Excessive "inclusiveness" kills a kid

It seems unlikely that this kid was bullied because of his homosexuality:  He said it had been happening all his life.  It seems clear that he was bullied because of effeminate behaviour.

Effeminate homosexuals can however be trained to behave in a more masculine way and some have been surprised and pleased at the boost in acceptance that they get out of that.  You can be homosexual without being effeminate. 

But you are not allowed these days to "reform" homosexuals in any way so the young man below presumably got no such training.  He might be alive today if he had

Some effeminate homosexuals can "change gear" without being formally taught.  I remember my son's music teacher being noticeably camp as he taught his pupils but when he saw my eye on him he abruptly became more normal  -- deeper voice etc.  Not all effeminate homosexuals can do that however.

Leftists will of course say that the problem is "intolerance" and they are right.  But some intolerances are inborn and railing against them is unlikely to achieve much.  It may in fact entrench the intolerance. Preaching at people is often counterproductive -- JR.

The parents of a trainee teacher who killed himself because he had been bullied for years over his sexuality have published their son's suicide note in a local newspaper.

Tim Ribberink, who was training to become a history teacher, killed himself last Thursday following years of bullying.

But the decision by his parents Gerrit and Hetty Ribberink to publish their son's suicide note  has divided opinion in the Netherlands.

In the newspaper, the suicide note is published along with Tim's death notice and a large smiling picture of him.

It reads: 'Dear Mum and Dad, All my life I have been ridiculed, abused, bullied and excluded. You guys are fantastic. I hope you’re not angry. Until we meet again, Tim.'

His devastated parents, from Tilligte, east of Amsterdam, said they were not aware that there son was struggling to cope until he killed himself last Thursday.

According to Irish Times.com, his parents have now asked police to investigate his death and in particular, to look at two fake messages which were posted in his name online.

One of the messages dates back to 2010 with the second appearing last summer. It read: 'I am a loser and a homo'.  The parents are now hoping the police will be able to identify the bullies by investigating the fake messages.

The decision by Tim's parents to publish the suicide note led to a massive reaction on Twitter.  Despite some negative comments, the majority of posts supported the parents' decision to publish the note. Many called for tougher laws to deal with bulling.

Within hours of the story about Tim's death emerging, his photograph was shared more than 5,000 times. The Twitter hashtag #timribberink has also been trending in the Netherlands.

Last night, an emotional funeral took place at the Catholic church in Tilligte.  Hundreds of friends and family attended, with many still shocked and angry about his death.

A message from his parents was read to the congratulation from local pastor Marinus Van den Berg, which read: 'Tim was not weak or pathetic. He was strong. That is how we knew him, and that is how he would want the world to remember him.'

They also quote Winston Churchill by telling other people who are being bullied to never give up.

Tim's teacher training college in Windesheim and his former secondary school both said they did not know Tim was being bullied.

SOURCE





Our Deviant Society

 Walter E. Williams
 
Here's one usage of the term gentleman: The gentleman helped the fallen lady to her feet. Here's another, one we might hear from a newscaster or a police spokesman: Tonight we report on the arrest of two gentlemen who raped, sodomized and murdered an 80-year-old woman.
During earlier times, to be called a gentleman meant one was honest, brave, courteous and loyal. Today "gentleman" is used interchangeably in reference to decent people and the scum of the earth.

Much of today's language usage demonstrates a desire to be nonjudgmental. People used to shack up; now they cohabit or are living partners. Few young women of yesteryear would have felt comfortable to publicly declare they slept around. Unmarried women used to give birth to a bastard; later, this was upgraded to an illegitimate birth or a nonmarital birth. In many instances, unwed mothers proudly hold baby showers celebrating their illegitimate offspring, and the man, if known, who sired the baby is referred to as "my baby's daddy" or sometimes as "my baby daddy."

Homosexual marriages, which are not a basic human survival trait, were unheard of; today, in some jurisdictions, homosexual marriages have legal sanction. To be judgmental about modern codes of conduct is to risk being labeled a prude, racist, sexist or a homophobe. People ignore the fact that to accept another's right to engage in certain peaceable, voluntary behavior doesn't require moral acceptance or sanction.

