Jonathan Posner's Blog, page 7
March 9, 2023
King Henry VIII didn’t believe me
Latest news; I have invented a time machine! I couldn’t afford a Delorean, but fortunately an old Morris Minor became available, so I had a go. It was a little wheezy, and I had to lower the time-travel speed a bit, but it all seemed to be working, so I thought I would give it a test run. Being a Tudor history nut, I set the dial for 1545, then floored it. And boy, when that baby eventually got up to 38mph, there were some fireworks! I was whisked back to Tudor England in less time than it takes to say ‘antidisestablishmentarianism’.
My sudden arrival caused some amazement, especially when I explained I was from 2023. This was considered sufficiently weird that old King Henry VIII himself demanded to see me. He particularly wanted an update on how his shiny new Church of England was turning out in 2023.
Sadly, the answers I gave did not please him at all.
“You mean to tell me,” the King growled, “that less than half of the population of this United Kingdom identify themselves as Christian?”
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January 30, 2023
Faith Schools: a good education?
Around one third of all UK state schools are classified as ‘Faith Schools’. Do these schools equip children for the modern world? This week’s 5 Minute Break considers this issue…
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In my 5 Minute Break of 28th November last year, I set out what I saw as the compelling case against religion, and my own journey from being a young, casual Christian to being a rational secularist grown-up. While my parents had sent me to schools that were nominally Church of England, these schools had restricted God and Jesus to within chapel services, rather than making them a core part of school life.
But what about Faith Schools, where Christianity or other religions are totally central to the school’s mission? Around one third of schools in the UK state education system are classified as Faith Schools, and many parents have little or no choice but to send their kids to one.
So I wondered – what sort of education might I have had if I had gone to such a school, where faith is so fundamental to its ethos?
I googled a few and I found statements such as: “We do aim to deliver new skills and knowledge very much through the lens of the teachings of Christ” and “Christ is at the centre of everything we do.” There’s even one which I understand has a quote by the late Pope Benedict XVI as part of its mission – “We are not some casual and meaningless product of evolution. Each of us is the result of a thought of God.”
I mean, what? WHAT? How on earth can you educate kids to be the next generation of scientists, leaders and thinkers that we so desperately need, while confusing their minds with such stupidity? Teaching them that they must not question religious dogmas, then (presumably) teaching them actual proven facts? Thank goodness I didn’t go to one of these schools! It defies belief (and I chose those words deliberately), to think what such teaching is doing to impressionable young minds. How much could it confuse them?
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January 23, 2023
Scottish Gender Recognition
OK, I’m just going to put this out there. The Scottish National Party are playing independence politics, and it is trans people who are caught in the crossfire.
In my opinion (and I’m coming at this as a cynic rather than a conspiracy theorist), the SNP have probably been looking for an issue like this for a while; one where they can force the UK Government into invoking Article 35 of The Scotland Act and prevent a Scottish law being passed. By doing so, Nicola Sturgeon can shout loudly that Scottish sovereignty has been undermined – and the only way for Scots to pass their own laws is by becoming fully independent. I understand in a recent speech,* she has said: “The Tories have broken cover. The stealth attacks have been joined by a full-frontal assault – the decision of the Tory Government to strike down a law clearly within devolved competence which was passed overwhelmingly in the Scottish Parliament, and which was supported by MSPs from all parties… through his actions, the UK Government Secretary of State for Scotland is demonstrating he is sadly not interested in working in partnership… He’s decided to act like a Governor-General: treating the Scottish Parliament as a subordinate body and deciding which democratic decisions and laws to veto.”
I get it about recognising gender-change. I get it that there are valid arguments on both sides of the issue. For women, it is a concern if a man can simply self-declare that he is now female, then march unchecked into a women-only space. And for trans people, who are already marginalised, this is society saying that they are better supported in what must be a very difficult change to their lives. Truly, I get it. And the UK government gets it as well, as this law puts Scottish trans people on a different footing to those in the rest of the UK – meaning that if they leave Scotland, their rights are not the same. So, for example, a 17-year-old trans person with a valid Gender Recognition Certificate in Scotland would find that certificate is worthless as soon as they cross the border. They could be thrown into the prison of their birth gender, or excluded from certain restricted spaces. Which is why the UK Secretary of State for Scotland had no alternative but to veto the bill.
