A modest proposal...
By Tony Watts - Editor - 08/03/2010
Nature abhors a vacuum, and so does society and all the people who live in it. Which is why as soon as one wooden-headed footballer steps out of the limelight (having won headlines for his off-pitch shenanigans rather than his prowess for club and country) another one steps into his place.
More Stories
Time to stop this airbrushing of history
There are several very high profile models – no names, no pack drill – who promote beauty products with all the lines on their face taken out. What is that about? And shouldn’t someone get done under the trades description act? “I used three large tubs of this extra strength wrinkle remover and I still don’t look like that woman on the TV. And my head keeps sliding off my pillow.”
Mature Times editor questions the effect on our psyches of constantly airbrushing celebrities and models.
Pregnant in your 60s – do we have the right to decide?
The thorny subject of women in their 60s giving birth is back in the news: a London clinic has said it would be willing to give IVF to a woman of 59. "Does society have the right to decide on such an issue" asks MT editor Tony Watts.
Walking in a winter wonderland...
"How often over the years have you heard the complaint: "Ooh we don't get proper winters any more. Not like we used to, when you had to break the ice off the privy with a shovel before you could sit down." MT editor has a rant about shovelling snow, panic buying and General Election 'fever'...
"Manger danger" as pushy parents splash out on nativity plays
According to a recent report from department store Debenhams, ultra competitive parents are spending huge sums of money – apparently up to £150 to make sure their child is the star of the annual Nativity Play. Has the world gone mad? asks Kate Morley.
Why the BBC was right to give the BNP airtime
The BBC has received a lambasting for inviting BNP leader Nick Griffin to take part in last night’s Question Time. Personally I think it was a brave and necessary piece of broadcasting.
How pensioners can get get heard
Why are pensioner issues such a low priority when it comes to election time? Because politicians (national and local) can afford to ‘divide and conquer’. There is no single voice with a simplified, agreed agenda supported by a known constituency. And until this situation changes, politicians will continue to sideline older people. By Mature Times editor Tony Watts.
Raising the State Pension Age. Will it work? Is it fair?
The Conservative Party has come out with their plans to hike the age at which we all become entitled to receive a State Pension. They want it to happen sometime after 2016. That’s ten years ahead of the Labour Party.
The reason? To save money – an estimated £13 billion a year, or 0.75% of the national GDP. That’s a lot of money, and a lot of reasons to try and bring it in. By Mature Times editor Tony Watts.
Assisted suicide - one Christian perspective... and Terry Waite responds
"Terry Waite’s article fails to explain why a choice about end of life decisions is problematic, from a Christian perspective or otherwise." Rev. J Cartwright gives his views on the debate around assisted suicide - and Terry Waite gives his reply.
Are sentences too lenient? Have faith in our judges, says the Attorney General
.JPG)
If there's one subject likely to set off an animated discussion, it's the length of sentences handed down by our judges. We asked The Attorney General, Baroness Scotland QC, to give our readers her perspective on her power to review sentences and why we should have faith in judges. And our readers give their views too.
Grey... and gay. For some the stigma is still there.
.jpg)
All of us have fears and concerns of some sort about getting older – whether about healthcare, loneliness or finances; but for older gays and lesbians, these worries can become even more pronounced due to feelings of isolation and, sometimes, fear of discrimination. Kate Morley looks at some of the issues - and the support available.
A soldier’s life
Following the recent death of WWI veteran Harry Patch, MT Editor Tony Watts asks just how ‘sweet and fitting’ is it to die, or even get injured, for your country in Britain today?
Posturing and prurience. Do we get the TV shows we deserve?
Every day nearly two million people tune in to catch up with the latest scandals and (metaphorical) breast-barings on The Jeremy Kyle Show. But following the news last week that a man had been jailed for attacking his girlfriend after a lie detector had revealed her infidelity on the show, the question needs to be asked: should we be tuning in to such programmes in the name of ‘entertainment’?
Organic vs Non-Organic - which will you choose?
New research from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine has found that there is ‘no evidence for the superior nutritional content of organic produce’. So with the global organic food market in 2007 estimated to be worth £2 billion in the UK alone, are all those health conscious individuals wasting their time – as well as their money? By Kate Morley.
Learning is good for you
Learning opens our minds and enriches our lives - so why have educational opportunities for older people been cut back? Wayne Bennett, manager of the lifelong learning centre Dillington House, sets out the case for a change of policy.
