The nation woke up yesterday to the news that Prince Harry and the American actress Megan Markhle were engaged after a whirlwind romance. It is always nice to hear of couples falling in love, but before we get carried away, lets not forget that the last Royal Wedding cost the taxpayer a whopping £20-39 million for security alone. This one i'm sure is going to be a truly extravagent opulent affair too at at time when millions of peoples benefits are being frozen for another year,being pushed into poverty, cannot afford to eat and are forced to resort to using food banks in order to survive.
We are supposed to be living in an age of austerity where the poorest among us have to make sacrifice after sacrifice, yet Prince Harry and his relations are still able live out their lives in royal palaces, surrounded by servants and all their vestiges of privilege.
Somehow in the 21st Century they are still celebrated as being somehow more superior than mere commoners, who living through hard times have to struggle every day simply to make ends meet, and somehow express gratitude to the royals for lording it over them.
Harry's dad Charles, it has been reported is likely to pick up most of the bill for what is said to be a Spring 2018 wedding and reception, even if custom dictates otherwise, but where does he get his money from, mostly from the Duchy and Cornwall estate, where he does not have to pay corporation tax or capital gains tax, and effectively this royal tax dodger gets the rest of his money from the British taxpayer, so not really going to cost him a penny.
Who knows it all might actually lead to a shift in direction, good old harry boy might choose to give up his Royal privileges and entitlements and choose to live with his future wife as an ordinary person, now if that happened, I would actually applaud and truly consider that to be a noble thing. In the meantime however please forgive me for my lack of enthusiasm for the royal wedding that has just been announced, I am not a complete killjoy, I hope even as a committed republican that their love lasts , and they have a nice time together, but I simply don't think their wedding should come to the cost of ordinary people across the land, while many are facing such hardship. The news I would prefer to see is how the Tories are going to address inequality and anger over austerity after seven years of austerity and cuts instead.
I really do believe that we should all be paying more attention to things like the diastrous roll out of universal credit, the poverty that is facing many at the present time, instead of focussing on what seems to me, call me a cynic, to be a classic distraction excercise, when the hardest hit are paying the price for the excesses of a few. So I say instead welfare not fanfare and Tories out for Christmas, now that is something I truly would celebrate.
At end of day the British monarchy, despite its great wealth, and long traditions based on elitism, has little real power now, there is a rise in people who have simply had enough, and want to seek to transform society for the better, and would actually like to see the end of the monarchy, this tired old institution once for all. Here is a link to Republic, the anti-monarchy campaign group for an elected head of state, who at least had the tenacity to issue a one worded statement : "Congratulations."
I trust never knowing
But Love keeps floating,
Besides dreams ever flowing
Tideless waves of time growing,
Sparks of reality,that rekindle fire
Releasing the thirst of desire,
Not empty figments of imagination
Mind staying free, still burning bright,
Finding courage not despair
No good will be found there;
Clinging on am still afloat
Travelling light, gaze remains fixed,
Carried by powerful forces
Flowing onwards, gaining momentum,
While nature awakens, freedom echoes
Waiting only for a new tomorrow.
We must keep speaking out for all those currently under attack, we know that disabled people face prejudice and hatred on a daily basis. In a recent survey, 4% of disabled people said they had been physically attacked and 16% of disabled people had had people act aggressively or in a hostile way towards them. We also know that hardly anyone ever reports such crimes to the police.
Meanwhile our Government which we should all be ashamed off are carrying on with policies and cuts that are taking away support to those that need it most . Insane immoral policies that are pushing many to the brink, as the Government plunges to new depths. Lets not forget that over 10,000 sick and disabled people have already died as a direct result of the Governments welfare reforms. The tories will not stop they are simply out of control, the suffering they continue to cause is immeasurable, after the disabled and the unemployed now they are coming for the doctors,the nurses, firefighters, domestic abuse workers,rape crisis centres, childrens centres etc etc
This is how it works they will take away peoples support, break peoples will for resistance, leave people broken without the means to fight back. So together we must stop them in their tracks.If we never speak out against their cruelty and injustice , then we are all just as bad.
Animals apparently have no feelings or emotions according to Michael Gove and 312 Members of Parliament , who voted in favour of rejecting a clause this week that would have enshrined into UK law the recognition that animals are sentient, an admission currently covered by EU law.
Green MP Caroline Lucas submitted the clause as part of the EU withdrawal bill. Some 80% of animal welfare legislation currently comes from the EU but after March 2019 European law will no longer apply in the UK.
The move has been criticised by animal rights activists, who say the vote undermines environment secretary Michael Gove’s pledge to prioritise animal rights during Brexit. One of the arguments put forward by the Government during the debate was that animal sentience is covered by the Animal Welfare Act 2006.The RSPCA, however, said this is not the case; the term sentience or sentient being doesn’t appear once in that Act, and, the animal welfare charity said, doesn’t cover all animals.
The majority of animal welfare legislation comes from the EU. The UK Government is tasked with adopting EU laws directly after March 2019 but has now dismissed animal sentience.
Prominent wildlife photographer Richard Bowler also disagrees, and in a Facebook post, which has already been shared hundreds of times, Bowler says: “MP’s have voted and in their wisdom, animals can no longer feel pain or emotions.
“It really beggars belief that in this day and age, this shower of a government no longer recognises animals as sentient beings. None of them could have had a pet dog, greet them when they come home.“But it’s not just domestic animals that show love and affection.”
