Picanto thankyou very much. As I was previously with a Ford Fiesta and a Renault 5.

That said, I suspect like most people I do dislike some supercar owners. The sort that act as if owning a Ferrari (other supercars are available) means that you have some sort of extra privilege along the road itself.

I've no idea whether the guy in the Ferrari comes into that category. But I can't say I'm bothered by his predicament either. After all if he can afford a supercar then he can afford a gold plated mechanic as well.

Anyway the guy looks into the front bonnet.....and takes out two bottles of mineral water.

Aside from driving itself my knowledge (or lack of) automobiles really has no bounds.

The traffic in this stretch was slow moving so I was able to notice the reaction of others to the supercar in their midst. It was as you would expect a mixture of admiration, envy and jealously. Except for one guy. The expression on his face could only be described in one word.

Hatred.

Now what I'm going in for next is conjecture. I'm guessing. I might be completely wrong. I might be talking out my backside. But here we go.

We are in the Bridgend area. The area which has been informed of the closure of it's biggest employer Ford by the end of next year. An area whose future is for the moment extremely bleak.

What if the guy is working for Ford? What if he sees an uncertain future for himself whilst watching someone else without apparently a care in the world enjoying a fast car on a Sunday?

I will suspect that as the closure of the plant gets nearer there will be many people in the area who will view the sight of a supercar in the same vein. And if the consequences of a hard Brexit are as it's detractors predict then so will people across the Disunited Kingdom.

And for some people hatred will turn into anger. And that anger might result in those cars being attacked.

I'm not for one second advocating violence. But I remember Alan Stubbs then manager of Hibernian being led by a Sky Sports interviewer to condemn fans who ran onto the pitch when their team were winning the Scottish Cup final a few years back. Stubbs, a brave man who has battled testicular cancer gave a nuanced answer that the interviewer did not expect when he said he didn't condone the action but understood the reasons why.

So it is here. People on the right will condemn the social unrest that Brexit could cause but will never condemn those in their own ranks who brought this situation to a head.

Until the next time.