h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

There have been few times in my life when I have been so moved by events, so overcome with the feeling of being part of history, that all else pales into insignificance; few moments that have moved me to tears, and left me with that everlasting memory that "I was there".

I can think of three such occasions:
September the 11th, 2001: standing, dumbfounded, in my living room at home, watching events unfold on my parents wide-screen TV; and wondering what tremendous consequences this moment would have.

February the 15th, 2003: shuffling through London as part of a crowd the extent of which I could not even comprehend; knowing that I was part of an immense and unignorable body of opinion.

And today, March the 18th, 2003: sitting on the floor of my housemate's bedroom watching in silence a live broadcast from the House of Commons; and being truly humbled by the quality of debate.

The first of these occasions was summed up by one MP as "A bad day for world peace"; this latest, I think, has been a Good Day for Democracy: however the final vote went, that debate renewed my faith in the system that runs this country. For once, it was not a contest between famous faces and major parties, it was about individual politicians making a decision based on their own conciences. And when it came to 10 O'Clock, the only thing I knew for certain, was that I was glad it wasn't me having to make that decision.