Category: More than Words

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Snakes and Ladders

Posted on gord

2016 has been a tough year for politics. We started with the EU referendum, where the United Kingdom shocked the world by voting to leave the European Union. Then this was well and truly Trumped (pun intended) by the presidential election in the United States. Both of these countries were split by two opposing sides, broadly speaking it was between liberal and conservative politics. To me, being unashamedly left wing, (I make no apology for that. I am, as my good friend so gracefully put it, a ‘fucking lefty liberal’ and proud!) the whole thing felt like a rather depressing game of snakes and ladders.

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One in Seven Billion

Posted on gord

There are around seven billion people on this planet. Seven billion people, like you and me, who share a common humanity. Each one of us has a different perspective on the world, a different story to tell and a different experience of what it means to be human. The way that I see the world is different to a housewife from New Jersey, different to a Nomad living in a tent in the Sahara Desert, and different still to a seven-year-old girl living in a brothel in Thailand. And yet we are all connected, we all breathe the same oxygen and live on the same planet. As Satish Kumar says, “before we are Americans or Russians, Israelis or Palestinians, Hindus or Muslims, Shias or Sunnis, Catholics or Protestants, black-skinned or white, we are members of one human family. Whatever our nationality or religion. Under our skin we all have the same red blood. At quantum level we are all protons and photons. At spiritual level we are all pure consciousness.” We are seven billion stories, looking at the world through fourteen billion eyes and yet we are one human family.

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What Can a White Guy do About Privilege?

Posted on gord

As a white, straight male, I’ve come to recognise that I’ve inherited a certain amount of privilege through no fault of my own. Racism, homophobia and sexism are still massive systemic problems in the West today. While it might not be so obvious, and many people would claim that they play no part in this, we live in a system that is incredibly biased towards middle-class, white, straight, men. The opportunities and resources available to me would be radically different if I were not white, straight and male – if I wasn’t privileged. It’s easy to ignore this, especially when I’m the one usually benefitting from it. I mean, why should I complain about the fact I’ve been given a good education and can work doing a job that I enjoy? Why shouldn’t I just enjoy my privilege

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Cat Links More than Words

More Than Words

Posted on gord

Every time I log on to social media (which is probably more often than I should), there’s always plenty of things that grab my attention. Seeing a friend’s new baby, an update from my sister travelling around Central America or whatever country she’s in at the moment, another meme about the Great British Bake off, or a riveting comment thread from whatever politically or religiously divisive article one of my friends has posted. Now I love to get into a good ol’ Facebook debate. If you know me, then you know that I can have very strong opinions about things, and love to engage in a debate or argument over the web defending whatever position I hold. Whether it’s LGBTQ rights, systemic racism, Donald Trump, Brexit or Marvel vs. DC, I will vehemently defend and argue my opinion. I try to be open to other’s points of view but if my deconstruction has taught me anything, it’s that I can be wrong about things and that’s OK. Debate and discussion help me to see other’s point of view and learn from them where I can. But I’m starting to realise that holding an opinion or a position on things is not enough.

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