Jack Straw: a liar

Of course, the reason the Government have blocked publication of the cabinet minutes must be that they contain information which proves that the government attacked Iraq for reasons other than those they claimed at the time.

It is really very hard to take them seriously or respect them when even now, they cannot admit that they tried to con us all.

Lies are never acceptable. So, the truth, please, and no more Blairite flannel.

Social workers and BMW

I'm not usually overly critical of social workers. They have a difficult job and sometimes they make mistakes. I also tend to think that the tendency to jump in to look for someone to 'blame' is not always sensible.

But, there are always contrary examples. The Websters and Norfolk Social services being one of them. I fail to see why someone should not be held responsible for the decision which took away three children from their parents, even though they had in fact done nothing to warrant it, and equally feel that unless evidence is absolutely water-tight, that 'final' adoption which essentially means that the so-called adoptive parents effectively have the children under false pretences.

I wonder how they can continue to bring them up knowing that there is absolutely no reason why they should be living with them? Do these people have no conscience at all - or does their selfishness and belief that they have a 'right' to a child outweigh that? Wouldn't it be refreshing if they looked for ways of restoring the situation to the way it should be in this instance? Of course, bleating voices about the rights of the children will be made - but here, it is clear enough that the social workers got it wrong. They should be held responsible, just as those who saw demons behind every corner in the non-existent 'ritual abuse' cases should have been removed from any involvement in social work again.

Was there actually any clear evidence at all in this case? It doesn't appear so.

And as for BMW and the redundancies at Cowley. Why can't the available work be shared out more fairly whilst demand is low, rather than reducing workforce numbers - that way you lose skills and make it impossible to return to production should the situation change in the future. And again, an example of agency and part time staff being treated less favourably. Which this so-called Labour (oh, the irony...) Government did naff all about when they had the opportunity.

Freud and crypto-Tories

The question is, surely, how anyone with views very clearly firmly on the Right could have ever been selected as in the least suitable to advise a Labour government.

It says a lot about the judgment of that minister, too. Surely James Purnell should, if he is still in support of the Tory-penned Welfare Reform Bill, join his moneyed mate in the Tories?

It would be quite refreshing if the government - or anyone else - would admit that they don't know all the answers. And forthwith nationalise all the banks and ban all bonuses.

Overpopulation and prayer

Well said, Jonathan Porritt. We do ned to reduce population to ensure a sustainable future. Some appear only too unwilling to accept this - and are selfish enough to think they can breed unremittingly irrespective of the consequences.

And what about the nurse offering to pray for patients? It should be blatantly obvious that pushing one's religion on to others in the workplace is inappropriate. Particularly when those people are in a vulnerable position. The place for religion is the private sphere.

Homophobic reporting....

Interesting to see just how quickly homophobia comes to the fore - and of course, its regarding a case involving children. Because homophobes basically think all gay men are paedophiles, they are only too pleased to have the chance to say so however implicitly.

The facts of the latest case are that the grandparents who now say that they want to look after their grandchildren brought in the social services in the first place - and have both illnesses and many other children.

I don't think we would have heard a whisper about their desire to look after the grandchildren - which they rejected as a solution in the past - if the pros[ective adoptees were not gay.

Bigoted Christian grandparents should not be allowed a veto on who adopts or fosters children, let alone drug-riddled inadequate 'mothers' who have had their children removed from them because of their own weak will and inability to cope.

I don't know enough about the case to say if this is a good decision or not. No-one does, except those directly involved and who do not have preconceived prejudices. The law makes it clear that gay couples can adopt children - the fact that this is only the second in Edinburgh says an awful lot.

I would certainly say that the fact the grandparents decided to turn their grandchildren into political footballs to mount their anti-gay campaign is very good reason for their unsuitability as guardians.

Strikes and foreign workers

I suppose that it will be all too easy for the BNP and co. to jump on the bandwagon and to try and transform understandable frustration into racism.

Fact is, though, that the issues have very little to do with race or even nationality, and everything to do with low wages.

