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POLITICAL INFLUENCES
For much of my adult life I have been involved with politics. However, this has not been party politics. I have, quite deliberately, never been a member of a political party and have as a matter of principle - not even cast my vote for nearly 30 years!
I suppose there may have been an element of family history behind this interest in politics.
0020 My Grandfather (0020T*) was, in his earlier days, secretary of a friendly society; which was a precursor of the unions.
My first formal contact with politics came, however, with my interest in Economics; where the master teaching me this Tom Hockton was also a Labour parliamentary candidate and introduced me to Harold Wilson who was at the time shadow chancellor of the exchequer.
0014 Birkenhead School Sixth Form
But the big breakthrough came in my work with the Anti-Apartheid movement while I was at Imperial College. This was both a lesson for me and my first significant step in exerting a political influence over others.
0180 International Relations Club
0147 Anti-Apartheid
The next major step was my work with the Molesey Residents Association and then as one of its elected council members and eventually Chair of the Northern Area Planning Sub-committee of Elmbridge Borough Council. Once more this was a two way process, with me learning some important lessons, but also me having significant influence on local politics.
0215 Molesey Residents Association (0215T*)
9182 Canvassing and Winning
0235 Elmbridge Borough Council
(0235T*)
0294 Elmbridge Council and Status
9199 Elmbridge Northern Area Planning Committee
9125 Cooperating or Opposing
At the same time, within IBM, I became one of its contacts with government and, of course, was especially influential in the context of EXHIBIT.
9131 EXHIBIT -- Corporate Entertainment
But, above all, my main impact was in terms of my international diplomacy in Ethiopia.
9196 OU15 - Ethiopia -- The Decision
9149 OU16 - Ethiopia The Dinner Party
9157 OU17 - Ethiopia - The Minister of Defence
9122 OU22 - Ethiopia- The Triumvirate
9105 OU26 - Ethiopia -- Go-Between
0388 Report to Ambassador
9146 OU27 - Ethiopia - Civil War Again
9161 OU29 - Ethiopia -- The New Famine
9103 OU31 - Ethiopia RTZ
0316 Overseas Partners
9167 OU35 - Ethiopia SIS/MI6
0374 - SIS 2 Secret Intelligence Services - Ethiopia
Even after this work was finished, I remained on the international political scene with my work on the Futures Observatory.
9109 Futures Observatory 2 - And the European Commission
9118 Future Observatory 3 US Millennium Project & WFS
9106 Future Observatory 4 United Nations and others
9200 Future Observatory 5 Media Relations
9172 Television and Radio
Now all that is behind me, I havent been in a television studio for years and I feel none the worse for that!
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