A fascinating place with a dangerous clash of cultures, religious fervours and extremism. History meets the future!!
Jerusalem, views over Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives.
The trouble I have with religion. The violent gang-rape of prepubescent girls.
The trouble I have with religion was illustrated very clearly by an article I read in the Guardian Newspaper regarding the Yazidi girls. These are Christian, which in the eyes of Islamic fundamentalists means they are infidel unbelievers. When ISIS captured the Yazidi people they were instructed very clearly from their scriptures what was required. Allah wanted them to behead non-believers or convert them to Islam. Allah wanted these grown men to bind the young girls of ten or eleven, gag them and rape them. They could be used as sex slaves.
Now in our civilised world we would consider any grown men who tied up a young terrified girl of ten, gagged her and gang-raped her as being a depraved animals. If they used the excuse in court that they were merely carrying out the wishes of Allah that would be inexcusable. They would be rightly locked up for a long time as disgusting paedophile rapists and their actions considered more vile than anything Jimmy Saville had done.
Yet according to the Koran these things are permissible. Allah sanctions the beheadings, the terrorism and maiming of innocent people, the rape of young girls, the torture, the horrendous deaths, the cutting off of limbs, the destruction of pre-Islamic artifacts and the persecution of all non-believers. These are not perversions of Islam. They are contained in the scriptures.
The Koran is not unique. The Bible has similar gruesome and barbaric practices – particularly the Old Testament. There are instructions and sanctions for dashing babies heads against rocks, taking an eye for an eye and worse. Throughout history fundamentalists have focussed on the parts they wish to emphasise to sanction inquisitions, pogroms, crusades and the torture and burning alive of innocent people who simple disagreed.
Of course in the modern age where it is not considered polite to smash your next door neighbours baby’s brains out because they follow a different faith there has been a tendency for religious instruction to follow the ‘nicer’ texts. We are taught to love our neighbour, share our fish and turn the other cheek.
The hypocrisy, contradiction, blood, fire and intolerance is glossed over. But it is there.
These religious texts come from primitive cultures where misogyny, violence and retribution were the order of the day. They are seeped in it. It permeates the doctrine. When ever an extreme fundamental cult comes along they unearth the texts that support their doctrine and apply the dogma.
In Europe we had to fight for the enlightenment. It brought an end to centuries of religious tyranny with all its viciousness and augured a new age of science. We threw off the shackles of theocracy and separated politics from religion. It enabled a flourishing of science that has created all the wonders of the modern world from electricity to space exploration.
Without the enlightenment we would still be in the Dark Ages. Our women would be walking around in veils and we’d likely be riding about on horses. Now perhaps there is something to be said for that kind of society we see vestiges of in America with the Amish culture. They live happily without electricity, cars and modern conveniences. They wear quaint medieval costume.
Personally I’d prefer the choice and like my car, electricity and music.
ISIS, and other religious fundamentalist groups of all religions, are merely feeding off the sections of their doctrine that sanction their actions and justify their desires. They really wish to take the whole world back to the time of Mohamed, Jesus or Krishna and force everyone to live in that medieval culture described in those texts.
The problem as I see it lies in the basis of those religions. They were devised by men in a culture that was primitive and unpleasant. I do not subscribe to those values. I consider them flawed.
I wish to live in a world that has equality, tolerance, peace, freedom, respect, responsibility, justice, love and friendliness as its core values. I place caring, compassion and empathy as higher values, not just for people but all life and the planet. I value debate, differences and argument and deplore violence, hatred and cruelty.
That is why, without entering into any esoteric discussion regarding god, I reject all religion. As far as I am concerned all religions are outmoded, flawed and supporting a culture I despise.
The world has moved on and human beings, while still showing a great propensity for hatred, violence and callous cruelty, are a lot more civilised than we used to be. I would hate to see religion undo that.
Poetry – Believers – A poem about religious fanaticism.
Believers
Madmen pose with
Hardware exposed
To elevate their egos
To eternity.
Foolish fools
Believing silly rules,
Eschewing girls from schools
Inflamed with
Dreams of glory.
Endorphins rage
Through synapses
Of the brave.
Adherents ecstatic
With grave zeal
and brotherhood
Of unity;
All built on a book
Of lunacy.
