Cathy Le Feuvre

Never Forget!

Where were you on Tuesday September 11th 2001? 

It's a date that, of course, goes down in history as one of the saddest and most shocking of modern times.

And today it's 20 years since what has become known as '9/11', that infamous terrorist attack on the United States of America

Four commercial airlines were hijacked mid-flight by 19 al-Qaeda terrorists.  Two of the aircraft were deliberately crashed into the World Trade Centre,  the iconic Twin Towers in New York City, with the subsequent collapse of those towers. A third was crashed into the west side of the Pentagon in Washington DC, the headquarters of the American military. A fourth was also hijacked and was also destined for the USA capital, but the brave passengers on board attempted to gain back control of the aircraft, which subsequently crashed instead in a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

Of course, it's the image of the burning Twin Towers that remains in most of our memories and that's why many of us remember where we were on that day.

At the time I was Head of Broadcast of a small (somewhat experimental) TV station in Hertfordshire in England. It was called 'Home TV' and it broadcast just to the towns of Hertford and nearby Ware and surrounding areas ... the forerunner, one might say, of the small digital and cable stations that sprang up later. We ran locally generated news, sports and weather mostly, mixed in with other interesting 'bought in' programmes and national news from SKY TV.

Some members of my small team and I were in the operations room, the control room from which we controlled transmission. It's a room with lots of TV monitors which allow the directors and engineers to see what's coming in and what being transmitted to our viewers. The SKY TV news feed monitor was always on so we could see what they were running, even if we were not 'taking' the live feed at the time.

It was around 3 o'clock in the afternoon and we were having a meeting about the upcoming local news bulletin - scheduled for 6pm - when we looked up to see the SKY TV monitor flick to pictures of the World Trade Centre in New York, with one of the towers (the North Tower)  ablaze. We turned up the sound to hear those words 'News coming in of ....'

We all stood there, pretty shocked, I have to say. And then, a few moments later,  we saw it ... the second aircraft plough into the South Tower.

It was devastating! It was at at THAT point that I realised that this had to be a terrorist attack rather than an airline crash or accident.

But with my news head on I also realised that we needed to break into our regular programmes and show what was happening there across the Atlantic in New York City and, as it transpired, in Washington DC and other parts of the USA.

We had to have special permission to dip into SKY TV outside of our contracted hours, so I picked up the phone to their control desk.

All I said was 'Home TV in Hertford, we're taking your news feed now!' I guessed that no one there would be able to answer questions because of the seriousness of the events unfolding, and I figured that if we were in trouble for taking the feed, we'd deal with that later. We flicked live to the SKY TV feed and stayed with it all day. Somehow, news of what was happening in two small provisional towns in the UK seemed immaterial at the time, as did re-runs of cartoons and natural history programmes and sports compilations.

I really can't remember if we did a 6 o'clock bulletin. What with trying to get reaction from local people and working with the small team of largely young and inexperienced staff who were, understandably, rather traumatised by the day, September 11 2001 became a bit of a blur.

It was only when I went home late that night and sat down to watch the national BBC News that the enormity of the day began to settle on me. 

That day 2,977 people were killed and more than 6,000 others were injured. The immediate deaths included 265 on the four planes (including the terrorists), 2,606 in the World Trade Centre and in the surrounding area, and 125 at the Pentagon.  Most of those who died were civilians but we know that 344 firefighters and 71 law enforcement officers died in the World Trade Centre and on the ground in New York City. Another law enforcement officer died when United Airlines Flight 93 crashed into that  field near Shanksville and 55 military personnel perished in the attack on the Pentagon.

Of the 2,977 people who died, 2,605 were U.S. citizens and 372 non-U.S. citizens - all were loved, had families, some were dads and mums and grandparents. Each person is a hole in the life of someone else. 

9/11 is the deadliest terrorist attack on the USA and, in fact, in world history. Over the past two decades we've seen the experiences of that day played out on TV over and over and over. I think that must just be awful for those who lost someone that day, especially in the Towers, as they are being constantly reminded of their precious loved ones final moments of life.

Of course, we know that the 9/11 attacks led to an invasion of Afghanistan, where the al-Qaeda terrorists were allowed sanctuary, the eventual killing of the mastermind behind it - Osama bin Laden - and 20 years of Allied troops on the ground, with the loss of many more thousands of lives. American and British and other military personnel who were killed or injured in the subsequent years of battle and not forgetting the many many thousands of  innocent Afghanis who got caught in the cross fire. It's only last month - August 2021 - that the allies have moved out, leaving the country once again in disarray and once again under the control of the Taliban ... itself a radical Islamic group. But that's another story.

In the intervening years I was privileged to hear some of the personal stories of those who were directly affected by the events of 9/11. People who were on holiday in New York city and saw the events unfold in front of them. People who served at 'Ground Zero' (the place where the towers fell) for many months afterward, including chaplains and others from The Salvation Army in New York City and the wider north eastern provinces. People back here in the UK who were also affected and traumatised.

So today, as I have done every year  since that infamous day in 2001, I take time out to remember all those precious souls lost on that dreadful day.

I pray for their family, friends, loved ones, colleagues. I pray for the children who never knew their fathers, all those lives unfulfilled and the doors closed too soon.

And I remember them.

It's twenty years since that terrible day and we should NEVER forget them!

*This post also appears on my One Day at a Time blog, which is a daily blog for every day of 2021.

But I thought it was worth sharing here as well!

Never Forget!

Caution! World Under Repair

It's New Year's Eve 2020.