Bowler posted the above photo of a fox in a heartfelt plea to his Facebook audience:
"So MP's have voted and in their wisdom, animals can no longer feel pain or emotions. It really beggars belief that in this day and age, this shower of a government no longer recognises animals as sentient beings. None of them could have had a pet dog, greet them when they come home. But it's not just domestic animals that show love and affection. The photograph shows Rosie and how she greets me, every time I visit her. Are you telling me there's no emotion there, what you can...'t see is the wagging tail and the squeals of excitement as well. All three foxes I care for have built a bond with Maddy our terrier, she is greeted in exactly the same way. It's not hard to imagine that if bonds like this can be formed inter species, that the same bonds can be formed between a dog fox and a vixen and their cubs. In fact so called pest controllers use this to their advantage, after shooting the vixen they will often wait, knowing the dog fox will show up, to mourn if you like. Anyone who's seen elephant documentaries when families visit the bones of their dead can not fail to see that there are emotions going on there. Science is showing more and more animal intelligence and emotions and yet our government has yet again ignored it. There can only be one reason to deny animal sentient status, and that is to exploit them.Here's a link to an article about it https://www.farminguk.com/…/MPs-vote-to-reject-inclusion-of… He continued: “The photograph shows Rosie and how she greets me, every time I visit her. Are you telling me there’s no emotion there, what you can’t see is the wagging tale and the squeals of excitement as well. “All three foxes I care for have built a bond with Maddy our terrier, she is greeted in exactly the same way. It’s not hard to imagine that if bonds like this can be formed inter species, that the same bonds can be formed between a dog fox and a vixen and their cubs. “In fact so called pest controllers use this to their advantage, after shooting the vixen they will often wait, knowing the dog fox will show up, to mourn if you like. Anyone who’s seen elephant documentaries when families visit the bones of their dead can not fail to see that there are emotions going on there. “Science is showing more and more animal intelligence and emotions and yet our government has yet again ignored it. There can only be one reason to deny animal sentient status, and that is to exploit them.”
Thousands have since signed a petition on campaigning website 38 degrees urging the Tories to reverse this decision.
It states: “Animals have long held the status of being sentient beings in the UK, through legislation created in the EU. “This means they are recognised as being capable of feeling emotions such as joy and compassion, but also fear, suffering and terror. “The vote in parliament, narrowly won by the government, removes this status from all animals in the UK, and is a massive blow for the welfare of wildlife, pets and livestock alike.” One signatory said: “Anyone who has had a pet or worked with livestock clearly understand that these animals are sentient and deserve the best standards of welfare.” Another commented: “It is inconceivable to deny animals recognition of their completely obvious sentience. This must be repealed.” However it does not really come as to much a surprise though, because it is a well known fact that the Tories themselves that have proven time and time again to be devoid of any compassion to humans let alone animals. But serves to remind us of how short sighted and heartless they all bloody are. These by the way are MPs who voted down legislation on animals feeilning pain and emotion as part of Brexit Bill . https://www.indy100.com/article/animal-rights-vote-mps-list-eu-brexit-voted-animals-not-feel-no-emotions-313-conservative-party-tory-8068691
Here are eleven well-known brands and products where shareholders of the company - or the company itself - has donated to the Tories, the party of the few, the rich and the privileged in this country.
They aren't the biggest donors by any means , fat cat donors, bankers , business tycoons are also pumping loads of cash into the Tory Party war chest. As the tories continue to court wealthy donors and businesses meanwhile ordinary people everyday are finding life increasingly more difficult to manage, facing challenging times.. Buying the following 11 things means you have sent money to the Conservatives. If you don't support the Tories and have inadvertantly bought any of the following, please reconsider your habits, stop helping the Tories out, their certainly not helping us out.
1. Melton Mowbray Pork Pies and Ginster Pies
The popular pies are owned by Samworth Brothers Ltd.
Director Mark Samworth has donated £585,000 to the Tories since 2010. Additionally, Samworth Brothers Ltd, the company itself, donated £32,000 to the party in 2002 and 2003.
Life President of the company, David Samworth, has donated just over £26,000.
In total, Samworth and those involved in the company have donated nearly £650,000 to the Tories.
Think about that next time you sit down alone and microwave yourself a depressingly limp cornish pasty. 2. Next clothing and accessories
Next CEO lord Wolfson has donated more than £400,000 to the tories since 2006. He was made a Conservative party peer by David Cameron in 2010.
Next made record £695m profits last year and is facing a trade union campaign by the GMB trade union to pay a living wage to staff.
3. Autotrader magazine
Autotrader is owned by Apax the private equity firm run by Tory Donor Adrian Beercroft, after it was bought from the owners of the Guardian newspaper through a controversial offshore deal in the Cayman Islands.
Beecroft, who has donated £593,000 to the Tories, wrote a notorious report for Downing Street recommending that a string of workers rights be scrapped so bosses can sack workers at will.
4. The Wombles
Mike Batt wrote six Wombles albums between 1973 and 1978. Batt has donated £112,500 to the Tories since 2001. If you've bought any Womble music (who hasn't) or listened to "Remember You're a Womble" in order to remind yourself that you're a Womble, you have inadvertently given money to the tories. 5. Woking football club
Owned by Surrey businessman Chris Ingram. He's donated nearly £175,000 to the tories since 2008. So if you support Woking you also support the Tories
6. Warbutons
This well-known bakery gave the Tories a £25,000 donation in the run up to the 2010 election, after David Cameron held a press conference at the firm's Bolton HQ and was pictured in front of a wall of Warburtons loaves.
7.Crombie coats
Owned by former Tory vice-chairman Alan Lewis, who has donated £246,000 to the Conservative Party. Part of Crombie's parent company Hartley Investment Trust is owned offshore on the Isle of Man. Most people I see wearing a Crombie I avoid anyway because I have suspicions their probably Tories.
8. Soreen Meat Loaf
Soreen is also owned by Samworth Brothers who donated £650,000 to the Conservatives. The search continues for a non-politically aligned malt-loaf. 9. Lycamobile
lycamobile is a virtual phone network set up in 2006. They sell international Sim cards to consumers who want to make international phone calls /
The company donated a massive £827,562 to the Tory party between 2011 and December 2015..
