Published

Here is the article that I am about to see published in a Bristol newspaper (subtext: I can't be bothered to write a new entry today).
Too often global poverty is presented as a series of numbers and statistics, the human aspect is lost and it makes it all too easy to live in western comfort ignoring the countless plights from across the world. I am one of the lucky few to have been given the opportunity to help these people in need and in a country that, despite its myriad of problems, is one of the most spectacular and fascinating locations on the planet. And the government paid for it all as well.
With Christian Aid, the Department for International Development runs Platform2, a £10 million project dedicated not only to the development of some of the poorest areas globally, but also to giving disadvantaged youths a new perspective on life, and the purpose that comes with it. In October of last year, I was selected, along with 39 other volunteers, to join the January to March trip to Rajasthan in India, for a project that involved teaching and construction in the poor villages surrounding the city of Jaisalmer, near the Pakistan border.

My experience was incredible. It completely altered my perspective on the world and redefined my goals in life to be focused around somehow aiding the developing world. The teaching project I was working on primarily allowed me to witness the struggle of children from horrendously poor families against an unsympathetic and ineffective education system, entrenched by unsympathetic and ineffective teachers. In an effort to increase the number of children attending school, the government had begun an initiative that offered a free meal to all attending students. However, like with all schemes in any country that are not properly monitored and enforced, the holes in the scheme were all too obvious. Many children would turn up for school in the morning, stay for the register, and as soon as it was possible, they would escape the class to play in the day care centre, or roam the desert around the village. These children would return for lunch, where they would be fed, before disappearing again for the rest of the day. Trying to convey to their parents the importance of school reaped little rewards as they, too, saw it as a means of feeding their children one good meal a day that they were not paying for. Teachers were even less help, but how can you expect any level of effective interest in their responsibilities when there is no concept of accountability in the role. This lack of accountability stretched further upward than the teachers, we were lucky enough to be working at the school at the time of local elections, and therefore able to catch a glimpse of a disregard for the non-voting children of India by the very people who are supposed to be working for the benefit of everyone in their area.

Firstly, we witnessed the methods by which political parties obtained votes. Instead of canvassing and manifestos, the candidates and their staff travelled around the villages distributing alcohol to their supporters and the undecided. It became clear very quickly that it would not be policies that would determine the winner, but rather who would supply the most booze. It seemed we were right about this and after the weekend we were faced with the devastating conclusion to the weeklong event when we were finally able to get back to the school. Dotted around the schoolyard were bottles of rum and whisky, discarded by the revellers from an election night party. Given the unkempt state the playground was consistently in, this was not particularly eye catching or shocking, but once we entered our staff room we were presented with a sight, and smell that should not have been expected in even the most apathetic of schools. Various glass bottles were smashed on the floor, their contents long consumed. Cigarettes and bidis (Indian cigarettes rolled in leaves) were piled high on the window sills where children had been grabbing at the piles through holes in the mesh. The worst, and most pungent find in that abandoned mess were the two heaps of exercise books in the corners of the room. One of which was almost unrecognisable, a black lump of burnt pages and ash where responsibly adults had used the fuel of student’s hard work in an effort to light and heat the room as they celebrated into the night. Of the other, it was the smell that called the most attention to it. Without the fire of the other mound, you could still make out the sums and sentences scrawled on the pages of the books, but they were swimming in urine. In an attempt to create a toilet that was closer than the one around the corner, elected officials had opted to use educational resources that would probably not get replenished during the time that these children would remain in school. In that room, the lack of accountability and its effects were demonstrated across a broad spectrum of those responsible for our student’s futures. Futures which looked bleak. Bleaker still for the child that was called in and forced to clean up the mess.

Examples such as that one as well as the abhorrent violence that the children faced at the hands of their impatient teachers, exemplify the difficulties they had of getting what they were entitled to from their education. Regardless, some of those children were the most upbeat and enthusiastic people I had ever met and the effect of having teachers that did not hit them and turned up every day turned my class from one of nine students on the first day, to an almost unmanageable thirty-five to forty in the last few weeks. The trip taught me that material wealth and western values can sometimes be extremely detrimental to the happiness of those who are used to them while people who truly deserve such luxuries are left in starvation and poverty thanks to a global apathy that is stifling world-wide progression. My hope is that my fellow volunteers and I can continue to make a real difference to this situation, inspiring others to do the same. It is our responsibility as human beings to fix the inexcusable condition of the poorest countries and its embarrassing that so many people ignore this.

