Another day, another fuckery - this time edumacation

Education Secretary Michael Gove 


"For too long the system has been devalued by attempts to pretend that all qualifications are intrinsically the same. Young people have taken courses that have led nowhere."



Another day brings another initiative which is thinly veiled and is just another attack on the poor. 3,175 vocational courses will no longer be equivalent to two GCSEs, leaving only 70 courses which the toffs/Tories deem as relevant. These courses were made precisely as an alternative to those who are not academic and would better thrive in a more practical course in which they actually have interest, but the Tories see these courses as courses for working class dummies which enable them to falsify the success of their GCSE results. Seeing as I didn't go to fucking Eton and I actually went to a school where 99.9% of the students were from a working class background I can tell you that this move is foolish. I myself missed the implementation of vocational courses by a year and felt fairly envious that others had the chance to pursue courses that were practical and actually enjoyable; what I viewed as a paradox in the education system. Instead I got to do conventional GCSEs and ended up with an endless supply of supply teachers who did not care about us and yet at the same time, actually hated us! I hope you can agree that I would have wanted to do a vocational course not because I'm thick, (I was of the 26% who actually achieved 5 A-Cs in GCSEs in my year) but because it would have been a great opportunity as academia did not and still does not interest me very much.

But you've got to give it to the toffs, at least their attack on the working class and the education of the working class is consistent. They think that if everyone had a similar education to them then Britain will become better, note similar not the same, don't be absurd we can't all be equal! Even if their elitist thinking was right and if we all did English, maths, science and more boring bullshit subjects today's children would suddenly become educated and well-integrated into society where will they actually end up? They want kids to have Eton-esque education but only up to a certain point. They pretend to nurture the brats to do 'real' subjects all throughout school but try and go to university and you will find yourself at the end of the road! Unless you want at least £30,000+ worth of debt at the age of 21 that is. Plus no guarantee of a job. Plus competing with millions of other graduates who went to Red Brick universities. Plus a shit economy especially for graduates. Either way if you go or you don't, just remember that WE'RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER, translation; WE'RE ALL PRETTY MUCH FUCKED.

Is being a lefty compatible with believing in God?

I consider myself a die-hard lefty but it's come to my attention that so many people on 'my side' do not believe in God, not only that but religion is openly despised. In my view if you are truly liberal you accept people's differences, and as long as it is not immoral or affecting your life why should anyone take it upon themselves to revel in shitting on other people's beliefs? It would not be socially acceptable to deride someone's race or creed yet it is deemed OK to be intolerant toward faith. Right-wing Christians admittedly make it much too easy to take the piss out of them, but people of faith are believe it or not, sometimes sane and educated. Stereotyping and generalising is something I thought was the domain of right-wingers.

Some people call themselves socialists because they believe in the philosophy that advocates government controlled economy, at almost complete odds with those who favour unregulated capitalism (apart from when the corporations need saving of course, then it's state to the rescue!). The theory of socialism comes from books yet one would not call a socialist 'retarded' or whatever otherwise abuse people level at people of religion.

Some would say Islam is close to socialism, in that the government should be responsible for the well-being of its people, to make sure everyone has an entitlement. Islam does not discourage enterprise and business in contrast to the Biblical quote which is 'it is easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God'. It however always emphasises social responsibility in economic terms by laying out that everyone pay 2.5% of their salary, after expenses and living costs, to charity. If everyone in the world did just this no-one would be hungry this Christmas, or any day for that matter. This is a minimum percentage and most go beyond this recommendation ALTRUISTICALLY, especially in Ramadan which serves as a yearly reminder to think of others. Monetarily the banning of interest in Islam (and the Bible) makes economic sense, it means that every man, woman and child does not have to be ENSLAVED by this so-called FREE market. The more money you have, means the more interest you deserve to get? And when you are in overdraft you get kicked in the teeth and interest deducted from your already low funds? This is perverse.