And if you weren't already aware, we're at the end of ... here we go ... I'll say it .... 'a very strange year'!

There - that's done! 

I could say much about the different ways we've learned to live, the things we've missed out on, the expectations dashed, the woes of the past almost 12 months during which a microscopic virus has locked us in, locked us out! Of life, of love, of the things and people and activities and experiences we love.

But I won't! Done that, been there, along with millions of others who have put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard this year!

I'll just tell you about a walk I took this lunchtime which, weirdly, turned out to be a bit of an analogy for life as we travel from 2020 into 2021. 

I live in a lovely place called Jersey - it's one of the Channel Islands, just off the coast of France, but British - and walks on the beach, or at least along the coastline, are my favourite!

One of my usual walks is from West Park, St Helier, to First Tower and back ... not more than a mile or two all told, but bracing on a winter's day!

I set out in the sunshine but we've been having a lot of showers recently and right at the start of my walk I spotted a rainbow.

Not a massive arc in the sky, but certainly a rainbow ... the kind which popped up in the early days of the pandemic in windows and on pebbles on the beach, drawn by unknown people as a symbol of hope in the darkness.

And straightaway I was filled with a strange optimism.

 

Yes, the sky was dark on the horizon, clouds still full of rain, ominous over Elizabeth Castle on the little islet in St Aubin's Bay,  but the sky above was strikingly blue.

2020 might have been full of gloom but in all that there has also been some brightness. Remember how we all pulled together in those early days, to keep ourselves safe, to keep others safe?  Remember how we kept our distance, washed our hands, wore our masks ?Remember how we clapped for our carers at 8pm on a Thursday evening, showing our appreciation for all those who were caring for us in hospitals and care homes, serving us in the shops and on public transport ? Keeping our communities working ? Saying 'thank you' to those who are usually forgotten but who, for a while, we realised were the real heroes of our communities.

But I looked into those dark clouds and was reminded  that it's not over yet. The second spike of this wretched coronavirus is hitting us hard not just here in Jersey but across the world. People are still sick, dying in vast numbers, isolating. Some people are still unfortunately not behaving like we are in the midst of a global pandemic. Some seem to have forgotten the sacrifices of the early months of this year, and the ongoing sacrifices that some are still making to ensure the ones they love stay safe. For some of us that means still working from home after nearly a year, forgoing the company of even our close family at Christmas and New Year and on birthdays and other special anniversaries. 

But as I peered into the horizon I spotted something really beautiful ... like a golden line just on the sealine, under the cloud. Just where the sun was hitting the water.

And then I looked up ... there IS blue sky overhead.

Could I equate that to the Covid-19 vaccines which are on the way ?

Perhaps! That's one way of looking at it.

But maybe it's about more  than that. 

It reminded me that when we pull together and remember that others matter as much as ourselves, maybe sometimes more than ourselves, we can get a handle on this! We did it in the spring and summer of 2020 and then we lost focus. We thought we could relax. We believed that we were invincible. We were wrong!

Along the seafront in St Aubin's Bay in Jersey the pink granite seawalls have recently taken a battering from the storms, the high seas, the winds of winter. They are hardy and strong, but even they couldn't stand the onslaught of nature.

But they are being repaired - even on New Year's Eve the guys were out doing their stuff to rebuild these beautiful defences.  It's not a job that will be completed overnight. It must be done with precision and care to ensure that the wall survives when the storms come again, as we know they will! 

As we enter 2021 I am reminded that we are in this for the long haul. Our World is 'Under Repair'!

We are not there yet. Even with the much acclaimed and longed for vaccines, we still have a long way to go. We still need to wear masks, keep our distances, endlessly sanitise our hands. There's no letting up. 

But if we all pull together, try to forgo our personal agendas and think of the wider common good, then with the added bonus of the vaccines, we may find that this coming year will be healthier and better than the last. We need to stay alert and not forget the year that was 2020. There are lessons in that there time for us all! 

The storm is still there ... over the horizon ... and it will come back I'm sure. But the blues skies are overhead! 

Happy New Year everyone! Stay safe! 

*All pictures /images by Cathy Le Feuvre

                                                                                                                                                      

 

 

 

 

 

 

Missing the Man on the Moon

July 20 1969 !

50 years ago today -  Man Walked on the Moon!

What an amazing, astonishing feat of science, technology, human bravery and determination.

Man actually walked on the surface of another celestial body!

Two men - Neil Armstrong and then Buzz Aldrin - placed their feet on the powdery, barren lunar surface. A third astronaut  - their Apollo 11 command module pilot Michael Collins - shared their historic journey, watched by millions upon millions of people across the globe via TV.

And today, millions of people are remembering where they were when they sat mesmerised by those grainy black and white images from the moon, and heard Armstrong's immortal words ...

'It's one small step for (a) man. One giant Leap for Mankind'

But not me.

You see - while everyone who is anyone has a memory of that day - even those really too young to remember ... I admit ... I missed it.

I Missed the First Man on the Moon!

Sorry, but it's true.

I AM old enough to have memories of July 20 1969. But at the time when Armstrong placed his foot on the dusty surface of the moon, I was tucked up in bed in a boarding school dormitory in Kenya, in East Africa. Probably dreaming of the soon-to-come school holidays when I'd be back home on a farm in the African bush, and later on the beach in Mombasa with my family. Even at 10 I was good at dreaming.

My brother Steve did enjoy listening to a recording of the moon landing the next day thanks to a brilliant teacher, but I have no memory of even being told about it.

Later, of course, I would learn all about that momentous day, and what it meant for mankind, for science, for our understanding of what being 'human' is about.

