Analysis of aggressive secularism

There is a good article in the Telegraph today by Damian Thompson looking at the relationship between religious believers and the Government, starting out with the new proposal to allow Churches to celebrate homosexual civil partnerships. Wearily familiar as we now are with the impact of "equality" measures, it is obvious that "allow" becomes "force" since if Churches are allowed to hold such services, they will be held to be discriminating if they refuse to do so.

The proposal is contained in an amendment to the Equality Bill tabled by the gay Labour peer Lord Alli - it was passed easily in the Lords. It seems that the Government may have cold feet about such a proposal just before a general election but, as Damian points out, the big picture shows a rapidly growing doctrinnaire secularism. The picture is made bleaker by the fact that there is no great hope in a substantial change of direction under a Conservative administration.

In other news
Following up on the plans for sex education to be made compulsory for children aged 5 and up, there is news that the Swiss have produced condoms in 'extra small' for boys age 12. A spokesman for Lamprecht AG, the company producing them, regards the UK as a very attractive market.

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