History in Schools

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The Education Secretary, Michael Gove, yesterday stated, not for the first time, that too little history and in particular too little British history is taught in our schools. This followed a report by Sir David Cannadine, a history professor, which reached the same conclusion. The report added that history should be compulsory for all children until they reach 16 years and therefore, in most cases, until they actually finish secondary school. That has to be right, for two reasons.

Firstly, history is another word for experience and as all parents know experience is a great teacher. How many times do we tell our children not to do something, like not putting their hands in a bowl of hot water as we did at their age, hoping that they, unlike us, will not suffer unnecessary pain. We’ve learned the consequences of such actions through painful experience and if children can learn from our experience then all well and good. The same thing is true of history. Do you think, for example, that western governments would have been so quick to become involved in Afghanistan if they’d studied and learned the lessons that the British learned in the late 19th Century or the Soviets in the late 20th Century?

Secondly, it is vital to teach our children all about this country’s history to give them a true perspective of where they are from and what they are a part of. That history must be taught as it is, honestly, openly and truthfully, warts and all and without any political spin. Teach children the facts and let them make their own minds up about the rights and wrongs. When I was at school in the early 1970s my left wing leaning British History teacher never missed an opportunity to criticise the British Empire and I’m sure at times he made some valid points. However, I never once heard him mention the fact that Britain was the first civilised nation to abolish slavery and led the way for other nations such as France, Spain and even the USA to follow; funny that.

We must teach children to feel pride in their heritage and pride in their country’s many achievements. Who knows, that feeling of pride may well foster in them a different outlook to life and a feeling that maybe we have something worth preserving in this country. That alone would make the whole exercise worthwhile wouldn’t it?

Win An All Expenses Paid Trip For Two To The Seychelles!

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Not really, but it got your attention didn’t it? It’s funny how many competitions there are on television these days and how simple the questions are. For example, on Channel 4 last night there was a multiple choice question, as they always seem to be, which if answered correctly would give the winner some incredible prize such as that trip for two to the Seychelles. I can’t actually remember what the prize was so amazed was I by the question “What is the capital of the USA?” Is it a) Berlin, b) Paris or c) Washington DC? Mmmm, tricky but only if you are, or have the IQ of someone, aged 2 years!

Of course, the advertisers make their money by requiring you to text your answer to a number where you will be charged £1 per minute. I’ve never taken part but I can imagine that the welcome message including a description of the prize probably takes 5 minutes, followed by another 5 minutes taking your full details including name, address, marital status, date of birth, weight, hair colour, shoe size, favourite meal etc etc and finally another 5 minutes for you to answer the question! That amounts to £15 at £1 per minute and if, say 100,000 people (not that great a number out of possibly 5 million viewers) enter the competition as a result of that single advert then the return is £1.5 million. Some return.

Very clever advertising, of course, and more fool us for thinking we can win the competition, though presumably somebody does. As I puzzled over the answer I thought to myself what a crazy world we live in! Then another thought occurred to me, what if the competition is meant to be taken seriously and there really are people out there who will struggle to get the correct  answer? After all, we all know how bad our education system is and how many illiterate ill-educated 16 year old dullards are spewed out into the work place once that system has finished with them. What if there really are people out there who don’t know that Paris is the capital of the USA?! It doesn’t bear thinking about does it!

And So Say All Of Us!

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A report in today’s I newspaper to warm the hearts of all right-thinking British folk “EU might be better off without selfish UK”, a quotation evidently taken from the German newspaper, Bild.

This follows Mr Cameron’s meeting with Frau Merkel in Berlin yesterday. Evidently they reached an impasse on several issues amongst which were how to rescue the doomed Euro and how to create a better Europe for us all – for which read Germany and France!

At last, our Prime Minister seems to be standing up for the UK and this in a week when he actually described himself as “a Eurosceptic”. Perhaps there is some hope for us after all.

Europe – How much further to go?

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Europe continues to behave like a drunk staggering down the high street, tripping over a kerb, falling against a parked car and bouncing back to lean on a wall desperately trying to remain upright. The problem is that Europe, like the drunk, cannot remain upright for much longer. The only question is how bad will the damage be when the fall comes?

The Greek crisis seems insoluble and Italy looks to be next on the list in spite of the removal of the “Buffoon” Berlusconi, a title bestowed upon him by his disenchanted electorate. Sarkozy, the Little Napoleon, could be next since he too appears to lack popular support and France is looking especially vulnerable to the spreading Euro disease. Maybe Germany can hold it all together but the question is, do the German people want to? Merkel is hardly top of the popularity stakes and she may be one parliamentary vote from obscurity. What then for the European monolith?

The annoying thing about this crisis is that it was all too predictable. European integration, like the doomed Euro itself, was built on sand. The European Union has never benefited from majority support within its member states and it was always just a matter of time before the proponents of European unity were called upon to face the consequences of their undemocratic policies.

