Ataturk - Father of Modern Turkey

To Understand Turkey, You Need to Know About the Founder of Modern Turkey - Ataturk, Turkish General, Politician, Statesman, Humanitarian and Reformer.

Oh, and at the end I have added some beautiful Turkish designs, which you will find on Zazzle - The would be very nostalgic for Turkish people and would also make beautiful and unusual Christmas presents. Zazzle has quite a lot of items which have designs with a Turkish flavour, and you can choose to put most of the designs on different things. Take a look.

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1j1f4

There is a context to London's riots that can't be ignored - Article in The Guardian

This is a wise and thoughtful article: You can hover over the title above or the link below to read the full article.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/aug/08/context-london-riots?commentpage=1

So much has been written, but this is a particularly good article from The Guardian, followed by some interesting comments - in the end, it's hard to know what to think, there are so many conflicting views. http://amplify.com/u/a1aep4

You might like to read my own comments here:London Riots

Food for thought in this Guardian article http://amplify.com/u/a1aep4

Riots in Tottenham, in the London Borough of Haringey: See the photo link:

Tottenham Riots, London 5th August 2011

IMG_9756 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!
I'd like to post the actual photo on this page, but I can't because it's copyrighted, but well worth a look.

Such a beautiful Art Deco building with a carpet shop below and flats above wiped off the face of Tottenham High Road. People made homeless, jobs lost, and for what? - What idiots destroy their own community? I don't think this is anything to do with Mark Duggan's shooting - why would you burn your own shopping centre because you're cross? What would it prove?

Am I missing something?

I've lived in Haringey for 50 years, and this makes me feel very sad, because so much effort and money has gone into regeneration of the area since the Broadwater Farm incident 25 years ago, when an unarmed policeman was hacked to death with machetes during a riot. At that time, rioting got out of hand because many of the local youth were angered by the local police policy of "Stop and Search", when the police had a legal right to stop and search anyone they suspected of committing an offence. And the black community in Tottenham felt that they were being unjustly targetted.

After that, a huge effort was made to change policing, to employ more black police, have local community liaison committees and so forth; money was poured in to the bleak concrete jungle which was Broadwater Farm Estate, and much was done to make it more of a supportive community, with a community centre, and planting of trees and other cosmetic effects to make the occupants feel less alienated from society.

For years Haringey has had one of the highest council taxes in Britain, and this was to improve the lives of those living in the poorest part of the Borough. I believed in this Socialist principle, so didn't really resent paying high local taxes (just some of the wastefulness that went with it!).

Schools were improved, the whole Borough of Haringey was "greened up", with tree and garden planting, cleaning up areas where there had been fly-tipping, better street cleaning, better street lighting, improved, cleaner local parks, better sports facilities and good library facilities. There were "inclusive" policies, and positive discrimination in employment. There is a huge ethnic mix in Haringey, with something in excess of 100 languages spoken by children in the local schools. Official Local Government information leaflets are normally distributed in about 10 different languages, to help people feel loved and wanted. Many people did feel that things had improved considerably, but the youth unemployment and crime rate, much of it drug-related, remained high.

So why arson - one of the most dangerous offences in the book? In a crowded city like London, it can wreak havoc - and that's why it is a very serious crime - think "Fire of London".

I, for one, certainly don't think pouring a lot more money into Haringey is going to solve this one, because it doesn't seem to have helped much up to now. It seems to me that the people who did this, probably thoughtless youths who don't think beyond their own noses (and certainly not about actions having consequences), should now start to think about pulling themselves up by their bootlaces, like other second-generation immigrant populations before them, instead of behaving badly and then whining about their rights and lack of opportunities.

