Merry Maytime Maggie Thatcher?

First off, my comma and full stop keys have broken so I can't type properly and therefore need to copy and paste commas and full stops which is highly annoying so please excuse any shortcuts I may take (like the following use of this exclamation mark as opposed to a full stop)!

Last night/this morning, the Twittersphere was alive with rumours that Margaret Thatcher had popped her cloggs and, of course, with these rumours came the obligatory arguments Twitter is so well known for (which I inadvertently got involved in). It stands to reason Thatcher's not a popular one and people are going to make that known, however I was a little taken back with the indecorous nature of some of the comments.

I'm not here to give anyone a lecture on what to believe regarding the lady; my opinion is hardly a fully informed one and there's not many that are unless you've truly studied her policies and results. However, what I really dislike is the frivolity in which some people treat the matter of death; countless people have proclaimed their mirth in Thatcher's (unconfirmed and now seemingly unlikely) departure in a rather joyous manner quoting along the lines of 'well she hurt the country so she deserves it'. Now perhaps I'm just prudish but I fail to see how death bringing genuine celebration and mirth represents a healthy society. I'm not talking about jokes or stray comments said in jest, what I'm talking about is the genuine, somewhat sadistic elation some people relate with the demise of the 'iron lady'.

Perhaps I'm just a pretentious 'youth' but it just reminds me of the 'crush-em' attitude taken in the Versailles Treaty. I appreciate a lot of people disagree with her policies and what she stood for, but how is rejoicing in the death of an 85 year old who's been absent from office for over twenty years rectifying this? Fair enough, you celebrated her departure in 1990, but how on earth does her being alive affect you now? I for one see her current condition as quite haunting, regardless of what you think of her it's a sign of the tear of dementia; once a formidable pillar (be it of hatred or no), now a small, fragile woman barely recognisable.

I received several statements along the lines that 'I didn't grow up on a Northern council estate so I wouldn't know' - no, I didn't. My parents did though, my family still live in County Durham, and my ancestors were indeed miners. Those of you who 'endured the pain' of growing up in Thatcherite Britain didn't live through the war, but does that make you any less entitled to your opinion on what happened? Of course I'm not denying you may well have had it rough when you were growing up, but I find it highly ironic the majority of the people making statements like the earlier listed work in a 'luxury' trade; hardly what fits the socialist ideal, is it? Many people complain they had their life ruined by Thatcher, but have done bugger all to change it. In fact, they've lived right up to the Thatcherite dream (hasn't the majority of society in essence?), the only difference is that while we sip our Champagne, we can comment how terribly hard the whole system is!

I'm not at all saying anyone who dislikes Thatcher is wrong, of course you're not - especially those who were affected by her time in power. I'm at that stage where I can see both the good and bad in her policies and was really only shocked by the lax attitude to death; perhaps my opinion would change were I to learn more (though I'm certainly not ignorant and know a fair bit both from books and having spoken to my family) perhaps I'd ultimately hate her, however I'd like to think that whatever my opinion of the woman may be, I wouldn't genuinely wish death on her as a result.