Democracy's Last Stand

This is an age full of wondrous invention and unimaginable progress. We are encountering advances in technology which used to be beyond the dreams of people who are still alive today and our velocity is only increasing. As a species we are hurtling towards a fork in the road and right now the most important piece of coal we are chucking into the engine's furnace (that's right, we're driving an old train down this road, excuse the muddled metaphors) is the Internet. A fundamental piece of our society, the Internet could soon be responsible for yet more revolution in this world, and this time it's a big 'un. 

Never before have we had such an effective device for the sharing of information. A lot of it is utter nonsense and meaningless tat (one could include my very own blog in that category), but so much is out there that you cannot ignore how useful this device is at getting important and influential enlightenments out to the general public. Charities are able to garner support and raise awareness at minimal cost, allowing them to increase resources used to change lives whilst still growing the number of people who will strive for development. Individuals can showcase works of great creativity and innovation where before their efforts would have amounted to nothing, inventions and ideas gathering dust in the forgetful shadows. Most importantly, this invasion of information has breathed new life into democratic systems all over the world. No where is this more exemplified than in recent elections, especially this month's British general election. Forget the televised debates, it is the Internet and various social networking sites that have finally made people feel like they truly are a part of the democratic process. I think you will find that that is why we had such a high turnout this time round. Don't let it stop there, I urge you, this is our chance to leap on the surge of information and embed every one of us in how the world works. Lets become so politically aware that even early 20th century Russian proletariats are impressed. And this isn't just about learning stuff, we have this immense platform to educate each other with our very own words! Can't you see that I am doing it right now, forcing my opinions onto you in an attempt to change your behaviour. Don't fight it, embrace my superior reasoning and persuasion. Or don't, tell the world how you are rejecting my preposterous ideas, either way, get your voice out there. It doesn't even matter if you're a bit stupid, I have to have something to laugh at in my pompous, cynical way.

So there we have it, one of the roads on this fork leads to the best democracy we can create. But what does the other sign point to? Unfortunately it is not nearly as appealing. This is because the ever increasing flow of information has something darker lurking under its surface. Like the leeches that skulk at the bottom of the Amazon, this fantastic river holds something sinister. The lack of privacy. We are already becoming concerned with the level of intrusion our Governments' are exercising over our lives and the hideous mistakes they are making with an abhorrent amount of them. Jokes and trivial errors are being leapt upon by those meant to be working for the greater good and innocent people are already suffering because of it. This is all down to the fact that those in control over the Internet, the Governments and our existence are getting to a point where they have access to almost every facet of our actions. We have to bare in mind that the Internet would not be at the state it is now if it weren't for it's capitalist uses. Companies can tell exactly what to market to use at every second of the day and we don't even have to move to obtain it. But we are constantly feeding this information into a system that could probably, easily and accurately simulate every minute detail of our existence, and its hard to paint that as a good thing.

Don't fret pals! Thanks to what I said before I started scaremongering, we will long be in a position to prevent the erosion of our liberties by acting together with this fantastic tool at our finger tips. Just promise me that we won't get complacent and forget to fight the bad things.

Valediction!

L.R.A.

Here is an extract from the beginning of my new short story...

It had started again. Fighting was breaking out across the north and it was only a matter of time before it would spread south, rapidly flooding the communities and tribes that lay helpless in front of it. The rivers of blood would swell in the streets and force their way through family doors already splintered by poor craftsmanship and zero maintenance. Violence was set to surround anyone who could not afford to rise above it, and overwhelm the lives of the children caught without mercy in the crossfire. With no reason or sanity, the most vulnerable on earth were about to be subjected to horrors that would bring the best of us to our knees. From children, something else would be created. Something devastating. From children, great tragedy was moulded.

The news was everywhere and left a dark fear resting inside the adults all around Moses. That fear eluded him, blissful ignorance taking its place as parents and teachers paraded a different world in front of his eyes, aware that such a performance was coming to an end. As the days went on though, he could not be blind to the absences that grew in school as teachers and students withdrew to spend time with their families. They were preparing for the inevitable clashes that would engulf the village, desperate to enjoy what fleeting time they might have remaining and make whatever plans they could to try and avoid the destruction that lurked on the horizon. He remained clueless and confused, watching his friends disappear behind their locked doors and classes grind to a halt as one by one, the locals abandoned everyday life to hide in terror, resigning themselves to simply waiting and hoping.

Ch-ch-ch-changes.