Opher 4.7.2015
Everywhere I look around the world and through the depths of history I see excited young men clutching weapons in one hand and sacred books or political treaties in the other all wild-eyed and crazed; all joined by a cause; all eager to impose their vision on the world.
They butcher and torture until they themselves are numb, callous and cold and their Messianic fire has corrupted into sadistic futility.
All are assured of one thing – their cause is inevitably short-lived. We have seen the crusades, Jihads, Pol Pot, Hitler, Rwanda, and a thousand other massacres, genocides and causes as religions and regimes rise and rapidly fall.
It does not stop the fanaticism. Fascism and the adrenaline of brotherhood of war is a powerful aphrodisiac. It fires the belly and confounds the senses. The crazed believers are prepared to lay down their lives for their pointless cause. Â They are easy to recruit and indoctrinate – point and they will go,
It all harks back to those tribal days of young men on hunting parties whose lives depended on their skills, bravery and willingness to support each other in a common aim – whether that be fighting off a ferocious wild cat or bringing down a dangerous buffalo.
Young men, befuddled by hormones, eager for status and glory, easily drawn to a cause, are always gullible.
Young women, equally befuddled, seeking father’s for the eggs they store, are attracted to the strongest. They support the craziness – always gullible.
We are so primitive. We are transparent. Our intelligence, helplessness and stupidity are our constant downfall.
Perhaps one day women will be attracted to men for their neuronal skills and compassion rather than their muscle and brute force. The world would be a different place.
Islam – my views
I am an antitheist. I do not believe that there is a god. The more I look at things the more convinced I am that there definitely is not. As an antitheist I Â believe all that religion and superstition in all its many guises has done more harm to human beings and the planet than good. I do think that there are good things that have come out of religion but they are greatly outweighed by the bad. Over the centuries the torture, stonings, burnings, inquisitions, beheadings, crusades, pogroms, witch-hunts, indoctrination, jihads, wars, holocausts and huge wastes of time and energy devoted to pointless rituals, prayers, fasts, and devotions have clearly spelt out to me that religion is man-made and has held us back from dealing with the problems we face.
As an environmentalist I am appalled by the mindless stupidity of religion in exhorting people to multiply. The seven billion people on this planet are destroying it. We need to reduce our numbers drastically to stand a chance of both surviving as a species and preserving wild-life and wilderness. I particularly would point the finger at Catholicism and islam as the worst offenders.
I have an extremely negative view of Islam. I have thought long and hard about this because I am concerned that my own jaundiced views are not just the result of a negative climate created by the media. So I have applied logic to the case. I would welcome views of Muslims to correct me on these points. These are my objections to Islam:
a. It is an extremely intolerant religion. The forcing of people of other faiths to adopt Islam is an infringement of human rights. I see examples all around the world. Apostasy is threatened with death.
b. It indoctrinates young children with brainwashing techniques in madrassas. I find the process abhorrent. It used to be the case with Christians and Jews and still is to an extent. The idea is that by instilling the dogma into young minds you have them for life. That is psychologically correct. Indoctrination is abominable.
c. It is misogynistic. This is true of all the Abrahamic religions. They stem from a patriarchal Arabic culture. Women are second class citizens, subjugated and subservient. They have an imposed dress code that is draconian, are disenfranchised, segregated, subservient and deprived on rights.
d. It is bigoted. It believes that it alone has the word of god. It is written in the Koran. It has to be obeyed. It has to be imposed on every human being on the planet. We have seen (and still do see) this same evangelical zeal in Christianity with its missionaries and wish to impose itself on other cultures. Islam appears to be the worst example at this present time.
e. It is violent and barbaric. Islam supposedly means peace yet we see the most violent and inhuman practices being carried out in the name of Islam. Seemingly there are sections of Islamic thought that believe it is OK to fly airplanes of innocent people into buildings, to behead aid-workers who are trying to help, to stone to death women for the crime of allowing themselves to be forcibly raped by their relatives, and to use suicide bombers to blow up innocent civilians in mosques, planes, trains, buses and underground. They seem to reserve their worst crimes for their own kind. The senseless war between Shia and Sunni seems to have surpassed anything seen between Catholics and Protestants in its ferocity and callousness. The killing of innocent people with electric drills is too obnoxious to contemplate.
f. It is stultifying. Islam seemingly wishes to freeze time in the era of the prophet. The region, which was the seat of civilisation – giving rise to maths, science and agriculture – is no longer a place for creativity and progressive thought. People are still wearing mediaeval costume and behaving as if it was over a thousand years ago. The culture has been castrated and all new thinking is stifled.
