THE hero in a Red shirt weaved his way into the opposition penalty area and unleashed a rocket of a shot. Cue the net rippling and an extravagant celebration. Britt Assombalonga had just scored the goal that kept Forest in the Championship. Ok, not a game-changer in most people’s worlds but to a long-suffering fan […]

Read more "Curse of money is to divide and conquer…"

POPE FRANCIS has ruffled a few feathers with his outspoken comments on a range of issues since taking the top job in the Roman Catholic Church. But surely none of his pronouncements have been more controversial – some would say plain crazy – than something he said in May 2014. He told the world’s media […]

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RELIGION plays a very important and valuable role in adding stability and structure to human lives. But, like all belief systems, it also by definition presents mental obstacles that prevent people from finding out what is really happening in the world. I write from personal experience. My life-long search for truth had already seen me […]

Read more "Our core beliefs filter out a world of possibilities…."

A few months ago I attended a very interesting meeting debating a series of topical ethical issues at Loughborough University. Signing in, I noticed there was a column for us to register any groups or faiths that we represented. I thought for a moment and wrote ‘human being’. Smart a***? Yeah, guilty as charged, but […]

Read more "We are human beings, not machines….."

JUST finished watching Diana: In Her Own Words, an amazing documentary on Channel 4+1. This isn’t so much a carefully composed article but my from-the-heart thoughts about one of the most sensational programmes I’ve ever seen. Firstly, little wonder the critics tried to demean the use of previously unseen footage of the late Princess of […]

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A PRISONER walks free at the end of his sentence, but secretly feels more secure ‘inside’…… Another man ‘retires’ after 30 years in the armed forces but finds civilian life very difficult to adjust to…… Brought up in a religious sect with authoritarian rules, a young person breaks free only to find he or she […]

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Read more "World’s most curious holiday destination?"

JUST been watching a BBC South video about a microchip you can now have implanted in your hand. It was very ordinary in nature – therein lies the problem – but totally extraordinary at the same time. It struck me when listening to this short film just how far we have come in 25 years […]

Read more "Deadly trap most folk will cue to fall into….."

DURING the winter I was sat waiting patiently for a routine appointment at the doctors. I watched a short video about an imaginary emergency – funnily enough that didn’t help my already slightly uneasy mood – then read a notice. It was urging patients in fairly strong terms not to have their flu jabs in […]

Read more "Vaccines make money but do they improve health?"