Ultra - Leicester's Lord Mayor

[AoWW]

Don't suppose he'll be available for our church panto this year either

The New Parks Strollers are doing a rather good camp version of Dick Whittington too ,

He would have fitted the bill swimmingly

that's fookin fame for you

Sadly not, it clashes with Market Street's Open Air Panto. I think this year it's Puss in Boots... or Babes in the Wood... or is it Beauty and the Beast? I'm really not certain

[Finnegan]

Never pissed me off personally so why shouldn't I respect him?

So Robert Mugabe, Fred Phelps, Abu Hamza, Mira Hindley, Kim Jong Il and Russell Brand (one of these might not actually be as evil as the others*) all have your undying respect, having never wronged you on a personal level?

*Sorry, Abu Hamza.

[Asha]

So Robert Mugabe, Fred Phelps, Abu Hamza, Mira Hindley, Kim Jong Il and Russell Brand (one of these might not actually be as evil as the others*) all have your undying respect, having never wronged you on a personal level?

To be fair, you've got a point.

Russell Brand is an absolute cunt.

[Guest Mee-9]

To be fair, you've got a point.

Russell Brand is an absolute cunt.

Bet he gives Katie Perry a good 1 tho

[lcfc_jme]

Bet he gives Katie Perry a good 1 tho

I'd give her more than one, to be fair.

As for Colin, he's always been useless on here with regards normality, logic and balance, so I'm glad to see it's not just his internet persona which behaves this way.

[davieG]

In the interest of balance and fairness some comments made to this report.

• As I understand it, the Lord Mayor originally offered to attend the service.
  However, the church wanted to effectively censor what his Humanist Chaplain (Allan Hayes) said in his name, so he declined the invitation.
  Why shouldn't a Humanist Chaplain have the right to free speech in what is supposed to be a Civic Service? No other organisation which invites people to speak imposes this form of censorship. By the way, I have great respect for the work Allan Hayes does in building bridges between different groups within the city. The Secular Society, of which he is president, welcomes speakers from all religious/non-religious backgrounds. Upholding the English tradition of free speech and free thought is more important than appeasing intolerance. Richard Hopper, Leicester Report abuse commented on 19-Jun-2010 23:39 Name *
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• I hope that it will help discussion if I put down what led up to the Lord Mayor¿s decision not to attend tomorrow¿s Civic Service.
  The service is a Civic occasion and the Lord Mayor asked for some changes to make it more inclusive. He asked for representatives of other faiths to be able to contribute from their own faith background and for the Lady Mayoress to read a Humanist text; he also asked for his Chaplain, myself, to give a short address. The Cathedral objected on the grounds that the service should be a wholly Christian one and added a specific condition that any address by the Lord Mayor¿s Chaplain should be submitted to the Dean in advance for approval.
  The discussions were amicable throughout, and I would like to move on. However, it seems clear that we should ask whether a Civic Service in the present form is an appropriate way to celebrate the election of the Lord Mayor. Would it not be better to have a celebration of the city, a celebration in which all could take part, in venue in which we could all feel we belonged? This would be an excellent way to promote the council¿s One Leicester policy.
  Allan Hayes, Chaplain to the Lord Mayor Allan Hayes, Leicester Report abuse commented on 19-Jun-2010 18:16 Name *
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• Good luck to the Lord Mayor! The real story is that the Church wanted to censor what the Humanist chaplain and Muslim High Bailiff wanted to say about the contributions to Leicester life of other religions and of atheists and Humanists too. It's time the Church of England woke up to the fact that it is a minority faith in Leicester and cannot dictate to others what they can and cannot say. Harry, Desford Report abuse commented on 19-Jun-2010 12:21 Name *
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• Hang on, I don't think that we've got the whole story here. Like any Lord Mayor, Councillor Hall has the right to pick a 'Chaplain' for the year. Because he's an atheist (like quite a lot of people in Leicester, including me) he's picked Allan Hayes, who is President of Leicester Secular Society. But the Church of England wouldn't let Allan speak at the service - which they would have done had he been a Christian. That's why Councillor Hall has declined to attend.
  If the Church of England wants to have a special position in the life the city, they've got to be equally open to all the people in it, not just those who've got religious beliefs.
  PS - I'm pretty sure that there's a typo in the story. I don't think that Councillor Hall wrote 'I'm being unreasonable.' It's more likely that he wrote "The Church of England can't argue I'm being unreasonable. " Chris Williams, Leicester <a class="jive-report-abuse-link" onclick="TIN.toggleDisplay('jive-report-abuse_1905604')">Report abuse commented on 19-Jun-2010 12:08

