I am not seeking to offend but more to better understand what I currently do not.
As I understand it, many of the black people from the 15th to 19th centuries came from Africa which may or may not have looked like the above picture but I cannot include pictorial evidence of all possible locations.
Some of their current ancestors are seeking reparations.
‘the action of making amends for a wrong one has done, by providing payment or other assistance to those who have been wronged’
Now, I am fairly certain that I have ancestors from Ireland, they may have well been affected by the potato famine and were forced to the UK to survive.
Honestly, I know it was Ireland, the rest is speculation.
But, how would I know if I personally should be receiving some sort of payment or assistance?
My logic goes along these lines:
For me to seek reparations I would need to know that something which happened to my ancestors has had a severe enough negative impact on my current life, surely that is the case?
As it happens, I am doing OK. Quite likely, had my great, great grandfather not have come here from Ireland, I would not exist at all, an absolute certainty. By that token, I must surely be grateful for the move.
Heading back to the Caribbean … what happened to the folk of Africa being taken away from their history, family, culture or any religion was egregious. However, the most recent event was over 100 years ago so we are talking about those of a similar connection historically to me and my Irish roots.
How many of those currently existing from slave origins can argue that they are worse off that they would have been were their ancestors not slaves? Could it be, like me, they’d simply not exist now?
If it could happen that their true roots were discovered and the land, village or town still existed or could be recreated, would they want to have that life now?
Let’s say their ancestor was a tribal King, lived in a grand dwelling, had a wife and kids (or many wives and kids however it was), if that could be recreated, is that what is wanted or, is this actually just about a bunch of people who have seen an opportunity to make some money and are on that bandwagon?
Absolutely, all those who still live with the wealth of slavery could and likely should be stripped of it much as criminals now are not allowed to keep their ill gotten gains. Trouble there is, when they made their fortune back in the day, they broke no laws and these things are so rarely retrospective.
But, those families should apologise and perhaps, out of kindness, help charities supporting black people who descended from slavery.
The reality is, nothing can make anything better for those slaves, none of which are alive now.
Maybe it is time to let that dark past go?
What might be a better idea is to focus international efforts on modern slavery. Yes, illegal slavery still goes on and very little is ever done to tackle it. The UK is actively making laws to make it easier!
But, that’s not just black people, it could be anyone, any culture, colour or whatever.
So, perhaps, get some international money together and stamp out ALL slavery. Finally move into a new era?
If any racists read this and think I am part of their group, go do one! I am not by any definition a racist and just really want, in all areas of life, true equality.
Yes it grabs the attention, makes people look but … one question I get asked too often is “which of you is the woman?”
I do not want my sexuality confused as a gender issue.
Thanks to my lovely husband in the foreground.
My own perspective on gay pride and, indeed the so called ‘community’.
Firstly, understand the history of pride. It started when gay people finally took a stand against the homophobia they were subjected to. For many years gay people were unprotected, no laws gave them equal rights not even the laws of the lands they lived in as citizens from birth. They were seen as criminals and generally people with severe mental health issues and deviants.
With slow progress in many countries we got some kind of equality or, at least legal protecting from prejudice to the point many who don’t recall when it wasn’t there really believe we’ve already got there and Pride has become nothing more than an in your face celebration of a job well done!
We are no where near that point yet and to make matters worse, we are diluting the cause and allowing it to be taken over by issues which are not our issues.
Over recent years our fight for equality for those with differing sexuality has had added to it, the fight for gender identity. What real connection do we as gay, lesbian and bisexual men and women do we have with the multitude of current gender identities?
Don’t get me wrong, I support that battle separately just not inclusively. If we follow any natural progression some trans might take we get this scenario and this is merely an example:
Mike is trans. Right now Mike is gay he is part of the LGB community. However, Mike is transitioning to Michelle. ‘She’ is living as a woman who is attracted to men. When she fully transitions she will be and wants to be a woman. At this point, Michelle becomes a straight woman, no longer a part of the LGB community. Of course, it’s way more complex but, we have to call a spade a spade.
Gender identity should have remained an issue in of itself. They will have their supporters and those in the LGB community will have theirs. Sometimes they may be the same people.
