My England

Every so often there is a reason to write a blog beyond saying something for the delight of one’s own ego. That occasion is now. Having just read an article on how English university campuses are being radicalized by extremist versions of Islam it has struck me how different this is to where I live now in Oman. I live in a Muslim society and I have yet to meet anyone who has appeared hostile.

Most people in Oman are friendly. Some show this stopping to give lifts to Englishmen they do not know. Some may know their history which will document the good relations Britain and Oman have shared over the years. In 1982 Oman supported Britain in a UN resolution on the Falklands conflict. British troops had helped Oman rid itself of communist insurgents from the 1950’s onwards. Evidence of this fact can be seen in the Sultan’s Armed Forces museum in Muscat. On display are a plethora of captured Chinese and Soviet weapons. Although I felt more at home viewing the British, Enfield rifle. I digress.

Where were we? Ah yes, Islamic extremism in England. What is going on? Why is extremism flourishing in my own country and not in a Muslim country where I now live and work?

I have heard some say that Islamic extremism most appeals to young men who have grown up without a father to guide them in life. This sounds apologist to me – I know someone whose childhood was fatherless and a less extreme person I have yet to meet – although I do not discount it as a factor. One of many factors.

Some say that immigration to the UK has been without due care and attention taking in people without concern for qualifications and education. Gordon Brown and Tony Blair certainly cared very little about the effects of their own lack of immigration policy. About 7,000,000 immigrants have arrived in the UK since Labour took power in 1997. Another explanation. But still not the whole picture.

There appears to be a contrast with the generally peaceful Muslim people I meet in Oman and the Muslim people who are drawn to extremism in my own country. Why?

British authorities have over the past few decades become more and more left liberal. More and more politically correct. More and more bending over backwards to avoid offending anyone. I recall how an Islamic extremist protest in London displaying hatred and death threats was largely ignored by the Police. The Police now appear symbolic of left liberal thinking in uniform.

Hardly surprising when one considers the issues involved arresting anyone today. We all have our rights, of course, but if you are Gay or from an ethnic minority the perception is amongst those who are not that those rights are now largely weighted in that direction. Was not a student in Oxford threatened with arrest for calling a horse gay? Are not newspapers such as the Guardian likely to scream from the rooftops as soon as they sense that ethnic rights have not been met? Who would want to be a Policeman in multicultural fractured Britain today?

It could be good. It certainly could be better. What is wrong?

People today are afraid of the answers. The Left have a stranglehold on the moral high ground. Any comment made is vetted for racism or any possible offence caused to anyone. This is not freedom. This is left liberal fascism.

Those in authority in Britain think they are doing the right thing. They are not. Not so long ago I read a book by an Indian man aged ninety nine. It was a lament for an England he knew from the 1950’s. He was an immigrant but came to love his England, his new home. An immigrant who was intelligent and hard working. He had something to offer. He was not an economic refugee looking for a free lunch or someone with a chip on his shoulder. The English have been brainwashed by decades of left liberal dogma. This is the result. A country which is powerless to do anything about the extremism in its midst because it ties itself up in knots arguing about who is most likely to be offended. If it was not so tragic it would be pathetic.

England, get a grip.

See link: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/8478975/University-campuses-are-hotbeds-of-Islamic-extremism.html

The shame of the Left

Why do British/English Left Wingers hate their country? Why are they ashamed of British history? I do not understand it. The British have so much to be proud of in terms of their charity and force for good in this world. They were the first developed nation to put an end to slavery by trading in goods rather than people. This ended the Muslim Swahili slave trade in Africa. Both Blacks and Whites were slaves of the Ottoman Empire. Scandinavians who ventured too far into the Mediterranean had little defence against an attack at sea since their Navy was in no position to defend them. But any slave who managed to free himself and climb on board British Royal Navy ship whether he be Black or White or Yellow would be a free man in the early 19th century. No other Navy offered a comparable freedom or were willing to fight to see freedom enforced on the high seas. The Left refuse to acknowledge not only this but great advances made in medicine, social reform, democracy, wealth creation and so on. Britain is a country which now attracts millions of immigrants who seek a better way of life. Immigrants come to Great Britain for every reason; economic advantage, security, work, respect, love, hope, peace, adventure. Although some come for an easy life and others for crime too. Nevertheless, Britain remains a country which has produced more than its fair share of famous people who are well known not for the bad they have done but for the good. Everyone knows this. Everyone knows that Britain fought WW2 against tyranny on the continent of Europe. Most might know that Britain had to borrow $3,000,000,000 from the Americans to finance a welfare state enjoyed today by health tourists the world over at a cost to the tax payer of £13,000,000,000 a year. Such generosity continues. The Left often see Great Britain as a ruthless exploiter of all and sundry. The Left are often ashamed of their country; although I see the Left as people who are simply ashamed of themselves. This is not the shame of most Brits but it is the shame of the British as represented by a significant number of British people who never tire of making their bleedin' heart heard. I think I will now go and read some Keats or Shakespeare. Much more preferable to neo-Marxist ideology.