[Bellend Sebastian]

Bet he gives Katie Perry a good 1 tho

Being in the same room as someone that has shagged Katy Perry is probably the closest I'll get to shagging Katy Perry, so good on him, I say

[Zingari]

providing he declines to attend all religious ceremonies on these grounds ,

i applaud him ,

but somehow i think he'll make exceptions for some faiths

[Lillehamring]

urgh, i started reading all that crap and it reminded me just why i hated living in england.

it seems to have reached the point where one can't do anything without it being an exercise in self-aggrandizing equality and inclusivity.

everyone living in fear of offending someone else. individualism is dead in great britain, i feel sorry for some of you clear thinkers on here, it must be a daily torture

suddenly i can understand why ultra has been chosen for such a post.

[Guest Bilo]

providing he declines to attend all religious ceremonies on these grounds ,

i applaud him ,

but somehow i think he'll make exceptions for some faiths

That's the point I've made, he's stated in that article that he's already attended four religious ceremonies and has plans to attend another six.

Seems that the Christian faith is actually the exception he's made.

[BoneDog]

I thought the reason he is not attending is because the church wanted to censor what Allan Hayes wanted to say and not because he has any prejudice against Christians? Seems like a good enough reason not to attend to me.

Also I never knew it was possible to have an atheist Lord Mayor. I thought that all Lord Mayors were Masons, and I thought that Masons had to believe in 'The Grand Architect of the Universe'

[Finnegan]

Also I never knew it was possible to have an atheist Lord Mayor. I thought that all Lord Mayors were Masons, and I thought that Masons had to believe in 'The Grand Architect of the Universe'

lol lol

[Zingari]

That's the point I've made, he's stated in that article that he's already attended four religious ceremonies and has plans to attend another six.

Seems that the Christian faith is actually the exception he's made.

yes i see what you mean .

i'm not sure of the details of events at the other ceremonies , but it would be interesting to find out if he took ( or is going to take ) such a high moral standpoint regarding the inclusion of Alan Hayes to speak at those services

somehow i doubt it

[davieG]

Today's controversy.

Lord Mayor bans saying of Christian prayers before Leicester City Council meetings

Coun Colin HallChristian prayers will no longer be said before monthly full council meetings after a ruling by the Lord Mayor.

A short prayer has been said at the start of the meetings since 1997, with a year's gap between 2005-06 whenMary Draycott was Lord Mayor.

Leicester's new first citizen, Coun Colin Hall, said the practice was "outdated, unnecessary and intrusive" and will not continue during his year of office.

Writing for the Leicester Secularist group's monthly publication, he said: "Contrary to the myths that certain organisations like to promote, the practice of observing prayers at the start of council meetings is a relatively recent one.

"I am delighted to confirm that I will be exercising my discretion as Lord Mayor to abolish the outdated, unnecessary and intrusive practice.

"I consider that religion, in whatever shape or form, has no role to play at all in the conduct of council business.

"This particularly applies in Leicester where the majority of council members, myself included, do not regularly attend any particular faith service."

Coun Hall would not discuss his decision with the Mercury.

But Allan Hayes, who is the Lord Mayor's humanist chaplain and president of the Leicester Secularist society, said: "I think it's a good move because saying Christian prayers picks out one particular stance of people in the city.

"It's rather divisive in my view."

It is the second religious issue Coun Hall has been involved in since taking office last month.

On Sunday, he did not attend a cathedral service which traditionally welcomes him to his new role.

This followed a disagreement between the Lord Mayor's office and the church over how the ceremony should be carried out.

He said he had "no further information to add" on his non-attendance.

The latest newsletter from the secularist society featured a front page article about the recent decision of the Lord Mayor to pull out of the civic service.

It said: "Once again, the Anglican Church is shown to be out of touch with the changes going on around it.

"The Bishop of Leicester, Tim Stevens, who is also the convener of the bishops in the Lords, seems to believe that it is still okay for him to determine the terms on which diversity operates when Anglicanism is already a minority belief in the city."

But Mr Hayes said the article was not written by him, and said: "I don't think they're out of touch."

Canon Barry Naylor, who is the chaplain for deputy mayor Robert Wann, said: "Councillor Colin Hall was elected by the city council, who were aware of his views on these matters and I totally respect his right to hold these views.