10. Bet Fair
Bet Fair founder and shareholder Edward Wray has donated just under £210,000 to the tories since 2010. If you've ever gambled using Betfair and lost, your loss has been the Tories gain.
11.Karl Liegerfield clothes
If you've ever bought any Karl Lagerfeld clothes you have inadvertently donated to the Tories. The label is also owned by Apax, who have donated £593,000 to the Tories.Not the 81 year old fashion designer, but the fashion label itself. This data was found by the Mirror, who drew their data from the Electoral Commission and Searchthemoney
‘I’m a doctor. This is a real conversation I had with the Job Centre:
“Hi, I don’t think Miss X is well enough to come to your appointment…”
“It’s a term of her benefits that she has to come.”
“I know, but I don’t think she’s well enough. Can you rearrange it?”
“So she came to your appointment?”
“Yes, but…”
“Then she can come to ours.”
“But she’s not well and I’m her doctor.”
“And she wants benefits and so she has to come here.”
“So you’re saying that she has to either jeopardise her health by coming to your meeting, or not receive any money.”
“If you’re trying to make me feel guilty you’re speaking to the wrong person.”‘
Just to add perspective to this dialogue, it might be useful to remember that a woman was afraid to leave a DWP meeting while she was having a heart attack because she thought she would be sanctioned off-benefit.
This sad state of affairs currently happening in a supposed civilised country, and completely legal too, we need a change in government as soon as possible to put and end this shameful policy. It is simply outrageous that some people are actually punished simply for being ill.
Millions of Britons will observe two minutes of silence this weekend as the nation marks Armistice Day and Rememberance Sunday and pay respect to those killed in war. The Peace Pledge Union though wants to promote the idea that there are better ways to resolve conflict than through war and violence. They also want to curb the attitude towards commemoration of war, which painrs the picture that war is noble and worth celebrating. They promote the idea of wearing a white poppy around the same time you would wear the red poppy, for Armistice Day and Rememberance Sundayaround November 11 each year with a committment to peace and a refusal to celebrate or glamourise war itself: http://www.ppu.org.uk/. Remembrance Day was originally intended to remind us of the futility of
war. The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month which marked the time
the Armistice was signed at the end of WWI, or, as it was known at the
time, The Great War, the war to end all wars. Such was the scale of death and suffering between 1914-18 it was believed to be inconceivable that nations would again engage
in such wasteful and destructive confrontation. In fact, The Great War
instead turned out to be the opening chapter of the most
destructive and murderous century in the history of the human race.
War became mechanized, industrial, and all consuming. No longer did
armies simply face each other across a battlefield in ordered rows to
slog it out until one side was victorious, entire cities and nations
would be left in ruins and generation after generation of young men
would be wiped out of existence. Let is all remember what we do not seem to learn, that it is
Politicians that send men and women to die, to go to war, so that they
can try and win unwinnable battles for them. We should remember never to be
intimidated by the media which sees the wearing of a red poppy as a definition of loyalty. Let us acknowledge all those
people looking for alternative ways of marking and remembering the
dead, working for peace, day by day. Let us remind ourselves how the wearing or not wearing of the poppy
has been used to shame people who make the conscious decision not to
wear one, or how to criticise, is to be bandied a traitor, as we are
told told time and again that soldiers died for our freedoms. Lets not
forget either the families of the wounded or dead who are left
abandoned, and the many ex servicemen who are left homeless to fend for
themselves. It's time to expose the hypocrites who sanction wars, arms sales and
state repression while wearing a red poppy and uttering platitudes on this Day. Let us fall silent to mourn the loss of ordinary men and women who
have died when they need not have. Let us fall silent in the hope that
remembering will prevent the tragedies of war and and loss and work towards a time when it does not happen again. Let us fall silent to recognise and commemorate the victims of all wars, such as civilians killed in the bombings of Dresden, Hiroshima, Baghdad, Kabul, etc. Let us reclaim the poppy as a symbol of peace not as a symbol of war.This
is why I choose to wear a white poppy only, for peace and try to
remember the dead of all sides, both military and civilian.The white poppy pays tributes to victims of all wars, including those which are still ongoing.War is mass
murder, and we should remember the politicians of all sides that
should be held responsible and tried for murder. Lest we forget. Heddwch/Peace. Also
" Peace cannot be kept by force, it can only be achieved by
understanding. You cannot subjegate a nation forcibly unless you wipe
out every man, woman and child. Unless you wish to use drastic measures,
you must find a way of settling your disputes without resort to arms." - Albert Einstein ( from Militant Pacifist, 1931)
Futility - Wilfred Owen
Move him into the sun -
Gently its touch awoke him once,
At home, whispering of fields unsown.
Always it woke him, even in France,
Until this morning and this snow.
If anything might rouse him now
The kind old sun will know.
Think how it wakes the seeds, -
Woke, once, the clays of a cold star.
Are limbs, so dear-achieved, are sides,
Full-nerved - still warm - too hard to stir?
Was it for this the clay grew tall?
- O what made fatuous sunbeams toil
To break earth's sleep at all?
Love this, absolutely awesone, Lowkey performs an acapella of ' The Redistrution of Power.' at his headline show at the Coronet in London. We need a massive radical redistribution of powerthat could help societies current disenchantment. We have nothing to lose and all to gain.
I've been listing my A to Zeds
from Alpha to Zion,
sometimes it all adds up
life gets better, start understanding,
but often things will arrive that confuse
as I try to remember to resurge, rejoice,.
the sound of blues arrives in my head
I escape the chorus, and return to bed,
darkness envelopes, the sky gets a little lost
makes the near seem so very far away,
still seek familiar faces, swimming with light
resist a world full of cruel injustice,
remember all those still struggling
as world spins, political corruption exposed,
somehow some hope floods within
answers seeking, keep on arriving.
