Only yesterday it seems was I queuing up to get enrolled at university, staring at my shiny card and marvelling at how far away 2008 was, when my card was to expire. And here it is; at 1pm today, I completed my final undergraduate examination, and in about two months time from now I will officially be a graduate of the University of London, being allowed to put BA (Hons) (London) after my name.
So, university? It went so fast to be honest; even faster than my A levels, it seems. Time goes fast when you're having fun, or so they say. I must say I've had fun at university, thoroughly enjoyed the experience and am glad that my parents, teachers and friends were all so supportive both of my choice of university and course. I started off the course thinking I wanted to enter practical politics; I end it thinking it is the last career choice I would make.
It has certainly changed my life - it makes me more employable for a start, now that I have a degree - it has also changed many of my perspectives on life. I'd like to think I've become more open to and tolerant of other people's views, more articulate, more argumentative (didn't think that was possible!) and certainly more informed. I'm under no illusion that life's challenges still lay ahead, but certainly one bridge has been crossed; the rest will be crossed when we get there.
People have been put off university since they don't know what to expect; some people feel they won't fit in, others think they aren't clever enough, still others feel that working instead of studying is better. Having now become a grumpy old graduate, the one thing that I didn't know (or knew but didn't appreciate) and now do, is that you don't have to be overly intelligent or have an IQ of 140 to go to university. What you do have to be is hardworking, motivated and organised - I freely admit I was none of these things and hence will be achieving a degree that is decent (2.i) rather than excellent. There are friends of mine who aren't as intelligent as others, but because they are hardworking, have achieved better grades than the clever ones - because university isn't like school, where the class whiz knows all the answers.
I think I've ranted enough for now - but the message: go to university if you were thinking not to. It will, quite literally, change your life.
Tuesday 27 May 2008
Saturday 3 May 2008
Boris Johnson, Mayor of London
Well, well, well.
The people of London have registered their protest against the incumbent Labour government, whose problems have been increasing day by day. The local election results reflected the voters desire for change; the Mayoral election was the final nail in the coffin.
Ken Livingstone made some important changes to London. Some good; others not so great. Being in office for eight years is a long time. His visits to Venezuela and trying to appease some not so great characters did not go down well with a significant number of Londoners. It also did not help Ken that voters in the suburbs voted in large numbers - the largest turnout ever at a Mayoral election - and they voted for Boris.
Now for the man himself. Now, I'm usually the kind of guy who is telling my fellow bretheren to tone down their criticisms of people like Tony Blair and the like, who while waged a moral dubious war on Iraq, was essentially a sound prime minister. However, when it comes to Boris, his words speak for themselves, in the Spectator (2005, backdrop of 7/7 bombings):
The Islamicists last week horribly and irrefutably asserted the supreme importance of that faith, overriding all worldly considerations... the problem is Islam. Islam is the problem.‘
To any non-Muslim reader of the Koran, Islamophobia - fear of Islam - seems a natural reaction...‘
Judged purely on its scripture — to say nothing of what is preached in the mosques — it is the most viciously sectarian of all religions‘
The trouble with this disgusting arrogance and condescension is that it is widely supported in Koranic texts, and we look in vain for the enlightened Islamic teachers and preachers who will begin the process of reform. What is going on in these mosques and madrasas? When is someone going to get 18th century on Islam’s mediaeval ass?’
http://archbishop-cranmer.blogspot.com/2008/04/boris-accused-of-smear-on-islam.html
Now if Boris supporters (or even the man himself) are reading this, they might say, it was three years ago that he said this, and he was probably very angry etc. Well, here's a bombshell for you guys, I was very angry. Moreso than perhaps the rest of the people in London, because these four young men - British citizens of Pakistani descent - had acted in my name. And as a British Muslim of Pakistani descent, I felt disgusted at their actions, because they had villified both Islam and Pakistan as well as the UK. Some of the reaction that appeared in the US (as well as the UK) media was absolutely horrendous.
However, bearing in mind the multicultural diverse city of London, a mayor should be the one bringing the communities together, not dividing them further apart. If Boris Johnson is serious about tackling extremism in mosques and in the Muslim community as a whole, he is clearly going the wrong way about it. Alienating even the moderates is a bad, bad idea.
I am hoping that I am wrong, and Boris is not an Islamophobe, in the sense that he does not think that Islam is the problem. Especially because he's now the mayor of my city. The jury is out on Boris Johnson but I'm not holding my breath.
The people of London have registered their protest against the incumbent Labour government, whose problems have been increasing day by day. The local election results reflected the voters desire for change; the Mayoral election was the final nail in the coffin.
Ken Livingstone made some important changes to London. Some good; others not so great. Being in office for eight years is a long time. His visits to Venezuela and trying to appease some not so great characters did not go down well with a significant number of Londoners. It also did not help Ken that voters in the suburbs voted in large numbers - the largest turnout ever at a Mayoral election - and they voted for Boris.
Now for the man himself. Now, I'm usually the kind of guy who is telling my fellow bretheren to tone down their criticisms of people like Tony Blair and the like, who while waged a moral dubious war on Iraq, was essentially a sound prime minister. However, when it comes to Boris, his words speak for themselves, in the Spectator (2005, backdrop of 7/7 bombings):
The Islamicists last week horribly and irrefutably asserted the supreme importance of that faith, overriding all worldly considerations... the problem is Islam. Islam is the problem.‘
To any non-Muslim reader of the Koran, Islamophobia - fear of Islam - seems a natural reaction...‘
Judged purely on its scripture — to say nothing of what is preached in the mosques — it is the most viciously sectarian of all religions‘
The trouble with this disgusting arrogance and condescension is that it is widely supported in Koranic texts, and we look in vain for the enlightened Islamic teachers and preachers who will begin the process of reform. What is going on in these mosques and madrasas? When is someone going to get 18th century on Islam’s mediaeval ass?’
http://archbishop-cranmer.blogspot.com/2008/04/boris-accused-of-smear-on-islam.html
Now if Boris supporters (or even the man himself) are reading this, they might say, it was three years ago that he said this, and he was probably very angry etc. Well, here's a bombshell for you guys, I was very angry. Moreso than perhaps the rest of the people in London, because these four young men - British citizens of Pakistani descent - had acted in my name. And as a British Muslim of Pakistani descent, I felt disgusted at their actions, because they had villified both Islam and Pakistan as well as the UK. Some of the reaction that appeared in the US (as well as the UK) media was absolutely horrendous.
However, bearing in mind the multicultural diverse city of London, a mayor should be the one bringing the communities together, not dividing them further apart. If Boris Johnson is serious about tackling extremism in mosques and in the Muslim community as a whole, he is clearly going the wrong way about it. Alienating even the moderates is a bad, bad idea.
I am hoping that I am wrong, and Boris is not an Islamophobe, in the sense that he does not think that Islam is the problem. Especially because he's now the mayor of my city. The jury is out on Boris Johnson but I'm not holding my breath.
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