Sunday Inspiration with Philip Croft Online.

Did you miss Sunday Inspiration with Philip Croft this morning on Exite FM?
Now catch the repeat at 7pm - 9pm UK time on Sunday evenings. (This Blogger appears about 40 minutes in!)
http://www.exiteradio.com/listen-live/

Scientist Edward Bach.

In our western civilization we have the glorious example, the great standard of perfection and the teachings of the Christ to guide us. He acts for us as Mediator between our personality and our Soul.
Edward Bach.

Explaining The Lib Dems.

On a local level, they are generally no worse than Labour Councillors - and sometimes rather better.

The problem is mainly on the national scene.

The Liberal Democrats have long enjoyed, and taken full advantage of, the misapprehensions found in large portions of the electorate that they are the 'middle ground' between tories and Labour. They never correct anyone who believes this deceit.

(This was perhaps last true in the days of the old Liberal Party under the leadership of Jo Grimond in the 50s and 60s.)

No. Today, the Lib Dems are a leftwing party - 'extreme soft left' if that makes sense - which means that they can even outdo most Labourites in terms of political correctness.

I am convinced from the voters I have talked to who have voted for this party that the majority of these have precious little grasp of what the party actually represents.

Most would certainly disagree with them on the majority of issues if they had bothered to find out what exactly they were voting for.

Such voters are easily detached from loyalty just by showing them what they have voted for.

The real Lib Dems know precisely what the party's agenda is. It is far more leftwing than the average British voter can easily take and is similar to the more leftist elements found amongst the American Democrats.

This is a PC kind of leftiness and has little in common with the political movements and objectives of the working man. There's the rub!

When supporters of this type fall out with their party, they are far more likely to defect to the near stalinism of the Green Party - although some will move to Labour when it seems a better anti-tory gesture.

So. Who are these Liberal Democrats (so-called)?

They largely consist of actors, academics, ivory tower dwellers, bureaucrats, artists, government employees who do not have to encounter the real world, intellectuals, the liberal elite, the 'soft' professions, and liberal christians. They also include many of the 'chattering classes' of Kensington and Chelsea.

Dave Cameron is one of these but in fairness to him, he perhaps possesses a tiny amount more sense of fiscal responsibility.

In sheer numbers, real Lib Dems are not massively common - but they do wield a social power way beyond the impact of their basic support because of the 'shared vision' with many significant others in the LibLabCon.

So, which ordinary voters do they actually represent?

A VERY good question for which I have no answer whatsoever!

No Excuses.

Dutch Church Riddled With Agnostics & Atheists.

Such were the results of a study of Dutch Protestant Churches by the Free University of Amsterdam.
According to them - ONE IN EVERY SIX!

Raymond Chandler Gives His Opinion!

Most critical writing is drivel and half of it is dishonest. It is a short cut to oblivion, anyway. Thinking in terms of ideas destroys the power to think in terms of emotions and sensations.
Raymond Chandler.

Could Be A Useful Tool For Such Situations.

Whale Graveyard - One More Piece Of Evidence Of Mass Catastrophism.

Researchers from the USA and Chile reported, in November 2011, a remarkable bone bed on the west coast of northern Chile near the port city of Caldera, about 700 kilometres (440 miles) north of the capital, Santiago. Excavations uncovered the remains of some 80 baleen whales of which more than 20 specimens were complete (figure 1).They also found other kinds of marine mammals including an extinct dolphin with tusks and a sperm whale.
The previous year, construction workers upgrading the Pan-American Highway discovered the fossil site in a road cut just north of Caldera. Since then, teams of scientists led by palaeontologist Nick Pyenson from the Smithsonian Institute and Mario Suarez from the nearby Museo Paleontologico de Caldera have been working to excavate the fossils while the road works were temporarily suspended.
The fossils alongside the highway are confined to a sandstone ridge about 20 metres (70 feet) wide and 240 metres (800 feet) long (figure 2). Most whales were about 8 metres (25 feet) long, and perfectly preserved. Some whales were so close together that they overlapped one another (figure 3). The site in a corner of the Atacama Desert is now well above sea level and over a kilometre from the shore. Suarez said it was well known that whale bones jutted out of the ridge, which was given the name Cerro Ballena, or Whale Hill.