But – and this is the crux of my argument – I cannot believe that a law that affects 20-30 people a year in Scotland, and may possibly benefit up to 300 when (if) it passes, is so fundamental to the Scottish government that it is prepared to go into battle with the UK government on this issue.
Unless the issue is not actually trans rights, but Scottish Independence.
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January 11, 2023
Don’t do that – it’s bad luck!
Welcome to the first 5 Minute Break of 2023!
I am writing this on 6th January, having just taken down my Christmas decorations. It didn’t take me long; there was only a string of coloured lights and a few Christmas cards.
OK, just call me the Grinch. Or Scrooge. Bah, humbug, etc.
I chose today to take them down, not because it is the traditional date, or there’s any religious significance for me, but because I happened to be sitting on my sofa gazing absent-mindedly at them, when I suddenly decided their time had come. Hasta la vista, decs.
As I say, there was no particular reason based on religion or tradition. It is purely coincidental that the impulse came on Jan 6th – which is, according to some, Twelfth Night, and therefore the traditional religious time to take them down (see: Church of England). Although it might not have been quite such serendipity, as there are others who say Twelfth Night is actually the 5th January, so I missed it by a day. Apparently it’s all down to whether you count Christmas Day as the First Night, or start counting from the day after. Or whatever.
But the point here is that religious tradition says it is ‘bad luck’ to take them down after Twelfth Night.
This got me thinking. Why do we talk of ‘bad luck’ when you do something contrary to some superstition or tradition? Walking under ladders, new shoes on the table, broken mirrors, a single magpie – there are plenty of examples. And there are many people who will say, with a totally straight face, ‘don’t do [that thing], it will bring you bad luck.’
What? I mean, what? How is that supposed to work, exactly?
[read the rest of this article here]
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January 6, 2023
I am now a Paper Lantern Writer!
Happy New Year!
I am delighted to have been accepted into the Paper Lantern Writers – a US-based author collective focused on historical fiction of all eras. There’s a lovely blog introducing me on their website!
I am really excited to be part of this group of quality writers, and it means my works will be seen in the company of some great historical fiction.
So far I have read their anthology of short stories called Unlocked – and I enjoyed it enormously. Read my review here.
I am also planning to take part in the 2023 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge through their SHINE Facebook Group – to read as many books from the group in 2023 as possible. Watch this space – I’ll be posting up reviews here as well as on Amazon.
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December 12, 2022
What’s in it for Harry & Meghan?
I remember well the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in May 2018. At the time I lived just outside Windsor where the wedding took place. My then wife and I drove into Windsor the night before, proceeding slowly through the town so we could take in all the sights. The next day we stayed home and watched the actual ceremony on TV, on the basis that we would see the whole event as it happened, rather than just one small part of it from deep within the crowd.
Watching the ceremony, I remember being very impressed with the quiet dignity of Meghan’s mother, as well as the touching moment when Harry’s father Charles walked Meghan down the aisle, as her own father couldn’t be there. I was pleased that as a nation, we were so ready to accept an American actress into our Royal Family. Our very own Grace Kelly!
Part of me had a small concern that Meghan might not fit in, but I thought that after the Diana experience, the Royal Family would be mindful to make sure it wouldn’t happen again. Rather naively, I thought they would have learned from past mistakes, and Meghan would be welcomed and supported.
How wrong I was!
[more]
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November 14, 2022
Successful book launch!
We had a successful launch event in Windsor on Thursday 10th November at the Old Court Art Centre in Windsor. It was great to get together with other members of the Windsor Writers’ Grou
p and to read the opening few paragraphs of my story!
There were plenty of people there, and lots of books were bought by them.
The book is also available in Waterstones bookshop in Windsor, as well as on Amazon UK.
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The God Squad across the Pond
As a Brit, I have been observing the current state of American politics, and particularly the mid-term elections, with open-mouthed amazement. I mean, what on earth is happening on the other side of the pond?