I could go on. I can see that the stupid policies of America and Britain in the Middle East have only served to exacerbate and inflame the situation. But two wrongs do not make a right. I am opposed to a lot of the capitalist philosophy of the West which has created a lot of the difficulties in the world. Islam appears much worse to me than capitalism.
I believe in freedom, tolerance, justice, peace, respect, fairness and love. I do not see either Islam or Capitalism espousing those values.
I believe we have to build a new zeitgeist based on that philosophy of love and freedom. We have to respect each other and save the planet from destruction.
My views are laid out in my books:
I’d like to hear your views. Particularly anyone who is Muslim who would like to explain where I am going wrong.
Beat Generation, Rock Music to Sci-fi via Alternative Novels, Education, the Environment and Antitheism! There’s a book for everyone!
Many to choose from!!
Solstice is coming.
Take a chance on something different and extraordinary!
Where is the age of Muslim Enlightenment?
Christianity used to be a draconian religion with rabid fundamentalist values. It adored burning people alive, torturing them and doing the most heinous punishments. The price for not believing was protracted agony and death. Millions of people were hideously murdered in the name of Christianity. Everyone was forced to abide by religious values, wear ridiculous costume and worship.
Fortunately there was a rebellion and an age of enlightenment followed that separated State from Religion. We became a civilised culture with freedom and choice. Centuries of enslavement was swept away. The church lost its power.
Unfortunately this is not true in the Muslim world.
There is no separation of secular from religious in many Muslim states. People are forced to abide by religious dogma. The penalty for not doing so is barbaric – death by stoning or beheading.
In a modern world with universal human rights this is simply wrong. Imposition is wrong! It is time moderate Muslims rose up and created a moderate Islamic response to Islamic fundamentalism. This fascism cannot be tolerated. It needs opposing. That opposition should not be violent but verbal.
Words carry power
Where is the voice of moderate Islam?
Join the new Zeitgeist! – Let’s build a better world!
Islamophobia
I was accused of being Islamophobic. I wanted to make it quite clear that I am not. I am an extremely tolerant antitheist. I do not care what belief system any person adheres to. I believe that all beliefs are equally daft but that everybody is entitled to their own views. I would stand up to support the right of anybody having whatever faith they want. I would love to see the demised of all organised religions. I think they are responsible for a lot of the world’s wrongs but I would want to bring this about through discussion, logic and sanity and not through violence.
I happen to believe that Islam is the biggest offender against human rights in the present day. It is intolerant, violent, dogmatic, bigoted and extremely primitive in its ideology.
But I am not Islamophobic.
However, I am completely opposed to:
a. Indoctrination (particularly of young children)
b. Enforcement of rituals, dress-codes and practices associated with religion
c. Female circumcision
d. Misogyny and misogynistic practice (such as disenfranchising women, preventing women being educated, making women wear veils, burqas and shapeless clothing, making women walk paces behind men, preventing women driving cars, keeping women locked indoors, stoning women to death for having been raped etc.)
e. Barbaric stoning to death
f. Barbaric beheadings
g. Flying airplanes full of innocent people into buildings full of innocent people
h. Punishments and death sentences for apostasy
I believe in tolerance, equality and freedom. I believe it is essential that all civilised people should speak out against abuse to human rights.
I wish moderate Muslims would speak out against the atrocities being carried out in their name. The fact that they are largely silent says it all!
I believe people should have the right to chose a faith or no faith and the right to change their minds.
I believe that the murderers who are orchestrating out suicide bombings, stonings, beheadings, torture and gang-rapes under the guise of religious doctrine are guilty of crimes against all humanity and should be locked away for life.
No sane god would sanction such cruel, savage behaviour. They are fanatic fundamentalists who are deluding themselves and others.