Said this before, but having a break from blogging, looking for some inspiration... be back sooner than later in all probability, in the meantime some thoughts from the inimitable Anais Nin. Thanks to all who have listened. Keep on keeping on, solidarity.
" You live like this, sheltered, in a delicate world, and you believe you are living. Then you read a book, or take a trip, and you discover that you are not living, that you are hibernating. The symptoms of hibernating are easily detectable:first, restlessness. The second symptom ( when hibernating becomes dangerous and might degenerate into death) :absence of pleasure. That is all. It appears like an innocuous illness. Monotony, boredom, death. Millions live like this (or die like this) without knowing it. They work in offices. They drive a car. They picnic with their families. And then some shock treatment takes place, a person, a book, a song, and it awakens them from death. Some never awaken. "
The 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration marks one of Great Britain's betrayals. A shameful part of history that I have written about many times before. It refers to a letter dated 2 November 1917 from the United Kingdom's Foreign Secretary Lord Arthur James Balfour to Walter Rothschild 2nd Baron Rothschild for the supporters of the Zionist cause which had no legal authority where the indigenous Palestinians at the time of the letter amounted to 90% of the total population which paved the way for the creation of Israel in 1948.
This cursed declaration is considered to be the first political recognition of the Zionist aims by a foreign government. It meant that those who had no ownership (Britain) permitted those who had no right to establish a national homeland on a established country Palestine with no moral or legal framework to do so.
Rothschild replied to Balfour's letter saying that 'the British government has opened up, by their message. a prospct of safety and comfort to large masses of prople who are in need of it.' But it also opened up the prospect and reality of abject misery for millions of Palestinians who certainly did not deserve it.
The letter made it clear that the British government backed the establishment of a 'national home for the Jewish people; in Palestine. Three years later, in 1920, Britain was mandated to implement the resolution through the League of Nations.
However Palestinians were not represented in the discussions that led to the declaration, nor were they cited by name in the letter. Indeed, they were defined by what they are not ("non-Jewish"), which set the pattern for their " invisibility " in later official discussions about their future.The letter marks a pivotal moment in the history of Palestine, laying the groundwork for the eventual loss of their land, years of dispossession, conflict and displacement affecting millions of Palestnian lives and their subsequent occupaton with ramifications that are so clearly felt today..
The Palestinian conflict does not begin in 1948 but in 1917, with this declaration. It is necessary that we go back to this crucial watershed in the history of the Middle East and the roots of the continuing betrayal of the Palestinian people, expelled from their ancestral homeland to refugee camps, to live in exile across the globe, to this present day. The continuing seperation of the prople of the West Bank and the open prison that is Gaza.
The content of the declaration seems no less distant or downright baffling. The prominent Jewish intellectual Arthur Koestler, repeating a frequent mantra, would call it “one the most improbable political documents of all time,” in which “one nation solemnly promised to a second nation the country of a third.” The fact that it included no explicit rationale for itself has also fuelled the suspicion that its authors had darker motives. After all, it was issued in the name of the largest empire in history, the Balfour Declaration is considered to be by many one of the greatest mistakes in our imperial history.
Palestinian leaders over the years have strongly urged British officials to apologise and diavow the Declaration as well as acknowledge their responsibility in the plight of the Palestinian people. The British government has refued. The writer Arundhati Roy was right to describe the Palestine tragedy as one of " imperial Britain's festering, blood-drenched gifts to the modern world.' It is also a product of a history of racism and empire that extended across most of the West. On this centennial of the Balfour Declaration, reflection on this shared culpability should serve as a reminder of the responsibility for the political action that comes with it.
Israeli officials say it is right to celebrate the centenary, and have accused those demanding and seeking an apology of being antisemitic.But I reject that and believe the British government politicians should apologise unreservedly for having turned a blind eye to Israel's breaches of international law, offences against humanitarian law which has seen the massacre of Palestinians. Because of this tainted promise, Britain bares responsibility for setting the stage for the conflict that currently exists and the legacy of deceit, injustice and oppression that exists to this day.
In pursuit of justice this ocassion could be marked by a long adherence to the rules of international law, with an immediate apology from the Government of Great Britain. This task would take courage but is urgent.Millions of Palestinians are still marooned in refugee camps. West Bank citizens have endured 50 years of military occupation and Palestinian homes are continuing to be destroyed and replaced by thousands of new Israeli settlements.
Ahead of the 100th anniversary pro-Palestinian groups launched the following petition https://petition.parliament.uk/archived/petitions/184398
calling on the British government to crap plans to celebrate. They argued Prime Minister Theresa May should instead use the occasion to issue an apology. Responding to the petition in April this year, the Foreign Office said: “The Balfour Declaration is an historic statement for which Her Majesty’s Government does not intend to apologize. We are proud of our role in creating the State of Israel. The task now is to encourage moves towards peace.”
It is really sad to witness Theresa May's blinkered ability to further shame the British people by ingulging in overt celebrations on the occasion of the centenary of the signing. She has also said the declaration was a "source of great pride" for Great Britain. Surely Theresa May and her cabinet cannot be simply unaware of the 100 year suffering this infamous agreement has caused.
Well done to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn though who has refused to attend Balour Centenary Celebration dinner that is taking place, I believe he is right to avoid it. He's not snubbing Israel per say, but a celebratory dinner that is exremely controversial and inflammatory to celebrate this .to the Palestinians it would be seen as celebrating their ethnic cleansing, the continuing denial of a viable Palestinian State, and the fact that 2017 also marks the 50th anniversary of the occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Gaza and other Arab land and Israel’s refusal to end this, any celebration would be a complete mockery to the Palestinian peoples collective memory and a continuing violation of their rights..
