West is best at overthrowing governments it calls regimes

Why should a government NOT be ruthless in putting down a rebellion?  Any UK government would be.  Even the good people of Scotland in 2014 had the fear of God put up them, if they dared to be so stroppy as to vote for independence from big brother England.  Our problem, in our so well meaning, we know what is best for you fortress, is supporting the rebels to overthrow their governments in Afghanistan, Iraq and now Syria.  And look where it gets us.

Is the West on the side of governments or rebels?

Why should a government NOT be ruthless in putting down a rebellion?  Any UK government would be.  Even the good people of Scotland in 2014 had the fear of God put up them, if they dared to be so stroppy as to vote for independence from big brother England.  Our problem, in our so well meaning, we know what is best for you fortress, is supporting the rebels to overthrow their governments in Afghanistan, Iraq, Tunisia, Libya and now Syria.  And look where it gets us.

(reply to David Blair article, 'Putin's Plan for Syria is a war without end', in the Telegraph on 2 Oct 2015)

"Jesus wants to save Christians - a manifesto for the Church in exile"

Hi Mike - and copied to Jon

Thanks for lending me the book that Jon had done sometime ago but I had not read it.  When you were pushing pedals across France and Switzerland, I got down to reading it and tried to finish it before you got back but, it was not to be.  I now need your address to return it to you - please.

Presumably, the title of the book referred to Christians no longer living in exile as punishment for departing God's ways.  Christ said, "My Kingdom is not of this world".  For me, His Kingdom is not about living richly or living violently or having an empire.  Yet, the nation with highest proportion of Bible believing Christians is the only superpower and has the only empire.  The USA is the most devout and religious nation on earth.  Therefore, Christians certainly need saving, from what I see.  But their exile is most comfortable and pleasant - with the highest standard of living in the world!

Billy Graham and the Vietnam War

The book is fine, as far as it goes, in my opinion. I suppose Rob Bell can hardly go further or he would not sell many copies.  I always want our Christian leaders to be much more outspoken.  I approve of people like Jim Wallis and Tony Campolo who have been - certainly more so than the telly evangelists and Billy Graham.  Billy wasn't even able to condemn the Vietnam War but went out twice, to give succour, comfort and support to the occupying troops.  Troops who were using chemical weapons, too, to help kill an unknown number of Vietnamese but numbering anything between one and three million, I have read.  The population having WMD used on them, killed 58,000 Americans in a most unequal exchange.  Attacking Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos for 16 years was an act of aggression.  The vast majority of Christian believers saw no need to boycott the war.  And the Christian West was finally and ignominiously defeated, too, in 1975!

Only the sex industry is shunned!
For years, I have been horrified by Christians shunning the sex industry but rarely the arms industry and armed forces at times when we have been doing the invasion, bombing and occupation of 23 nations since 1945, according to two sources I have quoted in the attached file, 'Scotland's Independence push' (see this blog).

My fresh interpretation of Christ's first temptation

Rob Bell says its a 'manifesto for the Church in exile'.  I feel the Church is in the world, of the world and thoroughly conformed to the world.  I know that I am only any better by at least writing and protesting at our wars of aggression and refusing to vote for the war parties.  However, I have conformed to the world, the flesh and the devil by failing to reject the first temptation - by turning stones into bread.  For me, this means taming nature and enjoying the very comfortable and materially rich life that has resulted.  But, it is not sustainable or, eternal or, everlasting that is the only kind of eternity for heaving humanity I am at all interested in these days!

Pilgrims or claimants?
Humanity lives poorly and extends its life span on the planet, as the native Americans, Maoris and Aborigines did.  Or, as we are doing, we live richly and have a correspondingly shorter time span.  Our sojourn should be as pilgrims not as righteous claimants of all that we can lay our hands on as quickly possible and as much as possible, in the name of economic growth or, economic prosperity.  This is my very alternative and eccentric interpretation of the first temptation!

Absolutely fabulous

I raise my hands in unholy horror at what I read of Israel's history in the Old Testament.  Repeated, in very small part over the last 65 years of happy homeland but persistent insecurity and loss of friendship from the surrounding nations.  For me, this makes Israel a failed state, even though it is part of the almighty, all powerful West.  And, Israel has its enormous arsenals of WMD and conventional weaponry, too.  " 'Not by might, nor by power but by My Spirit', says the Lord."  Christians, Messianic Jews and orthodox Jews may say that but, the opposite is done.  True peace (prisons empty of Palestinians, friendship, harmony, peaceful co-existence) for Israel is as far away as ever.  And the righteous in the Lord don't go for compromise or want peace talks, either.  Absolutely fabulous - I don't think!!