June Tabor.

Outside opera, you can easily argue that June Tabor has the best singing voice in the UK.
Check her out on Youtube or Spotify if you are not familiar with her voice. She covers a very wide range of musical styles in her catalogue.
I have seen her in concert three times over the last 40 years or so and must have well over 50 of her tracks in my collection.
She often performs with the brilliant, world-renowned blues guitarist Martin Simpson.

ECHR - Again!

Violent criminal we can't deport because of his seven children. A violent foreign criminal who held a knife to the throat of a victim has overturned a government attempt to deport him due to his “right to family life”.

Who should get a LoonyTunesWatch coconut - our government for staying in or the ECHR itself? - BOTH!

 

Cannabis: Peter Hitchens Is Right Yet AGAIN!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2351775/PETER-HITCHENS-It-cost-brave-JP-job--ALL-victims-Great-Cannabis-Con.ht
It is only his failure to support Ukip where Pete Hitchens is actually wrong about something. If there's anything else - I am yet to find it!

Homosexuality - Righteous Or Wrong?

If you look at homosexuality through purely secular specs - it is almost impossible to argue against it. You will need to resort heavily to the word 'unnatural' - otherwise, I fail to see that you have any case. And even that argument seems far from adequate.
Even 'tradition' is hardly an argument-winner.
It is unsurprising therefore that so many non-believers adopt the attitudes they do.
Christians oppose the practice of homosexuality largely for three reasons:
1) God makes it abundantly clear in His Word that it is not permissible and
2) The Bible is abundantly clear on the only circumstances when sex is legitimate, that being between one man and his wife.
3) The symbolism of Christ as Bridegroom with the Church as bride should not be undermined where sex is in fact, a sacred act.
In many respects - it is the liberal church which, by causing a lack of clarity and by ignoring what God has to say is the main root of the problem.
Democratically speaking, true, practising Christians are unlikely to win as we shall inevitably be a minority expecting the majority to fall in with what we believe.
The ground lost by the Church because of the increasing secularisation of society - principally through the education system - has been huge in recent years. At the same time, our case has been undermined by those who purport to be believers but who may be easily recognised by the absence of 'Christian fruit' in their lives.
Homosexual 'marriage' is a different matter as the 'tradition' argument does hold a certain sway in secular terms but even so, it is unlikely to prove strong enough to win the day in the medium term.
Naturally, because Christians love people, we must continue to proclaim what is righteous and what is not - even when they mock us and persecute us for trying to help them.

Aid & Trade.

From: Joan Machin, Carr Hill Drive, Calverley, Leeds. Yorks Post.
I’d like to draw attention to a letter to the Observer from nine prominent members of the military establishment, including former chiefs of the defence staff Sir Mike Jackson and Lord Stirrup, who say that to cut or divert the aid budget would be damaging to the UK’s national interest, adding that focused development spending can tackle the root causes of conflict. I totally agree that trade is a very good way of tackling poverty, but it has to be the right kind of trade. Trade where the workers are exploited or paid way below the minimum wage doesn’t help.
Sensible. A huge proportion of foreign aid should be in the form of preferential trading agreements - as much as permitted by EU rules! 

When This Is What Is Taught In Mainstream Schools - What Do You Expect?

More young people in Britain believe that religion is a cause of evil rather than a force for good, according to a new YouGov poll.

The place of religion in the lives of 18-24 year olds is smaller than ever, with politicians, brand names and celebrities having more influence than religious figures in the day-to-day decisions of young people.
Additionally, the YouGov poll for The Sun showed the reputation of religion amongst young people is actually more negative than neutral: 41% agree that “religion is more often the cause of evil in the world” and only 14% say it is a cause for good.

The results of the YouGov poll showed parents had the biggest influence on young people's lives
The 2011 Census showed religion was declining, with those identifying themselves as having no religion has increased by 10 percentage points from 15%, 7.7 million people, in 2001 to 25%, 14.1 million, last year.
Around 59% of the population described themselves as Christian and only a quarter reported having no religion. However amongst young people, the YouGov poll found only 25% believed in God.
This is all about schooling. When will Christian parents start to grasp that you cannot - nay, MUST not - entrust the bringing up of your children to a system which is inherently godless and corrupt?
If your area has no directly Christian school - and even the Church schools are often tainted - the join with others and START one!

