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Prostitution or Existence

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ProstitutionProstitution has sometimes been called one of the oldest professions in history. 

…You have probably heard prostitution referred to as the “the world’s oldest profession,” and in some ways, the idea makes sense. There are references to prostitutes in virtually every culture or society with any type of recorded history. As soon as a civilization began trading and developing wealth, certain members of that civilization would accept goods or money in exchange for sex… 

[WESLEY J. SCHROEDER, Attorney at Law]

 

But with wave after wave of immigrants due to the various conflicts and natural disasters, also comes prostitution.  This is not only due to oppressive regimes, homophobia etc but also through the desire of all people to better themselves.   Prostitution has continued its merry way, in waves up and down depending on the needs of the people.

Prostitution is not something new,  but in most people’s minds it is women who are prostitutes, but this has never only been true.  However, what is true today is with the internet anyone can be a lady/man of the night.  The upheaval of today’s society has forced people of both sexes to take up this oldest of trades.  Often, they are from very conservative, possibly religious backgrounds, and because they are usually without support, and living hand to mouth, without documentation, they take up something that can give them money and maybe (if they are lucky) enable them to move on with their lives.Prostitution

There are enough YouTube documentaries to support this, and documentaries which try to be aloof about the situation and try not to take sides!

Back in 1985, Streetwise Youth was set up to help tackle young male prostitution:

…Streetwise Youth (an organisation providing support to boys who are being

exploited and abused through prostitution and to young men involved in

prostitution) found that many of the boys and young men who become involved in prostitution are gay and have experienced homophobic reactions to their sexuality, often leaving them alone and unsupported. A significant number of the young men in contact with Streetwise Youth were separated from one or both parents by the age of 15, and over 60% report childhood sexual and physical abuse as well as emotional abuse and neglect. Most of Streetwise Youth’s clients misuse drugs and alcohol in their efforts to deal with earlier damaging and current experiences….

Safeguarding Children Involved in Prostitution – Dept of Health (May 2000)

It did close briefly and then reopened with Gerard Calvert at the helm.in 1994.  The Independent ran an article (Bucharest Boys muscle in on Dutch Trade) which highlighted that a growing number of children and teenagers from Eastern Europe were being turned into prostitutes in the wealthier half of Western Europe.

In a totally different geographical location, Thailand, COVID has totally changed the demographics in terms of prostitution.  The numbers visiting the country for sex have dropped dramatically and this means that the providers of sex (both the organisers and those actually doing the acts) are living on the poverty line.

Most governments turn a blind eye to the trade as long as it doesn’t become a burgeoning criminal enterprise or health risks become too large to ignore. Still, the problem is that when they do decide to ‘crackdown’ it is the girls, boys, women and men doing the acts who tend to get rounded up, taken to court, fined and/or put in jail.  The orchestrators more often and not stay out of the courts living on the ill-gotten gains!

I can pretty well guarantee that under the Conservative government, and indeed even a New Labour one, the required support and funding initiatives etc will not be available to help these girls, boys, women and men locked in a battle of existence.

The displaced people, and think about Palestine, just trying to survive will be rounded up and taken to camps (or floating “hotels” as the Conservatives would have you think of them) where one regime of tyranny will be replaced by another with its own hierarchy.

What do you think we should do to help these women, men, girls and boys?  Has society not a moral obligation to be doing more?

 

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Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022

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police-crime-sentencing-and-courts-act-2022    This article was published in Openly, Reuters:

OPINION: Time to wipe the slate clean: New UK government measures address historical convictions under homophobic laws 

by Paul Johnson, Michael Cashman and Alistair Lexden
Thursday, 28 April 2022 12:30 GMT

The passing of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 means that disregards and pardons are available to any person who was convicted of sexual activity between persons of the same sex, subject to certain conditions

Professor Paul Johnson is Executive Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Leeds; Michael Cashman is a former Labour MEP and currently a Labour peer of the House of Lords; Alistair Lexden is a Conservative peer and a Deputy Speaker of the House of Lords.