Does it help that leading many Pride events (which used to be pre woke, called ‘gay pride’) we have drag queens? I’ll wager that the majority of gay men have no desire at all the wear female clothes and yet, as far as society sees us, we come across as cross dressing weirdos. Not as we are, just the men and women you work with, who you see every day or pass by in the street. Again, don’t misunderstand me, no issue with drag queens, some are great but, would be put the Royal State Coach at the head of an environmentally friendly car parade? It’s overkill and suggests totally the wrong thing.
Beautiful and grand but, not taking us into the future
If you’re selling EV’s you don’t use the State Coach to promote them!
In short, Pride has been taken over by those with heavy egos who don’t even realise this is still a struggle.
How many gay men would feel comfortable walking through the Grosvenor Centre holding hands with their husbands? I see the ladies doing it but, never us men. Is that a rational avoidance or is it justified considering recent attacks on gay men in the town?
We’ve police forces up and down the country recognised for being institutionally homophobic. That on top of how generally ineffective the police are anyway and it matters not what laws are passed if the police and CPS do not enforce those laws.
We still do not have marriage equality, under law religions cannot perform same sex marriages. That was as much a government decision as it was the religions involved.
In many countries around the world our rights range from tolerance to a criminal offence punishable by death. Our government and monarchy still counts those countries amongst our ‘friends’.
I would like us to get back to being the LGB community fighting our own causes.
You see, right there I have readers shaking their heads and asking, are you mad?
British people are about as unpatriotic as any nation can be likely caused by a succession of government which rather than pull us together, drove us apart to create division and detract for their own failings.
Is the UK really so terrible?
In my opinion, no, it’s not. As a country we have lost out way rather a lot, society has some very real issues. However, the bedrock of the country, the land and the climate, they are much as we would expect for these lands.
What do I hear those around the world say of the UK?
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It’s so quaint, all those cute little villages – Sure, we have a lot of cute old villages dating back centuries but, that is not who we are, that’s just a tourist ideal
Isn’t it always raining in the UK? – Actually, just about every year we ban the use of hosepipes in a lot of counties because we are in a drought situation, we simply have not had enough rain. Sure, we do get rain. Unlike some other countries, there is no rainy season, it can happen any time of year. It used to be mainly April we would have showers but, global warming lost that for us.
It’s so cold there – Way up north in Scotland and especially on the hills, sure, it can get really cold. Realistically, if you as an interest person not liking the cold will avoid those areas and look down south. Right now we are around 28°C, tomorrow I see will be 30°C and, that’s quite warm for anywhere! It’s very humid though.
At least I don’t need sun block as it’s either going to rain or be too foggy! – Look, rain I already covered but on it, don’t let it fool you. Even through those showers the UV index can be really high especially in June/July. As for fog, there is a generation of Brits won’t have seen it ever! It was a construct of heavy industry with factories and homes using copious amounts of filthy coal and other messy stuff which hung in the atmosphere. We have cleaned up considerably in the last few decades. I am 60 and whilst it was regular when I was a kid it is more a morning mist now and rather than being pollution it’s just nature evaporating the lying water.
Your food is so bland, you don’t eat anything exciting or tasty. – This is an absolute myth based on a misunderstanding. You see, our land is very multicultural, we are a blend of hundreds of different nations and, over the years, our recipes have been shared and just about anything goes. We have comfort food which some might consider bland, only because it’s generally badly cooked. Fish & Chips needs to have fresh fish, the fresher the better. Many restaurants cook fish from the freezer and who is to say how old it is? Of course it’s going to have no flavour. We stop using those places mostly. The Sunday Roast? Yes, unavoidably that can be bland, no two ways about it. Sauces have to be added to make it OK. Shepherds and cottage pie, not the same thing but similar. That’s down to recipe and the quality of ingredients. Cooked fresh with good ingredients there is no reason for it to be bland at all. The Great British Breakfast (fry up) … a little bit of a myth that one as it implies there is only one. There are many variations on it to the point that much of it and occasionally, all of it is not fried at all! (I prefer it that way). But, back to the multicultural nature of the UK … Curry is one of our most popular take out meals (from India), Kebabs often follow from a night out (Greece). Indeed, we have restaurants with food from all over the world. Just lately I am seeing more Filipino venues showing up as well.