Simon Johnson, chief executive of the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC), says British Jews should feel proud of the UK’s role in the creation of Israel, today a key regional trade and security partner. But it is worth pointing out that that all British Jews consider the declaration worth celebrating. For instance Jews for Justice for Palestinians, offered the following perspective.The group’s parliamentary and diplomatic liaison officer, Arthur Goodman, says the government’s response to the Balfour apology petition is a skew on British history. In reality the British government shouldn’t be particularly proud because, more than the Balfour Declaration itself, the way they ran it, in the Mandate, was very detrimental to the Palestinians,” he said.“If it had been to create a homeland on an equal basis with the already existing indigenous population, that would have been different. But that’s not what the British Mandate did. They created a state for the Zionists, who were Jews, and they excluded the possibility of the Palestinians having a state or having an equal part in a binational state.”
What would an apology actually achieve? “Very little. In fact, if that’s all the government did, but didn’t actually help the Palestinians create a state, then it would just make Palestinians and Arabs even more convinced that the British government, among others, was being very hypocritical,” said Goodman. “I think the correct response would be not to celebrate it, not to mark it, except to say that it’s now time for Israel to accept that it already has 78 percent of British Mandate Palestine and that should be enough for it. And the other 22 percent, i.e. the Occupied Territories, rightly belong to the Palestinians.”
I do aknowledge though that Balfour was not unique in history in giving what he did not own to those that were not entitled to it.With Israel currently entrenching its military occupation of Palestine and senior politicians articulating there rejection of a Palestinian state, Britain should not be inflaming the situation ny marking Balfour in the way that they are, which will create barriers to the ongoing peace process.100 years after Balfour it is more than time for Britain to now apologise for this declaration that has caused so much pain, a the time for reflection , not celebration, for us to consider on the profoundly negative consequences of the declaration by the colonial actions of Great Britain, and its continuing global consequences and think about the ongoing tragedy of the Palestinian people that my country owes a moral responsibility to.
Despite the consequences of Balfour the Palestinians commitment to fight for freedom also remains unchanged, and neither Balfour nor all of Britain's foreign secretaries since then have managed to break the will of the Palestinian nation.Let us also remember that the leaders of Israel were never satified with what they eventually got in 1948. They unfortunately set their sights much wider. And to this day carry out policies of expansion and domination in acts of provocation. Until measures are made by Israel to improve the standard of living and bring economic prosperity to the Palestinians living in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Bringing some chord of social justice, and reconition of the Palestinians identity and stolen land given back to them. and an end to their continuing use of apartheid practices, their will be no peace. This is Balfours tragic legacy.
Stress effects us all , both in the workplace and in our everyday lives.Day in day out, ad-nfinitum.
Today however is National Stress Awareness Day and this year’s theme is Speak Up and Speak Out. This years theme about communicating stress,is personally quite important, as someone who has own bouts, troughs of real lows too, who realises though that communicating effectively can be extremely difficult during stressful times. Whether that communication is to let loved ones or colleagues know that you are stressed, or simply to communicate about everyday things, people often feel worried about speaking out about being under stress. There is a perceived stigma attached to being stressed as people believe it will leave them with less influence at work, or in general social outlets can leave many people feeling isolated and left with believe that they cannot cope.
That is why this National Stress Awareness Day, it is important to think about Speaking Up and Speaking Out. Being able to communicate more often and more effectively will allow you to more efficiently manage stressful situations and help others deal with it, too.Lets not forget that stress is a fact of modern life, that for many us have come to fear, a force that calls when often we are not coping very well, when internal and external pressures become to great, often we see it as a sign of weakness or an indication of mental illness.Can spark thoughts of anxiety, fear, guilt, anger and depression.Times that people often, simply forget to reach out for a little further help..
Apart from the daily onslaught of capitalism that brings about a great deal of stress, that we daily are forced to cope with there are some simple ways to cope sometimes with it all. Even while alone. Personally I have learnt that eating well and regularly is a good idea, but often simply unable to because of lack of money to do so, I try to walk though somewhere, a form of taking oneself out, then resting, sleep has proven to be effective, but not too much of it. Exercing is good, so I tend to potter about in the garden, it helps release inner endorphins, socialising is good too, though obviouly be careful who you hang with. Hands of friendship very important, but can not always be in reach, so distract by listening to music, currentlly stereo releasing somehealing waves, reading a good book helps too, I personally should learn to avoid using social media in periods of anxiety ,since there not always the best of places to frequent when trying to actually avoid the stresses of the world.
The truth is that there is no lasting individual solutions to the problems of stess. Human happiness, wellbeing can only be fully realized in a society free of exploitation, oppression and confusion, so best try and keep going, try not to give up, reach out to those hands that can help make the process a whole lot easier. Remember the global capitalist system is in crisis too, but continuing to inflict great stress and pain, we are sadly all , currently caught up in this, axious with fears for the future. We are living in age of anxiety. Many of us are tired, and on the edge, but we much keep reaching out I guess, challenging, trying to find a better way, finding new possibilities, keep on keeping on, spurred on by the direction of hope and change. The power of love helps immensley too. But when stress gets to debilitating and there seem to be no other ways a doctor should be out there, but I acknowledge in days like these not that easy to get hold of one, in times of immediacy. But there is help out there. Another world too. You can also go I guess to the National Stress Awareness Day website to download tips for stress-free living... but only tips, Im still finding ways to overcome, keep looking for distraction, trying to speak up , and speak out, while I can manage to do so. And there will all ways be more glad times, just cling on and wait and see, take your own time , follow your own mountains and journeys, try and find any form of love that helps. But really I simply have not got a clue, trust me when I say i'm no expert. But good luck
As the evening falls
the ghost of Maggie Thatcher
will stalk us everywhere,
while her ghoulish descendents
grimacing, keep destroying lives
leave many of us trembling with fear,
breaking our smiles with conscious cruelty
disturbing sleep,with rotten sulphuric breath,
stealing from the poor, plundering the nation
making mischief, life so terrifying,
with policies of menace,and dark intention
keeping many petrified, scared as hell,
filling people with wrath and ire,
we must excorcise and resist
together cast these demons out.