Ripeness is all

My experience of China tells me that respect for the aged is not exclusively a religious imperative. In China the responsibility of caring for the elderly exists in almost every family and most families in China do not believe in God or any transcendent diety. What they have is immense respect for someone who has preceeded them. Some say that those who are older are not necessaily better educated but that is besides the point. It is the experience of life that is at least as important as any other factor in accumalating wisdom - traditionally thought to be the preserve of the older man or woman.

In Britain we live in a society where youth culture is seen as somehow better and a government which was only recently voted out of office ie New Labour who cared so little that their Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, stole pensions for his own policy wealth re-distribution. Britain, unlike China, offers a welfare state and this has changed the role of the family in caring for the elderly. This is no bad thing in itself. But the State can rarely provide love or everyday conversation. Some speak of Rights and that they will take no lessons from other countries. An unfortunate attitude, I think.

Each society is different and there are many things to learn about the world and our place in it. This does not mean that I am a cultural relativist. I happen to think that some cultures and societies are more advanced than others but I would not wish to live there and then tell them how they should live. Those that seek a new life ought to accept that must be some things that attract them to their new host country. Otherwise, why leave? If I live in another country I am there on their terms.

Today, many young people, especially those from inner city backgrounds demand respect. A political party has recently emerged with this name but much good it has done them. The elderly seldom demand respect but since everyone will one day grow old it would make sense to value those who are older than ourselves. Grandparents are often a loving source of connexion for children who are born into a world which increasingly celebrates youth culture. We do not need to imitate the East because British culture has its own evolvement and progress.

In broken Britain crabbed age and youth cannot live together. But this need not mean the end of respect for those have already contributed a lifetime to society. There will be examples where this is not the case, of course, but by and large there is much to honour especially since many octogenarians and older fought for the freedom that the youth of Britain often takes for granted.

Scientific research reveals that the human brain does not reach maturity until about thirty years of age. This sounds very optimistic. Perhaps wisdom is ageless.

Views on Western Civilization: A letter to Left Liberals

I am posting this blog for the sake of posterity. It was written a few years ago and I would like to keep it on file here.

I feel there is a need to say more about the value of Western Civilization. It is my contention that many overlook the importance of Christianity as a model for society. I too have done this. But I am taking more time to understand our origins which now shape the society and culture we have inherited and live in today.

I have been critical of Multiculturalism. I still am. I cannot see how a British New Labour Government can expect a society to run smoothly if it has had a policy of uncontrolled immigration. England is an already overcrowded small island. It is not America. I believe this debate is about common sense. But some are intent on crying "racism" as soon as a discussion takes place. Shame on them.

My intent is to open up a debate that has been crying out for attention. To expect a society to tolerate every religion, creed and language is a noble idea based upon the evolvement of Human Rights law in secular society. Although, this law is not so well received in countries which do not share a Western Christian tradition.

And this is yet another essential point. British society is changing. Not all change though is for the better. In this view I remain conservative.

Whether it is realistic to expect societies to transform themselves for the sake of Human Rights law is open to discussion. What I suspect has happened is that the Government, New Labour, have abused their power and the democratic process by creating a client state. And, that uncontrolled immigration was not simply a matter of negligence but Government policy to assist it in holding onto power.

But these are mainly political contentions. My aim here is to highlight the importance of the tradition and culture that is now the world's great inheritance. A Europeanization which many now refer to as Globalization.

So how did Western Civilization evolve into the society we have today?

To my mind it is to a self critical, liberal, tolerant Christian culture and tradition which has forged and shaped the secular society that liberals enjoy today.

In many ways Christianity has argued itself out of power and influence to accomadate a Christocentric view. The classic example of this is perhaps the fight against slavery by William Wilberforce. Christian ideas about equality encouraged others. Eventually, women and womens suffrage.

All this happened in a Christian society which became more Secular by the minute. All this began two thousand years or so ago because one Man, Jesus Christ said, "the Sabbath was made for Man; not Man for the Sabbath." This was revolutionary thinking and freed Man from excessive religious legalism. In other words, a law of love; not a love of law.

What we have today, and that includes womens equality, has evolved from Christian consciousness and ideas about equality. Without which we would be the same as any other Civilization.

What do you mean by that? I hear you ask.

Well, if we examine women's rights - in almost every country in the world which does not have a Christian religious tradition -you will find that women are often held in some disregard. Certainly, there is little chance of equality unless there are exceptional circumstances.
One only has to travel to any of the following countries to test the validity of this observation; China, Japan, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Iran, Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Syria, North Korea, Qatar etc etc. I have visited or lived in seven of these countries but I do not think I need to travel to every country in the world to make this case. As it is I have travelled to nearly thirty different countries and this experience has shaped my opinion.

The view expressed here embraces Christianity and not just Catholicism because any attempt to provide an overview on Christian thinking and its affects on society necessarily demand it. To talk only about Catholicism, is, in this context, like painting a picture of a tree without its branches.

Lastly, I wish to quote Joseph Ratzinger from his book on Jesus of Nazareth. He writes about the solid ground of a Christian belief that guarantees the dignity of man by rooting it in the dignity of God:

"In the antithesis of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus stands before us neither as a rebel nor as a liberal, but as the prophetic interpreter of the Torah. He does not abolish it, but he fulfills it, and he does so precisely by assigning reason its sphere of responsibility for acting within history."