I had to admit that I would only be making encouraging noises because my day was taken up with the usual round of visits, meetings and tours. However, I watched as the phones lit up like light bulbs with local people ringing in with their ideas for red nose day. And to be greeted by a receptionist wearing jeans and a denim jacket at the very prestigious Rolls Royce that I visited later made me realise that I should really have bought a red nose. It all got me to thinking that there are certain things that often bring the country together. Charity is one of them.
Crisis is another.
One can only marvel at people s generosity in the wake of the Gujarat appeal. And I personally witnessed people packing up vans full of blankets and medical supplies for the Kosovan s during the recent Balkans conflict. And for once, the media has to be praised. Look at the way they ve handled the foot and mouth crisis. I ve had farmers tell me that reports such as those that ve filled the papers and the Internet in the past few weeks have been their lifeline to the world.