Beaches, what’s the point, you don’t have any good beaches? – There is a related truth in that but, it’s complicated! The sea even on the hottest days, never gets higher than 20°C, the in the cooler months it’s around 6°C and although some hardy people do swim in it, on the whole we don’t do much more than paddle. We do, however, have some amazing beaches, some of the best and great surfing beaches too. Sadly, the government we have had the past 13 years have allowed our seas to get contaminated with filth. Rich corporate water companies continue to pump raw sewage into our waterways making many of them unsuitable or unsafe to use.
Isn’t everything just so expensive there? – Hands up, the answer is yes. Sadly any excuse and hospitality gets greedy. A little inflation and they raise prices to exceed it and when inflation lessens, those prices remain high. Right now we are suffering food inflation way over 16%. A standard McDonalds is close on £9 now almost double what it was a year ago and, for example, nearly three times the cost in the Philippines.
So, when it’s not summer then it’s just winter right? Oh no! – Spring and Autumn are two of the nicest times to be here. The winter is absent of colour, the leaves are off the trees, flowers do not grow, it’s just drab. Then spring happens and it comes to life! Birds are busy mating, flowers bloom, trees blossom, it’s a sight to see, honestly. Autumn follows summer and nature starts to shut down ready for winter. The colours on the trees are incredible, all shades of yellow, orange, red, it’s magical. The past few decades winter has been mild, it’s rare to get snow except on high ground. For several mornings there will be ice on cars and sure, it can get a little chilly even in the warmer parts getting down to -9°C on occasion but, mostly it’s just somewhere between 0° – 10°C. If wearing the right clothes it’s not really a problem. In summer, well as I said above, it can be really hot but, at the same time, it can change! I have known it in the low 20’s in May and then a week later, we do have snow, it can happen, it’s rare.
Your homes are all really old right, you have outside toilet’s and bath in front of the fire? – Sure, in many old movies that’s totally correct but I have always lived in a house with an inside toilet and a bath which has hot and cold water. Sure, as a kid in winter we had ice on the inside of the windows it was so cold but, that was 50+ years ago. Most, the vast majority have centrally heated homes and at least one full bathroom or shower. So, even our older places will be mostly fully upgraded by now.
Just how old are your places? – The newest are still being built, the oldest go back centuries. It is not unusual to live in an 18th century property and certainly 19th century. Let’s make no mistake, our history goes back 1000’s of years. A church in my town has parts of it dating back to the10th century.
Let’s look at some pictures of the UK
As you can see, if the tech works. the country can look so different depending on location and time of year. It is rarely plain. If you know where to look there is so much to see, it’s certainly worth seeking out the guide books and exploring outside of the big cities.
It is no secret that the Conservative Party have for decades, indeed, since inception, wanted to get rid of the NHS in exchange for a more profitable US style insurance system.
Under this incarnation of the Tories we are seeing it happen at an accelerated rate.
It is my believe that they saw the Covid19 pandemic as an opportunity not to be missed to weaken the service so much as to be near impossible to fix without an unaffordable investment.
The theory is simple, for years use a policy of austerity to freeze the wages of all those working in the NHS. It would take years to kick in but eventually staff would leave so much as to make the service collapse. They likely never considered that they could escalate the process. Then there was Covid!
Staff within the NHS were put under enormous pressure whilst still living on ever shrinking wages. As staff left, as inevitably they would, conditions for the remaining staff became unbearable. Now doing the work intended for several staff members.
Staff, therefore, left even quicker placing even more pressure on the service.
Within the NHS they worked out two key points which are vital to understand to comprehend the current union action. The most important point is knowing that salaries need to be attractive to encourage staff to join the NHS and, the second, not quite as important as the first, compensation for all the current remaining staff for the years they had their salaries cut to fun the government austerity policy.
So, this is not a simply case of already OK paid people demanding an unrealistic salary, it is about the very survival of the NHS so, of course the @Conservative Party want them desperately to lose this fight.
