Nights, rights and fights...

And after perusing his rhyming dictionary, the Beard yet again comes up with some vague and puerile ideas of a tedious yet irrelevant subject to partially write about.... but there we are... now, a lot is said about the rights of the community and of the individual... and lets be honest, it doesn't matter when i'm writing this, there's bound to be something in the newspapers about this, even if just in the Star and the Mail... but i digress...

the point is, as anyone who even vaguely has an awareness of the Beard knows, the hairy blogger is in fact an anti-rights campaigner... yup, that's right... the Beard is actually a firm believer that rights actually muck everything up big time.... now, my biggest problem with rights is that it seems totally impossible to give someone a certain right without it either impinging on someone else's or being impossible to enforce....

for instance, gay people (and I have nothing against them) apparently have the right to get a full and proper Muslim wedding.... but the Muslims (and again, i'm not anti muslim...) have the right to freedom of religion and conscience... and their religion and conscience tells them that homosexuality is wrong.... so, whose rights come out on top? Well, seeing as both groups have the right to fair and equal treatment, it leaves us with a sticky impasse... we can't enforce the gay rights without stamping on the islamic ones, and verse visa..... and this is the problem.... and that's just one case... how about the supposed right of everyone to have enough food and sufficient shelter.... that means that no one should have to pay for food and housing, if followed to its logical conclusion... then there's the right to.. and so on... the sort that affects us most often though is the one where a person exercises his rights to the expense of anothers... for instance, a man's right to smoke in the park versus another's right to breathe unpolluted air... the right of someone to play loud music opposed to the right of another to have a peaceful kip... the right of one to cut down a tree opposed to another's right to enjoy the shade... and this is where rights really fall down....

So, what is the solution.. if indeed there is one...?? well, i firmly believe that what we should do is get rid of rights altogether... and introduce a system of privilege and rresponsibility... did i say introduce?? Well I should rather say reintroduce... after all, that's what we used to have, before those with the privileges turned them into rights in order to keep those perks without having to exercise their responsibilities.... now, it should be pretty simple to make up a code of conduct that fits our society.. or indeed any society.. lets be honest, a bunch of six year olds at my Beaver Colony can manage it, so you'd think so called adults could... we could start with "It the responsibility of a person to respect the wishes of others and consider the impact of his or her actions on other people..." that's pretty easy, and possibly obvious.... and would lead to a lot less antisocial behaviour.... tied with this, a list (almost certainly longer ) of the privileges that go with keeping to the code.. for example, the privilege of being paid in exchange for work, and the privilege of free movement throughout the world, or the privilege of eating sufficient food to sustain life...

Now the crux of the matter.. we make it the rule that if anyone in society reneges on their responsibilities, they automatically lose all their privileges... not just a few, but all.. this is not a pick and choose exercise... now, that may strike some as harsh.. but it may encourage people to think a little more about others rather than harping on about themselves... and it would lead to a better society.. if people know that responsibility is a part and parcel of life, it can't be a bad thing....

But I hear you all say, doesn't this bode badly for victims of the abuse of human rights?? Well, not really.... because the rulers will be bound by the same responsibilities as their subjects.... which means that if they forget those responsibilities then the people will be able to take the rulers' privileges away.... with a lot more ease and freedom of conscience than they have now.... which must be a good thing....

Now a natural adjunct of this would be the reintroduction of outlawry.. and lets be truthful, this does not mean running about in the woods looking glamourous in tights... no, better than that, it means that if a person breaks the law, then the law in return refuses to give that person its protection.... now, imagine the consequence.... if a person obviously and provable breaks the law, then that person can be trated in any way shape or form.... so, if you catch a burglar in your house stealing, then heaven help him, cos beating him up will not be an illegal act.... in fact, the victim would actually be perfectly allowed to take stuff off the burglar in recompense... sound good?? well, the only thing that stops us having a society based on personal and societal responsibility is our insistence on having rights.... so it should be obvious to all what we should do....

But on to lighter topics.... for instance the growing length of the days and the Beard's hair, mainly due to his having left his hair clippers in Solihull... but these things are indeed like circuit judges... sent to try us.... but I digress.... but it would seem that at some point our inaccurate measuring of days and nights will one day catch up with us... and hopefully when it does, it'll be good news for some, if not for all....

