Sign Of The Plough

Cameron says justice U-turn is sign of strength

The Prime Minister said the recent climbdown on halving sentences for criminals � including rapists and paedophiles � showed the Government was prepared to listen and change its mind on policy.

He said it would have been "weak" to plough on with original proposals when there was a better way.

He said: "The tough, strong thing to do is to say, 'Yes, we can make these plans better.'

"I don't for one minute think that somehow it is weak to listen and then to act. It is a sign of strength and confidence."

The backtrack on sentencing reform, which is a major victory for The Sun's campaign against soft justice, followed a huge change of direction for NHS reforms last week.

But Mr Cameron said the Government had done well on policies to cut Britain's debt and restarting the economy as well as welfare and education reforms.

He added: "I don't really accept the idea that this Government isn't extremely strong, resolute and determined."

His words came as the dad of murdered schoolboy Damilola Taylor called for Mr Clarke to be sacked.

Richard Taylor welcomed the scrapping of plans to halve jail terms for offenders who plead guilty early � saying David Cameron was right to force Mr Clarke to back down.

But he also said Mr Clarke should be "removed" from his job.

Mr Taylor added: "Ken Clarke is not doing the right thing, his advisers are not giving him the right advice on the issue.

"Ken Clarke does not know what is going on in the streets, he does not know what criminality is about.

He is taking decisions about what he does not know about.

"David Cameron's decision to abandon the Ken Clarke statement is right."

Mr Taylor's son Damilola bled to death aged ten after being stabbed in the thigh in Peckham, South London, in 2000.

…and God created the plough! « Manuela Process blog

The plough gave us humans the ability to settle on land and prosper. Humans no longer had to depend for their food supply on the probable outcomes of a hunt or the gathering of sufficient roots and seeds. The plough, as the main tool in the farming of land, signaled the global change from foraging communities to agricultural societies which now exist on every continent (with the exception on Antarctica). With the appearance of the plough, humans could work the land and feed their ever growing communities -it is the one tool that marked the beginning of civilisation which includes the beginnings of military and slavery. Although early ploughs, such as the Egyptian plough, were simple wooden sticks that scratched and scored the topsoil with the help of domesticated oxen, the farming activities pursued with it ensured survival, yet required the protection of food surplus, and continual efforts to dominate nature.

Indeed, the plough is the tool of the oldest industry in the world which began approximately 10000 years ago. Today the industry of farming has sophisticated machinery that only the wealthiest nations own, generating the largest margin of profit in agricultural produce. As with all industries, money is the central element that will determine who produces and eats agricultural goods; who can sell them and make a profit; and who can throw it out and let it rot for the sake of price regulation.

So, if god is the creator of all things, then god also created the plough – but what was god “thinking” when he created the plough? To see where I am heading with this, let’s just for a moment consider that a plough works the topsoil of the earth. Wikipedia tells us that “topsoil is the upper, outermost layer of soil, usually the top 2 inches (5.1 cm) to 8 inches (20 cm). It has the highest concentration of organic matter and microorganisms and is where most of the earth’s biological soil activity occurs”. Topsoil is the basis for biological life, it is where biological life begins – some basic facts will make this clear. Consider this: 1 tablespoon of soil contains one Million different living organisms. A square meter of soil contains 1000 different species of animals. These beings form a complex ecosystem together with plants that grow in the soil, they function together in intricate cycles of degradation and growth.

What grows naturally through this synergy is perennial polyculture, which is a term that denotes multiple plants that live for a long time. They form the soil-plant matrix through their complicated root system that holds the soil physically in place and without them, the soil is unprotected and washes away. Perennial polyculture is the blueprint for the various incarnations of landscapes that exist on earth – so for example forest, savannah, wetland, tundra and prairie. Perennial polycultures are responsible for producing the oxygen-rich atmosphere which envelops our planet and makes animal life possible.

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