But on the day itself ... nothing. Nothing to report. Didn't see the TV pictures, don't recall it making an impact on my life at all.

As a budding writer, you'd maybe expect me to have a diary note ... 'Today Man walked on the Moon. The World is Forever Changed!' But ... unfortunately not.

Don't get me wrong, this lack of Moon Landing Experience hasn't stopped me from being a little obsessed with All Things Space.

On several occasions, I've visited Cape Canaveral - the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida where Apollo 11 launched on July 16 1969. I'm intrigued by space, love all the space movies, and am in awe of those men and women who have ventured into the atmosphere and beyond. I loved seeing the mock up of the Houston control room ... etc etc

But while others today flood social media and tell the world what they were up to on that day in 1969 ... this is all I have to offer.

Yet even this lack of experience reminds me of something profound.

Life isn't, I think, about the Big Stuff that happens. Not really.

Rather, life is about the small events - the day to day waking up, going to school or work, looking after the kids, coping with illness, shopping, cooking the dinner, having an argument and making up, reading a book under a tree in the garden, going for a walk, sleeping and loving and laughing and crying.

Yes, occasionally a Huge Occurrence breaks into the routine of life. And sometimes we DO remember where we were when it happened. And sometimes we don't.

So - if like me - you don't have a memory of that day when Man Walked on the Moon ... don't worry. Life is not all about what has become known as 'Selfie Moments'. We don't have to remember absolutely everything that happens in the world, although if we do have a memory or two tucked away that relates to the Big Stuff, that's ok.

Sometimes it's just about living our lives ... regardless of what's happening around us.

 

Lockerbie Memories - 25 years on

Today we mark a very sad moment in our world's history. Twenty five years ago 270 people lost their lives when a 747 aeroplane en route from London to the USA exploded over the little town of Lockerbie on the Scottish borders.

Memorials are planned here in the UK and in the USA, where so many people lost loved ones. No matter the passage of the years the pain will still be as raw as they think back on those they lost that day, and the human potential which came so abruptly to an end that evening. So many of the travellers that Christmas were young people returning home to the US, or visiting friends across the pond.

I always remember this day - but for a different reason.

Wednesday December 21st 1988 was my 30th birthday and I awoke feeling rather traumatised. Other 'big' birthdays have come and gone since but the Big 30 seemed like a very large milestone at the time. I knew it was irrational but I could not shake myself out of self pity. I had told no one that it was my birthday and for the first time ever I had chosen not to take the day off work.

At the time I worked as a reporter/producer/newsreader for BBC Jersey - a local radio station in the Channel Islands (Great Britain) - and I was on the 'late shift'. I started at lunchtime and would work through the afternoon, and then when everyone else left around 6pm I would be on my own.

For someone who was already feeling a little down, being alone on birthday night was not a great decision. But it was a busy shift -  while BBC Jersey broadcast the evening 'shared' show transmitted from our sister stations on the British mainland, my tasks would include completing the production for the local early show for the following morning, a Thursday. This might involve some recorded local interviews, telephone conversations and writing up of stories, as well as monitoring the national feeds and ensuring that stories for the next day which came through on the BBC nationwide 'circuit' system were recorded and available for my colleagues.

My final job of the day would be to compile and read the news headlines (national/international/regional/local) and local weather forecast at 10pm.

In the days before internet, we received all national and wider regional news through a large telex machine which constantly spewed out reams of paper. Although we had no locally-initiated news bulletins between 6 and 10pm other stations around the country would have, and so the news stories kept coming, as well as cues for stories and features which could be picked up via the aforementioned BBC 'circuit' recording system. The television was on in the corner of the toom, tuned to BBC 1, just for company. 

Mid-evening, probably around 7.30pm the telex machine suddenly sprang into action. I recall walking to the machine and reading a headline 'Air Crash over Scottish borders'. If I remember rightly, at first it was thought that two fighter planes may have collided mid-air. However, over the next few hours the sheer horror of what had occurred became clear. The telex machine told the story as my BBC colleagues in Newsgathering in London, Scotland and across the world put together the bones of what had happened. Within an hour or so BBC and ITV national networks were running newsflashes. Remember this was in the day before digital TV ... there were just a few terrestrial channels available.

The information was sparse - the time that PanAm flight 103 left London Heathrow (18:25) en route for New York JFK ; the time that the aircraft disappeared from radar over the Scottish borders (just a few minutes after 19:00); reports of a huge explosion in the small rural town of Lockerbie. Then there were the growing numbers of feared victims - more than 250 on board the flight itself, and lives lost on the ground. The news story developed as the evening progressed and the enormity of the tragedy that was unfolding all those miles away in Scotland became clear to me.

I turned to the BBC 9 O'clock television news and the story was, of course, headlining, although the details which we would learn over the ensuing days were yet not there. We didn't know yet that it was a bomb on board the aircraft, in an unaccompanied suitcase, which has exploded mid-air. We were yet to learn the names of the individuals - young, old, families, business people and dignitaries, those headed home for the holidays - whose lives were ripped from them that night, including 11 residents of Lockerbie who were killed when parts of an aircraft dropped from the sky onto their quiet little hamlet.

At 10pm I had the sombre duty of reading the news to the world that was Jersey. I can't remember what local headlines were in that bulletin, or indeed if there was any other national or regional news other than brief headlines. As the duty producer it was down to me to decide how much time was given over to the PanAm 103 story and I guess most of that short bulletin would have been taken up by that news. 

