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Wycombe MP Steve Baker: Christians have had enough (From Bucks Free Press)
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Wycombe MP Steve Baker: Christians have had enough
10:53am Wednesday 21st July 2010
WYCOMBE MP Steve Baker hit out at a Labour MP’s comments on faith schools in the Commons and said: “Christians in this country have had enough.”
‘Committed Christian’ Mr Baker criticised Tom Blenkinsop, who said plans to let more schools get academy status would involve those from a ‘fringe movement’.
Top Buckinghamshire schools have applied for this status.
Mr Baker said: “If Conservative members spoke in these terms about different minorities, I am sure he would be quick to condemn us.”
He hit out after Mr Blenkinsop, MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, slammed academies, which are free from council control.
He said these would ‘flourish at the real expense’ of Church of England and Roman Catholic schools.
Mr Blenkinsop warned of the involvement of ‘fundamentalist Christian groups’ in academies.
A school in his constituency had allegedly banned Harry Potter books because of its involvement with an ‘evangelist’ group, he said.
The changes pave the way for schools to teach creationism, he said.
He said: “This deregulation of public education will significantly increase the power and influence of any fringe movement.”
Yet Mr Baker said: “Speaking as a committed Christian, I am most surprised to hear the hon. Gentleman talking in these terms about minorities.
“If Conservative members spoke in these terms about different minorities, I am sure he would be quick to condemn us.
“Although I am a committed Christian, I spent yesterday evening in the mosque. I was happy to be there with those gentlemen; I get on terribly well with them.
“I ask the hon. Gentleman to use more moderate language in his description of Christians.
“I think Christians in this country have had enough; they deserve to be treated with the same sort of respect that the hon. Gentleman would expect for any minority.”
Mr Blenkinsop said he was Catholic and said: “I am talking about checks and balances for all minorities with respect to other minorities.”
He said: “It could lead to the creation of religious academies which, unlike maintained faith schools, would lack the moderating and sensible constraints and influence of local communities.”
County schools which have expressed an interest in becoming an academy are the Royal Grammar School and John Hampden Grammar School in High Wycombe, Dr Challoner's Grammar School in Amersham, Seer Green C of E Combined, Chalfont C of E School and Coleshill Church of England Infant School.
Those rated outstanding by inspectors Ofsted are eligible to become academies as soon as September.
Highcrest Community School, Wycombe High School, and Chesham High School have also expressed an interest in academy status but are currently ineligible.
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Your Say YourBucks
tigeran, high wycombe says...
10:15pm Wed 21 Jul 10
yog, says...
12:27am Thu 22 Jul 10
Voyeur, HW says...
2:14am Thu 22 Jul 10
tom.marlow, marlow says...
9:33am Thu 22 Jul 10
bobfowler1, Oxford says...
9:49am Thu 22 Jul 10
spaghetti-monster groups were involved in running academies then I'd also expect that "Conservative members spoke in these terms about different minorities".
rsolio, Nottingham says...
12:38pm Thu 22 Jul 10
tigeran, high wycombe says...
12:56pm Thu 22 Jul 10
rsolio wrote:When was the last time you heard ANY report on what offends Christians? This is about the first one I think I have heard of. It is usually about how the Christian faith affends other religieons!! Nice to have a change if you ask me!!
Baker is a typically pompous, whingeing Tory arsehole who thinks Christians have exclusive rights to everything through their precious faith. As a 'committed Christian"(committed to what? Using the teachings of the bible that advocate slavery,persecution, death for adulterous's and other niceties?), he represents the Tory party in drag.Non beleivers are **** off with hearing about the persecution of religion,so maybe the press should report on what DOESN'T offend christians or muslims-it would save space in newspapers for REAL news.
rsolio, Nottingham says...
5:43pm Thu 22 Jul 10
tigeran, high wycombe says...
8:25pm Thu 22 Jul 10
rsolio wrote:WOW! You sound like you have a thing against the christian faith!!
tigeran-I think we're all acutely aware of how Christians and other religions take offence at the slightest thing, but the truth is that the C of E has more priveliges than most organisations in Britain, such as their homophobic posturing with impunity, or the fact that they pay no tax on corporate profits to name but two,and both concessions are licenced and indulged by right wing clackheads like Baker and his cohorts. Christians make it very clear about what offends them, which normally includes anything contravening their precious faith.Their "persecution" manifests itself through the actions of nurses who insist on wearing crucifix's against health and safety rules, or marriage guidance councuillors who refuse to deal with gays because it offendes their "religious sensibilities". If you want access to reports of Christians and other religions being "offended", have a look at Religiouswatch.com, where you'll see numerous reports of the way religious zealots are offended by almost anything.
Careful, you are on your way to being labled a bigot!!
rsolio, Nottingham says...
2:50pm Fri 23 Jul 10
Emma179, High Wycombe says...
7:48pm Fri 23 Jul 10
rsolio, Nottingham says...
1:09pm Sat 24 Jul 10
Emma179, High Wycombe says...
2:20pm Sat 24 Jul 10
rsolio, Nottingham says...
1:27pm Sun 25 Jul 10
I'm pleased you don't feel "oppressed" as a woman in the C of E, which means you fully accept discrimniation against your species by male clergy administering archaic and divisive rules in accordance with gods mysoginistic standpoint.By so doing, you are supporting a culture that clearly sees women as inferiors,(its a toss up which is worse, Islam or the catholic church) so my question is this; would you apply for a job that (unlawfully) imposed the same prejudices ? or would you shop at a supermarket that employed only male staff on the grounds of discrimination ? If the answer to these questions is no, why do you continue to supprt dicrimination in your own religion, and if its yes, then that makes you immoral and bigotted. All religions display the most appalling intolerance towards women, and those remaining part of a culture enforcing policies of iniquity are insulting women everywhere. In fact I'm amazed that any self respecting woman has anything to do with religion at all, and its only by centuries of systematic brainwashing (especially in Islam) that they've come to accept the injustice of inequalty.
So "we" think that homosexuality is wrong, do "we". In your case, and for every other homophoboic christian that can't think for themself, I would define "we" as the bible and anyone who's given up any notion of self thought. They just go along with the so called principles of an ancient book written in times when the moralistic outlook was totally different from today. Besides, morality is much too important to be left to the bible, and one glance through the old testament confirms this so called "loving god" as a barbaric, malevolent bully who amongst other things threatens hellfire and damnation to those in defiance of his existence.Does that sound moral to you? Because this is what you are buying into. The amount of violence advocated either by god or on his behalf in the old teatsament makes an absolute mockery of claims that he's a loving entity.Loving to those who play by his rules, more like.
Lastly, as you believe in god, could you tell me which one? is it the christian god, is it Thor or Wotan, or even the great Ju Ju up the mountan? And how do you know which is the real one? There are far more creditable explanations through science for our existence than "magic man done it" which is what millions of gullible people believe, so I urge you to search out the truth through scientific explanations, and not just believe a doctrine that makes assertions without one scrap of supporting evidence.Surely this is better than just believing what you are comfortable with because on the subject of our originality, religion explains absolutely nothing.
MP: Christians have had enough
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chesham20, Chesham says...
7:08pm Wed 21 Jul 10