Edinburgh top for children with sexual diseases

I knew that during the swinging sixties and seventies, the Lothian area (which includes Edinburgh) was the drug capital of  Scotland.

I read that it is now the 'sexually transmitted infections' STI capital in children under 16 - what we used to call VD (venereal disease) back then.

More than 400 under-16s a year in Scotland are being diagnosed with STI's, with the highest level in Lothian
The majority of those diagnosed were aged 15
About a quarter  were aged 14
Lothian and Lanarkshire reported cases of chlamydia in 12 year olds
 and
Greater Glasgow and Clyde reported syphilis and gonorrhea in 13 year olds.

Now I know that I am a boring old pensioner - but I am shocked by this. These are young children
and
This is Edinburgh!

I worry for Scotland

Life is getting nastier in Scotland and it will get much nastier.

Gordon Brown (ex prime minister of the UK and MP for Fife) has felt the need to intervene in Fife to protect a school girl from anti English bullying.

The girls mother is from England but the girl has lived in Scotland since she was 10 months old.
Her mother says that she is pro-union but would be frightened to put a pro-union sticker in her window.
So would I!

This is what can so easily happen when you get a small  but vocal and aggressive minority  - as is the case with those that want separation from England.
It is the same with any extremist group
The majority of Muslims in the UK are peace loving wonderful people. But the extremist factions in their midst make life nasty for all. As do extreme right wing groups such as the National Front.

The majority of Scots have been and are perfectly happy for the UK to remain as it is - especially since devolution has given us a much bigger say in what is important to us. But there is this extreme minority who believe - that what they lack in reasonable argument - can be made up for in loud and aggressive, unpleasant behaviour. They are bullies.

One can see it in action at public debates, such as the one recently held in Greenock. I am sure that the BBC (who try to be fair) had an audience with balanced views, but the loud, aggressive, vocal minority, frightened the majority into silence.

This is what happens - the quiet majority are silenced through fear

This also happens with issues about Muslims - everyone is frightened of their extremists - and so they get what they want. They win, when our media are too afraid to publish the "Jesus and Mo" cartoons
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/opinion/columnists/article3992183.ece

As we get nearer to the vote on independence in Scotland, it is going to get worse. Things are going to be said and done that are going to cause more polarisation and hatred. Communities and even families will be split.

Whatever way the vote goes  - this polarisation and hatred will remain
It is not nice and it is very sad.
I really worry for my beloved Scotland.

Cutting female genitals

A wonderful female GP in London called Dr Abe is leading a campaign against FGM female genital mutilation.
She is based at the Yiewsley Health Centre.

She fell into the situation when a year ago a patient quietly asked her if it was possible to be given her clitoris back.
She had been "CUT" as a child.

Until then Dr Abe had never seen a patient  with this. Now she discreetly asks all females of African or Middle eastern origin if they have been cut.Word has got round and now she sees one every day  - sometimes more.

It is an unbelievably horrific thing to do to someone, not just because it ruins sex, but because it leads to repeat cystitis/ bladder infection, kidney infection and incontinence of urine and faeces.

Dr Abe has seen horrific cases - with the labia and clitoris removed and the vagina sewn up almost completely.
In her worst case - the poor women had developed so many fistulae because of scarring, that the urine and faeces didn't know which way to go and she was leaking everywhere.

Sometimes the woman's vagina has been sewn up to such an extent that her husband cannot have sex with her - and  leaves her as a result.

How can we stop this happening in the UK
The official figures show, that in just England and Wales there has been a threefold increase in the last 10 years. It is almost certainly more than that.

It needs to be talked about and talked about until  it is heard by the women who need to hear.

It is not a crime done by men to women
It is something that women do to women - that mothers do to daughters
With proper education these women would not do it

I worked for many years as a school doctor in the days when there was a good school health service.
This service no longer really exists in any useful way. Perhaps it is time to bring it back again.

In the school where I worked - a boys school - I examined every new boy. In the primary school this involved checking the boys testicles to  make sure they were properly in the scrotum. A parent was always asked to be present.

If I were working now in a mixed school it would be so easy to examine the genitals of every child - male and female- during their entry medical. It would uncover those already CUT and it would be an opportunity to educate all mothers.It would also probably allow some mothers who were also CUT to ask for help and to be able to refer them to the appropriate places.

Legal Rape

I have just read that a village court - 149 miles from Calcutta in India -ordered  -
that a girl should be raped by the men of the village.

This was the considered verdict of The Court and the head man of the village.
The 20 year old girl had been having an affair with a man from a different community.

Her parents were too poor to pay the fine, which was the initial punishment -
so the court - "salisha sabha" a form of legal village court - sentenced her to be tied to a tree for more than 12 hour - and then to be raped by the men of the village.