Ramadan, even something as simple and universal as fasting has been contested by others in my life yet most religions practice this. It would be amazing if people thought about people other than themselves and their immediate circle EVERY SINGLE DAY, but the fact is they DO NOT and Ramadan is just a practical way of reminding people of others who are less fortunate. It is merely 30 days out of 365 in which from dawn to dusk we experience a REAL EMPATHY for those who do not have the means to eventually break their 'fast' at will, and not a momentary and useless 'awww how sad'. Although it is a mere taste (for want of a better word) of how the starving feel, not being able to simply have a snack whenever you like makes you more disciplined, makes you think of things other than your next meal and more aware of how you behave. This discipline you experience is intended to affect how you then live the rest of your year/life. If you can constantly improve your sense of discipline and empathy you will NEVER BE ENSLAVED by things that are bad for you and waste your time. It has also been medically proven that fasting serves as a detox and is not punishing on health, even for those who are professional athletes.

People bemoan religionists but as long as someone has a moral code who gives a shit about what someone believes in their heart? If you want someone to agree with everything you believe in, you may as well be a fascist. A book that is holy is of course not the be all and end all of one's moral code or education it is just part of it, just like so many elements in life and sources make you the person you are. EDUCATION is at the forefront of Islam, and no holy book says you should only read that book yet education is not as yet a human right in man-made law. Furthermore, saying a book of morals is not necessary is like saying man-made laws should not be in common law or within statute because everyone knows what the law is anyway.

I don't know one single person that does good things solely for a 'reward' in the afterlife consciously or not, this is an arrogant assumption made by arrogant people. Then again, there are psychologists who say that no-one does good deeds TRULY altruistically because they want recognition, hence most charitable donations are not anonymous. Either way, this disproves any theory that only religionists do good deeds for reward like a dog would. There are various way in which people as a whole can be persuaded to do good, for many, doing good for good's sake is enough, but if this were enough there would be no need for laws, for jails and for any criminal reprimand. Like it or not, some lack a moral compass for various reasons so must be persuaded to not commit wrongs out of fear of punishment by God or law, whether it is murder and rape or tax evasion or benefit fraud. Out of 600 verses in the Qur'an, detailing of punishments make up ten sentences. Punishment (hell/imprisonment specifically) is a last resort in the case of God or law. All the while, forgiveness and redemption is always available for those who truly regret any wrong they have done in the case of God and not law.

The books of the Abrahamic religions speak of VIOLENCE and WAR because they are stories of what happened in those times, and yet to think that today in 2011 that we are above that same violence and war is to live in LA LA LAND. In the UK, in a little over a decade we have instigated and participated in wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya and profiteer from the weapons we sell to repressive governments. The US are the same, but have also dabbled in cowardly drone focused violence in Yemen, Somalia and Pakistan. We may not kill many of own like other governments do but we send our soldiers to war which does not involving defending our land, honour or people. The three things in which Islam say war is deemed necessary in self-defence. War is not pretty, most of the times counter-productive but 100% can be summed up by Prophet Muhammad who said 'War is deceit'. Yet MAN insists on violence and going to war; self-professed religious devotees, secularists and non-believers, it is unfortunately an inevitable part of life which holy and non-holy books must deal with if they deal in reality as well as spirituality. There are many man-made disasters, if not war, politicians override scientifically proven concerns for the environment of our planet because nobody wants to sacrifice a tiny part of their economies. This is nothing to do with religion or God but the stupidity of MAN.

A definition of God is not a human concocted, and in particular, Western concocted idea of a superhero, who saves people from evil, that is meant to be our job. But we are obviously shit at it and are looking for someone to blame. It would be nice if one single thing was responsible for all evil in humanity i.e. religion, but sorry that is not the case.

We in the Western world like to think we are free, yes we have more freedoms relative to other countries, but we are certainly more subservient to the will of our governments so how are we superior to the 'chains' of religion? Furthermore, is worshipping a deity worse than worshipping money?