Now, on the subject of good news and of course good olds, last week saw a lovely trip in the hot sun to Dovedale, and the heights of Abraham, where the Beard and the Future mrs beard rode a cable car to the summit, went down a cave, and did other such Derbyshire related malarkey.... and a good time was had by all.. Beard Junior and future younger Step-Beard have been doing well in their respective examinations, and beard Junior has been gaining useful and paid employment as a general labourer... which is nice, as the idiom goes.... but the hour is not late for a change, so the Beard has not the advantage of a mind about to fall asleep, which may account for the budget deficit... lets be honest something has to... but there are things to see, places to do and people to go... so until we all have our rights revoked and our responsibilities evoked, Wisebeard Salutes You!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mills, Hills, Polls and Lols.....

Now, it so happens that the Beard has been exercising his democratic rights in the past week or so, and as a result, we now have a government which, although the same as the last one, at least has different faces.... In the Beard's homeland we have managed to get someone local to represent us, who at least has good taste in certain things (he eats at my local chippy, and drinks at the Beard's favoured watering hole, the Robin Hood of Swannington... of which more later...) although to be honest his taste in shirts does leave a little (but only a little to be desired... but i digress...

The previous weeks have unfortunately seen a dearth of Beard related blogginess, mainly down to the active lifestyle led by the said hirsute one.... a week in Anglesey with the FMB, Beard Junior and soon to be step -beard led to much fun and mountain climbing, as 3104 feet were gained.. but luckily not at the end of our legs... a close encounter with a low door beam at Beaumaris resulted in slightly pained hilarity, and other such malarkey....

Also on the menu was a trip to Manchester (of which more later...) and a weekend of Bank Holidayness and random Hotelery... including a stay at a very nice albeit almost empty hotel close to Keighley, and a less inspiring Travelodge.. but then, Travelodges are what they are, and at least clean sheets and a shower are guaranteed.... en route to said Hotel, a slightly circuitous route was followed, leading to a lunch stop at the excellent Deerplay pub on Burnley Road, Bacup in the lovely county of lancashire... stet among lovely moors, with thankfully no whiff of a chain and a lovely line in food.. the beef rag pudding especially... godd food, good scenery, good beer and cider, good friendly staff... good all round... try it...

And on the subject of food, any visitors to Nick Griffin's ex stamping ground could do a lot lot worse than visit what is possibly the best Thai restauant in the North of England, the Thai on Aire... Now, Skipton Road Keighley is not necessarily a place yopu would asociate with Thai food.. but it should be.. after a plate of mixed starters, a fantastic curry and other such delights, the Beard and the FMB were ecstatically happy and rather full.... and get gone from your mind the ides of the pack em in chuck em out Thai place... the relaxed atmosphere, the genial host (whose wine knowledge is really quite good, to say the least, make this possibly one of the best eateries the Beard has had the pleasure of noshing in.... a tip.. try the Chenin Blanc/ Riesling blend.. exclusive to the restaurant, along with lots of other top class wines.... you won't regret it.... trust me.....

Now, food was definitely needed over the weekend, as it usually is.. but even more so as Bank Holiday Monday saw the Beard and FMB, along with one of that beautiful personages work colleagues in Yorkshire, at teh 40th anniversary celebrations of one of the Wise one's favourite films, The Railway Children.... now, all should by now know of the Beards predeliction for the divine Jenny Agutter, and of his liking for trains.... mix the two, and it becomes an explosive love fest... I was especially glad to see an Austerity 280 8F running along, as well as the BR Standard 4... but was slightly disappointed that 957, star of the film, was absent due to brake failure... but the beard did still get a tour of said locomotive, which would have been impossible had she been running.. plus a waiting room encounter with Sally Thomsett, a BBC film crew and a Boom was an eye opener for the sheltered Beard.... but I digress...

A short lunch and a long, twisty drive followed, including the beard following a sheep for two miles (no comments, please) until the very picturesque and slightly picaresque Gayle Mill in Wensleydale was reached, where the beard had the honour of watching a newly restored water powered sawmill cut its first plank.... which was nice.... then it was back down the M6, leaving the FMb in North Yorks with the prospect of four more days at work ahead of her....

now, as you may recall, I started with the election, and I was actually attempting to make a pont, or even a point, but said sharp object got lost along the way.... suffice it to say that coalition, cooperation and cohabiting all have their advantages and disadvantages, and that until we all get as many elections as we can comfortably handle, Wisebeard salutes you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!