There have been times when American intervention in world affairs have been a great blessing. OK, it took Pearl Harbor to bring the USA into World War 2, but without the heroic sacrifice of the American soldiers, sailors and airmen, the war against Hitler may have dragged on for many more years, and may not even have been won. Likewise 40 years later, Ronald Reagan, standing alongsde our own Margaret Thatcher, helped facilitate the collapse of the Warsaw Pact and ultimately, the Soviet Union, freeing millions from the oppression of Marxism.
No doubt Barack Obama viewed himself as undertaking a similar campaign of liberation as he set off for Senegal, where he urged the country's leader to grant equal rights to gays. However, he met with a firm rebuff from Senegalese president Macky Sali. "We are a tolerant country", he said, but made it quite clear that like the other 37 African nations who treat homosexaulity as a criminal offence, his country had no plans to change tack.
Mr. Sali's stance earned him the praise of his fellow-countrymen. The New York Times quoted a mumber of people who voiced their support for their leader, such as a retired army major, Bouraman Ndour, who said, "No, we are absolutely staunch on it. Look, this is a Muslim country. Over our dead bodies!” and added, "He’s courageous to have spoken like that, in front of the greatest power on earth. Even if they turn off the spigots, we won’t give in.” And herein lies the rub: Western countries, including the UK have threatened to end aid to African countries that will not bend to the gay rights mania that is sweeping the west. It's not just majority Moslem countries that would be affected. Uganda, where homosexuality is already illegal, and which has debated increasing the punishment still further to include the death penalty. has far more Christians than Moslems. In Nigeria, the Christian and Moslem communities, while hardly on the best of terms with each other in most aspects, are united in their opposition to the legalisation of homosexuality.
There are a few points to note here. Firstly, the cessation of intra-govermental aid may well be a blessing to these countries. Critics of Brtain's foreign aid budget are keen to point out how little of it ends up reaching the people who might most benefit from it, while at the same time, it creates a dependency culture and does not lift nations out of poverty.
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Secondly, what right has one nation to dictate social policy to another? Right across sub-saharan Africa, the family, including the extended family, is seen as essential for maintaining a cohesive community. The conviction is equally strong among Christian and Moslem alike that homosexuality undermines the family and thus de-stabilises society. While mob violence towards gays cannot be condoned, if the state has been given the power by democratic mandate of the people to punish homosexuality in the belief that it will help maintain a cohesive society, no other nation has any business to interfere.
Thirdly, in the UK and other western nations , we are seeing exactly what Africa is trying to avoid - a disintegrating society, and it is worth bearing in mind that this was precisely the goal of the first gay rights advocates - the Marxist Frankfurt school. "We demand a world of polymorphous perversity. Make love, not war", said Herbert Marcuse. All the elements of traditional society must be undermined to soften the people's hearts for a marxist revolution - especially heterosexual, monogamous marriage.
We haven't got there yet, and hopefully we never will, but already authoritarianism is rearing its ugly face in the UK. Two Christian bed and breakfast owners have been taken to court for refusing to allow homosexual couples to share a room in their guesthouses. There is a move afoot to outlaw the provision of therapy to gays who wish to change theri sexuality. How DARE the State tell people what they can and can't do under their own rooves! How DARE the state prevent people trying to help others who feel they have a problem. How much worse will things get before we wake up from this nightmare? The ultimate objective of gay rights activists like Peter Tatchell, according to Andrea Williams of Christian Concern, is not gay marriage per se, but a total sexual free-for-all.
This was the aspiration of the most radical of the French revolutionaries after the revolution of 1789. Likewise, sexual freedom was promoted in the early days of the Soviet Union. In both cases, the consequence was disaster. Such were the destabilising effects to French society following the liberalisation of sexual relationships in the 1790s that the post-Napoleonic French parliament swng the pendulum right back, and went as far as banning divorce. In the Soviet Union, sexual liberalisation resulted in 7 million homeless children. Stalin progressively re-orientated Soviet policy to supporting traditional marriage, and criminalised homosexuality in 1933.
