Wednesday 20 February 2013

Marriage (and other stuff...)


The most effective way make people accept the validity of the values they are to serve is to persuade them that they are really the same as those which they, or at least the best among them, have always held, but which were not properly understood or recognised before. People are made to transfer their allegiance from the old gods to the new under the pretence at the new gods really are what their sound instinct had always told them but what before they had only dimly seen. And the most efficient technique to this end is to use the old words but change their meaning. Few traits of totalitarian regimes all at the same time so confusing to the superficial observer and yet so characteristic of the whole intellectual climate as the complete perversion of language, the change of meaning of the words by which the ideals of the new regime of expressed.

Hayek - The Road To Serfdom - 1944

Tuesday 5 February 2013

As 2010 #UKIP parliamentary candidate for Hove and Portslade - on traditional/Christian values.

This is a letter I wrote in reply to a voter in the 2010 general election, as UKIP candidate for Hove and Portslade.

He had asked about my support for Christians and Christian values.

I wrote:
church leaders pursuit of 'modern relevance' seems to have led to an abandonment of traditional values, and made what remains very hard to protect.

This seems particularly relevant now that traditional 'marriage' is on the verge of being abandoned.

--

28/04/2010

Dear XXXXXXXX

The UK traditionally and historically has a Christian culture, this is a fact and should never be forgotten. I myself was married in church and both of my children were baptised (although I would no longer count myself a churchy person - partly due to what I saw as the wishy-washiness of the national church leaders).

There is a balance to be made between conflicting rights of different groups, but our traditional, native culture currently seems to be held in contempt and not even accorded equality with other groups - this is just plain wrong.

In principal I would fully support keeping Sunday special (surely everyone deserves one day a week of rest) - however as a self-employed working man I know that with high taxes, high prices etc for many (myself included) even six working days a week is not always enough for one person to earn a living for their family, as long as this is the case I could not support a law that could harm these people and their families. These pressures on working people need to be addressed to have any chance of any day of the week special.

I hope I don't offend you, but I really think that the church leaders have a huge responsible for the current state of affairs - their support for socialist politics has helped lead to a country of high tax that means working people have very little time for social/family activities and little spare money for voluntary charitable work; their support for socialist 'working regulations' has then helped rob people of the means to support themselves and their families. also the church leaders pursuit of 'modern relevance' seems to have led to an abandonment of traditional values, and made what remains very hard to protect. Please don't take this as an attack on religion, it is just disappointment with the leadership of the church.

I hope none of this seems evasive or offensive - I suspect that of the Hove candidates I would be the strongest supporter of Chirstian values (even if on a tradition rather than religious basis).

Protecting peoples rights is never comfortable, as they only really need protection when they are under attack and protecting them will put their defenders under attack also - however I am prepared for some discomfort if elected!

Best Regards

Paul Perrin
UKIP Candidate for Hove and Portslade [2010 General Election]