So Russell Brand has been baptized and is now baptizing.
I find it amusing that Russell has been criticized for performing a baptism in his white underwear. If you look carefully at the Baptism of Christ by Piero della Francesca, and other masterpieces, great works of art, you will see Jesus and men in white underwear.
Alexei Navalny has died fighting the evil empire under Putin. AN has paid the ultimate price for his opposition to the murderous regime that has enslaved the Russian people.
In his death Navalny will be a hero and a martyr for the cause of freedom in Russia. Will his funeral and remembrance of his death lead to protest and demands for a decent future, a better life, a government without Putin, an economy that provides for the people and not for war?
Where is the voice of the Russian Orthodox Church speaking out against the corruption, the unjust war, the evil occupation of land belonging to Ukraine? Why are the political murders not condemned by priests and prelates? Like John the Baptist, authentic voices of the Lord has been silenced through death. Murder, mayhem and misery are evident in Russia today, and the misery will continue as dead soldiers killed by a merciless and menacing machine are buried for such a dreadful cause.
Putin will go down in history as another evil tyrant and mass murderer, a war criminal.
Alexei, in the darkness you brought light.
You fought against the Kremlin's might.
You fought against their vicious lies.
You heard the anguish and the cries
of people wanting much better ways
Freedom and justice in their troubled days.
And now though dead yet still you speak
Even when so much is really bleak.
Your life and words will indeed live on
When all these despots are completely gone.
It is pathetic that Putin's crimes go unpunished and his political opponent dies in prison. These are dark days for the Russian people, who are ruled by criminals and gangsters. The corruption is throughout the whole system and little brother Putin takes the country down the path of destruction.
Dissent and media freedom have been suppressed and prevented. Russia is now a prison state where lies, deceit and deception are the currency of this rotten state.
The death of Navalny is a disgrace. Justice is completely absent. What a miserable mess. The Russian people deserve a better future and a hope of peace and freedom, which seems to elude them.
Putin should have been in the artic penal colony not Navalny. His wicked crimes are well known. Putin is a war criminal with much blood on his hands.
Islamilitancy is a threat to our democratic and established way of life.
Now we hear of MPs experiencing death threats, intimidation, vile hostility when they express certain views. Some MPs are afraid to express opinions on Gaza, Israel, Palestine, sharia law, jihad, Muslim prayer, the burka etc, etc. They fear being stabbed in their constituency offices. Antisemitism is experienced on the streets of north London where Jewish people are abused, attacked physically and verbally, and schools with Jewish pupils have to take security measures and precautions against risks of harm. We are seeing unacceptable behaviour from jihadists and their fellow travellers.
There is clearly push back and opposition to the imposition and importation of anti-democratic actions that are contrary to our ethics based on the British way of life informed by Christian and well attested values.
Islamilitants would allow, and even promote, segregated education, female genital mutilation, the suppression of women, wife beating according to the Koran, the killing of apostates, the implementation of sharia law, a ban on alcohol, the supremacy of Islam with the removal of other religions.
Therefore there would be no open society, no true democracy but an Islamic theocracy, no freedom of religion, no free press to criticize Islamic beliefs and practices, and no political opposition.
Hatred is evident in demonstrations around Westminster by agitators supporting terrorist groups and Islamilitancy.
Islamilitancy preaches antisemitism, jihad, violence against perceived apostates and terrorist causes. Some of these islamilitants are home grown but others have come here illegally. And we do not know how many dangerous and desperate individuals there are roaming our streets intent on islamilitancy.
We have much to be thankful for, much to rejoice despite the cold weather and chilly winds, despite wars and rumours of wars, despite the climate crisis, despite the injustices in society and throughout the world.
The western democracies are where people want to live and move and have their being. There are too many malcontents, moaners and misanthropes. Some people do not seem to be happy unless they are making others unhappy. Miserable melancholic murmurers wish to spread their poisonous and toxic ideas without providing any viable alternative and constructive ideas, certainly no answer or solutions.
In this country, in the USA, in Canada and northern European lands, in Australia and New Zealand, democracy and freedom reign. When you visit other lands then you begin to appreciate how bad it can get. When you look at human rights records and the corruption index then you can understand how dire and dreadful some countries are in providing or rather not providing basic law, order, security, stability, economic prosperity and freedom of speech and the press, protest and personal property protection.
Everyday we should take time to rejoice in what we have and not take these precious freedoms for granted. Personally I am very grateful for our Christian heritage, our NHS, carers and educational institutions. I owe preachers, doctors, carers and teacher so much, and I am so grateful for their sacrificial service.
There are those who wish to enslave us with the yoke of tyranny and the woke ideologies. There are those who want us to submit to false religions, vanities, evil gods and failed philosophies. They do not share our values or established ethical ways of living in peace and prosperity. We should be grateful to those who defend our democratic way of life, liberty and the land we enjoy.
Our attitude should be gratitude. May God grant us the grace to make this land a even better place where we are not disgrace.
Public opinion and pressure by many people in positions of influence are working against a harsh bureaucracy and systemic injustice that has ruined so many lives. The Post Office scandal has angered folk throughout the country, especially in the wake of the TV drama Mr Bates vs the Post Office.
Campaigns and petitions are now wanting answers and activity from the Government and those who are able to deliver justice for the innocent victims of this scandalous situation. It is a situation that should never have taken so long to resolve. It has been called the biggest miscarriage of justice in British history.
Despite warnings and clear evidence, the Post Office board of management and IT executives ignored the facts and appear to have acted iniquitously. Some senior managers took huge salaries and payments that they did not deserve for poor performance and mendacity, cloaking and dissembling.
The CBE awarded to Paula Vennells for services to the Post Office has been a very painful slap in the face for honest and innocent sub-postmasters so callously convicted on her watch. Thousands, moving towards a million, are now demanding for this award to be revoked, and even returned. It was a disgraceful and despicable decision to award this CBE in the light of her unethical behaviour at the Post Office. It is hoped that Mrs Vennells will now follow the example of Zacchaeus the tax collector by showing true repentance, and taking the matter much further by engaging in restitution, restorative justice by helping those she has harmed.
There are others who have harmed and harassed the innocent victims. Let justice be done and seen to be done. The public's fury is certainly intensifying.
I am glad that I signed the petition calling for the removal of Paula Vennell's CBE. I have followed the Post Office scandal over the years, particularly in Private Eye. It is a disgrace that these sub-postmasters were prosecuted. Some of them served custodial sentences, and suicides occurred, yet no one in PO management has been convicted and properly punished yet for their serious crimes and considerable iniquities. Some politicians involved in this omnishambles clearly looked the other way in the face of the evidence against the Post Office. The Post Office management board should be held accountable to the nation for the full extent of their cover ups and culpability.