Martin Luther King Jr said, “We are not makers of history; we are made by history.”  

Dr King’s words have particular resonance for LGBTQ+ people in the UK who lived through the final years of a very long history of homophobic laws that damaged and, in many cases, destroyed lives.

Although the laws that for centuries prevented gay people living full and happy lives have been progressively repealed, such laws continue to have consequences for some people today.

Among the significant consequences are the official records that endure for those convicted of, or cautioned for, offences involving same-sex sexual conduct that would today be entirely lawful. Such records have continued to harm the lives of people who are still living today and are an insult to the memory of those who have died.

Since 2012, the legislatures of the UK have taken action to address the painful history of the persecution of gay people and have introduced “disregard” and “pardon” schemes.

Although there are some differences in the schemes operating in England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland their overall effect is to provide a mechanism for those living with a caution or conviction, for same-sex sexual conduct that would today be lawful, to have a caution or conviction disregarded and to be pardoned. In addition, posthumous pardons have been granted to those cautioned or convicted under laws extending back to the 16th century.  

Having a caution or conviction disregarded can be life changing. It means, for example, that a person will be treated for all purposes in law as if that person has not committed the offence. Moreover, the granting of pardons, aside from their legal status, is a strong, symbolic apology to each and every person who has been wronged.

The disregard and pardon schemes are therefore very important. They address individual suffering, and they also send a clear message to people in the UK, and in the wider world, that we have confronted our shameful history and said “never again”. This is particularly important at a time when, around the world, fanatical legislation is being proposed by those who wish to harm LGBTQ+ people.

However, until the passage of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, the disregard and pardon schemes in England and Wales were significantly flawed because they encompassed only a small fraction of the offences that, over the decades and centuries, ruined the lives of gay people. Crucially, the schemes did not include the wide range of service discipline offences that allowed members of the UK armed forces to be convicted for same-sex sexual acts long after such acts became legal for civilians – offences that often ruined the careers and lives of service personnel.

For the past six years, the three of us have worked together, with supportive government ministers – particularly Baroness Goldie and Baroness Williams of Trafford – as well as dedicated civil servants, to address the limitations of the disregard and pardon schemes and bring justice to all those who need and deserve it.

We were responsible, for instance, for ensuring that posthumous pardons for Royal Navy personnel were appropriately provided for in the Policing and Crime Act 2017, and we were responsible for provisions in the Armed Forces Act 2021 that extended posthumous pardons to Army and Royal Marines personnel.

Most recently, we worked with the UK government to include provisions in the 2022 Act that change the disregard and pardon schemes in England and Wales to encompass the wide range of repealed criminal and service discipline offences that once regulated same-sex sexual activity that would be lawful today.

The changes made by the 2022 Act to the schemes in England and Wales mean that disregards and pardons are available to any person who was convicted of, or cautioned for, an offence in circumstances where the conduct constituting the offence was sexual activity between persons of the same sex, subject to certain conditions. The key conditions are that: any other person involved in the sexual activity was aged 16 or over; the offence has been repealed or abolished; and the sexual activity would not, if occurring in the same circumstances now, constitute an offence.

To return to Dr King’s wise words, it is the history of generations past that made us want to work to bring about justice for all those mistreated by English law solely because of their sexual orientation. The provisions in the 2022 Act wipe away a terrible stain from our history and, crucially, tender a deep and profound symbolic apology to those who have suffered.

We continue to work towards ensuring that the disregard and pardon schemes in Northern Ireland encompass all the offences that once criminalised same-sex sexual conduct that is lawful today.

Openly is an initiative of the Thomson Reuters Foundation dedicated to impartial coverage of LGBT+ issues from around the world.

 

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Inoculation Passport

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ON December 1st, 2020 Michael Gove stated ‘that there are no plans to introduce a “vaccine passport” to give people access to places such as pubs and restaurants once a coronavirus jab becomes available.’

