Hell No They Shouldn't Go

well as a white man i am surprised at your comments on this matter,there are 100s of young black men and women in this country who have trained hard to achieve a position to represent there country and go to the olympics in china and do good for the country and bring medals back as a reward,in this climate at the moment with ferrel youth running riot across the uk stabbing and shooting each other up would it not be good for this country black atheletes showing the true face of young people in this country and good role models for all young people to achieve there lifes dreams based on hard work and determination , if we all boycotted countrys with bad human rights records i am afraid sport would not exist my view is let them go to china and leave the politics to the politicians.....peter from northfield

Hi Peter,

Thanks for your post.

You raise some interesting points but I still feel that the pressure of public opinion and protest is the way forward.

The problem I have with your sentiments, heartfelt as they are, is that we live in an age when we are becoming more and more de-sensitized to the plight of others.

I can only imagine how hard it must be for folks living under oppression to have the world's attention trained on my country only for sport.

Surely there are other forms of diversion from knife crime and every other social ill without showing little concern for the oppressed. Their suffering may not be as immediate or graphic as a knife wound, but needs to be tackled too.

V

hi vernon i understand where your coming from but this issue you raised about the knife crime epedemic going on all through this country slightly worries me because when i lived in handsworth through the 80s and 90s riots included there was knife crime but not this slaughter of youth on youth. but what alot of politicians and other self appointed focus groups cant grasp with this knife problem amongst the youth is the anger on the streets that is leading to them killing each other was not there when i grew up as a youth in this country, i have talked to alot of young guys and the buzz word they all come out with is the only reason they carrie a knife on them is because they are scared of getting stabbed themselves and thats the reality of there lifes people must understand,i wish i knew what the answer is to stop all this mayhem but my solution is if these young people were provided some hope in training for employment and getting a decently paid job thats better than hanging around the streets getting involved in nastyness and bad behavior.like they say the devil always find works for idle hands let reverse this situation and find work for these guys to divert them away from the self destructive paths they are walking down sorry vernon to detract from the sports related topic but this knife issue must be debated or god help the future for are young people in this country....peter from northfied

Hi Peter,

I agree, knife crime should be debated, but I don't think that overlooking the Tibetan situation is necessarily the way to do it.

I spent much of my youth in Handsworth too and although I grew up in the 70s/ 80s - seen as the time of most disaffection - we didn't see the level of youth on youth violence/ despair that there is now.

There were lines that were not crossed back then, which were informed by Christian faith, which has since been marginalised.

The irony is that, there are more opportunities than ever before - employment and training wise.

A rarely discussed factor in this I believe, is the celebration of celebrity, get-rich-quick at all costs culture. The current opportunities may not earn us an instant fortune but at least enabled us to get a foothold in society, whereas before it was hard to get even that.

As I grew, there was no Black Briton man in the media that I had access to but the faith I was instructed in and parental guidance I received meant that I strove to succeed.

The answer is down to true faith of whichever religion, out of which comes respect for others, therein inspiring folks to look for solutions within the law.

The problem with some third sector, diversionary activities is that they do just that, divert youth away from problems rather than help them deal with it.

The increasing marginalisation of Christian faith has run along with the deterioration of common respect and decency.

I don't think it's just a coincidence either.

Do you?

V

as a fellow christian brother vernon i agree with what you have said about our faith being sidelined by this goverment,as when i lived in handsworth i went to school with a black freind of mine called micheal young i lived on aylesford road he lived newcombe road we went to saint augustines school by farham road adjoining the church,back in those days there was good christian values and discypline amongst the community and micheals parents i remember who were oringinaly from the west indies enforced and i witnessed it strict and i mean strict punishment on micheal if he ever stepped out of line as a youngster,heres the deal vernon the powers to be have taken away from the parents now the right to enforce strict but fair discypline on the young people growing up in this lawless society and this is all down to the politacal correctness that if you dare smack your child for being nawty as a parent you could be up on a charge of child creulty so in a way parents are powerless now on this matter, i bet this one thing none of these younsters who have been stabbed lately has been church goers maybe the time has come and it maybe not to late and to get the churches full up again with the young people and instal decent values in there lifes and not fall into the hands and tempations of the devil,sadly me and micheal have lost touch but good days they were back when i grew in in handsworth despite the problems we had back then...peter

and just to finish off vernon i was just in despair at channel 4s season on knife crime and the problems of inner citys youth from birmingham to glasgow where all i listened to was middle class middle england so called experts debating on how us (working class people live) with the likes of cherrie blair patronising about how us poor old working classes should behave and bring are children up and oops a daisy her children are protected by armed ex sas soldiers every time they visit the nightclubs in camden sorry i dont need advice from the the likes of cherrie blair and pony tailed professers of crime from brighton university telling us peasants what bad lot we are bringing up are children, these people are obscene they dont have clue about the problems of ordinary working class people in this country maybe my views are harsh but less of these people on panels and more people like me and you who live in the real world...peter

Peter,

I know exactly what you are saying.

