The Blood is The Life 23-05-2012

• New Statesman - Labour’s unending spite towards the Lib Dems is self-defeating
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• FactCheck: Is regulation to blame for unemployment? | The FactCheck Blog
  You go, factcheck :)
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• Born poor, stay poor: the scandal of social immobility
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• The sky's the limit: an extraordinary group of sky diving servicemen
  Inspiring!
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• The Potter Blogger: The corruption at the heart of our political system
  This is a wonderful, wonderful post and you should all read it. And then get very very angry.
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• Social Mobility, Public Schools and Oxbridge « Jazz Hands, Serious Business
  Like Dave, I went to a fee-paying school on the hard work of my parents. I fully agree with this: "I think that the public school environment had a lot to do with my liberalism. Being surrounded by kids who largely had very few concerns about their future life in term-time, then going home to my rural village and drinking cheap lager on the Scout Hut roof with council house kids who were struggling to get menial employment gave me a sense of perspective. Seeing some of the biggest vindictive bullies appointed to authority positions like Prefect and Head Boy, giving them more undeserved power to torment, made me very wary of unearned power."
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• Caron's Musings: Lib Dems see off Beecroft Report
  Not just linking this because of what she says about me
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• CIA, FBI Spy Gear Declassified For Public In New, Short Exhibition (PHOTOS)
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• Factcheck: Have 1 in 5 households really never worked?
  Short answer? This is bullshit
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• Legos, spaceships, breasts. « Kate Bachus
  Another post in the ongoing debate about girly lego. Which reminds me, need to get more Lego for Holly.
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• BBC News - Q&A;: Anti-social behaviour powers
  YAY They're getting rid of ASBOs! Oh SHIT look what they're replacing them with... Somebody light the LibDemSignal!
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• BBC News - More than 87,000 racist incidents recorded in schools
  :(
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• BBC News - Vince Cable a socialist, says No 10 adviser Beecroft
  Bwaaaahahahahahahaha
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Miss Holly's Birthday

... is in less than a month. So I have updated her wishlist. I'm planning on buying some of it myself, but I thought it'd be useful to have it available for others too. So here it is: https://www.amazon.co.uk/registry/wishlist/5Z04BUPH41RM there's a LOT of Lego on there...

My Answers to The Equal Marriage Consultation

Which you can find here: https://www.homeofficesurveys.homeoffice.gov.uk/v.asp?i=48356xhlqw

1. Do you agree or disagree that all couples, regardless of their gender, should be able to have a civil marriage ceremony? - Agree


2. Please explain the reasons for your answer, limiting your response to 1,225 characters (approx 200 words): - Because universal human rights should be universal, not denied to people because of their sexual orientation (or race or gender for that matter)


3. If you identify as being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transsexual would you wish to have a civil marriage ceremony? - yes [I'd love to be able to marry my boys. Unfortunately, poly marriage is a WHOLE 'nother can of worms...]


4. n/a


5. The government does not propose to open up religious marriage to same-sex couples. Do you agree or disagree with this proposal? - Disagree – religious marriage should be opened up to same-sex couples [I am sad that there is no space here to qualify this - I don't want to force religious institutions to carry out same sex marriages if they don't want to, but it would be nice to allow those religions that DO want to to be able to]


6. Do you agree or disagree with keeping the option of civil partnerships once civil marriage is made available to same-sex couples? - Agree


7. If you identify as being lesbian, gay or bisexual and were considering making a legal commitment to your partner, would you prefer to have a civil partnership or a civil marriage? - Civil marriage


8. The government is not considering opening up civil partnerships to opposite-sex couples because we have been unable to identify a need for this. However, we appreciate that there are a number of views on this issue.
   Do you agree or disagree with this proposal? - Disagree – civil partnerships should be opened up to opposite-sex couples


9. n/a


10. We would not propose introducing a time limit on the ability to convert a civil partnership into a marriage.
    Do you agree or disagree? - Agree - there shouldn't be a time limit


11. Do you think there should be an option to have a civil ceremony on conversion of a civil partnership into a marriage? - Yes, there should be an option


12. n/a [but if it WAS "a" I would totally tick yes and I think it's inhumane that no is even on there as an option. Making trans people get divorced and then remarried/partnered is one of the worst bits about the current legislation. I'm stacking up stuff for the "any other comments" bit...]


13. n/a


14. Do you have any comments on the assumptions or issues outlined above [about pensions and various other matters]? If so, please provide details in the space below, limiting your response to 1,225 characters (approx 200 words). - So long as same sex marriage affords the same legal rights as opposite sex marriage - i.e. all legislation referring to marriage will henceforth be taken to apply to all marriages, whatever the gender(s) of the couple - then no, I have no comments on the above.


15. Are you aware of any costs or benefits that exist to either the public or private sector, or individuals that we have not accounted for in the impact assessment? If so, please provide details in the space below, limiting your response to 1,225 characters (approx 200 words). - Benefits are numerous, including mental health benefits to LGBT+ people, which will lessen the impact on the NHS; family stability benefits which impact on wider society; in purely fiscal terms, the treasury will benefit from the receipt of fees for marriages.


16. Any other comments box - Religions who don't want to marry same sex couples should not be forced to, but equally, religions that wish to marry same sex couples should be allowed to; a blanket ban on religious equal marriage is nonsensical.
    
    Civil partnerships should be available to opposite sex couples if they want them.
    
    Trans people should not be forced to divorce and then remarry just because they are trans. This is one of the most inhumane things about the current law and needs to change. When this comes in compensation should also be offered for the people who have already been forced through this procedure.

I post this publicly just in case anyone wants to crib any answers. Obvs you might want to reword some of it a bit, but if you want to borrow my thinking, knock yourselves out.