Inequality is rife, already.

So silly season is over and as the trimmings and lights come down, many people come crashing down with them. The weather is gloomy, miserable and along with the freezing cold, for many reality bites in January.  

Some will have over spent, trying to give some happiness to their families and loved ones, after what has been another difficult year. Some will be paying for it until next Christmas.

For other less fortunate soles, Christmas is a sad and lonely time; a time for memories of missed ones, deceased parents or ex partners and absent children. There are many different reasons for many different people to feel desperately helpless and lost as the New Year begins. For others, the new-year signifies new beginnings, a fresh start, and new hope. Some will have made New Year’s resolutions to get fit, others to get a better job, some simply to find happiness.

Wednesday the 8^th of January this year was dubbed fat cat Wednesday. This was not a reference to the thousands joining gyms to shed the excess pounds they have gained over the festive period; this is a reference to the Chief executives of the FTSE 100 companies.

The High pay centre released a report that suggested the remuneration of many of those executives, after just two days back in the office was equal to that of the average worker. It found that in 2012, the average pay for a Chief Executive of a FTSE 100 company was almost £4.3 million (the equivalent of over £1000 per hour). The study went on to say that over the past decade, executive pay has increased by 74% while workers take home an average of £26,000 per year.

Francis O’Grady, general secretary of the TUC, said that fat cat bosses taking home more in a few days than most workers earn in a year is damaging the economy. She added “workers need better pay rises so that the recovery is built on growing incomes, rather than falling savings and mounting household debts; but Britain’s fat cat bosses are hoarding earnings owed to staff or shareholders and themselves.”

The trade unions and Labour have for some time, been calling for a living wage rather than a minimum wage.

In October last year, minimum wage increased by just 1.9% to £6.31 an hour for workers over 21. For 18 year olds, who are often expected to the same role and shifts as their older counter parts is a measly £5.03 per hour.

Were it not for the higher rates of pay in the south, predominantly London wages, the average of £26000 would be much less. A person working in a call centre in Yorkshire will earn on average £18,579 while in London they could expect to earn £25,000, in Manchester £20,536.

The appalling inequality in our country doesn’t end there. Women are still paid considerably less than men. The Fawcett society recently reported that women earn on average 14.9% less than men, which they say, equates to a whopping £423,000 throughout a career. They warned that the gap is in danger of widening as government policy drives workers from the public sector into private sector jobs, where the gap is already wider.

Despite the massive inequalities that exist in our society, Tory PM David Cameron and his Eton colleague, Osborne are resisting the calls for a living wage. They are still keen to punish the poor (who are less likely to vote) further while ring fencing the benefits paid to OAP’s, who coincidentally are more likely to vote, and even more likely to vote Conservative.

Not only are they determined to look after their core voters and the very richest they are still hell bent on destroying trade unions and weakening the support they can offer to low paid workers. They have failed to close the loop holes that allow big business to simply not bother paying taxes, while driving the ill, weak and vulnerable into jobs and imposing crippling bedroom tax and council tax bills on them.

I was fortunate recently to have the opportunity to attend a directors meeting of a leading financial services provider. I suggested that closing the gap between those at the top of the company and those at the bottom would be a good way of raising morale in the workplace and reduce natural attrition of staff, as well as improving the public perception of the finance industry. The silence in the room when I made the suggestion was deafening.

Last Christmas I wrote about the Tory lead Government’s plans to attack the poorest and most vulnerable people in society, cutting benefits, cutting wages and cutting worker’s rights. In the news as this year closes we hear about dead icons, football managers being fired, celebrity chef’s allegedly taking drugs and former X factor winners sleeping with teenage girls..  so while deciding what I should write about I read a blog by a colleague of mine about music. He said that I wouldn’t like it because I wouldn’t know the song. He was right, I didn’t know the song (she’s your lover now), but it made me wonder what it is about a song that touches some people so profoundly.

There have been thousands of books about a million pop stars; there have been endless quotes about music, from Shakespeare to Marley. The late reggae legend is credited with saying “the good thing about music is when it hits you, you feel no pain”. Oh contraire!

The beauty of a great song is that you feel all of the artist’s pain.

I have read many other quotes about music such as Plato’s “music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything”, and Charles Darwin’s “if I had my life to live over again I would (read some poetry and) listen to some music at least every week”, and then are simpler less deep quotes such as Bob Dylan’s “play it fucking loud!”