Copenhagen - Candlelit Vigil Across the World

       Copenhagen



Let your candles burn tonight
The world needs our support


Let your candles shine so bright
Our leaders need support


It’s our job to spread the light
The world’s poor need support


Keep your candles glowing white
Our children need support

Add your voice to the climate fight
Our wildlife needs support


Hope and pray with all your might
The world will give support


As people round the world unite
And join in their support

Hold the ideal in your sight
Hold your intention really tight
And as our candles burn tonight
Light up the world with gentle light


.....Copenhagen








Wendy Beauchamp-Ward             12 December 2009

Do you know what Mennonites are?

Somewhere at the top of Shepherds Hill in Highgate, London, there is an enormous old red brick Victorian manor house.  I had reason to go there to collect something, and discovered that it was the  Library of the London Mennonite Centre.  I was curious to find out what this organization was, as I had never heard of it.  I tried the usual Wiki search, but it was a bit too piecemeal for me so I tried another website, gotquestions.org, which seems to be a website about all things biblical. I have summarised what they say :

"Question: "Who are the Mennonites and what are their beliefs?

 Answer: The Mennonites are a group of Anabaptist (opposed to infant baptism) denominations      named after and influenced by the teachings and tradition of Menno Simons (1496-1561). They are  committed to nonviolence, nonresistance, and pacifism.

"Mennonite congregations worldwide embody the full scope of Mennonite practice from old-fashioned “plain” people to those who are indistinguishable in dress and appearance from the general population.

Early Mennonites in Europe were good farmers and were invited to take over poor soils and enrich them through hard work and good sense. Often the governing bodies would take back the land and force the Mennonites to move on since they would offer no resistance. So the migration to America started and they were welcomed by the Colonists.

There are many schisms, which actually started in Europe in the 1600s and continued after the immigration to America. Many of these churches were formed as a response to deep disagreements about theology, doctrine, and church discipline. Mennonite theology emphasizes the teachings of Jesus as recorded in the New Testament. Their core beliefs deriving from Anabaptist traditions are: the authority of Scripture and the Holy Spirit; salvation through conversion by the Spirit of God; believer’s baptism by sprinkling; discipline in the church (including shunning in some congregations); and the Lord’s Supper as a memorial rather than as a sacrament or Christian rite.

There is a wide scope of worship, doctrine and traditions among Mennonites today. Old Order Mennonites use horse and buggy for transportation and speak Pennsylvania Dutch (similar to German). They refuse to participate in politics and other so-called “sins of the world.” Most Old Order groups also school their children in church-operated schools. Conservative Mennonites maintain conservative dress but accept most other technology. They are not a unified group and are divided into various independent conferences. Moderate Mennonites differ very little from other conservative evangelical protestant congregations. There is no special form of dress and no restrictions on use of technology. They emphasize peace, community and service.

Another group of Mennonites have established their own colleges and universities and have taken a step away from strict Bible teaching. They ordain women pastors, embrace homosexual unions, and practice a liberal agenda, focusing on peace studies and social justice issues, good works and service to others.

There are many varieties of Mennonites. Some  are more evangelical than others; some are focused on Bible study and prayer; others re carefully maintain the works-based tradition set out by their ancestors; and, some  have left the faith of their fathers and focus instead on current social issues."

Our lovely MP's

Now that all their shennanigans have come to light how are we to feel confident that our Members of Parliament are working on our behalf and not for their own benefit?

 Well, I am happy to learn that my local  MP for Wood Green, Haringey, Lynne Featherstone, LibDem, has been declared clean by the Daily Telegraph, and she has been claiming somewhat less than most: no mortgage, no second home, no half-baked tricky-dicky expenses. In fact she has behaved as one would expect an MP to behave.

Thanks, Lynne!

Although it might be easy to throw up one's hands and

never vote  again, I do feel people should still vote, and not lose heart entirely, in order to avoid creating a vacuum which would swiftly be filled by fringe candidates with odd ideas, and I leave those ideas to your imagination

........and don't mention Nick Griffin! 

And if you would like to read my poem on this very subject go to

this link:  "A Cold Winter is Forecast - 2008"

(it's about half-way down that page).