This happened

She is alive - in hospital - but in a critical state, having lost a massive amount of blood.

She said that more than 5 men raped her.  After that  - she lost count. One of the men was the head of the village and others were those she knew well, and even some she called Uncle.

I would like to see all those men - including the ones who were members of the court who did not rape her - (if there were any) -have their testicles cut off. Then I would like to see all those men who raped her - have their penis cut off - with a rusty blunt knife.
And I would make sure that every man in the country knew - that was what lay in store for him if he orders or allows rape or if he commits rapes.
Enough is enough

Wicked Research

How often does one read a snippet in the media saying something like -
"New research has shown that if you do something, it will cure something else"

If one can be bothered to look up the paper behind the headline, it is most often  one small study, done under, not entirely satisfactory scientific research standards.
But even if it has been an excellent, class A, bit of research - the big question should be -
IF IT WAS DONE AGAIN  - WOULD THE RESULT BE THE SAME?

When the drug company Amgen tried to replicate 53 key studies of cancer, they got the same results IN JUST SIX CASES.

We find it hard to believe that many experiments get significant results - just BY CHANCE
Of course the best way to check for this is  - to repeat the experiment - preferably before publishing that result.

All too often scientists get over-excited and publish chance results, or "false positives", like gamblers or fund managers who tell you about winners they backed.
The media pick then them up - as they make a story that will sell papers.

Sadly the scientists often do not bother to replicate the study.
or
If they do and get a negative results -
they don't bother to publish it - or are not allowed to publish it.
And  -even if they do -
the media do not pick it up  - as it will not sell papers!

I love Google

My great passion is genealogy - all the branches of my ancestors - not just the men.

This has recently taken me to Bologna in Italy, where we unearthed amazing discoveries in ancient libraries and archives

Now - back in the UK - the research continues - thanks to Google.

One name on the family tree that we discovered there - was Bonaparte Zani - who lived about 1250.

I popped the name into Google and up came an old 17th century book of letters in the archives of The University of Madrid .
One of these letters is from a Valerio Zani - a cousin of an ancestor - who can also be found on the above mentioned tree.
So-
I am looking at this letter - (written before 1668 - by an ancient relative in Italy) displayed in Google books - on my computer in my home in the UK .

This is just Magic
But it gets more so-

If I select a paragraph and click translate - Google takes the text  - which is in image format and converts it into text format  - and then  translates it  - quicker than I could say - Jack Robinson.
Total Magic.

OK  - the translation needs a bit of tweaking - it is trying to cope with 17th century Italian - but it is quite possible for me to understand what is being said.

And -
What is it saying?
Well Valerio was obviously also the family genealogist, and he was discussing how Bonaparte Zani fitted into the family tree.

Without Google I  would never have known about that book.
Even if by some miracle I had stumbled upon it - I would not have known there was anything inside relevant to my research
Even if I had known it was relevant -  I would not have been able to search for the name Zani inside it.
It is so easy to search for a name in a book that has been digitised.

Google - I love you

Divided by Accent

One of the biggest dividers in the UK is accent.

If a person talks like you, then you are more likely to perceive them as being like you, even if appearance is different.

If I meet a person who lives here but who comes from India or Pakistan  and who speaks with an accent from that place, I perceive them as foreign although they live here
If I meet a similar person who speaks with a Scottish accent, then I will perceive them as local - as belonging here.

If I meet a person who lives here but who comes from Yorkshire and who speaks with a Yorkshire accent then I perceive them as foreign (from Yorkshire) although they live here
If I meet a similar person from Yorkshire who speaks with a Scottish accent then I would think they were local - as belonging here - being Scottish.

If I meet a person who lives in Edinburgh but comes from Glasgow, I would immediately know he/she came from Glasgow and vice versa  - and each would think the other to be Scottish, but different from them

If I met someone who had been to a posh private school and spoke posh BBC English, but who lived in Scotland, then I would think they were posh - from either England or Scotland - but most Scots would think they were English.

What I am getting at  is this
 In the UK- it is accent that divides.
Learn the same accent as your neighbours and you will blend in and be accepted - if that is what you want.
The best place for children to learn this  - is at school.

I lived in Canada for a while. If I had decided to stay permanently,  I would have worked on losing my British accent as much as possible. I like to feel that I belong where I live.

But do we want to lose our UK regional accents?

At present there are massive differences in accent between Glasgow (Billy Connolly) Edinburgh (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie) Aberdeen, the Highlands, the Western Isles etc.
I think it would be tragic to lose them.
So  perhaps it is a case of ""VIVE LA DIFFÉRENCE