Another measure of social deviancy is reflected by the excuses and apologies that are made for failures and how we make mascots out of social misfits, such as criminals and bums. The intellectual elite tell us that it's poverty or racism that produces criminals, as opposed to a moral defect. We call bums homeless people. That suggests a moral equivalency between people who have lost their homes in a fire or natural disaster and people who choose to be social parasites; therefore, neither group is to be blamed for its respective condition. People who are very productive members of our society, such as the rich, are often held up to ridicule and scorn.

Think back to former President Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky and the nation's response that "it was just about sex." Therefore, it was no big thing for the president and his men to become involved in witness tampering, perjury, obstruction of justice and a White House-organized attack on Kenneth Starr, an officer of the court. Most Americans thought removal from office was too harsh for Clinton's lawlessness.

That kind of lawlessness helped establish a precedent for lawless acts by President Barack Obama. His most recent was an executive order that suspended legal liability for young people who are brought to our country illegally by their parents. He also repealed the legal requirement that welfare recipients must work, by simply redefining "work" to include other things, such as going to classes on weight control. Then there are waivers from Obamacare for favored allies -- waivers that offend the principle of equality before the law.

Whether the president's actions were good or bad ideas or not is irrelevant. What's relevant is whether we want to establish a precedent whereby a president, who has no constitutional authority to repeal parts of congressional legislation, can grant special favors and rule by presidential decree like Third World tyrants.

I don't hold President Obama completely responsible for his unconstitutional actions. It's the American people who are to blame, for it is we who have lost our morality and our love, knowledge and respect for our Constitution, laying the foundation for Washington tyranny. It is all part and parcel of "defining deviancy down," which is the term former U.S. Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan coined in 1993 to describe how we've switched from moral absolutes to situational morality and from strict constitutional interpretation to the Constitution's being a "living document." Constitutional principles that do not allow one American to live at the expense of another American are to be held in contempt. Today's Americans have betrayed the values that made us a great nation, and that does not bode well for future generations.

SOURCE





High Street left without Christmas lights for first time in 20 years after killjoy officials demand £4,000 for lamppost health and safety tests

Officials have banned Christmas lights from a busy High Street for the first time in 20 years unless traders fork out up to £4,000 to have lampposts tested for health and safety reasons.

Furious residents and local business owners have slammed a new rule which means the West Wickham Town Centre Association must pay for test certificates to ensure lampposts are strong enough to support Christmas lights.

The charge was introduced after the High Street was designated a red route, meaning it is managed by Transport for London (TfL) rather than Bromley Council.  As one of London’s major roads, the High Street carries up to 30 per cent of city traffic.

Secretary of the association Jane Avis manages the family-run shop Waterways, in the High Street, which has been running for more 30 years.  She said: 'We’ve had Christmas lights for over 20 years. My mum used to do it and then I took it over.  'It doesn’t make a massive difference to trade, it just gives a good community feeling.

'West Wickham High Street has been a red route for four or five years and they never asked for anything.  'But last year they said we need to comply with regulations which are different to Bromley Council’s.  'We’re going to fight them all the way. We won’t let them dampen our Christmas spirits.'

Resident Charles Sebestyen, a 70-year-old retired property executive who has lived in the area for around 35 years, said: 'It has killed the Christmas spirit in the West Wickham area.  'TfL is being ridiculous. I simply do not understand how something that has worked for a long time is now suddenly unsafe.'

Robert Oxley, campaign manager of the TaxPayers' Alliance said: 'With money tight councils don’t have a fortune to spend on Christmas lights.  'Bureaucrats shouldn't be making it more expensive to decorate town centres with some Christmas cheer. 'If traders and residents are willing to invest in their community’s festive celebrations then authorities should support that, not get in the way with needless red tape and bureaucracy.'

TfL director of roads Dana Skelley said: 'Safety on our road network is the top priority and any additional attachments to a lighting column on our road network have to be fully considered to ensure their weight or size does not have the potential to put the public at risk.

'That is why we have a clear licensing procedure in place to help ensure any applications for decorations can be assessed appropriately.  'Hundreds of these licences are issued for festive decorations across London every year however we are meeting with local traders tomorrow to discuss the matter, with a look to finding a workable solution.'