Forgive me, but I’m now going to go into full-on ‘rant’ mode…
As I understand it, right-wing MAGA Republicans – people who in any sane modern society ought to be dismissed as irrelevant religious nut-jobs – are actually getting elected. Elected! In 2022!
Let me just get my head round that. People actually go into the ballot booth, look at the name of some christo-fascist wacko, and say, ‘Yup, that’s the person I want to represent me.’ Believe me, as a Brit, I find that quite incredible. (What’s that? 81,326 people voted for Liz Truss as Tory leader? Yeah, OK. Fair point).
But for goodness’ sake, the people the Americans are voting for appear to believe some deeply weird shit. Such as that the superstitious stories made up thousands of years ago by ignorant bronze-age goat herders are the literal truth! And I repeat, this is in 2022 – when empirically verifiable scientific research has clearly refuted every part of such anachronistic mythologies. Even Liz didn’t put that level of stupidity on her manifesto. [more]
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November 7, 2022
There’s always an easy way
I recently caught the final episode of a reality TV series where three members of the public pitched to become an ‘alternative’ UK Prime Minister. I accept that I only saw the final episode, so I never saw what the three candidates had to do to get into the final, but what they had to do to win it left me deeply saddened about the state of our country.
Each was asked to come up with the central plank of their policy, and put it to a vote by an invited studio audience. The candidate whose policy had the greatest resonance – and who therefore won the contest – was the one who said we should make corporations pay their ‘fair share’ of tax. The other two candidates offered to ‘end institutional racism’ and to ‘end homelessness’.
Why did this leave me saddened? Because it gave the misleading impression that such deeply complex issues can be reduced to such simplistic statements. As if just wishing that things could be better would make them so, when the truth is that success in solving such problems would require equally complex solutions that could potentially in turn, create other – possibly worse – situations further down the line. And that’s if you could even define what success might even look like. It also saddened me that we are creating the perception that members of the public could do a better job than experienced politicians, who – whatever you might think of them – may at least have an understanding of the complexities of an issue (with, of course, some notable exceptions, eh, Liz?).
Yes, I know this programme was just entertainment. But what sort of entertainment is it that makes it seem that all our problems could be solved at a stroke if only a gung-ho member of the public could ‘have a go’ at leading the country? (Although with the way we’re churning through Prime Ministers at the moment, maybe we’ll all get to have a go before the next election). The truth is, of course, that there are no easy solutions, and at best, every policy is a form of compromise.
I know, it would be great if this were not so. If a Prime Minister or President could simply wave a magic wand and ‘kazaam!’ everything is made better. The war in Ukraine? Kazaam! The war is over! Global hyper-inflation? Kazaam! It’s back down to below 2%! Global warming? Kazaam! Brrrr, it’s cooling down! But that simply isn’t going to happen, and giving us the impression that it might is to treat us as infants.
Of course, this brings me on to one of my favourite topics – religion… (oh, no Jonathan – you’re not back on that are you? Yep. Sure am.) [more]
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October 31, 2022
A Creepy Love Story
Ahh, Halloween! The night when the dead rise again from their graves and walk the streets.
All except me, of course – I’m going to a party.
It’s the one night of the year when you get to stretch your legs and feel the wind in your ribs – only a brainless numbskull would waste it hanging around the graveyard and moaning like a rusty gate in a gale.
So I’ve found a party and I am totally going to crash it. It’s in Windsor; a town I have known for many years. Ah yes, there’s a very fine castle in Windsor; one of the best.
A lawyer couple have invited their friends and neighbours round for a Halloween bash in the smarter part of town, and I have decided I shall be there as well. It’ll be all silly hired costumes and ridiculous make-up; the kids will be turned out as devils and ghosts and sent out trick-or-treating before being bundled up to bed so the grown-ups can get on with the serious business of pouring alcohol down their necks and behaving badly till the small hours. Just perfect for a skeletal spectre like me to blend in with the crowd and make the most of my Halloween night of freedom.
I get a fix on the party and materialise outside the front door. I have previously taken the precaution of popping into a costume shop and borrowing one of those all-in-one nylon body suits and a cheap plastic skeleton mask. I chose a black suit with a skeleton painted on in white – oh, the irony of it is delicious. [more]
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