Sunday Thoughts

It has been a tiring week.  My sullen hulk refused to go out yesterday leaving me with no option but to watch football all day.  This was tiring, especially as the football was mediocre English stuff.  I struggled through two games and gave up halfway through the third.  However, I did have the joy of watching Kilmarnock beat Rangers the evening before, and that cheered me greatly.  Always good to see the Old Firm struggle.  

One noticeable change in recent days is the Conservative Party candidates refusing to mention that they belong to the Conservative Party.  Here is my own MP, and Foreign Secretary at that, not only dropping the word 'Conservative,' from his poster, he, like the rest, have changed the Conservative Blue to a peely-wally green.  Possibly this is to convince people that the ones who have given licences for hundreds of oil and gas rigs to appear in the North Sea are doing so for 'Green Environmental' reasons.  The water companies pumping sewage into the sea with no punishment possibly don't count here.

A simple con, which will fool many let's be honest, but not all.  Whatever this crowd of gangsters get up to a third of the English population will vote Conservative.  Why?  Habit, fear of 'socialism, because the 'Daily Mail,' 'Daily Express,' 'The Telegraph,' or the 'Sun,' tell them the Conservatives will stop foreigners coming here on wee boats.  They believe taxes will be lower, and they will benefit.  The majority are no longer fooled, but many will still support this gangster party.

Wiki

Daniel 7:9

‘As I looked, 

‘thrones were set in place,

and the Ancient of Days took his seat.

His clothing was as white as snow;

the hair of his head was white like wool.

His throne was flaming with fire,

and its wheels were all ablaze.

 10.  A river of fire was flowing,

coming out from before him.

Thousands upon thousands attended him;

ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.

13 ‘In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshipped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

**************

This Sunday the church I didn't attend, was considering the transfiguration of Jesus.  The time he took three disciples up a mountain alone, and was suddenly transfigured, Moses and Elijah appearing beside him.  This, strangely enough, is a moment I and others I think often ignore.  We read it and move on.  However, if we read the powerful description in Daniel we see where Jesus came from, thus we can no longer imagine him to be merely a 'good man,' but we are forced to accept him as God on earth.

The supernatural is missing from many churches these days.  Those who accept and believe it often forget it during the working day, yet it remains the real world, and this earth a mere copy.  

Jesus transfiguration frightened the disciples, how much more we when God moves in our lives.  When God interferes with our lives on earth it can be frightening, we cannot control him, the supernatural is above and beyond what we know.  Yet, the image of God seen on his throne, pure and Holy, surrounded by myriads of angels, yet offering his Son, the one to be worshiped, simply to save individual people here on earth.  The Love that is revealed as this Holy God reaches down to me and you, dies as a substitute for my sin and yours, and knows all the corruption inside, and there is plenty in me, is quite astounding.  To think that this Holy God wants someone like you and me to be with him, enjoying him for ever is a thought worth considering.

Albert Goodwin - The Rain From Heaven, All Souls, Oxford

 

James Cleverly MP.

BWT

This is James Cleverly the local Member for Parliament.  He is a Conservative and recently like all members received a substantial increase in his MP's salary worth around £7000 a year to him.  This means he is now paid about £70,000 a year.  On top of this he remains a member of the London Assembly (or council if you like) for a period earning another £18,000 I think it is for this.  James remains a Major in the Territorial Army (or Reserves as the Conservative government now call it) an organisation he joined after injury forced him out of the regular army. Pay rates for such an officer are around £124 a day (daily rate is normal here) with occasional 'bounties of around a thousand.
As an MP he will be able to claim enormous expenses for almost everything work related, has a 'card' that enables this at good rates, and various subsidised 'tea rooms' in the House of Commons to ease his working day.  James Cleverly will also come into contact with a great many people seeking his advice, some of which may well offer legitimate payment and others may lead to other advantages.  
Nothing wrong, criminal or illegal as far as can be told so far.  Nothing indicates a man who does anything but works hard for his income, a good income and lifestyle which he and his family no doubt enjoy.
My one problem is that recently the Conservative government, the one that allows big business to avoid tax (George Osborne's family firm paid him a bonus of £1500 after avoiding corporation tax for ten years while paying no tax on millions of profits!  He is the Chancellor, the governments money man!), this government that encourages tax dodging has cut benefits for the disabled by £30 a week!
James Cleverly, the man doing so well himself, voted in support of this cut!
How can well paid satisfied members of the House vote to cut benefits from the weakest while doing nicely themselves I ask?  Many of those dependent on vehicles have lost their support and are now trapped in their houses, others are losing equipment that keeps them alive, others suffer everyday losses re foodstuffs and daily requirements.
James Cleverly appears to support this attack on the poorest and it does not sit well with many of us.

    
This morning we awake to the ceaseless chatter re the budget.  George Osborne will start spewing forth his budget this afternoon and we all know what it will say.  For days we have heard it will cut £4 Billion from somewhere and no increase on Beer duty, at least that appears to be the main two topics.  What happened to keeping such things quiet until the day?  One thing we all know is that the rich will not be stopped avoiding tax, this has been ensured by the appointment to the top ranks at the Tax Office of three men famous for advising big companies on tax avoidance.  The cutting of thousands more tax jobs will also follow! 
I will ignore all this.  Each budget day the government party tell us how wonderful this is, the opposition tell us how awful, the facts we discover arrive the next day once various 'experts' (and there are always 'experts' on hand to explain) have studied the results of the changes.  Rarely is it good news.  Only the top elite will benefit once again and the rest will carry the burden.  That's how it is.