Foreign workers are not recruited because of their additional skills, but because they can be paid more. This is the outcome of, first, neo-liberal economics and the free market, and secondly, uncritical globalisation

Labour should be saying - we got it wrong, that undercutting established workforces is not acceptable, and that the neoliberal experimnet has failed and is over.

Lets start with nationalisation of the banks - without compensation. Permanent in order to control and plan the economy. Then we need to transform the EU into a social democratic network, overturning its free market failings.

Zionist fascism

We now see the sinister and unwelcome influence of Zionist groups and the Israel-can-do-no-wrong lobby placing pressure on the BBC, which they have caved into. This refers to the DAC and the current need for emergency relief in Gaza.

To refuse to allow this appeal is nothing short of a disgrace and entirely unacceptable. The malign influence of the Zionists really must be vigorously opposed.

Obama

Naturally, I have been enthused by the rise to power of Barack Obama, and wish him all the best for the great challenges he faces.

He has made a good start - closure of Guantanamo, and the lifting of the quite ridiculous ban on assisting NGO's who are not anti-abortion, are things which display a clear difference between his approach and that of the fringe religious extremists who Bush was in hock to.

The sad stupidity of the self-hatred movement

Most of us have been aware for quite some time that the self-hating movement, sometimes referred to in terms such as 'ex-gay' or 'post-gay' is full of people with quite severe psychological problems. Not being able to accept themselves, they adopt extreme religionism, become full time poster-boys or girls for self-oppression, and attempt to convince people they are heterosexual by blogs which talk constantly about how great it is to be straight, pictures of trophy wives and children, and even a picture of a double bed in one particularly risible case.

Now, we know that they are still as gay as ever, and I can only hope that they realise that when the inevitable happens, and they cannot bear the lies they have created for themselves any longer, that we are here to help them ( although a little contrition for the harm they have caused others would be welcome!)

But when one hears about the way they treat research...well, words fail me. On principle I do not include homophobic links on this site, but the latest gem is a claim that gay marriage will increase the number of gay people because it will make more people 'become' gay.
Of course, the reality is that those people have been gay all the time, in their closets, and the existence of liberal laws and social equality enables those people to be their true selves. Thus, there are more OPENLY gay and lesbian people. And as a result, more straight people realise that we really are very much the same as them except for our sexual orientation. And they realise how silly anti-gay thinking is.

And it is this which the self-haters and their religionist homophobic allies fear the most. Because here in the UK, they are losing and will continue to lose the argument.

Israel: no future

The murdering thugs of the Zionist state have now been found to be using illegal weapons.

The duplicity and lies of these people will never cease.

Their illegal state, its settlements and its inhabitants must not be allowed to go unpunished. Israel needs to go or the consequences will be grave for us all.

Another victory for gay equality

There have been a number of test cases brought by Christians in an attempt to excuse them from obeying the gay equality laws

They must be regretting this action because so far, they have lost the lot.

The latest is Gary MvFarlane, a sex therapist and counsellor employed by Relate who didn't want to work with same -sex couples. Well he lost and relate were justified in dismissing him

It's the hypocrisy which annoys me. Did he object to counselling unmarried opposite-sex couples - which his religion is also supposedly opposed to? Of course not.

I think that the Christian lobby hoped to win exemptions from the law but I think it unlikely that these sort of cases will even make it as far as a tribunal in future as the precedents will be clear.

Islamic homophobia - an example ( from BBC News)

The jailing in Senegal of nine gay men for eight years over "indecent conduct and unnatural acts" has been condemned by an international gay rights group.

Homosexual acts are illegal in Senegal but the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) told the BBC it was "shocked by the ruling".

The judge added three years to a five-year sentence, saying the men were also members of a criminal group.

Most of them belonged to an association set up to fight HIV and Aids.

"This is the first time that the Senegalese legal system has handed down such a harsh sentence against gays," said Issa Diop, one of the men's four defence lawyers.

The extremity of this sentence [and] the rapidness of the trial all really shocks us in a country which has been moving so positively towards rule of law IGLHRC's Cary Alan Johnson

Mr Diop said he would be appealing against the sentences.

