Toilets and How To Use Them.

Mind how you go: Swiss railway posts signs explaining how to go to the toilet because 'Asian tourists don't use them properly.'

One of the places the pictograms are on display is Mount Rigi railway, at Lake Lucerne. Surrounded by the Alps, the site is popular with Asian tourists. Mail.

Prayers Are Back In Tiverton.

Tiverton town council reintroduces prayers.

Prayers will be said once again at the start of Tiverton Town Council meetings after councillors voted to bring them back. A total of 18 councillors voted - 15 in favour and 3 against the motion. This means that prayers will now become a formal part of future council meetings. Following a successful Private Member’s Bill from Jake Berry, The Local Government (Religious Observances) Act 2015 came into force allowing councils to include prayers within their meetings. Christian Concern.

Scottish MPs To Be Fettled At Last!

English votes for English laws: Scottish MPs to be BARRED from meddling in English matters. Express.

Resignation?

Call for Bishop of Buckingham to resign.

Church leaders in the Diocese of Oxford have called on the Bishop of Buckingham to resign in light of his opposition to the Church of England's position on marriage. Last week, Rt Rev'd Alan Wilson called the reality that marriage is between a man and a woman a "lousy definition." On Sunday, the Rector of Buckingham and another local church leader told BBC radio that if the Bishop was so opposed to the Church of England's teaching, he should resign. Christian Concern.

Dan The Man On Branson.

Daniel Hannan ‏@DanHannanMEP "If we were part of the euro right now, Britain would be doing better". Please, please put Richard Branson in charge of the Yes campaign.

The Battle of Ebenezer.

This was a battle described in 1 Samuel 4 when the Children of Israel were thrashed by the Philistines. Their dead numbered in excess of 30,000! It is facts such as this in the Scriptures which wholly vindicate them as being hugely accurate. Who, in ancient times ever admitted to defeats? - And if they did - were they not minimised into mere 'setbacks?' The Old Testament relied on truthfulness - however painful!

Treaty Change, Huh?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8b-xT1gI4Y

EU And How It Works.

A firm directly involved in one of Europe’s largest tax scandals is now giving tax advice to the European Commission and member states.
https://euobserver.com/justice/129417

Good News From The Overpaid, Over-manned Beeb.

BBC announces plans to slash 1,000 jobs - many from highly paid managerial ranks - in a bid to make up a £150m licence fee shortfall.

Tomatoes.

Over decades, shop tomatoes have gradually lost flavour to the point where almost all sold in the UK are completely tasteless. So then came vine tomatoes - toms still attached to their twig. They were more expensive - but at least they possessed a hint of flavour. Now - they too are just as tasteless as anything else. SO. Why is it that I can go to any market in Spain and purchase the most unpromising looking fruits - often at little more than a euro a kilo - and they are bursting with  flavour?

Good Grief!

Russell Brand blames the British government for Tunisian beach massacre!

Greek Conundrum Explained.

My Column – Spartan Spirit and Sunday’s Referendum.
Like many legends, it is perhaps a little overstated in the retelling – though only a little. On October 28 every year, Greek communities around the world celebrate the ‘anniversary of the No’. At dawn on that day in 1940, Benito Mussolini demanded that his army be allowed to enter Greece and occupy strategic positions.

Prime Minister Ioannis Metaxas is said to have responded defiantly with a single word: “Oxi” – meaning ‘No’. Greeks took to the streets in large numbers, chanting “Oxi!”

The one-word answer is a proud tradition of that part of the world, dating back to the Ancient Spartans. Phillip II of Macedon is said to have sent the Spartans a message with various demands, saying “Unless you agree to my demands I will wage war on you and, if I win this war, you will be slaves forever.” The Spartans responded with the single word “If”. Phillip did not attack. From such Spartan (Lacedaemon) brevity comes the modern word ‘laconic’.

Similarly, the word ‘Oxi’ means more than just no; it is a symbol of defiance. Knowing that refusal would mean all the hardship of war, Greeks had the courage to do precisely that – and in the clearest possible terms.

On Sunday, Greeks will go to the polls for a referendum on whether they will accept punitive bailout terms. A quick reminder of how countries normally recover from financial crisis: their currency devalues naturally, causing their goods and services to be incredibly cheap on global markets, creating jobs and an economic boom.