I do remember the immense sense of responsibility that overwhelmed me as the BBC Jersey news jingle played and I pressed the 'live mic' button. 

As I've said, this was in the unsophisticated media days, before internet and mobile technology, before digital television platforms and 'rolling news' channels. This was in the day when many people still got their news from their daily papers, some would have watched the TV news but many more would still have relied on their 'wirelesses' for their evening headlines. On a personal level, I had several aunts who didn't even own a TV and I knew always listened to the BBC Jersey 10 0'clock news before they retired to bed.

I was aware that for them, the first they would hear of the Lockerbie Air Disaster would come from me - their local newsreader. I was aware that I was delivering news that would shock and appall. And how I delivered that news was important.

We are trained to read news without too much emotion. I don't know whether I achieved that on that particular evening. I remember my heart beat very fast through the length of that bulletin. As I read out the telephone number for people to contact, in case they believed they had relatives on board the ill-fated flight, and repeated that number ... I became acutely aware that for many people the night would be highly personal and would change their world forever.

Of course, we now know that Lockerbie changed all our lives. We lived in a world where hijackings of aeroplanes was common. We were living through turbulent times where terrorism was an everyday fact of life. But this vile act was something different. Apart from anything else it fundamentally changed the way we travelled - no more unaccompanied luggage, much greater security at airports, more anxiety for travellers. It truly was a turning point and the next would be post 9-11 when once again we would scrutinise and improve air safety.  But of course, for the relatives and friends of those who had lost their lives, that night was so much more significant.

After the 10pm bulletin, I ensured the 'handover' for my colleagues was in order, knowing that what I had left in the 'Morning Show' tray would probably not be used. News from Lockerbie, from London and from New York would continue to develop overnight and the next day's bulletins and radio shows would be dominated by the PanAm 103 story.

I would usually have discarded all the paper from the evening, but on that day I left the piles of telex alerts for my colleagues who would pick up the story the following morning. It was a sort of testament to the evening's events and I didn't want to just consign it to the bin. However, BBC Jersey was off air and would not be back in action until around 7am the following morning. There was no more I could do. 

I locked the office, turned on the security systems and walked the short distance home. I was very sad, but in a strange way, no longer depressed at being one year older. I thanked God that I was alive. And I went to bed thinking of all those who had been lost that evening, and their families and friends who would soon be receiving the worst news of their lives.

Today - 25 years on - I think and pray again for those on both sides of the Atlantic for whom December 21st is annually a reminder of their loss, a day when sadness is relived but life is celebrated.

Corruption? Not me!

You’re in a long queue outside a night club in the rain. You know if you slip the bouncer at the door a fiver you’ll get in first and jump ahead of all the other poor souls freezing on the doorstep. What do you do?

You think corruption has nothing to do with you? Think again!

In the UK - a 'civilised' and 'developed' nation -   most of us think corruption happens somewhere else. It doesn’t affect us. That sort of greedy dealing only happens in ‘corrupt’ societies, doesn’t it?

Of course, few if any of us will be making secret deals with corrupt government officials to secure business contracts, or will have been involved in illegal price fixing, or will have deliberately evaded paying our taxes. But if we think that corruption is only something that happens in ‘developing countries’ by people who are somehow less moral than us, and not here in our more sophisticated culture, then we need to just look around and examine at our own behaviour.

If you give a backhander to that bouncer to jump the queue, you’ve effectively given him, or her, a bribe to gain an advantage for yourself over all the other would-be revellers who are still out in the cold on the doorstep. If, to make ends meet for your struggling business, you’ve offered a ‘gift’ to a contractor to get a better deal than your competitors, then you’ve been involved in a form of corruption. You may think it’s just ‘good business’ but it’s actually a form of bribery. 

WHAT IS 'CORRUPTION'?

It takes many forms – deliberate tax evasion, that blatant bribery, secret business deals, abuse of power by people in government, business and even the church –and where there is corruption, it is the poorest of the poor who are worst affected. Corruption is one of the main causes of poverty in the world today! 

This week the EXPOSED campaign is 'Shining a Light' on Corruption but over the past year I've been privileged to work with the very small, inspiring and dedicated EXPOSED team who work tirelessly to make a difference on behalf of the world's poor. 

 

The EXPOSED team based in Salvation Army Territorial HQ in London got hold of a US$1 trillion note! That's how much goes missing in bribes each year. EXPOSED is asking the world's powerful leaders to step up efforts to combat bribery and tax avoidance.

EXPOSED is an international coalition of Christian organisations that is challenging the global church, business and governments to highlight the impact of corruption on the poorest of the poor. It represents millions of people who have already caught the vision of what a world without corruption could look like.

Since EXPOSED was launched last year, thousands of people have become involved and the message has now reached 150 countries.  Across the world EXPOSED hopes to reach 100 million people – Christian people, people of other faith and of no faith -  to encourage them to speak out against corruption in all areas of public life. People are being encouraged to set up ‘bribe boxes’ in their churches to declare bribery in their communities, to write to church leaders, business leaders and politicians to take action to resist and fight corruption in their nations, and to promote increased integrity and ethics in business. The stories emerging are just amazing!

EXPOSED is challenging governments to tighten up on financial regulations to ensure that taxes are paid in the nations where the profits are earned and to introduce policies which create fairer societies. When taxes are not declared, then it those already living in poverty who suffer most - lost income can't be spent on services which benefit the society, ensure good healthcare and education.

SHINING A LIGHT ON CORRUPTION

Duringthis EXPOSED Week of Action (October 14-20) up to 2000 Vigils are being held around the world encouraging people to consider the impact of corruption on the poor.

