The Cane Hill video aims to be ultimately un-biased to anywhere on the political compass. Looking to express the different results and aspects of the various policies and schemes during CH hospital's 125 years and the decade+ of CH redevelopment. The video also looks at the public's symbiotic relationship with the institution and how the public rationalised the closure process and it's legacy. Whether the results depicted in the video are seen as positive or negative the aim is for there to be no clearly defined moral or political stance, where appropriate. Individual case studies and an overall evaluation of the medical aspects of mental health care in the UK and the Care in the Community act is out of the scope of this project. The editing choices may well evoke a certain feeling and dénouement to make it attractive and engaging to watch, but the information conveyed in text and voiceover should be balanced enough to leave plenty for debate.
The video won't go into depth into any one particular topic or aspect of history, it's a series of short, brisk (hopefully entertaining and informative) glimpses into the kaleidoscope of diverse social history involving CHH. The video will be accompanied by a document link containing links to the sources the video has used with the voiceover being clear that people should draw their own conclusions and do further research if they want to. After releasing the video - any errors in the content which are flagged or any newly come-to-light information will be listed in the video description as a notice-of-correction. Sections of the video may well be updated and republished over time to keep it up-to-date and as balanced as possible, with previous versions still available. It's my first video on such a loaded and dense subject, so we'll have to see how it comes out during the different drafts. Could be crap, and that would be solely on me if it was, but I'm working hard to make it something of value, worthwhile and fitting.
Outside of the video and this process however, and just my own opinion - I do find the current government rather breath-taking in how nakedly their values are laid bare. More surprising and disturbing to me though is how most people in the UK just don't care and seem fine with this on the whole. Countries get the governments they deserve, even if by accident. I read in another publication that the Poor Law changed a lot in the early decades of the 19th century making it more difficult to access it and with more stigma if you did so. Generally the idea was to discourage it's need, both for dubious and moral reasons depending on the different organisations overseeing it. As for these days - A trusted friend of mine has worked in the DWP for over ten years and he expresses a view that the system now is also designed to be difficult to navigate and use. Money is there.....but the hand that holds it intentionally evades opening until it really has to. Again though, this approach it could be argued is open to interpretation, sometimes tightening the purse strings is for good reason, etc. The results though do point towards such policies damaging those that need it the most. However, I don't think the public have been misled by the evolution of neo-liberalism. The public has voted for political parties that by their design have been in varying degrees increasingly about profit for the individual and freedom from control, and that's largely what the electorate has gotten. Although "the individual" now represents those in the higher tiers of society and large corporations. It's resulted in a boom time for many and a slow decline for many. So when you're down.... you're going down. So, don't get ill and don't get poor. I don't agree with that outlook or those values at all, but that's where we are sadly. You'd have to rewire society, all of us, to a completely different value system for anything sizable to change, at least that's my opinion. There's seems to be no incentive for that when we have Netflix and the receding of living standards is occurring almost too slowly to fully appreciate its gravity. Again though, that's just my opinion.