Of course, Obama stands in the left/authoritarian tradition which like most lefties, refuses to learn from the lessons of history. How sad that David Cameron, ostensibly a Conservative (at least in name) this same day, has chosen to endorse the London LGBT Pride event (it should really be called "Shame") How much further down the road of authoritarianism or societal collapse must we travel before it begins to dawn on our leaders that the Africans have got it right after all?
No doubt Barack Obama viewed himself as undertaking a similar campaign of liberation as he set off for Senegal, where he urged the country's leader to grant equal rights to gays. However, he met with a firm rebuff from Senegalese president Macky Sali. "We are a tolerant country", he said, but made it quite clear that like the other 37 African nations who treat homosexaulity as a criminal offence, his country had no plans to change tack.
Mr. Sali's stance earned him the praise of his fellow-countrymen. The New York Times quoted a mumber of people who voiced their support for their leader, such as a retired army major, Bouraman Ndour, who said, "No, we are absolutely staunch on it. Look, this is a Muslim country. Over our dead bodies!” and added, "He’s courageous to have spoken like that, in front of the greatest power on earth. Even if they turn off the spigots, we won’t give in.” And herein lies the rub: Western countries, including the UK have threatened to end aid to African countries that will not bend to the gay rights mania that is sweeping the west. It's not just majority Moslem countries that would be affected. Uganda, where homosexuality is already illegal, and which has debated increasing the punishment still further to include the death penalty. has far more Christians than Moslems. In Nigeria, the Christian and Moslem communities, while hardly on the best of terms with each other in most aspects, are united in their opposition to the legalisation of homosexuality.
There are a few points to note here. Firstly, the cessation of intra-govermental aid may well be a blessing to these countries. Critics of Brtain's foreign aid budget are keen to point out how little of it ends up reaching the people who might most benefit from it, while at the same time, it creates a dependency culture and does not lift nations out of poverty.
.
Secondly, what right has one nation to dictate social policy to another? Right across sub-saharan Africa, the family, including the extended family, is seen as essential for maintaining a cohesive community. The conviction is equally strong among Christian and Moslem alike that homosexuality undermines the family and thus de-stabilises society. While mob violence towards gays cannot be condoned, if the state has been given the power by democratic mandate of the people to punish homosexuality in the belief that it will help maintain a cohesive society, no other nation has any business to interfere.
Thirdly, in the UK and other western nations , we are seeing exactly what Africa is trying to avoid - a disintegrating society, and it is worth bearing in mind that this was precisely the goal of the first gay rights advocates - the Marxist Frankfurt school. "We demand a world of polymorphous perversity. Make love, not war", said Herbert Marcuse. All the elements of traditional society must be undermined to soften the people's hearts for a marxist revolution - especially heterosexual, monogamous marriage.
We haven't got there yet, and hopefully we never will, but already authoritarianism is rearing its ugly face in the UK. Two Christian bed and breakfast owners have been taken to court for refusing to allow homosexual couples to share a room in their guesthouses. There is a move afoot to outlaw the provision of therapy to gays who wish to change theri sexuality. How DARE the State tell people what they can and can't do under their own rooves! How DARE the state prevent people trying to help others who feel they have a problem. How much worse will things get before we wake up from this nightmare? The ultimate objective of gay rights activists like Peter Tatchell, according to Andrea Williams of Christian Concern, is not gay marriage per se, but a total sexual free-for-all.
This was the aspiration of the most radical of the French revolutionaries after the revolution of 1789. Likewise, sexual freedom was promoted in the early days of the Soviet Union. In both cases, the consequence was disaster. Such were the destabilising effects to French society following the liberalisation of sexual relationships in the 1790s that the post-Napoleonic French parliament swng the pendulum right back, and went as far as banning divorce. In the Soviet Union, sexual liberalisation resulted in 7 million homeless children. Stalin progressively re-orientated Soviet policy to supporting traditional marriage, and criminalised homosexuality in 1933.
Of course, Obama stands in the left/authoritarian tradition which like most lefties, refuses to learn from the lessons of history. How sad that David Cameron, ostensibly a Conservative (at least in name) this same day, has chosen to endorse the London LGBT Pride event (it should really be called "Shame") How much further down the road of authoritarianism or societal collapse must we travel before it begins to dawn on our leaders that the Africans have got it right after all?