Religion in the news

This could be a well researched article... with lot of links and shit... but actually it gets on my thrupenny bits so much that I can't be bothered.

Anyway, the news is that in a high court decision it has been ruled that local councils aren't allowed to say prayers as part of meetings.

Despite a new law being rushed through which will make it legal, (a law the bishops probably get to vote on) of course various pervy old men if frocks who's opinions really shouldn't be taken seriously because they believe in ghosts, jumped up and down and made a lot of noise about a war on religion.... well yeah, there is because it's shit and we should grow out of it already!

Lord Pickles was quoted as saying, "This is still a Christian country". Well the latest British Social Attitudes Survey would disagree, those identifying as Christian are now a minority (43%), and church attendance figures mean... well the Church of England is already selling off the silver.

But unfortunately, a large part is  Protestant  Christian...  which pisses of some Catholics so much that hundreds of years on, they are still killing people for some reason.

So in other news some moron was convicted of murdering two soldiers on behalf of the IRA, and some other off shoot murdered a man in front of his family last night.

The Christian couple who owned a bed and breakfast and refused to let homosexuals share a double bed lost their right to appeal the court's decision that they were nutters.

Apparently you are only allowed to get away with abusing homosexuals in the street, not in the workplace. A preacher was cleared of verbally abusing two gay men .

In other news, some of those ethnic religious loonies that brought their brand of Christianity back from Africa are in the dock for murdering a boy who they thought was a witch, proving that it is religious idiocy and not the Middle Ages that causes this kind of nonsense.

And just to prove it isn't only Christians who are who do stupid shit in the name of a god, some Muslims were convicted of handing out leaflets saying that homosexuals should be killed.

So this little lot was all in one radio new bulletin. Oh the irony! Religions bringing us peace and love! If gawd forbid we were to become a secular country, we would descend into immorality, and rape and murder and shit, just like Sweden and Denmark!

[EDIT] I should mention that yesterday's news continued the Church of England's split over the issue of women Bishops... I just wanted to show that it's not just homosexuals, witches, atheists and people of other denominations  they are against, in the interest of balance it should be noted that continue with their bigotry against women too.

Oh, have an insightful video:-  

I'm a hater

Yes I'm a hater and proud of it. Given the choice, 'hater' is not the word I would use, but it's the label given out by those hippy types who believe that you should mind your own business and 'live and let live'.

Worse still, these  fuzzy-thinking, bed-wetters seem to hold the view that because every arse hole is entitled to an opinion, all opinions are equally valid.

It's this whole business of 'teaching both sides of the controversy' when there is no controversy, and the bat-shit rantings of a loony in a tin-foil hat are given equal credence as the expert opinions of a climatologist or an evolutionary biologist. It's becoming a problem the world over.

Everybody is entitled to an opinion, and they are entitled to their freedom of speech, and the rest of us are entitled to call them on their bullshit. Do you remember the story of the Emperor's new clothes? You wouldn't if the little boy had kept his mouth shut for fear of being called a 'hater', just like all the other bozos.

One of the reasons I have a dominant and assertive personality is that I have principles and strong core values from which I could never be moved apart from by critical thought. I also give a fuck about what I see going on around me. So there is no way I'm going to be silenced by an Internet meme.

***

I read something interesting the other day, something like, "Go to a mush, get involved with your local BDSM community, they tend not to tolerate the idiots and they get weeded out very quickly". Of course, because they are a community, unlike what we find on the internet where they culture is to do your own thing and don't mind other people's business.

Weeding out idiots, the criminal, the dangerous and those that don't share their values, is what communities do.

Any 'D' who has been at this a while must have noticed that a fair number of subs are vulnerable. You'll find subs that are taking medication for depression/anxiety, many that have been in abusive relationships (physical or emotional). There are those that have suffered sexual abuse as adults or children. I have even run across those that struggle with substance abuse. And just as in any group of people, there are a few who are just naive and easily lead into trouble. And many will readily confess they have little confidence and low self esteem.
I can't even begin to guess what sort of percentage of subs/bottoms could be classed as vulnerable -- maybe I attract them but in my experience it is almost half, and friends also inform me that's it's not uncommon.

Personally I'm not the type to get too upset over stuff that happens on the Internet, let alone in role-play, but I know many are. For me, I suppose, it's live-and-learn, school of hard knocks.

...but what about when a dum-dom wants to take things into real life? Do you stand by and say nothing? Apparently most people do.

Suppose you see somebody who starts their profile by saying they are an asshole or evil, ends by telling you they aren't stupid, and in-between seems to do everything in their ability to prove that they ARE stupid and know nothing of D/s... what do you do?