It all kicked off here in the UK on Monday night at St Paul's Cathedral in London and I was privileged to be present. There was music and prayers and inspiring words as we were among the first across the world to 'Shine a Light on Corruption'. Since then, people have been holding similar vigils worldwide. And hopefully government, business and church leaders, as well as the media and the general population will have started to become more aware of the scourge that is corruption and the terrible effects on the poorest of the poor and the duty we all have to get involved to see it end!

I'M 'ONE IN A MILLION'

This week there is also a major push on collecting signatures for the EXPOSED Global Call to End Corruption. EXPOSED is aiming for 1million signatures on this petition which presses for more open tax regimes and greater transparency in payments to combat bribery and tax avoidance. This Global Call will be presented to world leaders at the G20 Summit to be held in Brisbane Australia in November 2014.

I've already become 'One in a Million' by signing the Global Call to End Corruption. Please add your signature and name on the EXPOSED website 

The EXPOSED campaign and our action at every level is vital important if we are to start to see some real justice in our world, fairer division of the world's resources, and the end of  greed and corruption. 

You might not think Corruption has got anything to do with you. But I encourage you to think outside your own circumstances, and to stand with the poor, and with the EXPOSED campaign!

(Some parts of this article also appear in an article I've written for this week's WarCry, the publication of The Salvation Army UK and Ireland.)

Poor Role Models in our Sad British Culture

So, BBC television's latest series of The Apprentice UK has finally ground to it's conclusion.

The entrepreneur and businessman Lord Alan Sugar has chosen his newest 'partner' who will get a QUARTER OF A MILLION POUNDS (that's £250,000) to set up a new business.

For those of us interested in the cause of women, and the promotion of intelligent, enterprising individuals of the 'fairer sex', there was good news because both finalists were female....Luisa Zissman and Leah Totton.

But that, I'm afraid, is where the rejoicing ended.

Both the 'L's' reckoned their proposed business ventures were keying into current 'trends' in society...which when you read their business ideas, says something rather sad about our British culture.

Luisa, an already successful businesswoman, proposed a new baking/cupcake franchise. A little obvious and cliched but, I would argue, fairly harmless. 

Leah, or to give her real title, DOCTOR Leah, was advocating something substantially more sinister and suspect - a chain of non-surgical cosmetic clinics and associated skin care products.

I have to admit I watched the semi finals and was convinced that Luisa would take the Apprentice Crown. Not because I particularly thought that the world needed another cupcake business, but because I really did not think that the usually rather sensible Alan Sugar would go anywhere near the cosmetic surgery business.

I WAS WRONG!

'Doctor Leah' won!

First I was incredulous. Then a little angry. And now I'm just sad.

It's an real testament to our shallow, appearance-obsessed British culture and society that Lord Sugar is willing to invest such a large sum of money into an 'industry' (Dr Leah's own words) which perpetuates the myth that 'beauty' can be bought and, more importantly, that to make it in the world, one really needs to be 'beautiful'. Her clinics will also allegedly provide 'anti-ageing' treatments such as botox injections. SO not only do you have to be beautiful, but it's also better to be young or at least pretend to be/look young.

Now,  I understand that not everyone in the plastic/cosmetic surgery industry is just in it for the money...I have met and know people who have benefited from essential cosmetic surgery following accidents and disfigurement, illness and disability. But I fear that it will not be these people who Dr Leah will be targeting.

Hers will be the sort of clinics where people (probably women, more probably young women) will walk in to request things to be filled,  lifted and smoothed over simply in order to 'look good' and because they can afford it. Or maybe not.  While I'm sure a few may well need some treatments for conditions like severe acne and other skin conditions, which can be destructive for self confidence, most likely Dr Leah's 'clients' will be those simply requiring to 'look more beautiful'.

My main problem with Sir Alan's choice is what this says about our sad British culture.

You'll have more a chance in life if you are 'beautiful'? If you're not 'beautiful' perhaps you should just  forget being successful and happy?  That beauty comes before brains, or that brains ideally should be accompanied by beauty? During The Apprentice, Dr Leah herself admitted on several occasions that her own appearance is very important to her, even though as a qualified doctor, she obviously has intelligence. Luisa and Leah both played on their 'sexiness' and 'beauty' to promote themselves throughout the series. Unfortunately, it appears to have worked.

While I'm all for people making the best of themselves, presenting their smartest face to the world, even making improvements in their appearance (that, after all, is why we visit the hairdressers, wear makeup, like nice clothes etc) Dr Leah's 'success' in The Apprentice sends out all the wrong messages.

If I had a chance to speak to Leah myself I would say something very simple. Please remember that 'beauty' is in the eye of the beholder. We don't all have to be plumped lipped, false boobed, voluminously haired, perfectly whitened teethed, nipped and tucked, skinny would-be clones of some weird Footballer Wife, staggering treacherously through our shallow little lives on eight inch heels, to be part of the human race. Older people make huge contributions to society every moment of the day and growing old should not be a disgraceful prospect.

Leah, of course, witters on, insisting that HER clinics will be driven by ethical and moralistic conduct, and regulation on use of drugs/procedures will be strictly adherred to. She insists that she'll magnanimosly turn down potential clients if she (or her staff) think they really don't need or won't benefit from a 'treatment'.

I'm sorry. I just don't buy it.

Dr Leah's clinics will be profit making businesses and when it comes to the bottom line, cash will be king. If someone is willing to hand over thousands of pounds for a procedure, are you REALLY telling me that Dr Leah will not be tempted to take it to pay for what is likely to be her ever increasingly glamourous and costly lifestyle?