I think someone also once said that music is the soundtrack to your life. As clichéd as that is, it is for me the truest of remarks. Whether it be the song which topped the charts when your first born arrived or even the song you played while your first born was conceived, music has the ability to ignite and remind the most vivid memories. People spend months deliberating over what should be the first song they dance to as a married couple at their ceremony, and some spend years considering what should be played as they leave this earth. My choice by the way, on our wedding day was Jeff Heeley Band’s Angel Eyes, although the sentiment in John Miles’ Music (was my first love and it will be my last) was extremely tempting.. I am yet to decide on my swan song.

You can choose music to suit your mood and you can choose music to set the mood. There are songs that are generally accepted as great, such as Queens classic Bohemian Rhapsody, which always seems to top polls when voters are asked to name the best song ever. There are also multi-million sellers that are absolute drivel, but somehow manage to capture the imagination of consumers and listeners such as Joe Dolce’s Shaddup your face, which for some reason kept Ultravox from the number one spot, despite Vienna being a more obvious choice.

Some people look for sublime crescendos, while others associate with lyrics and others just like the beat. Whatever your taste, there is something for just about everybody.

Some people will be influenced by the music their parents listened to. As a child in the seventies, our home was full of 1960’s classics and later with 70’s country rock like The Eagles and Jackson Brown and Bad Company, with a helping of Charlie Rich and Cliff Richard. I certainly blame/ thank my parents for my random tastes in music. I can happily listen to Elvis Presley, the second highest selling artist of all time, yet just as easily sing along to Billy Ray Cyrus’ Achey Breaky Heart. There are times I like to listen to sombre music from bands like The Smiths and there times I like to listen to meaningless 80’s pop songs, depending on my mood.

This time of year there are always dollops of cheesy offerings filling the airwaves and there is often a debate about the best Christmas song, I am torn between Muds Lonely this Christmas and the wonderful Fairy-tale of new York, described by one as the perfect song to sing drunk, by Kirsty McColl and The Pogues.

If there needed to be proof that music is in the eye of the beholder and that there is something for everything, take a look at the back catalogue of the all-time top selling  band The Beatles, who have sold over 600million records. They are responsible for giving us such classics as the anthemic Hey Jude, the thumping Twist and Shout and the unforgettable Yellow Submarine.

People who say todays music is rubbish are simply wrong. Today’s music, whether it is to our taste or not is tomorrows classics. To people for whom it means something today it will continue to do so, it will bring to life their memories and fill their thoughts with sadness and joy. If music is the food of life , we shall never starve.

Last December a 23 year old woman was gang raped on a bus in Delhi. The assault was so depraved and violent that the victim had to have part of her intestine removed, and later died from her injuries.

Six men were charged and four were sentenced to death after being found guilty. One suspect died while in custody and a sixth, who was a minor in the eyes of Indian law, received the maximum sentence possible.

The shocking case caused understandable outrage, sparking violent protests on the streets of Delhi which resulted in the law being changed to allow the death penalty.

What is more shocking is that this was not an isolated case carried out by a group of exceptionally vile men; this is quite common with remarkably similar crimes being reported with alarming regularity.

There were an estimated 25,000 reported rape cases in India last year alone. Between 1971 and 2012 the number has increase by 902%.

A 22 year old photojournalist was gang raped in Mumbai by four men who had allegedly previously raped at least four other women. They believed they would get away with the crimes because the thought the authorities would not bother to investigate just another rape case. The accused also threatened the victim, saying if she did go to the police they would post videos of the attack on the internet. Undeterred the brave victim did go to the police and the attackers were arrested.

In a separate attack just 10 days later, a 3 year old girl was allegedly raped at play school.

Her family were reluctant to report the rape at first as the accused family were said to be rungs above the victim’s family on the social ladder. Police in India often treat accusations of rape as trivial, particularly when the victim is poor.

Violence against women in India is commonplace. It starts in childhood. Gender selective abortions and female infanticide mean that males outweigh the female population massively. Worryingly high levels of child marriage, domestic violence and teen pregnancy are seen as acceptable by many. Thousands of young females disappear every year, sold into slavery or marriage (or both) while the authorities take little interest and in many cases are bought off by the perpetrators, such is the level of corruption and disrespect for females. When rapes are reported it often takes over a month before police even register the complaint and the accused are often left free to threaten the victims.

 

A recent survey in the country showed that 57% of Indian boys and 53% of Indian girls thought that wife beating was justified.