14 days later, Ana Beduschi, an Associate law professor at the University of Exeter said ‘

Digital health passports may contribute to the long-term management of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, they pose essential questions for the protection of data privacy and human rights.

However the  International Air Transport Association (IATA), an airline trade association that represents 290 airlines worldwide, announced on that it was in the final stages of developing a digital vaccine passport for travelers.

Currently with several coronavirus vaccines now in circulation, some travelers can’t stop talking about the Yellow Card.

So what is the Yellow Card, or Carte Jaune,; it is a medical passport issued by the World Health Organization (WHO). It’s an official record that some countries require for entrance, and it can document vaccination against diseases ranging from cholera and yellow fever to such childhood illnesses as rubella.

So is it possible that this doucment will soon also have entries for the COVID-19 – the short answer is maybe – only time will tell, but I believe the probability is a resounding YES.

COV?ID-19 is a global pandemic, and as such governments have to protect the people in their countries, whilst still allowing freedom of movmement and trade.  To enable these two areas to occur, there will have to be some mechamism of control and protection, whether that be two week lockdowns upon arrival or proof that you have been vacinated.  Of course if you don’t want to travel then you won’t be required to either have a vaccination passport or to be lockdowned on arrival.

You make your choice!

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Inoculation Passport
Inoculation Passport

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

A Child in Our Time

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A Child in our Time came about because yesterday I read an article by Jack Shenker on Craig Easton’s photographs of the Williams family which was published in the Guardian Weekend. It was thought-provoking in a number of ways, firstly the Williams family were not different from you and I, they worked and if it hadn’t been for the ‘depression’ of the 90s brought about by a number of factors including:

restrictive monetary policy enacted by central banks, primarily in response to inflation concerns, the loss of consumer and business confidence as a result of the 1990 oil price shock…Wikipedia

and because of the recession, they lost jobs and homes and ended up on benefits. They strived to get out the hole that they were driven into and let’s be honest neither the politics and politicians of that day, nor even today seem to understand what they need to help them step up out of the quagmire that governments have put them in.

But they are not alone; according to the current government’s own information, there were 5.6 million people on Universal Credit at 9 July 2020, an increase of 2% from 11 June 2020. around 42% (that means 4 in 10) of claimants were in the ‘Searching for work’ conditionality group. But again, this statistic means little until you also look at how many people in the United Kingdom are on the poverty line. According to fullfact.org, An estimated 14.3 million people are in poverty in the UK. 8.3 million are working-age adults, 4.6 million are children, and 1.3 million are of pension age. Around 22% of people are in poverty, and 34% of children are (27 Sep 2019).

As I said, the Williams family are not unique in what has happened to them, but I wonder if anyone in the government realises just how far we have sunk? We have initiatives driven by individuals like Marcus Rashford and other sporting stars, by organisations like Children in Need, businesses who either have their own initiatives or who have joined together to support others, and of course, we have private individuals – but, why does it seem that the government always seems to behind in taking action that will help positively. I see lots of government initiatives which rarely seem to achieve much!

 

Child in our Time - Levels of poverty

(Joseph Rowntree Fundation)

Also, I again have to note that it is not just the conservative government, the Labour/Lib Dem pact was equally as bad.
I honestly do not know the solution, but I do know that if we continue to vote in politicians who have little or no idea of the society that they are representing then as a country we would seem to be doomed.

 

The Joseph Rowntree Foundations says:

Solving poverty is not quick or easy, but it is possible, starting with a vision, commitment and a plan.

 

Child in our Time - Poverty - Free Creative Commons Highway Sign image

 

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Westwind by Ian Rankin – Book Review

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Westwind by Ian Rankin

Amazon Link To Buy – Westwind by Ian Rankin

 

For me the concept that the military from the USA, UK and other countries, as described in Westwind by Ian Rankin,  would conspire to bring down the elected governments of the day is an anathema, however, we only have to look into history and what happened in German pre WW2 and the African sub-continent and its various countries and we can see parallels.