" We are caged by our cultural programming. Culture is a mass hallucination and when you step outside the mass hallucination you see it for what it's worth " - Terence McKenna
Furthermore our societies are engineered, as our views are formed, while consent is manufactured and consumption dictated. Perhaps it is time to de-program ourselves, stop supporting companies that keep us living as economic slaves. Shop and buy local. Find opportunities to connect with what is really important in life. When faced with demands for conformity, slowly ask , "What will happen if I refuse." there are no rules to follow, after all you can make it up as you go along. But please keep questioning what is happening on the planet, even though you will face fierce opposition. As the mainstream media keep publishing headlines that are lies, subvert their message, turn their papers over in the racks, hide them, do it yourself, these small acts can be greatly satisfying. If society was truly rational it would be standing strongly now against a government that serves only the interests of the rich and powerful but at the moment just wanders in compliance. So be defiant, be a rebel, keep non-conforming, boldly resisting consensus, the normalisation that causes poverty and war, keep thinking outside their boxes with oppositional defiance. Lets leave the peddlers of delusion to their own devices, spreaders of fear and intolerance, lets have the courage and grace to go to different places, that really matter, beyond the fixations with growth, that continue to make tragedies of our human lives. With enough fire and imagination, and determination, lets keep sitting outside the confines of their caged enclosures.
Sad news legendary the singer- songwriter and piano player Fats Domino whose style was hugely influential on the development of rock 'n' roll , died peacefully Wednesday morning at the age of 89
Domino was a lifelong resident of New Orleans Lower Ninth Ward, where he was born into a musical French Creole family on February 27, 1928. He dropped out of school yo play piano in his teens, and in 1949 met producer Dave Bartholomew, with whom he would produce some of his biggest hits. Domino's nickname, given to him by bass player and bandleader Billy Diamond, inspiring his first single, "The Fat Man, " by 1953 that record became the first rock 'n'roll record to sell more than a million copies.
Fats crossed over to the mainstream with ' Ain't that a shame ' cracking the top ten at a time when the radio was still widely segregated , it was in fact a cover by a white artist Pat Boone that reached no 1.
The following year he had his biggest hit ' Blueberry Hill,' which would reach No 2 in the Billboard Top 40 and No 1 on the R&B charts.
The mainstreaming of rock n roll was profitable for Fats, who went on to have seven more top ten hits between 1956 and 1959. Yet these were stormy times, in 1956, riots broke out at four different Fats Domino concerts, including one in North Carolina in which Domino and several of his band members were injured. In the end though, Domino managed to chart a staggering 63 times on the pop charts and 50 times on the R&B charts outselling the likes of Little Richard, Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly.Fats influence though as a black artist who dominated the pop charts and audiences off all races ii a segregated America cannot be understated, as he and his band challenged pre - Civil Rights movement conventions in a white- dominated industry.
In 1969 Fats travelled to Las Vegas to attend and Elvis concert. When a journalist referred to Presley as 'The King', Presley simply gestured towards Fats and famously declared. "No. That's the real King of rock and roll. John Lennon also said ' There wouldn't have been a Beatles without Fats Domino," the Beatles adored him and his music.
Fats was one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, and he recieved a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987.
A shy and reclusive man, he remained a live performer through most of his life, he once said "I'd play for nothing, as a matter of fact, right now I'd rather pay for nothing and sound good than play for nothing and sound good than play for something and sound bad, we're all blessed. People tell me my music did something for them, and it works both ways. I just love music, that's all. I really appreciate that the people have been nice to me and bought my records all these years. I want them to know I love them, too." Sweet.
Fats declined an offer from President Bill Clinton to perform at the White House, though he did accept the National Medal of Arts. Fats had to be airlifted out of his home during Hurricane Katrina, which also resulted in all his possessions being destroyed. In 2006, President George W. Bush visited Fats home then still badly damaged by Katrina, to replace the National Medal of the Arts that Fats had lost in the storm. Fats is survived by eight children, and an entire genre of music for which he was one of the key innovators.Rock and Roll will never die, but one of the great individuals directly responsible for shaping it in the first place has now joined the choir invincible, there must be a whole lot of boogie woogie happening now above us in the stars and universe. R.I.P
Poetry is real
as injustice is real,
running through veins
all through our lives,
between love and wild emotions
never silent, relentless,
keeps battering down doors
never straight, never gives up,
will never be chained
will never be tamed,
has the capacity to heal
release avenues of possibility,
wildly running free
on gauntlets of imagination,
a chorus of different voices refusing to remain silent,
we are all prisoners of the world
never truly free until death,
poetry can deliver comfort
carrying freedoms torch,
standing up for rights
of people everywhere,
words stirring, provoking
creating new worlds,
fleshed out of existence
for all to share.
The Aberystwyth community in West Wales is relatively aware and supportive of this campaign to save this residential care home for the elderly because of where Bodlondeb is. Unions have also said there is no plan in place for care provision if the home shuts, and residents could have to move long distances. However the proposed closure of this home with the result of a loss of 33 jobs is a wider austerity issue in which our public services are being stolen by the privateers at a rate of knots. If we lose Bodlondeb, the other six council run elderly care homes in the county will go down the same way. Most of the cabinet voting on this decision have the wards elsewhere in Ceredigion, not Aberystwyth, so it would be excellent if they had some pressure from their own constituents, The signs say that they are really looking to close it but this could be swung with a successful lobying campaign and an extremely well attended march. Please come along to the march and bring a friend or two. Join
us on 4th November in Aberystwyth Town Centre to save our beautiful
council-run elderly care home. Bodlondeb is ours, not the Council’s.