The IGLHRC's Cary Alan Johnson said he was "deeply disturbed" by the case.

"There have been pretty consistent human rights violations… in Senegal," he told the BBC's Network Africa programme from Cape Town in South Africa.

"But the extremity of this sentence [and] the rapidness of the trial all really shocks us in a country which has been moving so positively towards rule of law and a progressive human rights regime."

'Schizophrenic'

The head of a gay rights organisation in Senegal told AFP news agency that the situation for gay people in the country was getting worse.

"Many gays are already fleeing to neighbouring countries because of our living conditions," he said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Senegal is a predominantly Muslim country and gay men and women remain socially marginalised.

Mr Alan Johnson said Senegal was "schizophrenic" in its attitudes.

Religious attacks on gay and lesbian people were on the increase, he said.

While Senegal recently played host to a major conference on Aids and sexually transmitted diseases, where "the needs of men who have sex with men were prominently featured", he said.

"There's both a movement towards progressive and inclusive culture but at the same time very, very strong movements towards oppression, specifically towards sexuality," he added.

In February 2008, a magazine editor received death threats after publishing pictures claiming to depict a wedding ceremony between two men.

Several men were also arrested in connection with the publication but later released.

Misrepresentation

Its interesting just how some people will try and misrepresent my views

You will find nothing at all on this blog to indicate any support at all for radical Islamists and groups such as Hamas. That's because am totally opposed to their beliefs.

However, if one does not support Israel to the hilt, some then make the immediate assumption that one must be an active Hamas supporter.

Or at least, try and portray someone as having those views to further their own argument.

Let's make a few things clear.

1. I dislike conservative religion of all types
2. I do not support Hamas and think that the Palestinians have not been at all well served by their leadership over the years
3. That does not mean that dislike for Hamas means that Israel's behaviour is justified.
4. And given that I haven't a lot of time for any claim to land using ancient religious precepts, my concern is to maintain peace in an area which threatens world peace. Ideally, I still support a two-state solution, but I can't see it happening, and in that situation, it must be Israel who must withdraw from occupied territories.

I have never expressed any support for Hamas. I do think, though, that there is evidence that Israel did encourage their formation as a means of destabilising the PLO, and that much of their support is based on reaction to Israel's stance. I would certainly be much happier with moderate leadership, but Israel has hardly been a friend to moderate Palestinians over the years.

I'm not a religious or political extremist, which is why I do not sympathise with Zionism. It is also a reason why I have always kept my distance from the organised anti-war movement and groups such as Respect, who I regard with great suspicion. I've been on the marches, but so did many who do not support Hamas. Indeed, many of the local Palestinian support group who I know are from Christian backgrounds or are secular.

Read this

Speaking truth to power.

Israel and Holocaust Remembrance

I've often taken part in the Holocaust remembrance ceremony. It is something I have felt privileged to be part of and an opportunity to recall a moment in history which one hopes will never happen again.

However, over the past few days I have been questioning whether in all conscience I can partake in it this year. The bombing of the UN school has made my decision clear: I cannot partake in an event which indirectly celebrates the creation of israel as a safe haven for a persecuted people where that very nation carries out its own atrocities upon Palestinian citizens and continue to illegally occupy land which is not theirs.

It is always profoundly depressing when the oppressed becomes the oppressor. Hamas, created by the israelis to destabilise the PLO, has become a monster indeed, but a monster which has gained public support given the behaviour of Israel. Nothing should be done to indicate anything other than criticism of Israel and, sadly, that means the Holocaust remembrance services are entirely inapprorpaiate at the moment

Hello to 2009

Which no doubt will continue much the same as 2008.

But its hardly an inspiring start. The Israelis are proving, once again, that they departed from the moral high ground many years ago. I cannot see any conceivable solution to the situation as neither side is prepared to compromise and both claim ownership of the same land. It should serve as a warning that the claims of any religious group to land which they do not occupy should never be heeded, particularly in conditions of misplaced guilt.