The change in the law will do little to stop these horrific crimes when the attitudes of the country’s population are so laid back about such abuse. It will take generations to change the behaviour of men and the willingness of some women to turn a blind eye or in some cases even be party to the actions of their men.

Of over 700 alleged rapes in New Delhi last year only the high profile bus gang rape ended in conviction.  

While India appears to tolerate or simply accept rape and abuse of women, it recently passed law banning homosexuality. Being homosexual was decriminalised in a landmark verdict in 2009 but the supreme courts in India overturned that verdict this week. The decision further highlights the appalling attitudes of the authorities in India.

India and its people should hang their heads in shame. They are the people who must eradicate this behaviour by educating their young, respecting females and prosecuting those guilty of the crimes. It is unacceptable for these incidents to continue and the world must put pressure on the Indian authorities and the 1.2 billion people that live there to put a stop to it.

Sadly, one year on from what the world hoped was a turning point, little or nothing seems to have been done to change it.

 

 

                   

                                                                    Nelson Mandela 1918 - 2013

In June this year, I wrote an article about Nelson Mandela. It was written at a time when the world’s media were camped outside his house waiting to break the news to the world that he had died.

I wrote how he would be remembered for his dignity and courage and for dismantling Apartheid.

Last night the world began to mourn the death of Mandela, in his 95^th year, as he finally succumbed to the lung infection he had battled for months.

Tributes flooded TV screens and social media sites as politicians past and present, people who spent time with him in captivity, and friends and family members queued to heap praise on the man who many can honestly say is the most influential figure of our time.

I wrote in the summer that Mandela was no saint, being the co-founder of a militant group in the 1960’s, which led him being jailed for attempting to overthrow a government. I also wrote of the dangers of prohibiting people like former EDL leader Tommy Robinson from having a voice, and how he could become a free speech and human rights martyr.   

In contrast to those celebrating the life and mourning the loss of Mandela, there were right wing political commentator’s whinging about Margaret Thatcher getting less favourable coverage. There were left wing supporters attacking the right for once calling for Mandela to be treated as a criminal and a terrorist.

Whatever the opinion of Mandela’s early life, those political wanabees could learn many a lesson from the first black president of South Africa’s later life. When Nelson Mandela emerged from prison in 1990, his attitude was that of reconciliation rather than resentment or revenge, his demeanour full of dignity and strength not hostility.

The two sides bickering like children over who loved him or hated him the most are futile and pointless, disrespectful and distinctly trivial when compared to the fight Mandela fought. With hardly room for cigarette paper between the beliefs of the left and the right in this country, it is hard to believe that so recently in South Africa, people actually believed that the rights and lives of people were decided by something as simple as the colour of their skin. It seems ludicrous today that people with dark skin were not allowed to ride on the same bus or buy food from the same shop as people with white skin. There simply is no justifiable argument to support those beliefs. These were the evils Mandela was fighting.

I read somewhere among the tributes last night, someone had written “let us pray that we see the likes of him again”.

I commented “let us pray we never have to”.

I and millions of people living in South Africa and around the world, believe that thanks to Mandela, we never will.

As hard as it to believe the struggle Mandela and his fellow black people faced in those days, it is even harder to imagine the sacrifice he made in pursuit of his beliefs.   Offered conditional freedom years before his eventual release, Nelson Mandela had the courage of his convictions and the strength to say no to that freedom. He believed that his release had to be unconditional, and he gave up his right to a life, his right to see his family grow up and his right for freedom so that others could have those things today. On his release he refused to call for Black preference or to fight for the rights of just black people. He wanted freedom and equality for all.  

He famously said during his trial in 1964 “I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

 

When he passed away last night he left the world a place much closer to those ideals than the place he began his life.

As he made his exit, in a final twist of fate, the story of his life “Mandela: Long walk to freedom” was coincidentally premiering in London.  This coincidence will quite likely fuel the conspiracy theories that he either died months ago or even that he is still alive, and that it cannot be just a coincidence that he died on the day of his film premier. There are always such theories when the most powerful and influential people in history die.

It is no coincidence either that Nelson Mandela will be in the history books forever as a leader, a politician and man of greatness.

 

 

Depression and mental illness: all in your head or in all our heads?             

 

 

Last night I read a beautifully touching piece by a friend of mine, about the devastating loss of his sister. When I first read it I thought thank god I’ve never gone through that. I was thankful that I have never lost anyone that close, which is quite remarkable in its self, considering I am in my 40’s.