It’s quite incredible that politicians in a continent which prides itself on its enlightenment and democratic traditions can have behaved in such a manner. European leaders have never missed an opportunity to lecture other countries’ leaders, the Chinese for example, on the way their countries are run, conveniently forgetting their own actions. Politics and hypocrisy are not exactly strange bedfellows though, are they?

Events in the Middle East this year have quite clearly demonstrated that eventually the voice of the people will be heard and the strongest of regimes can be made to topple. Our continent is no different; the problem is what will be left of Europe once the Union falls and how can we recover from the economic turmoil still to come?

Poppy Compromise

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Following pressure from our Prime Minister and Prince William Fifa have now graciously agreed that our footballers can wear poppies incorporated into black armbands at Saturday’s game. A fair compromise you may think. Well, it’s not, this is our country and we honour our wartime dead in the manner we think is appropriate. It has got nothing to do with anybody else and we shouldn’t have budged an inch. No poppy no game. Contrast the Four Nation Rugby League Tournament taking place at the weekend, all four nations, England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand will be wearing poppies on their shirts. Good on them. This was a poor decision by the English FA and a needless compromise.

Poppy Ban

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So, football’s ruling body, Fifa, have banned England from wearing artificial poppies on their shirts before Saturday’s friendly against Spain at Wembley. They say that it contravenes their policy of not allowing the display of “political symbols”. That is quite frankly unbelievable and a huge insult to this country.
Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday are among the most important days in the British calendar, a time when we all show respect for the memory of  those men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of their country. It has nothing to do with politics, or religion for that matter, as anybody with half a brain will tell you. Clearly, brains are in short supply at Football’s HQ, an unsurprising revelation to many, I’m sure.

Our own football authority should tell Fifa one of two things, either the players are going to wear their poppies come what may or the game is off. Simple as that.

Government Incompetence

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It almost beggars belief that, for a period of two months in the summer just gone, the UK Border Agency (UKBA) relaxed its security checks at UK ports of entry potentially allowing all sorts of  undesirables to enter unmonitored. So bad is this latest governmental cock-up that Home Secretary Theresa May, has had to admit that she has no idea how many foreign nationals escaped those security checks before they blithely entered the country. And this, at a time when the world, in general, and the West, in particular, remain at great risk from the threat of global terrorism.

The whole purpose of immigration and security controls is, of course, to screen those who wish to enter the country by firstly examining their paperwork and then, if necessary interviewing them to ascertain whether or not they pose a risk to national security. This was not done and we need to know why not and who was responsible. Of course, ministers are rarely personally to blame for such faux pas but ultimately they must take responsiblity for the incompetence of the civil servants working beneath them.

This is not the first time that such an incident has occurred in recent years though it usually happened on the watch of the previous bungling Labour government. Sadly, the present incumbents seem to be no better. Oh dear, if only we had an alternative!

The Tyranny of TripAdvisor

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I watched a television programme last night about the emergence and power of TripAdvisor.com, the website which allows members of the public to rate their travel experiences, whether it be airlines, tour operators, hotels or B&B. Sounds like a good idea doesn’t it? I’m sure we’ve all had disappointing or unpleasant experiences with inefficient airlines, poor meals, lumpy hotel beds and rude restaurant staff.

However, the programme demonstrated the other extreme and showed us just how, in the hands of the wrong people, power can corrupt. Some of the people featured admitted that they regard themselves as full time investigators for TripAdvisor – impliedly admitting too that they, quite clearly, have nothing better to do.

At a couple of hotels we saw fanatics who analysed every minute detail such as the decor (surely a matter of personal taste), whether or not the sachets of coffee were replenished every day by the chambermaid (and if they weren’t why not just ring the receptionist to request some more) and how often the bedroom sheets were changed. One man said that he needed his sheets changing daily obviously unaware of a worldwide campaign to try and prevent unnecessary water and energy waste. It crossed my mind, does he change his sheets every day at home? I wish somebody had asked him. Then we had the “little Hitlers” (as one restaurant owner called them) who dissected, literally, every mouthful of food that they ate at their table. I wanted to know what kind of food they cook at home, if they can cook at all, and what state their houses are in?
It is so easy to criticize and it’s often grossly unfair. As somebody once wisely said, the world is divided into those who do and those who criticize. Looking at the critics last night and their (in the main) hard working, decent and, not surprisingly, distraught victims I know with which side my sympathies lie. I’m sure that many contributors to TripAdvisor are rational and fair-minded folk concerned with improving quality for all of us. However, on the Channel 4 programme last night all we saw were vindictive, spiteful, social misfits who seemed keen only to give some meaning to their clearly inadequate lives. I hope they don’t represent the majority.

Europe – The Ship Still Floats

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On September 29th I compared Europe to a sinking ship. Well, the ship is still afloat and the euro remains, though at an extremely high cost to all of us and I don’t just mean financially.

