To help others, we must begin by helping ourselves.

Every one of us has a choice. We can take control of our lives. Or we can let life be something that happens to us.

Right now, the chances are that you believe you are in control of your life. But who decides how everything in your life is valued? Who decides what is wrong and what is right? Who decides if your life will be something that you can still afford – perhaps in just a few short months?

You get the picture and I do not need to spell out the obvious.

All I need to say is that when any decision or action is taken that influences any of the things that will have a direct effect on your life, not only today but for the foreseeable future, you can rest assured that it will not be happening with what’s best for you, for your friends, family and the people you love in mind.

Shouting about the injustice of all this won’t change anything. Things will just continue as they have been, whether it’s you speaking out or the people that you follow and are likely to believe in too.

Change is only possible if we concentrate and focus our energy and everything that we can influence at the things that are within our power to change.

We don’t need to wait for the Establishment to provide for anyone’s needs. Let’s face it, we can already see that they are slow to act, and increasingly don’t. It is within our power to begin the process of offering the services that people genuinely need, and to take the steps necessary to ensure that local businesses will be able to provide all the basic and essential foods, goods and services that people like you, and I will always need.

We don’t need to keep voting for the candidates in elections that the Establishment and those who aspire to be like them keep giving us. Elections are open and as a community, we can qualify and appoint the candidates so that we can vote for genuine public representatives that we and our communities choose.

To begin the process of change, we only need to take the first steps and have a plan or direction of travel that is there to show us all how.