A poem from labi Siffre

A Civil Partnership Indeed

It is the right in law to be present at
my lover’s funeral or he at mine. it is
the right in law to be his next of kin
in hospital without having to insist
and persist in face of their disdain

it is the right to equality before the
law, recognising that our “loving
relationship” (our love) is to the benefit
of all and should be validated as such
- yes, in property, intestacy and tax
law; thank you very much

but we already have the romance
the passion, the deepest love the
celebration of something stronger than
the state's, till now, lawfully ill-concealed
contempt or hate

so this date will simply be him and me
turning up to collect what has been,
for forty one years, our rights withheld
by the vast majority now claiming
“it never bothered me, mate” and
worse expecting us to be gleeful
(perhaps a little grateful?) 'cause at last
they’ve shown some ethical backbone

brings to mind some lines i wrote for
Nelson Mandela in "The Gift":
You cannot give me freedom
I have always been free
Freedom lives in me

so forgive moi (or not as you please)
for not going soft at the edges shaky at
the knees or rosy red in the spectacles
to put you at your, comfortable,
complacent, makes me want to vomit,
ease.

Yopu can find this on his poetry blog, http://www.intothelight.info

Pigs can fly.....

The earth is flat
And nuclear power is safe....

When Skies are grey....

And after the last two performances, grey is certainly the word.

West Ham was bad enough - an own goal and a home defeat - but this afternoon was pitiful. No leadership, hoofing balls up the field for no-one to receive them, trying to play James Beattie as a single striker without support does NOT work - it was simply dire.
As for Richard Wright - I wonder if anyone has worked out how many goals he doesn't save, on average?

Things have got to change. I reckon at least half of the ground emptied we4ll before the end of the match.

dot.eurovision.com....BOTY contest!

As a Eurovision anorak, I spend some of my time on ESC websites talking to 0ther enthusiasts about the contest.

This time of the year is the fallow period whilst we wait for countries to choose their songs, so one site - dot-eurovision - organised a contest between Christmas and winter-related songs - the backside of the Year contest.

I entered the wonderful Fairytale of New York, the best Christmas song ever, by Kirsty MacColl and the Pogues - and won!

Opus Dei

Anyone listen to the R4 documentary about this bizarre cult, founded by a supporter of General Franco? Who Vaticanplc decided to canonise ( you couldn't make it up, could you?)

It is , I hope, a mark of the good sense of the British that there are only 500 members - and also an encouragement to see the Socialist government in Spain (where they have significant influence upon the Popular (right-wing) Party) ignore them.

However, it is most disturbing that Ruth Kelly, a member of this organisation, appears to find this congruent with her membership of the Labour party, and that she should be considered an appropriate person for the Cabinet. Would we think a member of the Moonies was a fit person to serve in cabinet? This group are far more sinister - it is clearly a secretive cult. It should be treated in that way, and its members should be regarded with the utmost caution..

Kelly should be deselected immediately as a Labour MP ; it is vital that the electors of Bolton West, if they are saddled with this neo-fascist sympathiser as their candidate next time around, vote for the candidate best placed to defeat her.

Cameron and the Conservatives

I am not a Tory.

I have never voted Tory, ever, and I cannot foresee any time in the future when I would choose to do so, even though on one level it might benefit us financially.

Still , Cameron appears to be a reasonable man, and at least he wants - so he says - to take the Tories well away from the neanderthal tendencies of the past...

We shall see.

Civil Partnerships

So, civil partnerships are here at last. When I think of the progress which has been made over the past few years, it really is excellent and not what i would have predicted, if I am honest. I am quite sure that colloquially, the relationships will be referred to as marriage ( which of course, they are), and that in time this is how they will be defined. Still, the important things are the benefits, the rights and responsibilities which they bring, and it is good to know that at least we are to be seen as holding an official status. That is very important.

Its also fun to watch the religious right fulminate and squirm. Their religion is a relic and a laager for the terminally fearful and prejudiced, and their impact, thankfully, is marginal in the UK. It is up to the rest of the Church to ditch them and to step out with a religious message worth believing in, shorn of many of the outdated superstitions that Bible -worship and adherence to supernaturalist improbability brings.

If they don;t , then we will become an entirely secular society, which would be preferable to the church as it exists now expanding.

www.soulspace.org.uk

Please join!