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I am rarely contentious in this diary - I have views which are probably too radical to put down these days - but basically I am a child of my times. My father was the youngest of eight and he was born in 1912, so most of his family were born and brought up in the Victorian era - and it carried through to him - and thus to me I guess. Our little family were Anglo-Scots, thus "pure British" and proud of both sides of our heritage and, in particular, of my maternal grandfather who had been killed in action in the First World War. Most of the kids from my area joined the cubs and scouts which were usually part of the local church. (Lord) Baden Powell was a considered a hero, not only for starting the scout movement, but also for his military service and contribution to the Empire. At my school we had an army cadet corps, which everyone had to join for at least one year (and me for more). Some of the master were ex-military and many had fought in the second world ward. Globes and maps were still mainly pink and the Empire was a source of pride, not a dirty word. I only remember there being one black pupil at school - and he wasn´t treated that much differently to everyone else. I seem to remember he was quite good at sport, which was the key to most things at the school. (We reputedly had one guy who went-up to Oxbridge based on rugby-playing ability - and all had a half-day holiday when another graduate was selected for the varsity match). Academic ability was expected and teaching was old-fashioned even for those days in the early sixties. The school didn´t stand for any sort of dissent or "ganging-up" and the only real violence was that meted out by the masters and prefects. The cane was in common use and a few of the master had their own "beating devices". Pre-dating most modern "charity fund raising", the school had an annual fund-raising initiative in which all pupils were involved - all in order to raise money for the Salford Lads´ Club. The school was founded in the Victorian era by a charitable trust from an old Lancashire family and actually situated in Whalley Range and next to Moss Side - which put it close to the (only) black area of Manchester at the time - but colour was never any sort of issue as the Caribbean and Indian populations were just trying to make a living like everyone else. Basically they were just working class areas, with Whalley Range rapidly becoming a student dormitory as the old Edwardian houses became flats and bedsits. Needless to say, the military services, police and medical staff were all respected. Politicians were thought to be more patrician than self-serving and the Queen was a revered figure-head. That does not mean that everything was perfect - even then there were plenty of yobs, vandals and lawbreakers (and I was no angel myself). The difference was that miscreants were actually frightened of the police and justice system. Violence existed on the streets, but murder was very rare (ok, probably due to the use of the death penalty). Also missing were the scroungers - people had to work to live and being out-of-work was a source of social shame, not a lifestyle choice as now. Many may find this unacceptable, but so be it. Anyone who was not in the UK while I was growing up there has absolutely no right at all to tell me how I should feel about my country, or tell me that anything I know about it is "wrong". If they, or their family came as "guests", they have no right to act as if they now own the place and can choose an alternative history. And while I am on that issue, slavery was not just an "African to America" issue with the British making money. There were many, many British families living in abject poverty and (as it has been called) subject to "slavery" in the mines and mills. Don´t tar everyone with the same brush for your own political ends. I admit that I have not lived in the UK for thirty five years and it still saddens me to see the way it has changed. If I were in the UK, I would probably be accused of being an Imperialist and Racist, but unlike most of the loud-mouthed rabble who want their views to be the only way for everyone, I have worked in many countries with all colours, races and creeds. I have experienced all sorts of preferential treatment for other people, whether on the basis of sex, nationality, race or even disability. As a white anglo- saxon male, I was at the bottom of the pile for preferred promotion, but usually at the top for commitment and effort. So I do have one particular "ism" - and it is not sexism, racism or homophobia. Martin Luther King defined equality as judging people by the “content of their character”, not the colour of their skin. For myself, I freely admit my preference for people who make an effort in what they do and who want to get ahead by combining whatever ability they have with sheer effort and commitment. Basically I believe in a meritocracy. That is probably considered a very Victorian value in these times where expectations are for free-handouts rather than earned benefits, but I am a child of my time and don´t expect me to change my views to suit your times.

I have always resented being brought up a Christian. Even without being a catholic, the whole heaven and hell things is indelibly imprinted on your psyche whether you wanted it or not. Even before the "Nottingham epiphany", I had started to look at alternative religions to see if there was something that actually matched my evolving view on "everything". I seem to remember having a book on comparative religion and working my way through the thumbnail outlines, generally dismissing them one-by-one. The ones that came closest to my early viewpoint were Buddhism and Tao-ism. Buddhism for the peaceful "do no harm" nature of the belief and Taoism as a philosophy (rather than a religious belief). Light and dark, good and evil, Yin and Yang fitted into my personal view. There is a religious "string" to it, but basically it is all about Lao-tzu and The Way. The book most closely associated with him is the Tao-te Ching. A book that has been translated into English many times, but the classical reference work is the Richard Wilhelm version. This in turn leads to the I Ching - the book of pictograms that are used for divination in conjunction with casting of coins. (Quite an interesting exercise with some amazingly accurate predictions when we applied it). Anyway, suffice it to say that using Buddhism and Taoism as an introduction to eastern philosophy was probably the best starting point and one which led me into a vast range of esoteric literature - usually published and purchased in Singapore then smuggled back into Brunei (and with a large collection of boarding-pass bookmarks - I´d forgotten how often I travelled that route). ... and just as Jesus was a Jew, then Buddha was a Hindu - so the web of interest started to incorporate Hinduism as well - with India as the starting point for Buddhism and Hinduism and China for Taoism (but with Tibet a key religious centre and lying in between them).