Councillor for renewal and recreation Peter Morgan said: 'The traders have worked extremely hard to gather funds together to decorate their High Street and we have supported them in this.

'We are now pressing TfL, who are responsible for this road as a red route, to see if anything can be done to rectify this situation in time for Christmas.'

A Transport for London spokesman said £4,000 was the maximum charge for the tests, which would cover a £75 admin fee plus any additional charges required to restrict traffic along the road to install or remove the decorations.  [Very generous of them!]

SOURCE





BBC bosses told Professor he couldn't listen to newly discovered planet 'in case aliens swore on live TV'

Control freaks

Professor Cox said BBC bosses told him he could not attempt to listen to a newly discovered planet

The quest to discover life on other planets knows no boundaries. Apart from BBC health and safety guidelines, that is.

Professor Brian Cox has told how corporation bosses blocked his plans to try to make contact with a newly discovered planet – just in case some aliens happened to answer back.

The physicist and TV host claimed they were worried the experiment, to be staged live on air during his hit BBC2 show Stargazing Live, might pick up a signal from ‘an alien civilisation’ – which is apparently a breach of corporation guidelines.

He had hoped to point a radio telescope at Threapleton Holmes B, the planet discovered by amateur stargazers during a project publicised on his show.  The telescope, based at Manchester University’s Jodrell Bank Observatory, picks up radio emission from planets.

But the experiment never went ahead for fear it would breach health and safety regulations, Prof Cox claimed yesterday in a radio interview on BBC6 Music.

‘We decided that we’d point the Jodrell Bank telescope at the planet that had been discovered by these two viewers and listen because no one had ever pointed a radio telescope at it and you never know,’ he recalled.

‘The BBC actually said, “But you can’t do that because we need to go through the regulations and health and safety and everything in case we discover a signal from an alien civilisation”.

‘(I said), “You mean we would discover the first hint that there is other intelligent life in the universe beyond Earth, live on air, and you’re worried about the health and safety of it?” It was incredible. They did have guidelines. Compliance.’

BBC6’s breakfast show host Shaun Keaveny was incredulous at his guest’s claim. ‘The idea that intelligent life could be discovered and it might swear and that’s why we wouldn’t broadcast it – it’s such a brilliant BBC thing, isn’t it?’ he said.

Prof Cox also said he had a second bizarre encounter with BBC bosses during the show when he suggested asking volunteers to scour pictures of Mars for signs of geological activity that computer scrutiny might have missed. ‘Someone from the BBC said to me, “Would there have to be a prize if someone discovered it?”

‘(I said), “What do you mean? You’re going to say to someone, you discovered the first evidence for alien life beyond Earth – and here’s a book voucher as well?  ‘“You think that’s going to make it better? You’re going to go down in history with a Nobel prize – book tokens or Nectar points?”’

A BBC spokesman said: ‘In making the series there were many light-hearted conversations, one of which was about how different organisations might react to the discovery of alien life.’

Stargazing Live, which explores astronomy and the night sky, saw record ratings this year, peaking at 3.8million. Threapleton Holmes B was discovered during the show in January by amateur scientists Chris Holmes and Lee Threapleton.

In what is believed to be only the third time British amateurs have found a new planet, they made their discovery by spotting changes in light patterns in an image from Nasa’s Kepler space telescope.

SOURCE

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Political correctness is most pervasive in universities and colleges but I rarely report the  incidents concerned here as I have a separate blog for educational matters.

American "liberals" often deny being Leftists and say that they are very different from the Communist rulers of  other countries.  The only real difference, however, is how much power they have.  In America, their power is limited by democracy.  To see what they WOULD be like with more power, look at where they ARE already  very powerful: in America's educational system -- particularly in the universities and colleges.  They show there the same respect for free-speech and political diversity that Stalin did:  None.  So look to the colleges to see  what the whole country would be like if "liberals" had their way.  It would be a dictatorship.

For more postings from me, see TONGUE-TIED, GREENIE WATCH,   EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS,  DISSECTING LEFTISM, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL  and EYE ON BRITAIN (Note that EYE ON BRITAIN has regular posts on the reality of socialized medicine).   My Home Pages are here or   here or   here.  Email me (John Ray) here. 

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