Take something from each ideology and think for yourselves, don't demonise one, especially if you know little about it. Question everything and try to piece books and stories together from its CONTEXT and decide what might be as fair and just as life can be made for EVERYONE. Stop dwelling on the faults in all ideologies. Instead, be aware of them and harness their strengths. Extremes of belief, philosophy, thought or ideology have ever and always did little to serve the needs of mankind other than to create chaos, whether that be from religion or atheism or whateverism. All people need to start being more open-minded and stop being so far up their own arses and take their unholy crusade elsewhere.        

I have come to the conclusion that being a lefty is compatible with believing in God, what is not compatible with being a lefty is stereotyping, bullying, mocking, ignorance and generally being intolerant.

See also http://anbarrockny.blogspot.com/ 

Women's Role in the Arab World

*Inspired by the encircling & protection of women protesting in Tahrir Square*

Many in the West deride women's rights in the Arab world or lack thereof, I am not defending it but everywhere in the world there is sexism in various different forms.

In Yemen, the current president Ali Abdullah Saleh criticised women for protesting because this indicated that they were fraternising with the opposite sex. Firstly, this statement was clearly made in a pathetic attempt to deflect criticism from his own actions onto Yemeni women and secondly, any footage you see will show that the women protest only with each other and their children.

Women are oppressed in Nepal, a Buddhist country for goodness sakes, through avenues such as inheritance rights and access to education. There was even an incident where a nun was expelled from her sect and refused treatment at a state-run hospital, what was her crime? Having been gang raped then robbed by a bus driver and four others who were pretending to help her.

In Saudi Arabia, in 2007 a woman met up with a man, unaccompanied, apparently to retrieve some photos of her from him. They were then set upon by a gang of seven strong who gang raped her. The gang was inevitably punished with imprisonment for up to a measly four years, yet she was also sentenced to six months imprisonment and 200 lashes for meeting up with a man who was not her relative. She was eventually pardoned by the King of Saudi because of the media furore and global criticism it caused.

There was a recent report of a woman in Afghanistan who was raped at the age of 18, as fate would have it, she became pregnant from this rape. She reported this to the authorities, who charged and imprisoned the perpetrator. However the rape victim herself was imprisoned for her role in the 'moral crime', about half of the female Afghan prison population are there for similar so-called moral crimes. She has been in prison for over a year with her child in tow and she was offered early release if she marries her attacker. She was unwilling of course at first, but she says she is now willing to do so for the sake of her child to not be incarcerated any longer.

Although thank goodness there is not such overt atrocities in the UK, sanctioned by the state anyway, there is sexism in every country. Here, like other countries that continue to ignore legislation, women are still paid less for the same job as a man. They are also exploited nationally every day in the most popular 'news'paper in the country. Women in the entertainment industry must look as good as possible and say as little as possible, that is meaningful anyway. Despite all the advancements of women's rights in this country, what is the first thing that a man will say to a woman who he is having a conflict with? I have lived in a working class area my whole life and when any couple has a domestic on the street, even with kids in tow, the first thing he will call her is a slag, whore and the ilk. This sexism crosses class divides, a self-proclaimed Conservative activist hash tagged a North African journalist referring to her as an 'Arab whore'. The police refused to investigate the case, she cited selective investigation compared with the recent racist football spat. (see 'Why Are We All Racist?'). Also, let us not forget the worst atrocity against females, the biggest genocide in the 20th Century; the selective abortion of female babies.


Just as men would have women believe that they are all terrible drivers or they cannot do this or that, women will conform to stereotypes that men create. Women should not let men define what they should be, that should be for us to determine. One of the most important steps in the Arab revolutions, if not the most important, is for women to play a greater role, for when you educate the women, you educate the whole nation*.





See also http://raraproductions.blogspot.com/ & http://anbarrockny.blogspot.com/

*Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)