The Christian West; not the Muslim Arabs

The best part of the book was the revelation contained in Endnotes pages 209 to 210 that even General Eisenhower believed "that dropping the Bomb (on Japan) was completely unnecessary ... "  But, my own cynical view:- very necessary for the politicians, of course, to try it in the field and in anger!  And, Eisenhower was not a politician in 1945.  In addition, we can't blame the Muslim Arabs for the 20th century being the most evil - simply from the sheer number of humans slaughtered by the Christian West and part Christian/part Communist Russia/USSR - in the history of humanity.

Give up your coat and get a sword, all you true believers!

While I'm on the subject of Christians so actively engaged in violence or, enthusiastically voting for the war parties in US, UK and Israel, my Bible has a footnote in explanation of Luke 22 v 36.  "The sword apparently meant to Jesus a preparation to live by one's own resources against hostility.  The natural meaning of v 38 is that the disciples supposed he spoke of an actual sword, only to learn that two swords were sufficient for the whole enterprise, ie. were not to be used at all."  For me, it looks as though the disciples took Jesus literally with their literal and over-enthusiastic interpretation that if Jesus wants them to have one sword, they will be so obedient that they will do even better and double up whatever military weaponry Jesus allows them - exactly as we do, today!  But Christ says, "It is enough." (v 38) Or, in weary despair, 'You don't get it.  That's enough of that nonsense.'

'Machine Gun Preacher'
The book and film, 'Machine Gun Preacher' is an oxymoron.  Yet, all too true of the last 1700 years of Christian practice and behaviour in too gladly following the Lord's irony in 'commanding' to 'swap your coat for a gun.'

God's special, Chosen Nation

So there you have my honest to God thoughts at my 65 years of living for as long as dear Israel who, thankfully will outlast me into eternity as the one and only Chosen Nation out of 193!

All the best

Tim/Dad

Scotland's independence might just cut England down to size - but I doubt it!!

Scotland: Stop subsidising England's excesses.  Get your independence, Scotland!

I know that, from the opinion polls, Scotland distancing itself further from England seems a hopeless cause.  However, for what it's worth, these are my:  interesting/alternative/tendentious/horrifying/warped (delete as you wish)
thoughts on why I think Scotland would be sensible to separate from England and be its own sovereign nation within the EU and UN instead of the UK.

The big-hearted Scots* are subsidising London as the hub of the UK with continuing plans for Heathrow expansion, the very expensive Cross Rail and Thames Link project that opens in 2019 and, last year's London Olympics.

After more than one hundred years of an "essentially a Victorian rail network" (Chief Executive of Network Rail, Sir David Higgins on 8 January 2013 on the 'Today' programme), England has decided, rather late in the day, to modernise it, with the Scottish taxpayer helping to foot the bill.  Does Scotland have even one Victorian signal box?  England has 500 dating back to Queen Victoria and 300 are 1960s vintage! (same interview)

The Scots subsidised HS1 and, now, they generously help us out with HS2 that, again, gets nowhere near Scotland, even when fully completed.

Scotland should be most upset at subsidising England's armed conflicts on 23 nations since 1945 (Radio 4's 'Thought for the Day' slot in the 'Today' programme.  Repeated, on another occasion, without disagreement from the other team members, by the Green Party panellist on Radio 4's 'Any Questions').**

No doubt, there are some in the English Defence League calling for pre-emptive, unmanned drone attacks of self defence on the Muslim militant extremists before they kill another of our brave soldier heroes.  Heroes home in barracks, on leave from protecting the people of Afghanistan from the real killers.  Scotland should disassociate itself from this barbarity by no longer funding England's unappreciated occupation of, and drone attacks on, foreign lands (a total of thirteen years, in punishment for 9/11, when we finally leave Afghanistan in 2014).

Scotland provides a most convenient haven for England's submarines carrying its independent nuclear deterrent. The Clyde Trident workers might be redeployed in future proofing your nation from the accelerating, enhanced greenhouse effect and the exhaustion of the planet's oil and gas reserves. The subs and nuclear missiles might be sent off to Barrow to give employment to the English, who will be left with digging a little deeper into their pockets with the Scottish taxpayer no longer bailing them out.