With Greece shackled to the euro, it cannot take control of its own economy in this most basic way. At this stage any other country would be defaulting on its debt. But Tuesday’s relatively minor Greek default was bitterly opposed – not because of the consequence to the euro, and the political project.

The eurozone puts its own will above Greek sovereignty, attacking the very decision to allow the people a say on such punitive terms. The latest opinion poll suggests 46% will vote ‘No’ to 37% for ‘Yes’.

Europe stepped in to prevent Greek democracy once before, so it has form in this respect. Expect an unprecedented level of cajoling, threats and scaremongering from Europe to attempt to bully Greece into voting ‘Yes’. They have already begun to suggest that Greece will be forced out of the euro if they don’t vote Europe’s way in the referendum. There is no legal basis for this to happen, but if it did – so what? It might cause some temporary short-term pain, but it would provide the Greek economy with the tools (devaluation in particular) needed to recover. After all, who wouldn’t be rushing to take advantage of the weak drachma to enjoy a cut-price Greek holiday? Would Greek olive oil not become very attractive to British supermarkets? The Greek economy would bounce back far quicker with the picture of Apollo back on their banknotes than with the picture of a generic, non-existent bridge.

Will the Greek people fall for the eurospin, or will they show that same defiant ‘Oxi’ spirit which epitomises all that is best about Greece throughout the ages? The word ‘Oxi’ may literally translate as ‘No’, but it means so much more than that. It’s not negative but a positive assertion. An assertion of rights, of self-determination, of what it means to be Greek.

On Sunday the complex referendum question in practice means only this: Do the Greek people accept the right of Europe to overrule their democratically-elected governments?

You can read this article in full on my Huffington Post blog here. Jonathan Arnott

Killingholme Oil Refinery.

I wonder if you remember, dear reader, how you arrived at your political opinions. Well, here is one reason why I began to despise the (hard) left at a young age. I was working as a fitter's mate changing oil pumps on the Killingholme Oil Refinery back in '68.  I was told by my fitter to plug a drill into a nearby socket. With plug poised a voice bellowed at me, "What do you think you're doing? Are you an electrician? - If you plug that in, I'll have the whole site to a standstill." We then had to wait half an hour for a site electrician to be uncovered to do the tricky job of inserting a 13 amp plug into a socket. (Demarcation, brother!) Since that incident, I despised the leftist trade unions and all that they represent.

Good Question In Yorks Post.

From: Colin Richardson, Brandesburton.

THE other evening, I enjoyed watching a programme on TV about The Earth’s Enchanted Islands. The island in particular was Japan’s northernmost island Hokkaido.

Part of the programme explained that while attached to the northern mainland the animals migrated south.

Global warming took place causing the sea to rise and Hokkaido became an island 
and the bears, cranes etc remained and thrived despite 
the extreme weather conditions.

What remains unclear to me and hopefully to all the experts, academics, environmentalists and Greens who contribute regularly to 
your letters page is “how many fossil fuel power stations, lorries, cars and herds of cattle were around at the time of this happening?”

(A great question. My grandfather was born in Brandesburton so it must be a village which breeds great minds.)

God Will Not Be Mocked.

Who Rules - Man, Allah or Christ?

http://www.amen.org.uk/studies/rh/WhoRules.html

Boko Haram Slaughter,

Boko Haram slaughter 150 Nigerian Muslims praying in mosques before breaking their Ramadan fast - and gun down the women at home while they prepared their food.

The militants mowed down men and children in three remote villages in the north-eastern Borno state yesterday - and shot women preparing food at home, according to witnesses. Mail.  

Timmermans: Farage Is Right - And Often.

Vice President of the European Commission (EC) Frans Timmermans said he "really liked" the Ukip leader's sense of humour. But he said he was "terribly annoyed" by how many times Mr Farage appeared to correctly diagnose problems with the 28-member union.

"I get terribly annoyed when he's right. And on some issues he is right too often," he said. The frank admission of the bloc's shortcomings included a damning critique of the EU's migration policy, which continues to permit the free movement of people across the continent. The system has been put under pressure by an influx of asylum seekers fleeing war-torn regions in the Middle East and Africa for safety in Europe in recent months. Express.