Well... hasn't it been an eventful few days? It sure has. We had an election for one, and then 5 days later we had a new Prime Minister. Seeing as this is the first election I have really paid attention to, as it is the first one I have been able to vote in, I cannot profess to be an expert. But surely its not supposed to be that drawn out. Did someone hide the results? Or maybe they locked Mr. Brown in the house for a laugh. Oh no hang on, it wasn't any of that. The fact is we have a ridiculous voting system. It is a system where Labour or the Conservatives can acquire power with between 30-40% of votes but the Liberal Democrats need over 50%. It is a system where parties don't have the clear cut job of persuading most of the country to vote for them, but instead have to focus on so called marginal seats. It is also a system where someone who lost the election can stay on as prime minister, which is what we had for a few days. Am I being completely stupid or would it not be better for us to have a system where the party with the most votes gets in power? Unfortunately, some other people think otherwise, so we are left with this system. Labour were allowed to stay in power after the election because the 'constitution' says so and the Conservatives needed a coalition to form a strong government because they hadn't reached the magic number of 326. How on earth were they going to pass laws if they didn't have a majority? Well how about they proposed laws that were for the benefit of the country and then the other parties can vote for it because its a good idea. Of course that's not going to happen. Partly because the Conservatives struggle to understand what is for the good of the country and also be politicians are so preoccupied with points scoring and undermining each other that voting for good ideas simply because they are good ideas doesn't really appeal to them. Lets be fair though, it's not like they are real people like you and me anyway so those pieces of paper they squabble over now and again are really just pieces of paper to them, except that some of them say +/- so many votes for party X. Feel angry about this? Want to see them given a good talking to? Well then, get off your arse and do it. The reason that they are so unaccountable and disinterested is because we are not flexing our democratic muscles and using our right and power to influence government. You can tell how bad we are in this country at acting to affect government when you hear how amazing a turnout 68% of people was. That is not good enough. It still means that 32% of people eligible to vote decided that they couldn't be bothered meaning they effectively signed a social contract saying "Do whatever you want to me, I don't care. Signed by Idiot". I bet you those people will still complain when the Conservatives get rid of all the jobs and make everyone homeless with no charities left to help us. If they do complain, then I'll say this. Shut the fuck up, you have no right to complain, you didn't care who governed us so why should you care what they do? We should all, always, take an active interest in how the country is being run and get our influences in there. But we don't, so politics resorts to behaving like every other career focused playground.
Well anyway, it's all finished now. We have a bizarre Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition that will struggle to get anything done. But at least we'll get to vote on the Alternative Vote. That is if you can be bothered.

P.S. A note to the Liberal Democrats... If people are spreading lies about you and undermining your potential to win votes then do something about it. Get angry and tell people that they are being fed lies and scaremongering. Otherwise all those stupid people out there are going to believe them. I mean, we know that at least 36.1% of people in this country are stupid, blind or just selfish.

Bhang!

Knock, an opportunity arrives,
Knock, I beckon it to join me,
Knock, the noise shatters the silence,
Knock, that echoes through my life.

Bang, touch down on sandy landing,
Bang, I'm hit with hope and excitement,
Bang, thrown into classroom empty,
Bang, arrive at classroom full.

Bang, there's shock around every corner,
Bang, I greet it with an open grin,
Bang, lessons taught bring new perspective,
Bang, lessons learnt shape past and present.

Bang, every weekday,
Bang, every weekend,
Bang, everyday and,
Bang, every night.

Bang... ladesh is next to India.

Improper Expulsion - A Tale of the Indian Schooling System

It had been a whole week off school, and it had been fun. We had only been teaching for a couple of weeks beforehand and already we were getting used to arbitrary days off. This time it had been because of the local elections that were held in my assigned village so our school had been closed for the whole week, more than any of the other schools in the area. Despite the relaxation and laziness that had characterised my previous week, I was quite excited to get back and see most of my students again (forgetting those that made teaching less pleasurable). With this in mind it was with good spirits I departed the bus and entered the school gates to be greeted, as usual, by a mob of eager young Indian boys and girls still marvelling at our white skin and cool accessories. However, my happy mood was not to last and I was to be presented with something that would change my perspective, motivation and effort towards teaching.

The reason that my school had been closed longer than the other schools was that, as the centre of the community, a celebration was held there in after the elections that had just taken place. No reason had been given to us by IDEX, the disorganised but well-meaning organisation that was co-ordinating our efforts in the region, but we had been informed by other volunteers working at the nearby day care centre that our school had been flooded with men from across the area. The celebration had been epic, the number of attendants reaching hundreds and the duration lengthy. By 10am, the school was full to the brim, and continued as such well into the evening. While the news of this struck me as unusual and excessive, I decided that feeling was down to my English sensibilities. I was now in a country where, if bored, the inhabitants would surround a drum and sing to each other for hours rather than surround a television set and ignore one another. These events were the signs of community spirit, I believed, and ways of being part of a family immeasurably bigger than the real ones. But after the weekend and the arrival of a new school week, this image was shattered. Any family, even a gigantic one, could not excuse the reckless way in which its children were treated and the state that the foundations of their education were left in.