Kimberly McCarthy

Kimberly McCarthy was executed in Texas on Wednesday but it does seem that she genuinely gave her life to Jesus in recent years.
She had butchered a neighbour, for which crime she was convicted and was the sole, serious suspect in two brutal murders of similar type.
It is abundantly clear that most people given life sentences feel far less imperative to put themselves 'right with God'.

Egyptian Judicial Dishonesty.

George Isaac, a leading member of Egypt's National Salvation Front, has rebuked the lack of action taken against those involved in attacks that target Coptic Christians and their churches.

Isaac stressed that the people taken to trial for such crimes have not been punished. In sharp contract he also highlighted the harsh rulings that Copts face when they are accused in various ways of "insulting Islam." He has described them as a sectarian punishments.

Isaac blamed the existence of Islamic elements in Egypt's judiciary, adding that they issue their rules according to their ideology not the law. He criticized authorities for not appointing Christian Copts to any leading positions while blaming the vision adopted by the Muslim Brotherhood towards Copts as people who do not have rights. 
Read more at http://global.christianpost.com/news/muslim-brotherhood-not-respecting-rights-of-christians-in-egypt-judiciary-led-by-ideology-not-law-says-egyptian-leader-98904/#DcCP6DIc7f1v6Zfk.99

VeggieTales Increasing Awareness.

VeggieTales' Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber, Now Official Face of Operation Christmas Child

Creator of the best-selling VeggieTales® brand, Big Idea Entertainment LLC, a leading studio and producer of children's and family programming, characters and brands, announced on Monday a partnership with international Christian relief organization Samaritan's Purse, to increase awareness of and assistance for needy children worldwide. Christian Concern.

Planning May Be Helpful But ...

Vitoria - Every Bit As Important As Waterloo!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2350318/How-French-really-met-Waterloo--WASNT-Waterloo-As-Chancellor-promises-funding-200th-anniversary-Peter-Snow-says-celebrating-battle-weve-forgotten.html?ico=home^editors_choice

Oh. They Are Still Sowing Poison, Are They?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2350842/Mixed-race-girl-seven-told-F--come-accidentally-stumbled-National-Front-meeting.html
They have no doubt had a boost in members from the massive decline of the BNP.
It is pleasing in one respect - the hard right in the UK is extremely fragmented and will remain so!

It's Still June.

If Marilyn Monroe Was Murdered ...

... and I repeat if - I have a new suspect with ample motive, who to the best of my knowledge has never previously been suggested. We have heard about her friends, politicos, gangsters, big names and mafiosi as likely perpetrators but I have a question:
Why was Joe Kennedy never put forward? - He would have arranged anything to protect the reputations of his sons. (He actually combined a number of the categories above.)

Same Sex 'Marriages' ...

... must logically open the door for legalising polygamy or polyandry on 'human rights' grounds.

How long before our age of consent is seen as 'curtailing human rights' too?

 

Boris's Ambitions.

Apparently more tories would vote for Boris if PM than 'Dave'.

I sometimes despair of British politics. It's exactly the same parcel just with a quirkier wrapping!

Churchill On Socialism.

'Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.'

• Winston Churchill, as quoted in The New American Newspeak Dictionary (2005) by Adrian Krieg, p. 96.

The EU Today.

Re-Arranging The Deckchairs On The Titanic?

Negotiators from EU member states and the European Parliament yesterday approved a raft of changes to the CAP including limiting subsidies to larger farms, abolishing sugar quotas by 2017, mandatory aid for young farmers, and introducing more environmental conditionality. Open Europe’s Pieter Cleppe is quoted by Deutsche Wirtschaftsnachrichten criticising the agreement as not going far enough to reduce direct subsidies to farmers, which act as a disincentive for modernisation.
Open Europe research: CAP reform EUobserver FT Irish Times European Voice Euractiv BBC Irish Independent DWN

Seek.