It's not really cause for drastic action, they are probably just a harmless idiot right?

But what if their profile shows they have a preoccupation with bestiality, or hints at age-play, and they are openly looking for financial domination and blackmail?

If you can't see there is a recipe for disaster here... you may have a seriously self destructive streak. I lose count of the times I have said in my head, "What the fuck were you thinking?".

The credo is 'Safe, Sane and Consensual', and when we talk about consent, we of course mean 'informed consent'. You can't give your consent unless you are fully informed about what you are getting into -- due diligence is required. If I ask questions I'm just helping with that. Sane is often taken to mean knowing the difference between fantasy and reality, so I tend to pick on people who are asking for RL interaction yet seem to have both feet on a cloud. But lets not rule out that some people are insane or dangerously insane. And I tend to pick up on people who want to engage in activities which by their very nature are unsafe. And lets not kid ourselves, some paraphilias are clear indicators that a person isn't that interested in consent.

In good conscience, would you really recommend to a sub that they willingly allowed them self to be blackmailed by somebody who doesn't know the difference between punctuation and punctuality? Who is interested in bestiality and rape fantasy, and who fills their profile full of paranoid rantings and threats.

Every now and again, I can't hold my tongue and just have to challenge somebody who posts in a group, usually I challenge them on something in their profile. I don't want to get into a slagging match, as it's not productive. But I will ask questions, let the target speak and with their own words show what fools they are. Often I can only respond with contempt wrapped in sarcasm. When I see 3-4 red flags in one profile, is it so wrong to draw attention to it?

Last time I did this, can you guess what happened? A Domme jumped in with the live-and-let-live defense and a shit-load of excuses, a Dom decided to turn into as pissing contest between him and me, and several subs also chipped in with abuse directed at me, one attempting to spam/troll/grief me in the most childish manner via IMs.

Don't get me wrong... I'm not upset that 4-5 people would gang up on me, I love a good fight and you better believe I held my own. And I'm not upset that people would call me on what's written in my profile or what I say in chat -- I welcome it. It makes me look good because I am an expert at being me, but I don't pretend to be an expert D/s, BDSM or even being a Domme*. And I don't want to be the policeman of the BDSM community, nor am I  trying to be. The community should be self policing.

This really isn't about me, in fact I know I'm not alone in my thoughts. I know a few good people who feel the same way, and I have run across several people who have been jumped on when they express their opinions publicly.

I don't believe you need to be an expert to act like a good citizen. I also believe you should stand up for  what you know is right, and stand up and be counted when it comes to protecting your community and the people in it.

What upsets me is that people would be so stupid as to think that keeping the peace and stomping out drama takes precedent over all else.

In the example I cited above, sure one Dom obviously wanted to score points off me for his own aggrandizement, he also scored points off the person I was targeting. But all the others jumped in with the intent to silence me. To label me a 'hater' and trouble maker. Keeping in mind I entered into this with caution, asking questions (albeit sarcastic questions) and not outright accusations statements of fact, which frankly, I feel would have been justified. I am certain such an approach would have been met with even greater hostility.

I'm not asking for a crusade. But as there seem to have been a number of groups that have sprung up that have discussion meetings, I do hope this whole topic will become the subject of a discussion.

***

I just remembered...

On a couple of occasions I have taken issue with people which has led to an exchange in local chat. In one example I can think of I was dealing with somebody who had a very real contempt for women; not just common sexism, but something bordering on hatred.

I was told by a couple of people to take it to IMs. That they saw no reason why I couldn't have my fight privately and spare everyone the drama.

I guess this is the 'secrecy' that Swan mentions in one of her recent posts.

When I see a red flag, a clear warning sign, I feel I should make sure everybody else sees it too and is aware of the danger. There is no way I'm going to take it to IMs and help these arseholes to hide their warning flags. Because thats their modus operandi and exactly how they want it.

If they had wanted everybody to know, they would have insulted and attacked me in local in the first place. But they know their behavior is anti-social and damn-right wrong in any context, but they think they can get away with it because it is kept private. And yes, we are talking about men who have sent me unsolicited messages designed to insult, belittle, harass and bully.

Bullies are fairly easy to deal with, they are by their very nature weak and pathetic. It's the self righteous twats, who think they are doing us all a favour by keeping the peace... the kind of people who cry 'Hater' or say, "Take it to IMs" who are the ones who have caused parts of SL to descend into a cesspool.