After the standard mobbing we were escorted, as usual, into the bare room that acted as our own staff room and it was here that I laid eyes upon the devastation that had been left by Friday’s festivity. Strewn across the floor were bottles drained of beer, whisky and rum, some of which had been careless smashed on the floor and outside the windows out which they had been flung. It was the mark of how the winning party had acquired votes after being the officials that had distributed the largest amounts of alcohol to the senior members of the village. Here was where they had consumed the bribes, the teachers allowing the school to facilitate this careless activity and joining in with no thought to the aftermath. Wandering around the room in shock at the sight I had not expected in a region where alcohol was only really seen being sold to tourists (these drinks were only found in ‘English Wine and Beer’ shops and restaurants catering to, almost exclusively, tourists in the city of Jaisalmer). The image that they were trying to maintain of locals habits was rapidly eroding and after that day it became more and more obvious that alcohol consumption in the village could be considered a real problem, especially with regards to the children. However, one of the benefits of the free alcohol distribution was that for weeks afterwards, my students were in possession of brand new water bottles, made of glass and bearing the labels of Kingfisher and Hannibal to name a couple.

The excessive drinking was not the most shocking aspect of that day’s find. In England, it is widely reported that many teachers turn to alcoholism due to the stress of teaching so the association of alcohol and schools was not a peculiar one to me. Instead, it was the horrendous state left behind that left me disturbed. The worst aspect of which was what had happened to a lot of the school books that had been left at the mercy of the party goers in the room. In one corner, only blackened covers were left from a fire that had been started using precious educational resources that were rarely replenished. It was not clear whether this had been purely a recreational activity or whether the cold in a country I found sweltering had driven them to such desperate measures. In another corner, I followed a putrid smell to find a pile of books that had been urinated on. Not just textbooks, but half finished exercise books had been opened up in order to soak up the inevitable result of heavy drinking. It was a horrific sight accompanied by the thought of elected officials were being so reckless and disgusting with the property of children, the most vulnerable group that was in such dire need of assistance from them that they would never receive. Why should they care about such things when children cannot vote, and when the designated toilet is such an incredible distance away? It was all the way around the corner from the room after all.

Watching us standing there in shock and horror, finally the headmaster decided that something must be done, the room could not be left in such a mess with a smell lingering that was close to making our eyes water. He left, returning quickly with a broom in one hand, and the ear of a small child in the other, forcing him into the room to clear up the chaos that was scattered around us. Obediently, the child began to pick up broken bottles and destroyed books, sweeping shards of glass out of the door and into the playground. Silently setting about his task he cast a tragic picture of an insignificant youth whose education was considered so unimportant it became ridiculous. Suddenly all the beatings, abandoned classrooms, removal of children to make the teacher’s chai, the refusal to let girls learn computer skills and the rooms covered in bird (and now human) excrement painted an unbearable picture in my head and me and my fellow volunteers took up brooms ourselves to save this child the ugly task of the clean up. From that moment, despite battling sporadic attendance, uninterested students and teachers, a muddled and hidden curriculum, language barriers everywhere and the sudden and brutal violent discipline that was handed out by teachers and prefects we resolved to do something about the school. We had to do something to give our children a better chance in life so that they, in turn, could improve the whole system themselves.
What we saw that day was one facet of the vile and unacceptable face of rural Indian schools. We did what we could to combat it in the short time we spent there, but drastic change is needed to fulfil our responsibility as humans to avoid this continued abuse.

Accountability

Here is a poem I wrote about when I was teaching in India.

Something strikes me as unfair,

Beating at my reservations.

Watching eyes ringed with black,

Watching me holding back.

Struggling against clasped hands,

Shaped by clenching fists.

Fury stops me in my path,

Fury knocks down playing daft.

Prevention pushes efforts back,

Frustration at swatted touch.

Standing still while skin collides,

Standing firm by reason’s side.

Using words while tears splash,

My tongue becomes my active hand.

Teaching needs good inclination,

Teach with skill, passion and patience.

Forget terrorists, jellyfish are the real enemy.

I hate jellyfish.

Actually, that's a bit of an understatement. I absolutely despise, loathe, abhor and detest the retched creatures. They have no purpose that I can see and I want them wiped from the earth. Whilst browsing the other day, I did see something that said they help the current of the ocean with their movement but I will happily volunteer my services in using a giant whisk to perform a better job if those in power will let me assemble a squad of people to swim around disposing of every single one we find. We can even use the giant whisk for that as well. See, it has so many uses.