As an ex-soldier who has served in the UK and Germany, Canada and South America I could never conceive of a time in which the British Armed Services would allow this to happen and where they would give up their allegiance to the Crown (not the government).

The characters are reasonably well-drawn, but the main character Martin Hepton has questions to be asked.  How come a computer nerd, who does not seem to have any background in intelligence apart from watching a computer screen and interpreting pictures, suddenly develop a 6th sense in being able to handle a prime assassin?

Various other characters are brought into the story to add pace and distance, but the ‘badies’ are somewhat predictable as are the various stage sets and locations.

 

It is also interesting to look at age-old secret service writer’s ploy – namely that of levels within levels of the British Secret Service all looking over their shoulders to check who is watching whom!

And not to be forgotten is the age-old commentary on a person’s position in society – what university did one go to, which service did you belong to etc.

However, even with all these thoughts and reservations, I would still recommend this book.  It is a good thriller, well crafted and written, and it does pose questions – could it happen now?

To quote Wikipedia, Ian James Rankin OBE DL FRSE FRSL (born 28 April 1960) is a Scottish crime writer, best known for his Inspector Rebus novels… His range is prolific, from the series with Rebus, to stand-alone novels to collaboration on opera, to short stories.

 

Fun Extras and Links

I am a book blogger.  I am not paid to do this.  All opinions are my own.

The Glamour Boys – 17 MPs (some gay) who fought appeasement

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The Glamour Boys: The Secret Story of the Rebels who Fought for Britain to Defeat Hitler

The Glamour Boys by Chris Bryant review – the rebels who fought for Britain

The Glamour Boys by Chris Bryant review – the rebels who fought for Britain

As Simon Callow’s review points out not all of ‘the 17-strong Glamour Boys’ were gay, as they also included luminaries like Harold Macmillan, Anthony Eden, Duncan Sandys, Leo Amery and Winston Churchill.

However, what does stand out, is that the leadership of this group who opening stood up against appeasement when the government of the day believed unequivocally in negotiating with Hitler for peace is a testament to their strength of will.  For the gay MPs, this could come at a very high price – if they were found to be in a ‘gay’ relationship of any kind they could have been in court with severe charges against them, and also the adverse publicity which as had happened in the past (Oscar Wilde) would possibly have led to them fleeing the country (but where to you might ask in the light of what was happening in German!).

There is much to recommend in this book, the accomplished multi-biography, the sensitivity in which he handles the material, the research and referencing.

In a time when we need heroes, this book highlights 17 of them to us as a nation, and in particular those of us who are gay.

 

 

 

The Man Who Made Magazines Gay

Lockdown by Peter May – Book Review

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LockdownLockdown by Peter May
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book, Lockdown, was written in 2005 and ended up not being published initially as it was thought unbelievable. Fast forward to 2020 and Convid19 and suddenly we can see the human race, politicians and large businesses in the real world of today.

The story revolves around D I Jack MacNeil on his way out of policing, his small circle of supportive friends and his estranged family (sic what seems to be the norm for coppers according to many writers).

The book is well written, but for some reason, it feels like the book has been written in an early part of the century. It is not a noir book, but just the feel of the language moves me to feel it is almost the late 50s or early 60s.

The story develops nicely and finishes on a cliff hanger with a twist, which I will not give away.

It is definitely worthwhile obtaining a copy and reading Lockdown

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Conversion Therapy – Rethink Finally

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The Growing Movement to Ban Conversion Therapy

 

 

Earlier this month I wrote an article (Gay Conversion Therapy – Government Cop Out) reflecting back on how long we have been raising this issue and why was the government dragging its feet over putting in place measure to stop young LGBTQ people from being mentally tortured?

I reflected back on Dr Paul Miller, on Stormont’s intransigence, and how the Westminster bullies (those in a position of power and trust) seemed to feel that LGBTQ people do not count and do not need to be protected.

