English forests…gone?

In the UK our political system is a farce. We currently have a government which no-one voted in, it is a coalition formed of the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. Now I voted for the Lib Dems as I believed in them and everything that they said at the General Election. If I had had  a Green candidate I probably would have voted for them, but we don’t so I didn’t.

I feel betrayed by the Lib Dems, since they have joined the Coalition tuition fees for University have gone up to £9000 per year, the Educational Maintenance Allowance has been scrapped (it supported children in low-income families continue in education to 19 years of age), and have made other awful cuts in the education sector. Even my library has had to make librarians redundant and reduce the opening hours. This is all just the tip of the iceberg.

Now, they want to sell off England’s forests. The following is from 38degrees.com.

The government is planning a massive sell off of our national forests. They could be auctioned and fenced off, run down, logged or turned into golf courses and holiday villages.

We can’t let that happen. We need to stop these plans. National treasures like the The Forest of Dean, Sherwood Forest and The New Forest could be sold off. Once they are gone, they will be lost forever.

A huge petition will force the government to rethink its plans. Already 80,000 of us have signed the petition. Please sign the petition.

Other groups are beginning to sound the alarm too:

• “This sale is likely raise a tiny amount but could do immeasurable damage and cost the nation dearly” - The Woodland Trust
• “The future ownership and management of land that has high public value should be carefully considered. The proposed land sales are driven by the need to generate quick cash, but they must not be at the expense of protecting our natural capital, which is irreplaceable.” - RSPB
• ‘Given the benefits and Defra’s push to get people planting more trees, it seems strange the government has announced a sell-off of forest and woodland in England to help reduce the country’s budget deficit.’ - The Metro
• ‘In 1992 John Major’s Conservative government – also looking to save money in a recession – drew up plans to privatise the Forestry Commission’s giant estate. However it was later abandoned following a study by a group of senior civil servants, amid widespread public opposition.’ - The Daily Telegraph
• ‘Many of England’s best-loved forests and woodlands may be sold to large landowners, housing developers and international power companies in what could be the UK’s greatest change of land ownership since the second world war.’ - The Guardian
• The media has picked up on the story and is questioning the government’s plans:
• Environment Minister Caroline Spelman, who is the driving force behind the mass sell-off, has already been forced to respond to this barrage of criticism by environmental organisations, unions and wildlife groups. Her junior minister Jim Paice is the man who came up with the idea.

Please, please visit their site and sign the petition, post on your Facebook and anything else you can think of. I find this just crazy – there is no going back from this, once it is done it is done. Really does make a mockery of all of the ‘green’ promises we were made in the ‘Election’.

General Election

Tomorrow is the UK’s General Election where we vote in our new parliament. I am genuinely excited about the whole process and I will be getting up early tomorrow to go and cast my vote before I head into Uni.

I want to spend tomorrow night in a pub with like-minded friends watching the results roll in (not going to happen unfortunately). It seems to be a very close battle, with all three parties being very neck and neck according to the latest polls. This is really unusual for the UK. Normally  it is a two-horse race between the Labour Party and the Conservative Party. This time a third-party is a serious contender – the Liberal Democrats.

As I have previously discussed only one of the three parties engaged with me when I queried them about the Digital economy bill – Carys Davis from the Lib Dems. I read about their policies and I went to speak to her in person, she seemed like a normal person, which was unusual for a politician – see my post about speaking with Ed Balls the Education Minister. unfortunately for her I live in a very safe Labour seat, with BNP gaining a hideous amount of ground. I really am keeping my fingers crossed for her though.

It is all looking exciting with two newspapers backing the Lib Dems and many polls placing all three parties at about level pegging. It is going to be an interesting day tomorrow. If you would like some amusement around the election go and check out these twitter feeds. #imvotingconservative #nickcleggsfault

Advocating anarchy

I read two blog posts this morning which have got me thinking, as although on the surface they are covering different topics I think the same issue it at their heart.

Rhonda at Down-to-Earth wrote about how we don’t trust our common sense and she says that

I am not a radical, I am just advocating that you question, be sceptical, and decide for yourself

And in Ego-Yogini’s blog post she talks about punk yoga

Punk has nothing to do with the “look” and everything to do with attitude and belief systems. Specifically Anti-Establishment, Anti-Culture

In contrary to Rhonda’s belief I do think her way of life is radical and many of us are living a radical, punk lifestyle. We try to reduce consumption, or at the least, do so so ethically – but the UK government wants us to spend, even down to reducing the VAT (which is a tax we pay on all non essential items – side issue of taxation on products which women use, but that’s a tangent!) so we spend more.

In USA it was practically non patriotic not to spend post 9-11 – with New Yorkers being urged to spend and I think that attitude still persists to some extent.

We live a radical life by breaking away from our dependence on what we are being told we need by big corporates. Just think if everyone acted like we are all trying to do then we would over turn the big corporations and force them to rethink their ethics and practices. Punk anarchy indeed!

As a feminist I am delighted to ignore the patriarchy which is telling me to spend money on looking beautiful – we must buy the latest product, slather more chemicals on our body and when that doesn’t make us look like the (airbrushed) models do then surgery becomes normalised in our society.

My other half jokingly says I am a “dangerous subversive”,  but really all of us who follow this path are and for me, the slight taste of anarchy on a daily basis – stretching away from patriarchy and corporations-  gives me a thrill.  Viva la revolution!!

Autumn is coming

This week it has felt like the seasons have changed from summer to autumn. Of course the end of August is officially the end of autumn, however it is never normally so clearly delineated.

There has been a tang in the air, a certain smell which differs from that of summer. And I love it. I joyfully announced to my OH that it was nearly time for gloves and scarves and hats, thick jumpers and stews. He looked at me as if I was some what mad.

One of the main reasons I love living in England (and I am not at all patriotic) is the seasons and the clear distinctions between them. I enjoy the contrasts, seeing the difference in the landscape around us and the way we as humans respond to them.

The changing of the seasons always makes me stop and appreciate the nature that surrounds us, even in our towns.

It means the manic production of my allotment is going to slow down and give me to time to think a bit about what I am actually doing with it all (I will share my ideas soon), try and get some spring crops as well as plan for next years main season. As I got my plot so late in the season I didn’t really get a chance to plan – I didn’t have the space to plant things anyway, but as I have nearly finished digging half of my plot I am in a better position.

A major thing for me is that I go to University next week, which I am very excited about. I graduated 9 years ago, so it is good to be going back to study, especially as it is enabling me to do what I have always wanted to do (teach). So the changing of seasons is allowing change in my life to.

What does the change of seasons mean for you?