But Dr Leah's 'success' in The Apprentice is even more worrying for a couple of other reasons.

The girl is only 24 yet she's already setting herself up as an 'expert' in the cosmetic surgery/health field.

She apparently only qualified as a doctor in summer 2012.  That's just ONE YEAR AGO!

She's working in the National Health Service but according to news reports has still found time to privately also train in cosmetic surgery for two years. Today, leading doctors in the plastic surgery business have condemned Dr Leah's plans, explaining that most professionals train for at least eight or nine years before opening private clinics.

Would YOU take advice from a doctor who's got such limited experience, but who wants to fill your face with botox? Or, more importantly, wants to get her senior nurse practictioner to fill your face with botox? At one point in the selection procedure Leah admitted that although she, the doctor, would be in charge of the enterprise, her clinics would be manned by nurses, not doctors. She insists she'll still be off continuing with her 'research', so presumably when you enter a 'Dr Leah Clinic' for a quick lunchtime treatment, Dr Leah won't be wielding the big syringe!

But give the girl credit, she is, at least, a qualified doctor. And this is my second problem with her success on The Apprentice. She herself boasted that she's spent 7 years being trained, training which presumably has been paid for by the National Health Service and therefore, by us...the British taxpayers. Yet now, no sooner than she's taken advantage of us for years of costly training,  she's off into 'private practice' presumably to make loads of money!

Finally, and sadly, Leah could have become such a role model.  She impressed the judges, including Lord Sugar, with her intelligence and businesslike approach to life and as a doctor she could have become such a great example, especially for other young women. Who knows, she might have aspired to be a groundbreaking brain or heart surgeon, a 'real' doctor, a saver of lives in our cash-starved National Health Service.  Now though, she's chosen, in my opinion, to squander any real potential for lifelong good with a 'career' which ultimately relies on the insecurity of women and peddles the lie that if you've got enough money you can make yourself 'beautiful', ergo successful and important.

This morning I listened to BBC Woman's Hour and heard a really fabulous interview about a new 'popstar' - one Catherine Bennett aka 'live artist' Bryony Kimmings. Catherine is the creation of Bryony's 9-year-old niece, Taylor, who is now her 'manager'. She's the result of Taylor's wish to have a role model who isn't just a clone of someone else's view of what is beautiful and talented, and her songs not just a perpetuation of the sexualised and commercialised music targeted at and influencing the 'tweens' of which Taylor is one.

Catherine is a part time singer. In real life she works  in a museum and is a paleontologist - she investigates dinosaurs! She's backed by leading music producers and the Arts Council, and is 'likeable superstar' who wears glasses and 'normal' clothes and sings a sort of euro pop which avoids references to sex, money and love. In her debut song 'Apathy' now posted on YouTube, she encourages young people to get involved in social issues.

Young Taylor has fortunately already recognised the lie that is the world into which Dr Leah has already been sucked and would wish to suck others. A false world where, it seems, appearance and 'beauty' rules above integrity, intelligence and common sense. Taylor said she wants to be a midwife when she 'grows up', to help bring new life into the world. That's amazing!

I don't wish Leah ill but I truly hope that the public, especially those already vulnerable about their appearance, won't be taken in by her hype.  But she's already got a PR Agent and undoubtedly she'll put herself on the celebrity circuit, sell lots of stories to the media, be seen at all the celebrity events, where she will rub shoulders with all the insecure individuals who will just love to become one of her victims and pay her handsomely for the right to be plucked, lifted and enhanced to within an inch of their lives.

That is - provided she gets a licence to operate. She's pledged to be driven by regulation so presumably will be expecting to be operating legitimately and within strict guidelines. Given some of the adverse comments coming out of the plastic surgery industry today I just wonder if she will be considered experienced enough to have a licence to open. 

But that, dear reader, is another story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Life of Duty

Sixty years ago today, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom. 

It was June 2 1953 and the country, and the wider world,  was buzzing with the excitement of the occasion. An estimated 11 million people listened into the Coronation Ceremony on the radio and a further 27 million people in Britain watched on TV. This in the days when TV sets were still a rarity, many many people used the Coronation as the excuse to buy their very first TV and those who did not do so gathered in neighbours' or family sitting rooms to watch the ceremony live on the strange little box with the black and white pictures which took centre stage in the home for that day. 

When Elizabeth took her oath of consecration, was crowned and invested with all the regalia and titles that come with being the British monarch, she didn't just become Queen of the UK but of many other nations including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan and Ceylon.

What an overwhelming responsibility for someone aged just 25!

Admittedly she had been raised as a Royal and would have been aware from her earliest moments that she lived in a world where duty was an overwhelming principle. Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was the grandaugher of King George V and Queen Mary, but her father, Prince Albert Duke of  York,  was second-in-line to the throne, so Elizabeth and younger sister Margaret were not born as certain front runners for the eventual job of monarch.

That was until Elizabeth was 10, when her Uncle David (King Edward VIII) , who had succeeded to the throne after the death of George V in January 1936, decided in December that year to abdicate the throne so he could marry Wallis Simpson, a twice divorced American with whom he had fallen in love.

From the moment her father ascended the British throne (he took the regnal name George VI), the young Princess Elizabeth would be groomed for a life as monarch. Her duty to her country would have been quietly processing in her mind and heart, her at-home private education would have prepared her for the eventuality of a life of service, where her own wishes and desires would need to be suppressed. From that moment it was not about her - Elizabeth the private individual, the woman, the wife, the mother - but about the greater good, her people.