So I welcome that the Northern Ireland Executive is going to take the lead and develop a strategy across a number of Departments to have legislation put in place to place a ban on reparative or conversion therapy by private operations.

As I said in my previous article, conversion therapy is nothing short of ‘brain washing’, the LGBTQ community and the people in it do not need to be converted, they need to be made to feel equal within society in all aspects! 

Raising Equality (US) - Openclipart

 

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The Law is the Law

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The law is the law, or is it?   According to our Prime Minister it only applies to him when it serves his needs!

I have just read ‘The Secret Barrister’s’ article “Justice League” which was published The Guardian’s Review Magazine pages 6-9 Saturday 22 August 2020.

Law - it needs to be balanced
The Law – it needs to be balanced

This is a large mouthful to say, and even to write, but it is necessary to refer to this article and draw your attention to it, as for many of us the law and parliament are inseparable!  However, they are not; according to the Judges and Parliament, …The ultimate decision remains with Parliament and not the judiciary. Ultimately, the judiciary does no more, or less, under the 1998 Act than carry out its constitutional function of interpreting and applying the law enacted by Parliament. They only have such power as Parliament gave them in the Human Rights Act 1998.

The Attorney General is the link in the chain who provides guidance to parliament and the judiciary – however, a former Attorney General, Lord Mayhew of Twysden, said:

…the Attorney General has a duty to ensure that the Queen’s ministers who act in her name, or purport to act in her name, do act lawfully because it is his duty to help to secure the rule of law, the principal requirement of which is that the government itself acts lawfully.”

In his article, the Secret Barrister refers to how part of the government and also the new media seems to think that the judiciary has attempted to interfere with parliamentary actions and decision.  This is a complete fallacy, for parliament to work successfully, in order to maintain parliamentary sovereignty, be some legal limit… and that is what the judiciary provide.  Judicial review is not, as politicians would have the public believe, a tool by which judges overrule a political decision that they disagree with.  The questions that the courts decide are those of lawfulness, applying common law principles developed over centuries.

The Secret Barrister sums up by saying …if we lose judicial independence, we lose the rule of law.  The day a judge makes a binding decision affecting the rights and liberties of one of us, not on the legal and factual merits, but with a nervous glance to the press and public galleries, or with a  beady eye on political favour or punishment, is the day that the decay in our democracy turns terminal….

The day that this happens is the day that the government becomes omnipotent and Big Brother becomes the order of the day.

The government must remain accountable, and the judiciary must remain independent from government.

Invisible Manipulators of Your Mind

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Source: Invisible Manipulators of Your Mind

When I read this article, I had to go back and read it again – ‘Invisible Manipulators of Your Mind’ when read properly shows that both government and big business are out to control us – does this not reflect back to ‘1984’ by George Orwell

Invisible Manipulators

“…“But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.”
― George Orwell, 1984…”

Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky have thoroughly detailed how to go about controlling people through ‘hudges’ and not surprisingly the big names in the digital world have listened, understood and applied it  ( Jeff Bezos (the founder of Amazon), Larry Page (Google), Sergey Brin (Google), Nathan Myhrvold (Microsoft), Sean Parker (Facebook), Elon Musk (SpaceX, Tesla), Evan Williams (Twitter), and Jimmy Wales (Wikipedia).)

But it doesn’t stop there, there is every indication that President Trump’s election team have also applied the theory to his electioneering mechanism – and it seems to have worked!

Invisible Manipulators

We in the UK have also seen some of the applications with the  ‘Facebook–Cambridge Analytica data breach which occurred in early 2018 when millions of Facebook users’ personal data was harvested without consent by Cambridge Analytica to be predominantly used for political advertising’ (Wikipedia).

Is it not time that the human race realised what is happening and took a stand and stopped the erosion of human rights, our rights, and make an effort to clean up politics and business?

Invisible Manipulators

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