My hatred of these 'animals' (if you can call them that) doesn't stem from being attacked by one. This should demonstrate just how legitimate my feeling is as it is not based on some blind vendetta but rather a quest for good. I have to admit, however, that it was an unsavoury experience that kick started this desire. As a child, I was wandering the ocean when I was presented with a sight that struck me with such fear it took many years before I could return to the water. Two rows of small jellyfish, headed by one larger version stretched out in front of me as I turn to walk back to the beach. Needless to say, that would be a terrifying vision for anyone, let alone an impressionable child. That moment, a phobia of jellyfish was born.
Since then, the phobia has developed into a loathing and I think it is about time we humans did something to combat our wobbly foes. Think that it is an overreaction? Well then tell the Japanese, they will tell you that offensive action would simply be retaliation in a war that the jellyfish have already started. Over there, gigantic jellyfish like the one above have begun dragging fishing boats into the murky depths from which they came. See this report for the details. Now tell me that nothing should be done. Also, watch this video without gagging at the grotesque phallic nature of this even bigger specimen and you'll be a stronger person than I.

In conclusion, please join me in declaring war on this disgusting genus. They haven't got a brain and all they do is float around stinging and eating and making me feel weird. Essentially, they are just underwater, mobile mould. We have no need for them, the world has no need for them and they look really strange. Lets get rid of them together.

Thanks a lot, Sue.

I would like to begin this inaugural post with admitting something. Sometimes I judge people too harshly and am more than happy to share these judgements with my friends, colleagues, family members and generally whoever is around at the time.

Hi, by the way. My name's Andrew and welcome to my new blog...

If you haven't figured out what I was talking about up there yet, then you are probably from the wrong country. Oh no wait, that's something a bigot might say. What I mean is, something happened in Britain this week with our departing Prime Minister that everyone here knows about. Because nobody is probably reading this blog, let alone anyone outside of this country, I shan't go into details. That would be over the top. What I shall say is this. I do not care that Gordon Brown said that, in fact, his devastated reaction to the news that everyone heard him only earned him more sympathy from me. Saying that, I am definitely not going to be voting for him. But as that has nothing to do with this incident, I will save it for another time.
Something not many people have publicly discussed regarding this is incident is the question of 'Was Gillian Duffy a bigot?' I find this very confusing, because if she was a bigot, then surely we cannot blame Mr. Brown for saying such a thing. It is doubtful that I am going to be the subject of public anger and disillusionment if I were to say that Heinrich Himmler, Nick Griffin or my Grandfather were bigots. The only problem people might have with that is that I am perhaps being too kind. It would probably be more fitting to call them all racists. Now I'm not saying that Ms. Duffy falls into the same grouping as those people, but she does have something in common with one of them, she is getting on a bit (like my Grandfather, surprisingly), and like a good proportion of people who are stretching out their years, she might be prone to a little bigotry every now and again. Of course, this generalisation on my part might now qualify me as a bigot. In which case, go ahead and tell people. Also I just said she was old, so that's offensive too.
Lets not forget that she did say that Eastern Europeans were turning her estate into a "third world country". Now I don't know whether that is bigoted or just stupid, I'm pretty sure there aren't any third world countries in the East of Europe, but on the other hand, I haven't got much of a clue what she meant by that. All I know is that it certainly wasn't designed as a compliment to the people I heartily welcome into the country.What on earth was Sue playing at anyway? This is really her fault, after all. Clearly it is her job to find people for Mr. Brown to talk to that make him look good enough to persuade everyone that he is not a total failure who didn't deserve to be in power in the first place. So why did she choose someone that could have been so disastrous for their campaign? Have some foresight Sue. Idiot.


Really though, this whole thing doesn't matter, we all make mistakes like that and say things that aren't that nice about people behind their back. The good thing is that most of us aren't taped while we are doing it. Everyone seems to overlooking somebody else's gaffe which was much worse. Nick Griffin said that he couldn't tell if someone he was talking to on the radio was British because he couldn't see what he looked like. Now there's a bigot. Maybe we should leave Gordon alone and attack this guy more.

In my opinion, the worst people in this whole thing were the Sky reporters who chased after the poor, bigoted Ms. Duffy shouting "He called you a bigot! Did you hear? He called you a bigot! You're a bigot! Turn around! Act disgusted! Tell everyone to vote Conservative!"

If we are going to take anything from this, it should be that we can be sure that Labour, and Gordon, don't like bigots. This is only a good thing, even if a couple of people get mislabelled along the way. And of course, vote for the Liberal Democrats.

Valediction!