The EU: Nick Martinek In The Yorkshire Post.The EU:

From: Nick Martinek, Briarlyn Road, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire.
IN his article the Foreign Secretary, William Hague, states that it has been “40 years since the British people last had their say on Europe” (Yorkshire Post, June 20).
Well, whose fault is that? It is the mainstream politicians like Mr Hague (and Messrs Blair, Brown, Cameron and Clegg etc) who have all denied us referendums when they were constitutionally necessary (and, often, promised).
And of course Mr Hague joins in the general europhilic obfuscation by talking about “Europe”. Unless we were to separate our island from the Eurasian tectonic plate, we will remain a European nation. What we do not have to put up with is the rotten EU: a corrupt, mendacious, artificial, political construct designed by bureaucrats and politicians for the benefit of bureaucrats and politicians.
For 40 years the UK political elite has hidden the extent of the EU takeover of our country – even from themselves. Comically, it often appears that our politicians are bewildered by their lack of leverage, not understanding that our de facto main government now resides in Brussels through their own efforts. But the UK has its own written constitution in varied Acts, Charters and Bills, dating back to the ninth Century, enacting our rights to govern ourselves. It is about time British politicians, such as Mr Hague, obeyed it.

Stopping Late Term Abortions in The USA? - Unlikely!

http://global.christianpost.com/news/babies-feel-incredible-pain-in-late-term-abortions-98664/
If this picture is too horrendous for me to show - the procedure is too horrific to be performed.
You are seeing the results of evil.
You need to understand what is done in the UK around 3,ooo times annually. (And that does not include some 200,000 abortions at earlier times in the pregnancy.)
Only in that rarest of cases - to save the life of the mother - could there ever be any moral justification for this!

Another Problem With Wind Turbines.

There had been only eight recorded sightings of the white-throated needletail in the UK since 1846. So when one popped up again on British shores this week, twitchers were understandably excited. A group of 40 enthusiasts dashed to the Hebrides to catch a glimpse of the brown, black and blue bird, which breeds in Asia and winters in Australasia. But instead of being treated to a wildlife spectacle they were left with a horror show when it flew into a wind turbine and was killed. Mail.

Best Road Deaths Figures Since 1926.

Road deaths last year fell to a record low of 1,754 – a drop of 8 per cent on 2011.

Nice to have some better news for once! Even so - every death is still a tragedy. Please do drive carefully!

Anymore?

FAZ’s EU and NATO correspondent Nikolas Busse writes that “European problems cannot best be solved by ‘more Europe’ anymore,” adding that “nothing has come so far” of the call for “political union” to deal with the continent’s sovereign debt crisis.FAZ: Busse

Hard To Argue Against.

(My occasional lapses towards libertarianism are showing through again.)

 

Kensington Gardens.

Average house price, £36,066,148. I wonder if I could bargain for a 5% discount if I were to buy two?

Free Movement: When Will They EVER Learn?

Commission proposes to “make it easier” for people to exercise free movement rights.
Recently, the European Commission made a proposal for a new directive to “make it easier for people” to exercise their EU free movement rights “in practice”. The directive would oblige national government’s to create “national contact points providing information, assistance and advice so that EU migrant workers, and employers, are better informed about their rights” including access to welfare benefits.
Open Europe research Saturday’s Sun Saturday’s Express Saturday's Mail Saturday's Telegraph Express: McKinstry

God's Forgiveness Is conditional On Us Being Forgiving.

Labour's Stewart Wood.

I have been pondering Stewart Wood's recent description of Ukip as 'a very rightwing party'.
I have trawled through Ukip's policies and am really struggling to find anything which meets that description. (Surely - it is traditional liberalism which might best describe them.)
I can only conclude two things:
1) The LibLabCon have all gone so far to the (liberal) left that the distance between them and Ukip is huge - thus distorting the reality or
2) Seeking democracy is classed as rightwing.
If the first instance is correct - he is talking out of his ear.
If it is the second then there will need to be coined whole new definitions of left and right.

UKIP's Defence Policy.

http://ukip.org/issues/policy-pages/defence

Hard To Believe - Hard To Follow But True Nonetheless.

Neither Tough On Crime Nor Tough On The Causes Thereof.