By the time her father passed away when she was 24 - George VI sadly died of lung cancer on 6 Feburary 1952 - Elizabeth had married her third cousin, Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh -  had two young children and had enjoyed something of a private life, albeit wrapped up in all the responsibilities which came with being Heir to the Throne.

But was she prepared for monarchy? Her background would certainly suggest so, although the loss of her beloved father aged just 56 would have been a tremendous shock and propelled her into the role of Queen many years before she might have expected, and certainly many many years before she would have wanted.

S0, on June 2 1953, she processed through the packed streets of London and the cheers of the crowds to Wesminster Abbey in Central London and amid much pomp and historical ceremony swore the sacred oath of allegiance to her country and its laws. Much as kings and queens of England had done down many centuries, during this solemn Coronation Ceremony, this beautiful, sincere and dutiful young woman took on responsibilities which you and I can only imagine. Apart from being monarch of the United Kingdom and all those other aforementioned countries and dominions, Elizabeth II also became Head of the Commonwealth, and  Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

Down the years, through good times and bad, Queen Elizabeth has 'ruled' with grace and determination. She has weathered the storms of public disapproval and bathed in the love of her people.  She has held her head high during family grief and trial, and shown her compassion and care to the grieving. She has rejoiced with us and mourned with us. She has been the best example of a 'working mum' before that creature became popularised. Although undoubtedly she had lots of help, she has raised 4 children and worked tirelessly, giving of herself absolutely every day.

There have been those who have speculated whether she might one day abdicate in favour of her son Charles, but many commentators have suggested that Her Majesty's sense of duty to the role and to her nation would never allow that. Even now, aged 87, she still remains dedicated to her life of devotion and duty and keeps going, undertaking public duties and always looking immaculate, when many elderly women would be happy to sit at home in their slippers drinking tea and quietly nodding off in the corner of the room.

This second Elizabethan era has stretched entirely across my life and the lives of most of the people I know. For us it's always been Elizabeth and although she is not yet the longest reigning British monarch - Queen Victoria reigned for nearly 64 years from 20 June 1837 to 22 January 1901 -  our Queen Elizabeth is coming close.

Whether you like the idea of the monarchy or would rather see the UK as a republic, there's no doubting this woman has been a wonderful example of dutiful service. She is something for us to be proud of.

So I, for one, think of her today and wish her many more happy years of life and service. I thank her for her life of duty to her people and to her sacred 'calling' as Queen,which was sealed on this day sixty years ago.

And I say, with many many millions more and with true sincerity  .... 'God Save the Queen'.

(Thanks also to http://www.thediamondjubilee.org)

 

 

Facebook Gambling Alert

If you are a user of Facebook, some of you (especially here in the UK) will have noticed recently that us FBrs are now having our timelines flooded with advertisements for gambling - slots, casinos and all sorts of gambling 'games' including 'online gambling' which encourages people to gamble at home.

These ads are often pretty and colourful  - one even has the name 'Candy Shop Slots' - and they could be very enticing. Many offer the first 'play' free and similar financial enducements....a very typical marketing ploy from the gambling companies wanting to lure in new players!

 

The Background
Last August, Facebook changed it's 'rules' on running gambling ads. It means that now FB accepts ads from gambling companies, for promotion of both 'offline' and 'online' gambling ie for casinos you can visit personally and for games you can play at home on your computer, presumably using your credit card and with little or no controls over the amount of time/money you spend! 

The most interesting thing to note is that some ads for online gambling are illegal in some parts of the world (eg USA) but here in the UK the gambling industry is free to advertise with seemingly little regulation. And the gambling companies are already being actively encouraged to target those of us unfortunate to be in their sights, as you'll see if you get to the end of this article!

The advertisement are apparently only being put on the timelines of us 'adults' but parents may want to check from time to time that their kids are not receiving them and not being sucked into what can be a very dangerous and addictive 'habit'. This is a matter of child protection!

 

I am aware that organisations like FB need to make money, but this departure is just too cynical for words. Surely there has to be a more responsible way of maximising profits other than acting as agents for an (gambling) industry whose sole aim is to part people from their hard earned cash, an industry which relies on people developing and sustaining an addiction.  Facebook wouldn't be allowed to promote the sale of alcohol, cigarettes or drugs....but it is facilitating the growth of another very serious addiction. Gambling, we know, is usually viewed as a 'bit of fun' but unfortunately it can also lead to debt, family breakdown, crime and even suicide when people find that their gambling addiction is out of control! 

Blocking / Hiding / Reporting Facebook Gambling Ads

Facebook doesn't allow us to block ads from our FB timelines but we can hide them by clicking on the little x on the top right of the ads and then reporting them. I have been checking the 'Against my views' or Offensive' boxes. If I keep getting the ads, I might even tick the 'Sexually Explict' box just to see if that stops FB from posting these ads on my pages!

I have also reported the ads to Facebook explaining that I think FB's decision to allow gambling ads is very dodgy. To report ...go to the 'help' section (find that on the little wheel top right hand of your page). Put in the words 'report ads' in the search box and then click on 'how can I report an ad I see on Facebook'. Read the blurb and find the link to the report page and follow the instructions. Note of caution...it involves taking a screenshot of your FB page showing the gambling ads you want to report!