Many issues arose during the course of the last week, not least the question of a referendum on our continued membership of the EU. Most people, so opinion polls reveal, desire a referendum though they are unlikely to get one. Opponents of a referendum argue that since we elected our MPs to lead us we should just let them get on with it and do their job without interference in the knowledge that if we don’t like them we can vote them out at the next election. A good point, but the problems now facing us are without precedent.

In 1975 we were asked if we wanted to be part of the Common Market, basically a European trading group, and most of us said yes since the benefits of free trade were clear for all to see. We were never asked whether we wanted to be a part of a European Union which of course is what that Common Market has developed into. Over the years we have seen a relentless loss of sovereign power with further losses to follow if  Mr Sarkozy and Ms Merkel get their way. Isn’t about time therefore, that at the very least, we had a free and open debate on what is undoubtedly the greatest issue any of the post-war generations have ever faced?

Mr Cameron has shown this week that he doesn’t favour a debate on Europe and the fact that nearly 90 MPs defied a three line whip seems to show that he has underestimated both his party’s and his country’s concern at what is happening in Europe.

I don’t know the answer to all of this, but what I do know is that if the idealists who govern Europe are allowed to proceed without check then pretty soon the United Kingdom as we know it will disappear into a United States of Europe and no amount of peaceful debate will bring it back. Is there nobody who can provide us with strong leadership and stand up for our country?

An English Hero

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Today is October 21st, the anniversary of Britain’s most famous naval victory, the battle of Trafalgar. It is also the anniversary of the death of Lord Nelson, the hero of that battle who lost his life at the moment of his greatest victory. The following is a brief précis of that life and the battle with which Nelson will forever be associated.
Horatio Nelson, the son of a church minister, joined the Royal Navy as a midshipman at the age of 12 and rose quickly through the ranks becoming captain of his own ship at the age of 20 and admiral before his 40th birthday, one of the youngest in English naval history. An outstanding leader and tactician he was also a man of immense personal courage always in the forefront of the action losing the sight of his right eye at the siege of Calvi in 1794 and his right arm whilst leading an attack on Santa Cruz de Tenerife in 1797.
He became one of the most popular figures of contemporary society, an icon adored by the masses and courted by royalty throughout Europe. Charismatic and vain, he scandalised society by embarking upon a passionate affair with the beautiful Lady Emma Hamilton with whom he had a daughter, Horatia. Both were married to other people at the time but this did nothing to diminish Nelson’s popularity and appeal. He died tragically at the age of 47 years at the moment of his greatest triumph at Trafalgar in October 1805, a victory which guaranteed British control of the seas for the next 100 years.
Horatio Nelson (first known as Horace) was born on September 29th, 1758 in the village of Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk. He was a bright child of average physique and was sent, aged 10, to the Royal Grammar School, Norwich shortly after the death of his mother. He stayed there for a year before completing his formal academic education at Sir John Paston’s School in North Walsham. On January 1st, 1771, aged 12 he joined HMS Raisonnable as a midshipman thus beginning a career that would bring him unimagined fame and fortune and a place forever in the hearts of his countrymen. He sailed the world in the service of king and country, defying the might of Napoleon Bonaparte and his allies and winning significant victories at the Nile in 1798 and Copenhagen in 1801. As a reward for his success he was made first, a Baron and then Viscount. His final date with destiny came off Cape Trafalgar, Southern Spain in the autumn of 1805.
When dawn broke on the misty morning of October 21st, 1805 Lord Nelson’s fleet prepared for battle against the combined fleet of French and Spanish vessels under the command of the French Admiral Villeneuve. Sending the signal that “England expects every man to do his duty” (or words to that effect) Nelson, foregoing the established broadside tactics of the time, split his fleet into two columns and, leading one column himself aboard his flagship HMS Victory, sailed straight into the lines of the numerically superior French and Spanish. Ignoring the advice of his junior officers Nelson, dressed in full uniform and giving no thought for his own personal safety, stood prominently on the bridge of his ship in full view of his men eager, as always, to lead from the front. Of course, this meant that he was equally conspicuous to the enemy.
Nelson’s tactics aided by the excellent seamanship and superior gunnery of his sailors caused havoc amongst the enemy who were crushed into submission by the withering hail of British cannon fire; their losses were catastrophic. At the moment of victory Nelson was struck in the chest by a French sharpshooter’s musket ball. Mortally wounded, he was quickly carried down below decks but lived long enough to hear confirmation of his total victory before receiving that famous kiss -“Kiss me Hardy”- from his subordinate Lieutenant Hardy.
His body was preserved in a vat of brandy and transported back to England where his funeral brought London to a standstill as hundreds of thousands of his grieving countrymen poured on to the streets to pay their last respects. Nelson was buried at St Paul’s Cathedral and a grateful nation honoured his memory and that of his finest hour by erecting a statue of the great man atop a column, naturally called Nelson’s column, in the newly named Trafalgar Square in London.