When I read it a second time I felt quite sad that I had never experienced the kind of happiness and closeness that my friend spoke of. The unspoken connection between him and his sister, the fond memories that linger today, faded but not forgotten, made me think that while it is obviously important to mourn the loss of loved ones it is vital that we also celebrate them.

 In my limited experience, I have known the catastrophic effect that losing someone can have on individuals and families, sometimes shaping the rest of the life of the surviving members. I have witnessed the complete transformation of a happy loving carefree loyal friend, who following the death of her beloved father completely lost her self and became a self-obsessed bitter sad individual, dependant on medication to function on day to day basis.

I have wanted to write about mental health for some time but the subject is so enormous and so sensitive that I simply didn’t know where to start.

On reading the text of the eulogy my friend shared led me to wonder how someone can experience such joy and closeness, then have it taken away, without suffering some kind of damage. Depression and stress are still rather taboo topics in this country, but I wonder is the potential to suffer these diseases in all of us.

I think it has never been, and possibly never can be determined which event is the trigger and which is the symptom?

I, in the past have suffered depression and stress and I have blamed the excesses of alcohol. There was a period in my late teens when I would drink 8 or 9 pints at lunch time, sometimes more, eventually resulting in me suffering a fit, when I got blazing drunk when I had measles.  The alcohol fuelled the fever to the point where, were it not for the assistance of others I could easily have died. Following the seizure I went to hospital where I was told to my dismay, that if I continued to abuse my body in such a way, that I would be dead in three years.

That was the wake-up call I needed to reign in the drinking, but have still suffered bouts of real anxiousness, deep depression and self-destructiveness even when sober. This leads me to question whether the booze and behaviour were the cause or just a symptom. Indeed often I can find no cause or trigger, which tends to exasperate the situation in my frustration.

Although I feel no shame for these bouts in times of clarity, during the darkness I have no desire to share my feelings and rarely discuss it even now. I have learnt to recognise the onset and on the whole have managed to pull back from the abyss, but not everyone is so lucky and I am in no way naïve enough to believe that I am now immune.

 I am fortunate to have only experienced relatively mild forms of the disease and suffered little or no detriment as a consequence. Others have more severe, more dramatic break downs and lose their jobs, their homes and their family. Some lose their own life.

England cricketer Jonathan Trott made the brave decision to fly home from the ashes in Australia, due to a long standing, stress related condition. It was brave because he faced a backlash from ignorant people who either don’t understand the illness or simply don’t believe in it.

Some unfortunate comments were made publicly, but on the whole Trott has receives widespread support. There is a growing wave of support for sportsmen and women who suffer from mental illness, thanks in no short measure to high profile spokesman such as footballer Clarke Carlisle, in TV documentaries. Some politicians have publicly admitted to suffering from the potentially crippling effects of mental health issues but still there is not enough awareness. Who knows how many people in the country suffer from such illnesses? Due to the very nature of it, there is still a reluctance to admit to it so there can be no accurate measure of just how many people suffer in silence.

I have in the past been a little unsympathetic to homeless people, believing that they largely choose to be homeless; that may be the case, but how many of them are actually making a rational decision? Surely no one in their right mind would opt out of society and resort to begging in the street, but not in ones right mind it is easy for situations to quickly escalate before one has no choice. The effect of the illness could theoretically be costing millions of pounds each year to just repair the damage rather than treating the causes.

Hopefully, as more prominent celebrities and high profile sportsmen speak out and more people have the courage to discuss mental health issues on social network sites and other media, eventually there will be a realisation that any of us can be hit by depression and stress and that there does need to be help and that mental health issues are not all in your head.


http://jamestringham.wordpress.com/

http://www.bipolaruk.org.uk/bipolar-uk-news/2013/11/29/finding-serenity/
 

 

On January 1^st 2014, Britain opens its doors to Bulgaria and Romania.  UKIP leader Nigel Farage is doing the rounds, telling BBC news programmes such as Question Time and The Daily Politics that the 30million people living in those two countries will turn up on our shores to join the 100,000plus that already live here.

Tempted by the well paid labour and our free health services, Farage claims it is inevitable that they will flood our country, despite the fact that they are also free to enter any other country in Europe, including Germany, Spain, and France.

The main political parties here have done little to quash the scare mongering, with communities and local government secretary Eric Pickles repeatedly refusing to estimate the actual numbers we expect. 49 year old former Conservative member Farage has relentlessly used his exaggerations about immigration to bolster his argument that the UK should leave the EU.