Tony Blair impressed me the first time I saw the wretched man being interviewed on the telly.
I naively thought 'Here is a labourite who actually gets it; understands the reality.' - I am rarely that wrong - and it all goes to prove that we must be extremely cautious with first impressions.
When he uttered his now infamous 'Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime' platitude my interest was piqued and I dared to wonder.
However, it was his regime which introduced the absurd ASBO which anybody could see from day one was utterly unworkable. (For me - the penny dropped on my first day of magistrate training on ASBOs when I predicted that the promised 'guaranteed jail for breaches' was mere hot air.
(Last figures I saw - 94% of offenders in breach are NOT incarcerated!)
Moreover, it was his 'poodle' Blunkett who, as Home Secretary, oversaw a reduction of sentencing via guidelines. (Imagine a disqualified driver found at the wheel having to wait to be caught two or three times before even facing the danger of being locked up!)
So. Tony was just one more liberal fraud in a long line of such as the country switched between Labour and Conservative on a regular basis - although you had to admit that the tories tended to sound more plausible whilst presiding over social decay and surrendering the streets every bit as willingly as Labour's hot-wired do-gooders.
(Of course, 'Dave' put Ken Clark in charge until proving so dreadful he had to go. Then he replaces him with a heavily shackled Chris Grayling who is yet to realise perhaps, that he will not be allowed to do a proper job!)
Add the appalling Lib Dems to the mix and we have a trio of parties which are simply not prepared to tackle any social misbehaviour other than in those matters which are their own, personal sacred cows.

Er ... Yeees.

Headline.

Child prodigy becomes youngest member of Mensa aged just TWO... and he is already smarter than Barack Obama and David Cameron.
You see a headline like this and how does it make you feel? I was unsurprised!

Spending Cut? Georgie Is 'avin' A Larf!

Here are the figures. In 2009-2010 (Labour’s last year in power), public expenditure was £671 billion. In  2015-16, according to the Chancellor’s figures yesterday, it will be £745 billion. Adjusted for inflation, this represents a real cut of around one per cent. In effect, spending has been held level. It hasn’t been reduced.Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2349224/Let-say-State-spending-cut-And-iniquitous-BBC-claim-otherwise.html#ixzz2XO906n7d

Whose Strength?

I Despair When Encountering Extreme Naivety!

Writing in the FT, Ian Cheshire, chief executive of the retail group Kingfisher Plc, argues that “As an international retailer, Kingfisher wants Britain to remain in the EU – but a reformed EU… We enjoy the certainty of a single rule book across the EU but not at the cost of an ever increasing regulatory burden, which must be resisted”.FT: Cheshire

Battle of the Little Bighorn.

137 years ago today - the completion of The Battle of the Little Bighorn.
The arrogance of George Armstrong Custer received due penalty. 
The real tragedy was the cavalrymen who died as a result of his crass stoopidity!

Okay Boris - What's The Agenda?

The Times reports that London mayor Boris Johnson has ordered a review of the impact Britain’s withdrawal from the EU might have on the City. Open Europe research Times City AM

Supermarket Ripoffs.

Fuji apples were the cheapest when they first arrived regularly on these shores around 1990.
Today, Morrisons Supermarkets were selling these at an eye-watering £3-49 a kilo!
Supermarket petrol prices have crept up again after some small cuts.
Spuds - which admittedly have had some poor crops in the recent past in the UK - have doubled in price. Understandable? - Hardly, when so many are imported!
Apparently, strawberry crops are pretty good this year. I haven't seen any cheap!
Pear prices are off the scale.
BOGOF offers reduced.
Multitudes of price rises by 10, 20, 30% or higher!
(In my part-time job, I have had no pay rise in nearly seven years.)
Rare are the jobs where workers are getting even 3% annual increases.
Our people are getting poorer month on month!

From Atheism To Christianity: A Personal Journey.

http://www.bethinking.org/stories-illustrations/intermediate/from-atheism-to-christianity-a-personal-journey.htm

Germany A Threat?

A new Harris poll commissioned by the FT has found growing public concern in other countries over Germany’s increasingly leading role in the EU. 88% of Spaniards and 82% of Italians said Germany’s influence on the EU had become too strong, up from 67% and 53% respectively in late 2011. 56% of French respondents also agreed.
FT

Prayer Help For Modern Executives.

