Charity appeal for the disadvantaged

Please could you spare £50 to help people in Britain suffering serious disadvantage? These people are ‘unseen’ and most people are not aware of their plight. They suffer quietly, in silence, and are offered little practical help by governments, society or even by their neighbours, family and friends.

Twenty pounds could provide these people with some meaningful activity, helping them to meet like-minded folk and to bring them back into mainstream society. This would improve their mental well-being, help them to keep their embarrassing visions under control and address their feelings of powerlessness. This would help them to stop obsessing about potholes, recycling or 20mph speed limits.

Ten pounds would fund ‘distraction packs’ to keep them occupied at home, so that they don’t grind their teeth, pull their hair out, or punch walls. It’s not much to ask.

If you could find a spare five pounds, then this will pay for reading material that will help them to find alternatives to the Guardian and gain a more balanced view of the world. Or it could provide a seminar to help them to find calming activities, such as slow TV or YouTube videos of kittens.

If you only have one pound, then you should probably hang on to it.

Whatever you’ve got, it would be wonderful if you could consider donating to help those suffering in silence as Liberal Democrats.

Devastating asteroid "will impact Black gay transwomen most", claims Guardian

The announcement from NASA that a huge asteroid is hurtling towards Earth, and will undoubtedly wipe out every form of life when it hits, was followed ten minutes later by an article on the Guardian's website claiming that Black gay transwomen will be worst affected.

The article, by the Guardian's regular "misogynoir correspondent" Batti al Wakko, claims that "structural factors in racist, patriarchal Western society" make Black gay transwomen particularly vulnerable to lumps of rock the size of Idaho approaching at fifty thousand miles an hour.

The article was greeted with astonishment by a NASA spokesman, who asked how she could possibly not understand that literally everyone is going to die instantly when the asteroid hits. Al Wakko retorted that the spokesman (a term she objected to) was demonstrating typical white, male, hetero, cis privilege in not seeing the problem, and she objected to his using the pronoun "she" in relation to her when she hadn't declared that she preferred it.

She also added that white supremacy was clearly the cause of the asteroid's trajectory, and it was high time a conversation about reparations was held. Surprisingly the NASA spokesman agreed, suggesting the day after the asteroid hits for talks to begin.

image from pixabay

You're welcome here any time , Steve Bell