 

Just pawns in a game
If you are still unconvinced about the whole FB Gambling issue and the dangers therein, you might like to check out the following website:

Facebook Changes Policies On Gambling Advertisements | Casino Affiliate Programs

What you will see on this site is advice to the gambling industry itself on how they can take advantage of the new relaxed Facebook rules.  You might like to check out what they think about us FBrs...we are ideal 'target customers' and FB is a great way for them to market their casinos, bingo, slots and paid for games! They obviously see Facebook as a partner and they undoubtedly think we're suckers!

Excerpt from Casino Affiliates Programs:
'More people spend their time on Facebook than any other website in the world. Facebook can help casinos target their ads to their demographic. Their audience tends to have an income of about $50,000 a year, have at least some college education and live in the north central part of the country. Don’t you want to get the attention of your target customers? Facebook ads could be the best marketing strategy available to you....

This decision will only affect you if you intend to target gamblers outside the US or countries where Facebook will allow ads.'

 

Facebook is a fantastic and trusted social medium, helping family and friends stay in touch and bringing people together across the miles. It started out with such great intentions but unfortunately it appears to be losing its way. It's a shame. It's a real shame!

Inaugural Thoughts

Four years ago I sat in a hotel room and watched history in the making!

I was miles from the place it was happening - and nearly a day ahead of the goings-on - but I was inspired and moved to see Barack Obama stand before his nation, and the world, and witness him take his oath of office as the 44th President of the United States of America.

Yes, he is the first African American to be President of that great nation. But more importantly, having read several of his books as he progressed towards the presidency, I was impressed by his thinking and motivation, his determination and his Audacity of Hope - the title of one of his books!

I sat on a bed and watched his first inauguration and was rather overwhelmed by the moment. The raw emotion might also have had something to do with the fact that I was half asleep, actually a little exhausted. I watched the goings-on in Washington DC from a hotel room in Christchurch, New Zealand, as I came to the end of a fantastic month’s holiday which had also taken me to Australia!

I had set my alarm to be sure I was awake to watch the goings-on in Washington DC – Christchurch is 18 hours ahead of DC so it all kicked off around 5am! Truth be told, though, I actually was awake most of the night, determined not to miss the historic event.  Much coffee was drunk that night!

I was enthralled! I was encouraged! Of course, I’m aware that some of his policies have caused division in the USA and I’m also obviously looking on as an observer, so far be it for me to make comment further.  But reflecting on President Obama’s first inaugural address, I am still inspired by his motives to create a fairer society:

 

‘We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.’

 

(President Barack Obama 1st Inaugural Address Jan 20 2009)

 

Today, as President Obama is sworn in for a second term and makes his second Inaugural Address, I’ll be watching again. But not this time from a hot New Zealand in the beautiful Hotel Grand Chancellor, sadly no longer with us since that hotel was one of the victims of the devastating February 2011 earthquake. It was a real treat for me to be there in five star luxury as I ended my Down Under Sojourn - happy memories! Today I’ll be in a snowy UK. Watching via the magic that is TV from the comfort of my own lounge. Just 5 hours difference!

I’ll be listening intently to the President’s words, looking once again for inspiration, and wishing him God’s blessings!

Inspirational

This past couple of weeks have been truly inspirational.

The London 2012 Games started with a fantastic Opening Ceremony in the Olympic Stadium in East London, has seen some magnificent performances from medal winners and those who've just missed out, and even more amazing stories of sports people triumphing over disaster to compete.

But it's away from the Games themselves that I've found my personal inspiration.

I've been working for More Than Gold, the agency set up to encourage and support churches as they get involved in the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. I've been working in the Media Centre which was set up just for the Olympics to help spread the news of what the British churches, and Christians, have been doing across the Games.

Churches across the nation have been getting together to host fantastic community events, thousands of volunteers have been out in the streets and at events helping people to enjoy the Games, hundreds of people have opened their homes to complete strangers through something called the More Than Gold Athlete Family Homestay programme. More Than Gold Games Pastors have been out at transport hubs as additional support for travellers and particularly our international visitors, and a million bottles of water have been distributed.

In the Media Centre we've been telling these stories, encouraging media to cover what the church is doing....and we've had some really good coverage.

I've met people from different nations who've come to volunteer in the Media Centre, made some new friends and worked with old friends. It's all been really good fun and very positive.

But the most inspirational moments for me came this morning at the More Than Gold / Athletes in Action Legacy Breakfast, an event held to honour committment and character on the field of sport and off. Two Christian sportspeople, Olympian rower Debbie Flood and Olympian Decathlete Bryan Clay were presented with the first ever Eric Liddell Award, and we also heard from Eric Liddell's daughters Heather and Patricia as we were reminded of that amazing athlete's Christian witness as well as his sporting achievements.

The Legacy Breakfast had a couple of other special guests, Stephanie Cook, the modern pentathlon Olympic gold medal winner who is also a doctor and Stefanie Reid, a long jumper and runner and a medal winning Paralympian.

The whole morning was inspiring and but for me, Stef Reid's story was the most challenging, impressive and motivational. 

When she was just 16 Stef lost her right foot in a boating accident. For someone as sporty as Stef, with dreams of being a rugby player, you'd think suddenly becoming an amputee would crush her and her ambitions.

But no - today she stood on a platform at London's Methodist Central Hall and told several hundred people how she was inspired, by her family, friends, complete strangers, and her Christian faith, to still reach her full potential.

Listening to Stef was truly humbling. She reminded me that whatever life throws at you, with belief in yourself, and faith, anything is possible. In my case, it may not be striving for Olympic sporting gold, but I can take this thought, and inspiration into many areas of my life.

And I'll be watching the upcoming London 2012 Paralympics with even more interest now!