Mark Murphy opinion: Why is everyone so angry these days?

I know it’s not great for some at the moment, but we seem to be ready to pick a fight over the simplest of things.

From road rage to political debate, it’s all kicking off.

If you make a mistake on the road, more often than not, you’ll get a mouthful from the other driver but it's politics that worries me most.

Road rage is a common problem, says Mark (Image: (c) Digital Vision.)

We seem to have so much more division in this country now, fuelled by some politicians, social media channels, and some sections of the media.

What happened to working together to improve things for the greater good? Instead, we have people pouring petrol on the flames of division and stirring up hatred.

We used to be such a tolerant nation but now I do wonder what’s going to happen next.

We’ve already seen two of our MPs murdered in recent years and I’d hate to see it happen again. I know passions run high when you believe in something, but it shouldn’t spill over into aggression.

MP Jo Cox, who advocated for peace and reconciliation was a shining example, says Mark

Members of Parliament are to get an extra £31 million pounds of security to protect them. Measures could include bodyguards for MPs most at risk and it could be used to increase police patrols in response to increased community tensions.

We certainly need to take some of the heat out of our politics which is becoming more and more aggressive and polarised by the day.

Perhaps it’s time for us to take a collective chill pill and calm down a bit?

Have we forgotten how to have differing views but be respectful of that difference? I think in many cases we have.

I love a good debate like the next person. Goodness knows I had enough of them when I was on the radio and it could be pretty heated at times, but we always finished with a handshake - well, mostly.

I know passions run high when you believe in something, but it shouldn’t spill over into aggression.

On a local level, you only need to look at sites like Facebook and X to see the most disgusting posts being made about people, especially politicians and people in the public eye.

I’ve been called all sorts of things by people I don’t even know!

Even the most innocuous post by someone gets piled upon by the online trolls. Where has this come from, why are so many people nasty?

My mum used to say, “If you haven’t got anything nice to say about someone, then don’t say anything.” Oh, if only that were true today.

Why can’t we just live and let live? Why do so many people fill their lives with bile and anger.

We should all take note of the late MP, Jo Cox who said, “We are far more united and have far more in common with each other than things that divide us”.

I think we should all remember that and learn to put our differences aside.

Working together will create a much better world than the one we currently have.