World peace should matter most and I cannot foresee a situation where Israel's existence can do anything other than continue to promote discord

The Government continues to make some suggestions which make sense, but one cannot help but think that they still can't quite believe that the market really has landed them into this mess. About time all the banks were in public ownership, and as for the nonsense about shareholders and their 'rights' - give me strength. Buying shares is a risk and failing companies should not be doling out bonuses by means of dodgy registration of different parts of the same company.

I can't feel very enthusiastic about the government, but when Bishops start bleating about 'morality', a concept with which not one of them could ever have any connection, it does make one feel more sympathetic. And there is, quite simply, no political opposition. Clegg has no credibility and we don't need any more economic liberalism. Cameron remains unconvincing and his party has not and can never change, despite the rhetoric.

Anyway, for some reason I have felt tired for most of the past month and I hope to try and gain some energy from somewhere sometime soon.....

The Pope and the real problem....

The Pope, Fuhrer of Vatican plc, has made yet another ridiculous statement which ignores the reality of human existence. He doesn't seem to have recognised that his ancient fairy tale of creation was superseded by scientific knowledge including the reality of sexual orientation, accepted by all major medical and psychological academic bodies.

He also doesn't seem to realise that sex is not the same as gender, and that one's sexual orientation has nothing to say about one's gender or one's sex. So, a gay man is every bit as male as a straight man, in terms of sex, but their sexual orientation is not that which is dominant within the male gender . A minority variant - the world is full of them,nt only in the area of sexuality.

There really is nothing wrong with the pope that a good heart attack wouldn't put right.

Loathsome Nazi scumbag. Never did leave the Hitler Youth, did it?

And in the meantime, Catholic seminaries are full of gay men skulking in their closets. I can't sympathise or respect them. hey should speak out and be prepared to face the consequences. Otherwise, they are quite simply hypocrites

In any case, there is a problem greater than climate change. It isn;t people's sexuality, which is no threat to anyone. Indeed, having more open gay people would do wonders for the real problem facing the world - the elephant in the room which the Left, in particular, fails to talk about.

I mean, of course, overpopulation

The first start should be the removal of all overseas aid and all publicly funded assistance or support for any country which actively promoted overpopulation. hird world aid is largely wasteful in any case - most of it ends up in the hands of tinpot dictators propped up by the regimes they claim to loathe. And their problems are down largely to one issue. Too many people. Overpopulation. There should be a universal one child policy in particular for countries who have to pathetically bring out the begging bowl at every conceivable opportunity. And of course, promoting this overpopulation is Vatican plc and its Gauleiter, Ratfinger!

Irresponsible

I don't know who is more irresponsible.

The woman who thinks it is quite acceptable to have 18 children in the USA, or the TV company which no doubt helps to pay for the circus by making a TV programme about them

Lillian Ladele ruling overturned

The judgment which justified Lillian Ladele, a Christian registrar, in not carrying out an essential part of her job - civil partnership ceremonies - has been overturned.

Quite right too - but lets not have any more shoddy procedure from local councils, please, which meant that the person wanting to discriminate can present themselves as a victim

Police authorities

I served as an independent member of a police authority for four years. It was an interesting experience and I think was worthwhile, although the reliance on the same organisation one is meant to be 'critical friend' to for one's information does limit effectiveness.

The selection process isn't ideal, although it is quite exacting. I applied twice and was successful on second application after quite a gruelling interview process. As an independent member with experience of being part of a minority community, I felt I had some distinctive perspectives to bring. The problem was that it was very hard to remain independent. I declared that I knew the Chair of the authority, and whilst for the first two years of serving I was a party member, never felt any loyalty to that party's position. This was probably my downfall, particularly when I left the party and it became pretty clear that I wouldn't be reappointed.

However, further politicisation of the police via direct elections would be a very bad idea - and I think would undermine the authority of the Chief Constable. It would mean that police governance would be in the hands of one party, and this could easily be an extremist party unwilling to enforce the very important commitment of the Police to serve the whole community.

There are other ways of enabling people to influence the police without placing them further into the hands of party politicians of any colour.