They are supposed to look after it for us and for our families, not sell
it off! If Bodlondeb closes then other council run care homes for the elderly are surely next: Tregerddan, Bryntirion, Yr Hafod, Hafan Deg, Awel Deg, Min y Mor ……
Corporations run our government.There are 5 billionaires who run our media, and they have huge power in our democracy forcing our political parties to prioritise their wishes over the wishes of the British public.
These 5 people not only own 80% of the newspapers we read every day, they also own TV stations, press agencies, book companies, cinemas, so everything we think or speak in Britain is nearly controlled entirely by these 5 men.
The following are the 5 men in control :-
Richard Desmond: Owner of the Daily Star, Sunday Star, Daily and Sunday Express. The 2016 Sunday Times Rich List reported his net worth at £2.25 billion, making him the 48th richest person in Britain.
Jonathan Harmsworth, 4th Viscount Rothermere: Owner of the Daily Mail, the Mail on Sunday and the Metro. In April 2015, the Sunday Times estimated his net worth at £1 billion.He currently resides in France.
Sir David Rowat Barclay and Sir Frederick Hugh Barclay: Owners of the Telegraph, the Spectator and the Business. The Sunday Times Rich List of 2015 estimated their wealth at £6.5 billion who live on a private island near Saark. .
Rupert Murdoch: Owner of the Sun, Times, Sky, Fox and many others. Estimated wealth of $13 Billion who lives in Australia.
Where the real power lies:
The power to decide who is elected as the government in this country lies in the hands of these 5 Billionaires who between them own 80% of the media. Messrs Desmond, Harmsworth, Murdoch and the Barclay Brothers control what you read, see and hear and the narrow range of topics which make it into the newspapers, and of course, they all back the party of the Billionaires, the Conservatives. In spite of wielding this amount of power in the UK, none of them pay tax and their newspapers are registered to tax havens, and that's the way they want it to stay. They ignore the climate crisis, back fracking, and bully politicians to do their bidding. They maintain an unjust hold on the world , they stir up fear and hate , so that we all blame one another rather than those truly responsible. We need a free democratic press one that serves the 99% and not the 1%, recognising that it is essential for the creation of a Britain with true social, political and ecological justice, a free press that continues to hold those in power to account. Time to take back control.
following poem inspired by attending rally in Haverfordwest 14/10/17) A Beautiful Resistance
Among tides of wild currents
Freedom spreads beautiful resistance
flying strong on winds of existence,
some will try to steal our thunder
tempt us into places of fear and hate
but like the breezes that blow with persistence
mighty are minds that follow this source,
with compassion will help deliver tyranny's end
for the lives of the many, not the hands of a few
beyond the darkness of our current days
there is strength in a crowd of solidarity,
with people's power the future looks bold
we can create and build a fairer world,.
following paths of love and equality
our desires can continue to be shared,
carrying rainbow flags of diversity
refusing to be silenced or usurped
each night and day dreams will live
sowing hope in hearts, seeds of change
onwards we rise,never to disappear.
Fela Kuti (born Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti), also known as Fela Anikulapo Kuti or simply Fela, was a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist, musician, visionary composer, pioneer of the Afrobeat music genre, human rights activist, marijuana smoking icon and incendiary political maverick.
Fela was born into an upper middle class family in Abeokuta, Oguri State Nigeria..His father was the strict Rev Canon Israel Oludoton Ransome Kuti an ordained minister grammar school principal and first president of the Nigerian Union of Teachers. Fela's mother Funmilayo was a leader of the country's nascent socialist, nationalist and sufragette campaigns. As a teen , Fela was already playing the role of a rebel against authority.At school he formed a club called the Planless society, he said "the rule of the club was simple : we had no plans. You could be called upon to disobey orders at any time. Disobedience was our law."
Like many children of the Nigerian middle class, Fela was sent to London to study at university. But Fela now a trumpet player wasn't interested in the professional careers in medicine and law and instead enrolled at the London Trinity College of Music.
Fela would marry his first wife Remi in 1961, and with some West Indian and Nigerian friends , started a jazz band called Koola Lobitos. He had his first two children, daughter Yeni in '61 and son Femi in '62, and graduated from Trinity with certificates in practice and theory.Fela and his family returned to Nigeria in 1963, where got a job with the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation.
When he first started in the 1960's, his brand of music was the Highlifw which he performed with other artists in the many night clubs of Lagos. In the late 1960;s to early 1970's he went to the United States and became influenced by the Black Panthers, and the ideas of Malcolm X and co.In line with his Pan- Africanist identity he would change his surname, Ransome- Kuti a hybid of a slave name to Anikualpo - Kuti, which is completely African. Anikulapa literally means, ' he that has pocketed death.' Fela developed a reputation for openly amoking cannabis, and sleeping with a large amount of women,but his influence on contemporary music is incredible. A true original and innovator, one of musics most skilled agitators. His songs could stretch to over an hour, filled with passionaae lyrics, about military corruption and social inequality. he conveyed both a radical indignation and a radical message.
In Nigeria he founded a communal compound and rehearsal space he called the Kalakuta Republic, and a night club the Shrine. The musical style he created was called Afrobeat a wonderful fusion of Jazz, Funk, Ghanian/Nigerian High life, psychedelic rock and traditional West African rhythms characterized by a fairly large band with many instruments, vocals, and a musical structure featuring jazzy, funky horn sections. A riff-based "endless groove" is used, in which a base rhythm of drums, shekere, muted West African-style guitar, and melodic bass guitar riffs are repeated throughout the song. Commonly, interlocking melodic riffs and rhythms are introduced one by one, building the groove bit-by-bit and layer-by-layer. The horn section then becomes prominent, introducing other riffs and main melodic themes.
