Anglican Church in a tangle over women

Anglican Church in a tangle over women

The convoluted responses from die-hard traditionalists within the Anglican Church at the first woman Archbishop of Canterbury are of little interest to outsiders. Evidently seven serving bishops say they welcome the new archbishop but wouldn’t receive communion from her.  Why are religious zealots so hung up about women/gender/sexuality? The ancient spirit versus flesh war still…

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Israel & Gaza – countless thousands suffer

Israel & Gaza – countless thousands suffer

Two years since the Hamas attack on Israel there is a slender hope of a negotiated peace deal with Donald Trump pushing hard for a settlement. The attacks were the first large-scale invasion of Israeli territory since the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, with 1,195 people killed by the attacks, 736 of them Israeli civilians. About 250…

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Maggie Thatcher – revelling in power

Maggie Thatcher – revelling in power

Margaret Thatcher, the longest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century and the first woman to hold the position, was born 100 years ago. A polarising and divisive figure in UK politics, she is still viewed favourably in historical rankings and her realignment towards neoliberal policies had a significant effect. A Soviet journalist dubbed her…

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Jilly Cooper – upper romps

Jilly Cooper – upper class romps

Writer Jilly Cooper, ‘Queen of the bonkbuster’ who brought sex and sharp-eyed social observation to Middle England’s bookshelves with rollicking tales of raunch and rivalry amongst the Cotswolds polo-playing classes, has died after a fall. Queen Camilla, whose first husband Andrew Parker-Bowles was said to have been the inspiration for the invented lothario Rupert Cambell-Black,…

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King James 1 – the downside of monarchy

King James 1 – the downside of monarchy

James I of England, the first Stuart king of England, and James VI of Scotland, has had a less than glowing reputation, deemed as odd and effeminate and has been underplayed in comparison to Elizabeth 1 and Charles I. A new biography paints a different picture of an assured intellectual who promoted peace in Europe…

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Patricia Routledge – sympathy for eccentrics

Patricia Routledge – sympathy for eccentrics

Actress Patricia Routledge,  a British treasure of screen and stage, with an extraordinary range, has died. Best known for  playing the social-climbing battleaxe Hyacinth Bucket in classic TV sitcom Keeping Up Appearances (“an absolute monster and I enjoyed playing her enormously.”) she also starred in Alan Bennett’s TV monologues, and in BBC One’s amateur sleuth…

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Manchester – a magnet for traumatic events

Manchester – a magnet for traumatic events

Manchester is yet again shaken by a traumatic incident after a terrorist attack on a synagogue by Jihad al-Shamie, a British citizen of Syrian descent, wearing what appeared to be an explosive vest armed with a knife. Two victims were killed, one by friendly fire from the police, who also shot the attacker.  The city…

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USA shut down – when the lights go out

USA shut down – when the lights go out

Another USA government shutdown has started with the prospect (at the minimum) of lay-offs – 750,000 federal employees expected to be placed on enforced leave, with pay withheld until they return to work, essential workers like military and border agents may be forced to work without pay, parks will be closed, rubbish pile up and…

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Jane Goodall – caring for the family

Jane Goodall – caring for the family

Conservationist Dame Jane Goodall, a world-leading expert on chimpanzees, has died aged 91. Actor Leonardo DiCaprio said that she “inspired millions to care, to act, and to hope”, and called her a “a true hero for the planet”. Biologist Stephen Jay Gould said her discoveries “revolutionised science” and Roger Fouts, a psychologist who studies the…

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Patricia Crowther – a Wicca custodian

Patricia Crowther – a Wicca custodian

Patricia Crowther, known as the “high priestess of the Moon Goddess”, and considered the spiritual heir to Gerald Gardner, the founding father of modern Wicca, has died at 97. She made it her mission to dispel myths about witches and their practices. “Witchcraft simply means the craft of the wise people.” She was adamant that…

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