Case Study in Judicial Injustice: Jonathan Speaks Massive Sense!

Justice should be the same for anyone: rich or poor; male or female; gay or straight; religious or atheist, British or non-British. I reject the ideas of those who claim that some people should be treated more leniently than others. The notion that women should receive a lighter sentence than men for the same crimes is a nonsense, as is any thought that cultural values could excuse sexual offences. Likewise, I reject the ideas of those at the other end of the spectrum who would use our justice system as a form of revenge or who would treat immigrants more harshly.

I believe that sentencing policy is generally too light for a range of offences, mainly those involving violence, dishonesty or contempt of a court order. The impact of violent and dishonest offences upon the victim is profound: burglary, serious assaults and theft from an employer for example should be treated more seriously than they are at present. If you, through repeatedly breaking the law, find yourself disqualified from driving and continue to drive anyway, then the level of danger and contempt is such that only a prison sentence can be justified.

I recently read this article which provides a case study of everything that is wrong with the current system. I'm going to redact nationality and religion because these things shouldn't matter when it comes to sentencing.

A father, supported by his family, had a surprise in store for his daughter's 14th birthday. He sent her younger siblings off to school, then gathered the family together. He dressed her in a wedding dress and, it appears without warning, introduced her to a man in his 30s. A wedding ceremony was conducted and she was coerced into saying words in a language she did not even speak. Later that day, the man she had just 'married' raped her. It appears that the father did not know that the man was going to rape his daughter, and the agreement was that they would not have sex until she was of legal age to do so. The daughter fled the family home after being raped.

The man who she had 'married' left the country soon after, and only the father was in court to answer charges over the forced marriage. The primary responsibility of course lies with the rapist, but the father's actions seriously endangered his daughter. Parents have a responsibility to keep their children out of harm's way, not to put them directly into it.

Ask yourself what you think a fair sentence in such circumstances should be. Does it meet the aims of punishment - does it adequately punish the crime, deter others from committing similar offences, and protect the public? Rehabilitation must come after the rest, if only because the others relate to society and rehabilitation to the offender only. It's important, and we need a prison system which is able to meet that need.

The sentence in this case though was 14 weeks in prison. Under current rules, he will serve just 7 - almost exactly the length of his daughter's school summer holiday. Is this justice? I think not.

Charleston Murders.

I have been delighted to see the forgiving attitudes from the relatives of the victims in the Charleston butchery. This is as it should be. There is no such scriptural requirement on society - quite the opposite. Execution is necessary here. How could any US state without the death penalty impose an appropriate sentence? If ever the morality of executing some of the most evil people in society were in question - this situation should surely answer that quibble.

Sacrifice In Iraq.

Chaldean Catholic Bishop Mar Sarhad Yawsip Jammo
 speaks at Skyline Wesleyan Church's Future Conference
 in La Mesa, California on June 17, 2015.

In a passionate speech presenting the historic sacrifice made by Iraqi Christians on Wednesday, Chaldean Catholic Bishop Mar Sarhad Yawsip Jammo said that although Iraqi Christians have been slaughtered in masses by ISIS, Iraqi Christians have been proudly losing their lives in the name of Jesus since before Islam existed. Speaking at Skyline Wesleyan Church's Future Conference in San Diego, Jammo, who's a native of Baghdad with ancestral ties to the Nineveh Plains and serves as bishop of a Chaldean Catholic Diocese that spans throughout the Western U.S., explained that the Chaldean Christian community's experience of being forced to choose between paying a tax for their faith or being killed predates ISIS' brutal demand.

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/iraqi-christians-are-privileged-to-give-their-blood-to-witness-that-jesus-is-lord-and-salvation-is-at-hand-chaldean-bishop-jammo-proclaims-140540/#ZFoyeOQvbWB8jOZd.99

Nice One, Ben.

Ben Carson Won't be Anybody's Slave, Won't Be Shackled by Liberal Blacks, Candidate's Manager Says

BY SAMUEL SMITH

The longtime friend and business manager of 2016 presidential candidate Ben Carson has responded to recent criticisms by black journalists, who have attacked Carson's conservative viewpoints as hurting his reputation, by saying that Carson refuses to be shackled by political correctness. Christian Post.