* Disclaimer - I do not presume to educate people about BDSM, D/s, Roleplay, sexual health or anything else! I don't have nearly enough experience to speak with any authority on these matters. I am quite happy to allow people to do what they want to do, content with the fact that often I just don't get it.
However I do have plenty of life experience and I can recognize 'mad, bad and/or sad' when I see it. This is what I tend to call people on.
I am fairly certain that other people who have touched on this subject feel that if they were able to speak freely, they could educate -- I have no objection to that and would welcome it regarding matters on which there were consensus, and which prompted debate. I think it would be great...

...but right now I want to head off any accusations of, "Who the fuck are you to tell us how it should be done?". I don't lecture anybody how it should be done, but you should be prepared to justify what you do... or not. If you aren't prepared to answer questions from me, then maybe you should go and ask them of yourself.

Pick-up Artist

[12:09:26] HH: hello Vicky?
[12:09:50] HH: do you like smoking?
[12:09:51] Vinny Caramel: Hello
[12:10:06] Vinny Caramel: Yes, thats why i do it.
[12:10:26] HH: but the nicotine taste bad
[12:10:44] HH: like kissing an ashtray
[12:11:06] Vinny Caramel: Well.... don't worry, you won't be kissing me.
[12:11:19] HH: yes but others might
[12:11:38] HH: and you have to pay sin taxes
[12:11:58] HH: taxes you won't have to pay if you quit today
[12:12:09] HH: I am a poet
[12:12:17] Vinny Caramel: No such thing as 'sin', it's a religious concept. Religion is for morons.
[12:12:21] HH: you would never know it
[12:13:07] Vinny Caramel: As you have seen fit to give me a lecture on smoking, how about i give you a lecture on religion?
[12:13:07] HH: that.s pretty good
[12:13:41] HH: outspoken and direct
[12:14:34] HH: you don't have to teach me religeon, our ministyer did that already
[12:15:09] HH: used me as a weathervane as i only then go to church on a rainy day
[12:15:56] HH: sorry for the typos
[12:16:13] HH: I still type with 2 fingers only
[12:16:26] HH: you must use all 12?
[12:16:50] Vinny Caramel: Thats an insult?
[12:17:21] HH: no insult intended
[12:18:07] HH: I just want ed to save you from lung cancer
[12:18:31] HH: and wrinkles
[12:19:15] Vinny Caramel: So you accuse me of being a sinner and a mutant? You really are a charmless nerk aren't you?
[12:20:34] HH: I am just trying to save your life no shame in that
[12:21:06] Vinny Caramel: If I were you, I'd worry about getting your own life
[12:21:16] HH: don't know what a nerk is...have to google
[12:22:04] Vinny Caramel: http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/nerk
[12:22:36] HH: thanks you are so helpful
[12:24:30] HH: that does not fit, I am the greatest with one foot in my mouth

Mood music

Trying to put together a playlist for home to create a mood, an atmosphere.



I took an early decision to only include girls, and I tried to go for moody, sexy, assertive, positive... not so easy! I tried to grab some 1950's glamour, but strayed into the early 70s, but I hope i managed to stay away from anything too pop, cheesy or bubblegum. It should be good as inoffensive background music, or for listening.

A work in progress.

Let the courts decide

I claim France in the name of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

I fully expect Argentina to back my claim at the UN, as they seem to think that the following are legitimate grounds for a claim of sovereignty.

A. We went there once.
B. It's not very far away.

As for the Falkland Islands, there is nothing to negotiate...  but this can be settled at the International Court. The United Kingdom is more than happy to meet Argentina there to see if the afore mentioned grounds for their claim trump the Falkland Islander's right to self determination.

I wish I could claim credit for the idea of settling this in court, but the idea was first put forward by H.M. Government in the 1960s* and as far as I know it is an option that remains open. Alas, Argentina has always ignored this means of settling the matter once and for all.


Correction : This solution was put forward during negotiations in 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s... until they invaded in 1982.

history

Definition of insanity

I'm told, that doing the same thing again and again, and expecting different results, is the very definition of insanity.

So to keep copy/pasting the same thing into multiple group chats, again and again, day after day, week after week...

If it were ever going to work, it would have worked by now and you would be up to your armpits in Dom/mes/subs/cash. The fact that you aren't is proof that your advert doesn't work. And now after having seen it 30 times, it also proves that you are unoriginal, lack imagination, lazy, and not very smart.

You are also being annoying.

To Keyra

I really hope I see you at the weekend babe. But don't worry if not. You know where to find me.

Slow and easy is my style.

 
Ann Cole ~ Easy Easy Baby