With independence, Scotland would no longer be contributing to the very many billions of pounds for the replacement for the Trident subs. Preliminary work on the replacement began when either Tony Blair or Gordon Brown was PM.

Scotland's power from water, wind and sun could be used just for themselves or sold to the English at great expense! A golden chance for you Scots to become Great Scot - instead of the phrase being used simply as an exclamation! Great Britain, minus Scotland, would be just a little less 'Great' and a little less able to act, in tandem with the US, as the continuing great power and policeman around the world to get its way.

We English, have such an over-inflated view of our importance to the nations of the world, that we cannot possibly do without Scotland to enhance our prestige and weight! Without Scotland, how can we possibly continue to punch above our weight in the world?  Even more crucially, the US might not regard us quite so highly with only little Wales and littler N Ireland in tow.  Our special relationship might be that little less special without Scotland.

For us English, all this independence malarkey is diminishing our size and greatness. Great Scot, it might even threaten our place as a permanent member of the Security Council. We certainly can't have that!

Let Scotland raise its own taxation for its own spending - that is all independence is - like the fifty other countries that have gained their independence from London since 1945 "and not one has expressed an interest in coming back under London's control." Alex Salmond on 21 May 2013 on 'Today'.

I think, Scotland's taxation is essential for England to continue to fund her excesses; it also makes her also responsible for the UK's most unfortunate, aggressive, domineering and provocative foreign policy in Muslim lands.  That certainly is an excess, to put it mildly!

Tim Weller

* "Over the last thirty years, in every single one of these last thirty years, Scotland per head contributed more in taxation than the UK average.  So that does indicate the financial and the potential financial strength goes over a long period of time."  Alex Salmond interview on the 'Today' programme, 21 May 2013.

** "Since 1946, the UK has engaged in more armed conflict than any other country with a total of 23 if you include Libya.  Do we conclude from this that we are a nation of warmongers or, a country that values peace and justice?"  Rhiddian Brook on Thought for the Day on 25 March 2011.

Brits: more American than European

David Reynold's 'Empire of Liberty' looking back over 1,000 years of history on the N American continent was fascinating for someone like me who is more horrified than delighted by the behaviour of our American kith and kin. I say kith and kin because we Brits colonised what is now the USA to escape religious persecution by other religious people in England. Spain, Portugal and France also colonised the continent but our military prevailed. Our ancestors in England and Europe, said Reynolds, brought God, guns and germs to the native American Indians, especially germs!

Empire of Liberty is both a contradiction in terms but also accurately summarises American history over the last 500 years, I think. Liberty for the white man; empire that enslaved millions of black people; and, empire that incorporates us and imperialism over the poor world or, the black (non white) nations in the world.

The native Indians had survived for thousands of years before the white man appeared on the scene and upset their apple cart - well and truly! Their civilisation was impressive and was sustainable, unlike our own that is built on the flawed foundations of black sand - oil, coal and gas. That means we are eating tomorrow's seed corn and, therefore, contain the seeds of our own destruction, as our resources exhaust and life support systems collapse from our behaviours that are so alien to how we should be living as part of nature and part of the earth and Earth. We belong to the earth and the Earth, rather than the Earth belonging to us!

I think, we Brits are hopeless Europeans because of these traditional links with the new country. They speak the same language, they built their new country on England's example but with great improvements and, there is much more inter-marriage with them than with our European neighbours.

Hopeless Europeans because we have fought countless wars with them over more than 1,000 years that, finally, culminated with the Great War and its sequel in 1939. The European empires around the world and their religious persecution and wars are also a feature of European and British history.

Whereas, our good friends the Americans have bailed us out twice in the World War in two halves and then bailed us out again with their enormous loan that we only finally paid off a couple of years ago! We, in our turn, for 64 years have been their staunchest allies in our joint wars against godless Communism from Korea to Cuba, today and military occupation of Arab lands to this day - Israel, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran (to the overthrow of our stooge, the Shah), Afghanistan and Pakistan (our drones killing people in the borderlands). The Americans even supported us in the Falklands War after initially disapproving of Mrs T's bellicosity and intent to take back the islands.

As with the Middle East, our own green and pleasant land has been slowly disappearing under concrete runways, motorways, and American military bases for nuclear and conventional missiles and bombs. Our island is still America's largest aircraft carrier. We are, unofficially, the 51st state of the USA! We are the only nation that has a special relationship with them.

No wonder, so many Brits want independence from Europe and continuing dependance on hyper power, America!