Is this really how to make America great again?| Emma Kay

The US Capitol building was overrun for the first time since 1814 and five people are dead.

Law enforcement was ill-prepared for the sheer swarms of Trump supporter terrorists. A mindless mob and a siege of red hats looking for bigoted bedlam. The senate floor was cleared of elected officials and then crowded by chaos.

The acts of terror on the Capitol building were incited by Trump’s fervent false cries of a so-called stolen election. America is suffering. It is shaking with fury and fright from a feral man in the Whitehouse. The president had primed his followers like a loaded grenade and set it on the Capitol building. Spreading seditious rhetoric to satisfy a need to have one last braying whine and release an unprecedented act of domestic terrorism.

The city is taking no chances by extending its state of emergency and deploying the National Guard for at least 30 days.

Petulant egotism and tantrums have come to this. This is Trump at his most authoritarian, make no mistake. The fissures have turned into gaping cracks and the already precarious dam has broken. We have seen the crowds and the anger intensify turning into spite and venom. Now they are intoxicated by the idea of somehow being able to reverse the results of an election that has already been long lost.

These people have been given many names in the news over the last few days: rioters, Trump supporters, MAGA hat wearers. But we should call them what they really are. This was never a peaceful protest, or a swarm of Trump supporters chanting and chasing an impossible endeavour. This was an act of terror.

America, after four long hard years are you great again yet? To those who have defended the actions of Trump’s cult like the followers on that day: haven’t you had enough of pandering to a president who is only comfortable when he is encouraging a swirling mob of hate and terror? Who can only provide muddied mixed messages when criticising white supremacists? Who fails to condemn acts that have shocked all of us? To cast a long shadow of doubt over Democracy? Is this a good look? Is this what you wanted?

Is it all great again yet?

This should be what Britain represents

Although long-passed, I recommend everyone sit down and watch the London 2021 firework show. It is an exhibition of light with the chilling clang of Big Ben that greets us into a new year.

It incorporates our day-to-day trials and tribulations such as social distancing. Silver moments highlighted against the grey cloud of the entire year.

The dedications mention our hard work and tolerance – the Nightingale hospital constructed in just nine days, the Black Lives Matter movement, Captain Tom and Sir David Attenborough’s heartfelt message.

The majority of it is dedicated to the stalwart workers of the NHS who have held the year together with true grit. Blue was the dominant colour this year and quite rightly so.

A creative whirl of colour, creation and beauty – of gratitude done right. This is what we need to see in 2021. This is the reason Britain still stands tall.

Return of The Clap

The clap is back. Thursday clapping for the NHS ran for weeks last year.

It was a step to show the appreciation for frontline workers and a way to lift the hopes and spirits of the nation. But now it is little more than a faux contest of caring to see who can be the loudest.

It was a spontaneous gesture last year that was celebrated, but now it feels like it is being heavily orchestrated, banging pots and pans to a drumbeat to tick a box. Gratitude should be freely given, not mandated.

The public has poured out their appreciation. It’s time for ministers to dig into their hearts and reward key workers the way they need to be rewarded. Clapping our hands to a hollow beat does not alleviate their ever increasing stress and own personal care.

To truly offer support, take the vaccine and abide by the rules.