"I will continue to pray for the city council, for its members, officers and staff, as always."

[Fosse Boy]

Fair play to him for that actually. Politics and religion have no business mixing.

[Guest Bilo]

I agree with that decision. Good that he's said that no religious practice should be allowed to intrude into this process as well, rather than just singling out Christianity as he seemed to before.

[Lillehamring]

bet he won't be banning tea and cream cakes from the meeting, tho...

[Guest Bilo]

Daily Fail readers aren't keen.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1288909/Whats-God-got-Lord-Mayor-bans-traditional-Christian-prayers-council-meetings.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

[FoxyPV]

Don't really see the problem here. Religion has no place in politics

[Webbo]

Daily Fail readers aren't keen.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1288909/Whats-God-got-Lord-Mayor-bans-traditional-Christian-prayers-council-meetings.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

That's made his day.

[BoneDog]

Religion does have a place in politics if we are talking about democracy. More people consider themselves Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Luciferians etc. etc. than atheists so why not I say. Atheists are so blummin selfish

Atheists are a tiny minority in the world (and rightly so as most people can see that this perfect universe could not just pop out of someones ass from nowhere).

There is a Supreme Being. The Grand Architect and all that.

Have a nice day...........and good luck.

[Babylon]

Atheists are a tiny minority in the world.

I'd hazzard a guess it's the fastest growing group in educated countries above all those you mention, it's only going to grow more as people start to realise a 2000 year old bedtime story isn't all it's cracked up to be. Mankind has progressed more in the last 100 years than any other century, people have the opportunity to read and access all the information they want and can make up their own minds. Christ the people who wrote all these tales thought the earth was flat and the centre of the universe.

Anyway, we all know your ridiculous ideas so we'll end it there.

[BoneDog]

I think you're wrong there Babylon.

Mankind hasn't changed at all. Technology might have made a reappearance but people are still the same as they ever were and always will be. We don't evolve! People were just as clever (some would say more clever) as us thousands of years ago no matter what the arrogant 21st century people imagine!

I suppose that you believe they built the Pyramids with ropes and pulleys

[Babylon]

Technology might have made a reappearance

Mankind hasn't changed at all. Technology might have made a reappearance but people are still the same as they ever were and always will be. We don't evolve! People were just as clever (some would say more clever) as us thousands of years ago no matter what the arrogant 21st century people imagine!

Did I say we evolved in the last 2000 years, it takes a lot longer than that for anything major to change. It's unlikely we will though as we have advanced so much with our technology and as a society that natural selection no longer plays such a major role. The extra fast/strong/smart/healthy people aren't really any better at finding food, surviving and producing offspring these days... a stroll through any chav infested area with a tesco on the corner shows that.

The average GCSE student is smarter than anyone who lived 5000 years. The brain might be physically the same thing, but we all know far more. Plonk Wayne Rooney into the Egypt 2500bc and he's be labeled a bloody god due to what he knew.

Because we know more we can make our own decisions, we don't need to follow an old wives tale (or youtube clip in your case) for some kind of answer.

I suppose that you believe they built the Pyramids with ropes and pulleys

No, I think they were built thanks by the several hundred thousand people forced into slavery over decades. Watch the discovery channel, 12 blokes can shift one of the blocks over land and water via various methods.

[BoneDog]

The average GCSE student is smarter than anyone who lived 5000 years. The brain might be physically the same thing, but we all know far more. Plonk Wayne Rooney into the Egypt 2500bc and he's be labeled a bloody god due to what he knew.

If you believe that hen you are well and truly brainwashed. Congratulations. Try telling that to Plato or Confucius!

A GCSE student knows nothing! They learn a bit of Shakespeare or maybe learn some skewed history etc. That is not knowledge!

And Rooney Do you know the kind of knowledge that was found in the Pyramids?! It's far more advanced than stuff the average college student in the UK knows. And they are a bit older than you think.

No, I think they were built thanks by the several hundred thousand people forced into slavery over decades. Watch the discovery channel, 12 blokes can shift one of the blocks over land and water via various methods.

Why would I trust or watch the Discovery Channel? Many of their programmes are full of rubbish and have been proved to show false info many times.

And I won't bother responding about 'natural selection' else we'll be here all day.

I'd hazzard a guess it's the fastest growing group in educated countries above all those you mention.

Educated countries? Are you talking about the UK and the USA for example? There are far more dumbasses over here than in most or all poor countries (if poor countries are what you mean by 'uneducated').