What do the Conservatives hope to gain from destroying the NHS?
Wealth for the UK. The NHS costs a huge amount of money (7% of the entire wealth we produce), money a government could funnel into tax cuts. Tax cuts buy votes, it keeps them in power. Many of the current Conservative MP’s have connections, some direct, others indirect with private health care companies whether it be by directorships or investments. They personally will gain from the uptake of private health care.
With the reduction of the NHS budget they will be able to afford a much less version of the NHS for the very poor only and, they get to define who the very poor are. Many of the elderly and sick will (sadly) die off reducing the burden on the basic health service, social care and benefits. It is an Utopian world where the Government remains in power by tax hand outs and reduces costs on the most needy giving them yet more money to spend on tax handouts.
What can they realistically achieve before a general election?
Division. Division seems to be their entire game plan for the next General Election. Whether it be immigration, crime attributed to race or striking workers crippling the country, it seems to be what they are going with. They have to really as they sure don’t want anyone analysing their 13 year long record of mismanagement!
Could an incoming Labour government repair the NHS?
Simple answer is, no. They won’t have the money to do it with unless they commit to record levels of borrowing. To do that assures they will be a one term government. As debt rises they will need to either radically increase growth, nigh on impossible since leaving the EU else, raise taxes.
Would they rejoin the EU?
Yes, if they have the balls for it! It is the only sensible thing to do. Nothing promised from Brexit, none of the benefits happened. I can tell you that Northampton still sounds just as Eastern European as it did prior to Brexit, there are just as many perceived ‘foreigners’. I added to it by marrying one so, I obviously support migration in both directions.
As has been seen by the utter disinterest of the US to strike a trade deal with the UK, we are just not significant any more on the world stage. Best this government can come with is some weird trade deal with countries like Peru. They cannot even come up with a single guaranteed benefit of that. It is all based on the vague possibility that some of those signed up to it might sort themselves out and offer as maybe 1% of what we lost when we left the EU.
Conclusion is simple. The NHS is near death and the government despite their protestations that they are investing millions extra in it, are letting it die. They are letting the situation of our country get desperate because desperate people go for desperate solutions, accept crazy reasons for why things are the way things are.
If the country comes together and votes in the next general election for whichever party will get this government out of office, the country will be all the better for it, we will all be the better for it.
In my area, only Labour can beat the Conservative MPs. Voting for anyone else leaves those MP’s with the chance of holding onto their seats.
To steal a line for yet another Idiotic ex World Leader, Donald J Trump and, corrupt it.
Let’s Make Britain Great Again … not that MBGA is particularly catchy and won’t look great on a hat.
Making us great again as we used to be and I mean, really used to be. That has nothing to do with immigration, nothing to do with striking workers, unmarried mothers, those on benefits, pensioners and so on. Those things ‘USED’ to be things we supported, encouraged even. We knew that we needed skilled workers and they had to be paid, we knew we needed a growing population to pay tax in later life and grow the economy. We were proud we had a system in place which supported us at some of our lowest times and, most preciously, we valued our elderly, our grandparents, great aunts and uncles. We didn’t treat them as an unaffordable burden on society.
Just think about it, if we start downgrading our elderly like we are, it’s our own future we are damaging. Likely, most of us will some day be elderly, why would we dare to dismantle the safeguard in place now so that there is nothing left when we are old? You think we’re not? You are wrong. When the government went along with the triple lock on pensions and awarded a 10% increase in pensions, there were calls across the country to scrap it, how could we afford such a huge increase when the country is in so much need? Last year, pensioners were left effectively worse off as pensions rose less than inflation. Then the government announces a scheme to get pensioners back to work, they’re retiring too early, they need to work more. Actually, they have more than one scheme for it. They are already pathing the way to abolish the state pension entirely. With the long term wishes of this government clear, there are people born today who will never get a state retirement pension and, if the pension can go, what chance then the NHS?
One final thing just popped up
Doesn’t our Prime Minister just look like a kid sending a pic to his mates saying:
“Hey guys, it’s me, at Madame Tussauds, look who I am meeting” @rishi
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