Welsh Albino Jackdaw.

Someone In Your Family Died?

Okay. We are the government - we want a chunk of the dead person's estate.
Yes we know that s/he had already paid all relevant taxes during their lifetime on these funds.
Listen - they died so that gives us a right to steal your family's money.
Oy. If s/he hadn't had a reasonable amount we wouldn't be justifying robbery - so it's their own fault!
Alternatively, here is what Ukip have to say:
Following reports in the media about his tax affairs, UKIP Leader Nigel Farage issued the following statement: "In 2003 a new financial advisor looked at my pension, mortgage and investments and recommended that I set up a Family Trust for my children.
"The reason for setting up such trusts is to avoid the complications of inheritance tax that often prove to be  a burden on grieving families.
In this Blog's view, trying to avoid Inheritance Tax is 100% moral.
The tax itself is nothing less than theft.

Menthol Ban Attacked By Paul Nuttall.

Moves by the EU to ban menthol cigarettes have been slammed by UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP described the plan as "utterly ridiculous"

"This legislation shows just how far the EU is prepared to go to control how we live and what we do. If people want to smoke menthol cigarettes, let them. What will the EU do next? Regulate what time we go to bed? Ban putting sugar in tea? Ban Buck's Fizz because the orange juice disguises the alcohol? It's utterly ridiculous."
(Bucks Fizz, eh? - Don't put ideas into their heads, Paul!)

We All Need God's Help.

Ian Brady.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2348574/Dont-waste-penny-Ian-Brady.html?ico=home^editors_choice

Pelosi Challenged - AND RIGHTLY!

By Vincent Funaro , Christian Post Reporter
A Catholic pro-life group recently issued an open letter where they urged Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to condemn abortion or leave the Church.
"Public servants are supposed to be able to tell the difference between serving the public and killing the public. Apparently, you can't," wrote the national director of Priests for Life Father Frank Pavone in the letter.

Read more at http://global.christianpost.com/news/priests-urge-nancy-pelosi-to-condemn-abortion-or-leave-the-catholic-church-98459/#vUmrTyHPcAygwBtW.99

Satoshi Kanazawa On Feminism.

Although it is not Susan Pinker’s intention in writing it, reading her excellent book The Sexual Paradox:  Troubled Boys, Gifted Girls and the Real Difference Between the Sexes cannot help but further reinforce my view that modern feminism in the 21st century is simultaneously illogical, unnecessary, and evil.

First, modern feminism is illogical because, as Pinker points out, it is based on the vanilla assumption that, but for lifelong gender socialization and pernicious patriarchy, men and women are on the whole identical.  An insurmountable body of evidence by now conclusively demonstrates that the vanilla assumption is false; men and women are inherently, fundamentally, and irreconcilably different.  Any political movement based on such a spectacularly incorrect assumption about human nature – that men and women are and should be identical – is doomed to failure.

It is also not true that women are the “weaker sex.”  Pinker documents the fact that boys are much more fragile, both physically and psychologically, than girls and hence require greater medical and psychiatric care.  Men succumb to a larger number of diseases in much greater numbers than women do throughout their lives.  The greater susceptibility of boys and men to diseases explains why more boys die in childhood and fail to reach sexual maturity and why men’s average life expectancy is shorter than women’s.  This, incidentally, is the reason why slightly more boys than girls are born – 105 boys to 100 girls – so that there will be roughly 100 boys to 100 girls when they reach puberty.
Further, modern feminism is unnecessary, because its entire raison d’être is the unquestioned assumption that women are and have historically always been worse off than men.  The fact that men and women are fundamentally different and want different things makes it difficult to compare their welfare directly, to assess which sex is better off; for example, the fact that women make less money than men cannot by itself be evidence that women are worse off than men, any more than the fact that men own fewer pairs of shoes than women cannot be evidence that men are worse off than women.  However, in the only two biologically meaningful measures of welfare – longevity and reproductive success – women are and have always been slightly better off than men.  In every human society, women live longer than men, and more women attain some reproductive success; many more men end their lives as total reproductive losers, having left no genetic offspring.