A recent report from University college London’s migration research unit, found that migrants coming to the UK since 2000 are less likely to claim benefits or social housing than people who already lived here. The study goes on to report that immigrants contributed £25 billion to our economy in the same period. This bucks the popular perception  the right wingers would have us believe that foreigners will come here taking all our houses, claiming our benefits and increasing crime rates.

It is high time politicians and certain quarters of the media stopped muddying the waters and had the grown up, honest debate about immigration that Farage calls for, but debate based on facts, not fantasy.

UKIP and Farage deserve to be congratulated for raising the issue from being whispered about behind closed doors, to the top of the political agenda. It is now possible to discuss immigration without being accused of racism, although there are still no doubt those who will have that agenda.

While it is arguable that immigrants are taking all the houses, what is clear, is that we need more houses. The down side of immigration “what if’s” dominating the headlines is that issues such as housing shortages, the increasing cost of living, and precautionary measures against the threat of terrorism get pushed down the agenda or shaped to fit the agenda.

Terror suspects such as Mohammed Ahmed Mohamed are able to disappear by simply entering a mosque and changing into a Burka. He has been undetected since the 1^st of November. Urgent action needs to be taken on the clearly ineffective measures we currently have in place, yet we spend time debating whether the Burka should be banned. Someone asked on TV last week, as terror suspects escape in taxis, should we also ban taxis?
 

We need honest, transparent and sensible debate on the real issues that matter from our democratically elected leaders not lies, hearsay and mis-leadership from second hand car salesmen.

 

Coral the bookmakers are giving odds this weekend on the next premier league manager to lose his job with Fulham boss Martin Jol at 6/5 and Norwich’s Chris Hughton 6/4.

Football managers are paid huge sums of money (compared to most of us) to tell millionaire footballers how to play the beautiful game, but are the games top coaches paid too much or are they worth their pay.

Jol’s Fulham are currently in 16^th position in the premier league, having won just three of their first ten games. In one of those games his team scores two contenders for goal of the season and yet he will if they lose to Liverpool at the weekend he will be edging even closer the exit door. The 57 was previously sacked by premier league London rivals Tottenham, during a defeat against Getafe CF in 2007. He has claimed he found out about his fate via a text from his nephew before the game had ended.

Current leaders Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger faced calls for the sack in the opening days of the season after an opening day defeat to Aston Villa. Criticised for not bringing in fresh talent, fans seemed to have lost patience after failing to win a trophy in almost a decade. Three months later and £42 million spent on highly rated German, Mesut Ozil, the gunners are 5 points clear having not lost since the Villa game.

Even the self-proclaimed special one, Jose Mourinho and new Manchester United boss David Moyes have been subjects of the sack race rumour mill.

So are managers unfairly judged too harshly or are they lucky to be in the job?

An inspirational manager can transform the fortunes of a club, given time and faith. Current Everton boss Roberto Martinez cut his teeth in management at Swansea. At the time they faced extinction narrowly escaping relegation from the football league. Martinez’s style of play and inspirational man management transformed the club into the premier league outfit they are today. Crewe legend Dario Grady has served the club for over 30 years in various capacities and is credited with discovering some of the best young talent in the game.  One could argue then that some managers, given the time by the clubs directors can justify the money they earn are arguably more important than their millionaire playboy charges. In contrast it is easy to feel for managers such as Terry Connor, who enjoyed 13 games at the helm for Wolves before being replaced or former Charlton boss Ian Dowie, who was in charge for just 12 games in 2006.

Chelsea hero Roberto Di matteo was dismissed by the Stamford Bridge outfit after just 8 months in charge despite winning two trophies including the prestigious Champions League trophy.

So while it may not look good for Messes Jol and Hughton, they should take heart from the premier league’s longest serving and most successful manager, Sir Alex Ferguson.

Sir Alex lost his first game in charge to Oxford United, followed by a dull draw at Hughton’s current club Norwich. In 1989-90 there were calls for him to be sacked by fans and journalists alike. After a run of 7 games without a win it was widely expected that his reign would be ended until Mark Robins scored the winning goal against an in form Nottingham Forest. His team went on to win the FA Cup that season, the first of 5 and 13 league titles in a 25 year spell.

Maybe 25 years from now Sir Chris Hughton will be the most distinguished manager in history, but sadly I fear a home defeat at the hands of West Ham this week end could be the final nail in his Norwich coffin.