Sharing this planet with the fanatics of any religious persuasion is a frustrating, infuriating, bewildering and demoralising experience. They are all the low point of human civilisation. It is incredible to me that these savages really believe they are carrying out the wishes of any god or religious doctrine.
Surely it is time for all reasonable people to speak out!!
Read what I think of religion in my three books:
The United Nations Declaration of Human Rights!! – Sanity in the midst of fanaticism!
In order to have freedom you have to stand up for freedom!!
PREAMBLE
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,
Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,
Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,
Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,
Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,
Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.
Article 1.
•All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
Article 2.
•Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.
Article 3.
•Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.
Article 4.
•No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.
Article 5.
•No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Article 6.
•Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.
Article 7.
•All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.
Article 8.
•Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.
Article 9.
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.
Article 10.
•Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.
Article 11.
•(1) Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
•(2) No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.
Article 12.
•No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.
Article 13.
•(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
•(2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.
Article 14.
•(1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.
•(2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
Article 15.
•(1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
•(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.
Article 16.
•(1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.
•(2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.
•(3) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.
^ Top
Article 17.
•(1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.
•(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.
^ Top
Article 18.
•Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.
Article 19.
•Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.
Article 20.
•(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
•(2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.
Article 21.
•(1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
•(2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
•(3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.
Article 22.
•Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.
Article 23.
•(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
•(2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
•(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
•(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.
Article 24.
•Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.
Article 25.
•(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
•(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.
Article 26.
•(1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
•(2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.
•(3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.
Article 27.
•(1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.
•(2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.
Article 28.
•Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.
Article 29.
•(1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.
•(2) In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.
•(3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
Article 30.
•Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.
The most important document in the whole of history!!
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is undoubtedly the most important document in the history of mankind! Every one of those red poppies in that picture is a real human being who died for freedom! It would be stupid to allow our freedom to be usurped by religious or political fanatics. If we were to have a poppy for every person who was cruelly murdered by religious fanatics they would probably cover the whole of England!!
I am sure that most tyrannical religions would like to rip the declaration of human rights to shreds.
I am sure that most dictators, torturers, fanatics, despots, and mad generals would like to have it destroyed.
The United Nations Declaration of Human Rights stands as a beacon of hope in a world ruled by barbarity, cruelty, stupidity and thoughtlessness.
I particularly like article 26!! That is the only hope for the world!! Education overcomes superstition!
THE UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
PREAMBLE
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,
Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,
Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,
Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,
Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,
Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.
Article 1.
•All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
Article 2.
•Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.
Article 3.
•Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.
Article 4.
•No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.
Article 5.
•No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Article 6.
•Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.
Article 7.
•All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.
Article 8.
•Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.
Article 9.
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.
Article 10.
•Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.
Article 11.
•(1) Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
•(2) No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.
Article 12.
•No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.
Article 13.
•(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
•(2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.
Article 14.
•(1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.
•(2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
Article 15.
•(1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
•(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.
Article 16.
•(1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.
•(2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.
•(3) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.
^ Top
Article 17.
•(1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.
•(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.
^ Top
Article 18.
•Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.
Article 19.
•Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.
Article 20.
•(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
•(2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.
Article 21.
•(1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
•(2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
•(3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.
Article 22.
•Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.
Article 23.
•(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
•(2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
•(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
•(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.
Article 24.
•Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.
Article 25.
•(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
•(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.
Article 26.
•(1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
•(2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.
•(3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.
Article 27.
•(1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.
•(2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.
Article 28.
•Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.
Article 29.
•(1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.
•(2) In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.
•(3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
Article 30.
•Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.
Nick Harper Brilliant!!! – at the wonderful Ropery in Barton 2014
I’ve seen Nick tens of times in different venues all over the country but rarely as good as this!!
This is a new mature Nick, slightly more restrained, less chaotic and loud. A more thoughtful, humorous Nick.
Right from the start he set up a delightful relationship with the audience who warmed to his anecdotes, asides and humour.
Nick was in fine form, bending notes, doing impossible chords, mad tuning in songs, changing broken strings without pause all complete with a voice that soared into impossible heights. It was magical.
The new songs sounded great as well! And that album is out next week!
If you haven’t seen him recently – look out for him coming your way – it’s not one to miss!!
If you are unfamiliar check out his stuff on Amazon and purchase the great CD ‘Seed’ to begin with. You’ll end up with them all!
Check him out on You-Tube!