Here’s another point: change is hard. It worries people; individuals have concerns about what it does mean. It has always been like that, and it’s the main reason why it was so hard to get an equal age of consent for gay and trans men, reform of area 28, legal relationship, similar marriage, and, yes, female recognition for some trans people in 2004. I know how hard it was: I was involved in all those strategies and more, as were my transgender associates. These may seem obvious and simple changes to make in the past, but they were all really as contested as the Gender Recognition Reform Bill is today.
The fight for LGBT justice is currently being waged on the basis that completely workable gender recognition laws exist, like many other European countries do, and like Holyrood passed 15 months before. There is nothing novel about it being a hard fight; we’ve seen it all before.
It will take time, it always does, and along the way there will be squabbles over the likes of rainbow bracelets. However, we will eventually get there, just like we did with the preceding legal changes, and people may wonder what caused the stir.
Tim Hopkins, Edinburgh.
Time to leave the GSA.
It is, of course, regrettable that the Art School building is not being replaced (“Scotland’s ‘£100m national disgrace'”, The Herald, March 25), but is it a disaster? It would be wonderful to keep it and maintain it, but it is no longer relevant, and we need to move on. It may, if restored, get a tower that only a few could see in detail, with most viewing the facade on a small dark street.
Inanimate objects are reportedly given a peculiar amount of respect.
Taking offense to the touch that fell off and the Stone of Destiny. If my memory serves correctly, there is a frequently-released black and white image of the rock being moved while a secretary is leading it in full robe, etc. It’s a lump of rock that, with the aid of cave drawings, may disappear and not cause any concern. If the king didn’t sit on a piece of stone, is he less of a king?
It is the same with the Art School. It was a tragic accident that saw it burned double, but it is still a lump of stone. In a more important location, we could construct an equally famous building that was building an additional Charles Rennie Mackintosh memorial room.
This move on.
Ken Mackay, Glasgow.
The page of sorrow
A significant feature of the Glasgow School of Art incident is left out of your coverage because Stephen Holl, an illustrious “lunar-phenomenologist,” placed a target on the licensing of a £50 million adjacent glass structure, neglected to properly implement a cautious fire prevention system in the Mackintosh building.
The 1960s Foulis Building and Newberry Tower were replaced by the so-called Reid Building. These were useful, more than beautiful, though the latter was considered for listing in 2006. Holl’s wildly a-cultural glass palace was paid for by the Scottish Funding Council—a determination which may of course have been investigated, but this being Scotland, certainly didn’t be.
Shortly after the second fire, I recall having an interesting conversation with GSA alumnus John Byrne. His opinion was that Mack’s footprint should be used as a memorial garden, with some stone fragments from his former art school on display to mark it as “a site of shame.”
David J Black, Edinburgh.
Bad form, people
THE request for supplementary information on forms, as illustrated by Jim McAdam’s letter (March 23), struck a chord.
Last week, it was decided that a trip to the nearby medical center by myself might be beneficial.
I was advised to go online and provide an explanation of why I felt I needed medical attention because of the frequently tried-and-true difficulties with communicating via phone.
The online form was fairly long and detailed. However, the final question made me squirm in response to the question. The question was: “What else is worrying you?” After a few moments, in order to get some cogent answers, I finally wrote: “The state of the world, climate change, and the personal level of taxation to which I am subjected.”
I’m now in a high state of mental anxiety, which I wasn’t in before I was asked to fill out the pro forma, regarding whether I should be directed to seek out another medical facility, possibly with a resident psychiatrist.
Robin Johnston, Newton Mearns.
A plague on both their houses
REGARDING Helen McArdle’s article (“Is the dog really man’s best friend, or could it in fact be the cat?”, The Herald, March 22): I have an otherwise very pleasant neighbor whose cat does his business in our garden. I frequently encounter issues with entitled dog owners whose off-the-lead pooches run wild on cycle paths. On a black downhill run at Fort William, two untrained Alsatians even stopped a group of us.
I’ve had pals bitten on cycle runs. Otherwise, regular adults would permit their dogs or children to pet sit on seats and snooze over tables in dog-friendly cafes and bars.
Both of these have negative effects on my health, and I don’t own either.
Angus MacEachran, Aberdeen.
Subtle difference
ANDREW Robertson’s references (Letters, March 25) to “ironic” and “iconic” illustrate the difference a letter can make.
Some people cause happiness wherever they go, and others, according to Oscar Wilde, whenever they go.
David Miller, Milngavie.
