Some people choose to blame everything that gets up their noses on one specific sub-group of society. Then they make that group a target for all their pent-up rage and frustration. This is a very ancient human failing, but unfortunately still with us.

Capitalists and Socialists, Christians and Jews, Blacks and Whites, Hindus and Moslems … they've all been targeted. And one of the most frequent temptations is to blame all society's ills on the old - or on the young.

Of course who counts as old or young depends on your personal circumstances. Many years ago, a lot of my fellow teenagers used to rage at the insensitivity and incompetence of almost everybody over the age of twenty.   More recently, I've heard people in their mid-eighties complaining bitterly about all those "young fellows" (meaning mere striplings in their sixties) who show no respect or consideration for the elderly (meaning themselves).

Those who make a hobby out of scapegoating others are boring. Those who make a career out of it are dangerous. All of us are members of the same (human) race, and all of us - old or young – are on this wonderful planet for a tragically short span. Why waste time and energy slagging each other off when there are so many useful and enjoyable things we could be doing? (Like playing music, for instance.)

Wassail!