These folks should not be allowed to take office, but the opposers in the main stay silent and therefore they top the polls.

Are there any other issues that flip your lid?
Let me know and I'll raise another topic via a new blog page.

Thanks for your feedback,

V

Peter, in response to your comments about your growing up in Handsworth, the answer, as I see it, comes down to faith and family.

If you raise your children with accountability and genuine love, they'll be fine. Folks criticise Christian faith and think it's all well and good for our kids to sleep around and take on all kinds of negativity.

That's one thing, but when those kids start having kids of there own, the problems intensify. Allowing our children to live without discipline, is practically condemning their offspring to the same fate.

I live in hope that at some point, there will be a widespread understanding of the benefits of living, sober, disciplined lives.

Also, your comment about getting the churches filled up again, realise that many of them are full. While the Anglicans and Catholics may be down on numbers, check out the Pentecostals - plenty of them are struggling for space such are the numbers attending.

Still, how many times do we hear about the decline of Christian faith in the mainstream, secular media?

Which church do you attend, Peter? What Christian/ faith-related issues would you like me to raise via a new blog page?

Thanks for your comments,

V

i used to attend st augustines church in handsworth vernon but sadly believe it or not and its my fault i do not attend church or mass as much as i should do,as for issues concerning the christian faith in this country and this city i really do feel like we have been sidelined and are faith ignored by the goverment and even by are local council its just a feeling you get its like you have to whisper that your a christian these days in case you might offend some other religions and this issue in alum rock about the 2 christian preachers threatened with arrest and violence because they was spreading the word of the bible reminds me of other parts of the world where christians are persecuted and live daily in fear of practising there faith and these issues i think should not be swept un der the carpet because there is relgious apertheid going on in certain areas of this country where christians have come under attack by the muslim faith and there followers who dominate there areas, i dont see nobody speaking up on behalf of christians who feel treated badly or discrminated against so maybe your the voice vernon who will speak up on behalf of the christian community i hope so because nobody else will...peter

Hi Peter,

Thanks for the post, and for being so honest.

I'd encourage you to find a church to go to where you feel comfortable, regardless of what society says.

There's plenty of choice these days too, whether you like it quiet or lively.

In this day and age, as life gets more serious and unfair, the more I realise that my faith is more precious than ever.

Thankfully, we are able to go to church without the oppression endured by believers in other countries, so make use of it.

I'm happy to speak for the Christian community and I believe that many others are and do too. As I see it, Britain's historic guilt re colonialism and post-slavery racism, much of which was done in the name of Christianity, have made them commit religious suicide. Rather than unpack the issues, they try to do the faith down.

This is nonsense because, true Christianity doesn't endorse racial ill-treatment.

If you had your way, Peter, what measures would you take to put Christianity back in a position of respect?

Bless you,

Veron

i dont know what the answer is vernon apart from like other religions in this country seem to be favoured by this goverment and to back up this point when have you ever seen a goverment minister visit a christian church when they come to the big citys in this country i cant think once in birmingham, but come election time gordon brown and members of his cabinet like to be seen visiting the local mosque or the sikh and hindus temples showing there support for there religions thats fine i am not having a go at other religions but i do and alot of christians i know get the feeling we have been sidelined by this goverment and taken for granted,so my point is vernon i am not asking for any favoritism but just to be treated with respect by this goverment as we are a christian country and its about time us christians started to show unity amongts each other the same way other religons do, i listened to that song the other night by the rock band rem called losing my religion to me that sums up the decline of christianity in this country thats just my honest views and to finish off with i wish that fool the archbishop of canterbury rowan wiiilams would just resign he behaves more like rowan atkinson in the blackladder than the head of the church of england the mans just a laughing stock in my opinion i like to be honest so thats my point of view vernon..peter