Fela's band was notable for featuring two baritone saxophones, whereas most groups were using only one of this instrument. This is a common technique in African and African-influenced musical styles, and can be seen in Funk and Hip hop. Fela's bands at times even performed with two bassists at the same time both playing interlocking melodies and rhythms. There were always two or more guitarists. The electric West African style guitar in Afrobeat bands are paramount, but are used to give basic structure, playing a repeating chordal/melodic statement, riff, or groove.
His songs were mostly sung in Nigerian pidgin English, although he also performed a few songs in the Yoruba language. Fela's main instruments were the saxophone and the keyboards, but he also played the trumpet, electric guitar, and took the occasional drum solo. Fela refused to perform songs again after he had already recorded them, which also hindered his popularity outside Africa.
Fela was known for his showmanship, and his concerts were often quite outlandish and wild. He referred to his stage act as the "Underground" Spiritual Game. Fela attempted making a movie but lost all the materials to the fire that was set to his house by the military government in power.
It is of note that as Fela's musical career developed, so too did his political influence, not only in his home country of Nigeria, not just throughout Africa, but throughout the world. As his political influence grew, the religious aspect of his musical approach grew. Fela was a part of an Afro-Centric consciousness movement that was founded on and delivered through his music.
In the 1970' and 80's his rebellious song lyrics established him as a political dissident. He became associated with making political , social and cutural statements about greed and corruption.
In an interview he once said "Music is supposed to have an effect. If you're playing music and people don't feel something, you're not doing shit. That's what African music is about. When you hear something, you must move. I want to move people to dance, but also to think. Music wants to dictate a better life, against a bad life. When you're listening to something that depicts having a better life, and you're not having a better life, it must have an effect on you."
Playing constantly and recording at a ferocious pace, Fela and his band. who were now called Africa 70 became huge stars in West Africa. His biggest fan base were Nigeria's poor. Because his music tackled issues close to the Nigerian underclass, he was more than just a simple pop star, like Bob Marley in Jamaica he was the voice of Nigeria's voiceless, he was there cultural rebel. This is something Nigerias military junta tried to stop, and from the moment he arrived back in Nigeria he was hounded and harrassed. Rebelling against oppressive regimes through his music came at a heavy cost to Kuti who was arrested by the Nigerian government 200 times, and was subject to numerous beatings that left him with lifelong scars and nearly killed by a government intent on silencing him..In one of the most awful acts of violence committed against him, 1000 Nigerian soldiers attacked his compound in 1977. Fela suffered a fractured skull as well as other broken bones, his 82 year old mother was thrown from an upstairs window, inflicting injuries that would be fatal she died from her injuries a year later.
The soldiers set fire to the compound and prevented firefighters from reaching the area. Fela's recording studio, all his aster tapes and musical instruments were destroyed.Rather than abandon his cause, he used these experiences as inspiration to write more lyrics recording more uncompromising songs about the incident in the aftermath. He produced roughly 50 albums over the course of his musical career.
Fela Kuti - Coffin for head of state
After experiencing this tragedy he briefly lived in exile in Ghana, before returning to Nigeria in 1978. In 1979 he formed his own political party, MOP , Movement of the People and at start of decade renamed his band Egypt 80. From 1980 to 1983 , Nigeria was under civilian rule and it marked a peaceful time for Fela. He would record and tour non stop, However military rule returned in 1982, ad in 1984 Fela was sentenced yo ten years in prison on trumped up charges accused of currency smuggling. With help from Amnesty International he was freed in 1985.
At the end.of the 90's he recorded blistering attacks against Nigeria's corrupt military government, as well as broadsides aimed at Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan. most abrasively on the album Beast of No Nation.Never what you would call a progressive when it came to relationships with women, or patriarchy in general , in fact he was a bit of a sexist , strange considering his mother was one of Nigerias earliest feminists. Fela was also a polygamist, in 1978 he married 27 women in a single wedding ceremony. He would eventually divorce them all.
Fela died of Aids related complications on August 2, 1997, at the age of 58 in Lagos, Nigeria. Roughly 1 million attended his funeral procession. A press release from the United Front of Nigeria at the time of Fela's death said " Those who knew you well were insistent that you could never compromise with the evil you had fought all your life. Even though made weak by time and fate, you remained strong in will and never abandoned your goal of a free, democratic socialist Africa. " this was the esteem in which he was held.
His musical legacy is a strong one which continues to have influence on the musical scene of Nigeria and across the world. For many one of Fela's major sources of attraction was and is the rhytymic,, melodious and danceable form of his renditions. And no one can deny his constant and consistent quest for a better life for the masses. Fela constantly challenged the military rulers of Nigeria and portrayed the plight of his people who laid his life on the line in his struggle against injustice, corruption and the abuse of power, whose spirit was never broken.
I was most fortunate to see him play at my first Glastonbury festival in 1985, under the influence like him of cannabis, his performance was powerful, a memory I will never fail to treasure. And has left me many brilliant albums that continue to stand the test of time,who remains for me as one of my biggest musical influences. Fela Kuti maybe no more but his legendary music still moves with much resonance. Lets continue to hail this Black President , his courageousness and musical genius. Today his sons Femi and Seun are still carrying his musical torch.
Fela Kuti - Suffering and schmiling
Fela Kuti - International Thief ITT
Fela Kuti - Water got no enemy
Fela Kuti - Sorrow tears and blood
Fela Kuti - Colonial mentality
Fela Kuti - Army arrangement
Fela Kuti - Teacher - Teacher Don't teach me nonsense, (Live at Glastonbury 1984)
