General Discussion Thread

[White Heather]

Apologies if my input has been rather sporadic recently, but those who were aware of my youngest daughter's plight will be pleased to note that after 2 years of waiting and in the nick of time, she got her lung transplant on the 15th August, and has just come out of intensive care at Great Ormond Street hospital. So as you can imagine, I am just grabbing any opportunity I can to come on here and catch up.

 

[Aviador]

Re: General Topic Thead

Thank you for the update White Heather. That's fantastic news and on behalf of everyone here on Forums4airports I wish her a speedy recovery!!

 

[drpiruthivi]

Re: General Topic Thead

Great News White Heather!. I wish her a speedy recovery.

 

[Bigman]

Re: General Topic Thead

Yes great news indeed. Speedy recovery definitely the order of the day.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Re: General Topic Thead

Heather,

May I add my voice to the sentiments expressed above. Every good wish to your daughter, and to you and the rest of your family after what must have been such a distressing period in your lives.

 

[White Heather]

Re: General Topic Thead

Thanks guys. She was doing very well until Wednesday but has had a bit of a set back and back in surgery today. We are told though that they are happy that the 'problem' will sort itself out in time as she does more exercise in the coming weeks so the panic that started late last night seems to be over.......

 

[Aviador]

Happy birthday Planenut321 you old git. :drinks: :yahoo: :drinks: :drinks: :friends: :shout:

 

[Aviador]

I was getting board of the flat blue look and so decided to give the forum a face lift. I hope you all approve.

 

[Aviador]

Happy Birthday Hoody!!!!!

 

[Aviador]

Happy New Year everyone!

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Happy New Year to everyone from me too.

 

[Aviador]

[textarea]Sikh judge Sir Mota Singh criticises banning of Kirpan

Judge Sir Mota Singh wears a white turban instead of a wig in court

Sikhs should be allowed to wear their ceremonial daggers - known as Kirpans - to school and other public places, Britain's first Asian judge has said.

There have been a number of cases of Sikhs being refused entry to venues because they wear the Kirpan or other religious artefacts.

Sir Mota Singh QC, who is retired, has criticised schools over the issue.

"Not allowing someone who is baptised to wear a Kirpan is not right," Sir Mota told BBC Asian Network.

'No objection'

Last year, a Sikh police officer, who had been told to remove his turban during riot training, won a discrimination case against Greater Manchester Police.

A schoolboy was also banned from wearing his Kirpan at the Compton School in Barnet, north London.

And, in 2008, 14-year-old Sarika Singh won a High Court case against her school after it excluded her for breaking its "no jewellery" rule for wearing a Kara (steel bangle), which is another symbol of Sikh faith.

The school was found guilty of indirect discrimination under race relations and equality laws.

The kirpan is one of five 'articles of faith' Sikhs must carry

"I see no objection to a young Sikh girl or boy, who's been baptised, being allowed to wear their Kirpan if that's what they want to do," said Sir Mota, who received a knighthood in the 2010 New Year Honours list.

"I wear my Kirpan and I've always worn it for the last 35 to 40 years, even when I was sitting in court or visiting public buildings, including Buckingham Palace."

Sir Mota, who is now retired, added: "I think these are issues that can be dealt with with a certain amount of sensitivity.

"The girl not allowed to wear the Kara is a petty thing for the administrators to have done and it doesn't do them any good.

"It is the right of every young girl and boy to be educated at the school of their choice. For him or her to be refused admission on that sort of ground, as far as I'm concerned, is quite wrong.

"It ought not to happen but it does. I think it's wrong to be discriminated against for that reason."

The Compton School offered the boy the option of wearing a smaller knife, welded into a metal sheath, but his parents refused and withdrew him - an action Sir Mota said he supported.

He later told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "But on the other hand, I am also conscious of the health and safety position.

"I accept that, because I think as one realises the increase in crimes of violence involving the use of knives and other offensive weapons, I can see that.

"But there has been no reported case, certainly none that I know of, of a Sikh using a knife in order to cause injury."

Asked about the possibility of substituting a smaller knife in place of the traditional Kirpan, the judge said that might be an option for debate between school and Sikh authorities.

But he told Today: "It's a little more than ceremonial. It's a requirement of the religion."
There have been problems for Sikhs going to tourist attractions

In Sikhism, the Kirpan and Kara are two of the five "articles of faith" that must be carried at all times by baptised Sikhs.

The others are Kesh (unshorn hair), Kara, Kanga (comb) and Kacha (special underwear).

The Kirpan is carried in a sheath attached to a cloth belt. It is normally worn discreetly under clothes and most people would be unaware that a person was carrying one.

Guidelines from the department for Children, Schools and Families indicate it is up to individual governing bodies to make their own policy on the carrying of the Kirpan, and if challenged, it would then be up to the courts.

Dabinderjit Singh is an adviser to the Sikh Federation UK and he says he regularly receives calls from worried Sikh parents whose children have been prevented from wearing the Kirpan at school and in public areas.

Although Sikhs carrying the Kirpan are exempt from prosecution under the offensive weapons act, Mr Singh believes objections about the ceremonial dagger have increased following the September 11 attacks and instances of knife crime.

"There have been problems for Sikhs going to tourist attractions," he explained. "Part of it is education.

"We're actually working with the government to introduce a code of practice which would then be used to educate people in the security industry so they are aware of the different articles of faith," Mr Singh told the BBC Asian Network.

Campaign groups such as United Sikhs and the Sikh Federation UK have welcomed Sir Mota's comments over issues which the judge himself has not had to encounter during his career.

Sir Mota was raised in Nairobi, Kenya, before coming to England in 1954 in order complete his studies in law.

"I would have said I would not accept the appointment, but the question never arose and no judicial eyebrows were raised at all."

Source[/textarea]

 

[Aviador]

Here we go again with political correctness.

At the end of the day regardless of whether this is a religious item or not, 'it's a knife' and knives are dangerous when they are misused. To suggest that not one single member of the Sikh faith would ever misuse their knife is stupid.

It is against the law to carry knives with blades greater than three inches long so the kirpan would be against the law however, under the Criminal Justice Act 1988 (section 139) and Criminal Justice 1996 (section 3 and 4) allows anyone to carry a blade exceeding the length of 3 inches for religious, cultural or work related reasons. The Criminal Justice Act and the 2003 Religious Discrimination Act safeguards the Sikhs to carry the Kirpan.

The law is an ass because certain members of all faiths can break the law. In my view no exception should be made for any faith.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Just because no Sikh has been know to use his dagger offensively (perhaps I should have re-phrased that!) doesn't mean that someone else wouldn't grab it and use it to injure or maim.

How do Sikhs manage when travelling on aircraft? I bet they're not permitted to take their dagger into the cabin with them. If they are the whole security system becomes a joke.

 

[Aviador]

Happy 30th LBAspotter!!!! :drinks:

 

[Aviador]

Happy St George's Day!

 

[Aviador]

Happy Birthday White Heather! I hope you have a lovely day. :drinks: :friends: :beer: :drinks:

 

[Aviador]

Two birthdays today! Happy Birthday 'stevolba' (16) and 'doofhead' (40 something )

 

[Aviador]

Another birthday!!!

Many happy returns Jason1-11 :friends: :beer: :drinks: :friends: :beer: :yahoo:

 

[Aviador]

Does anybody sympathise with the planned strike action on Wednesday? Personally I feel everybody is in the same boat and we are all going to have to suffer. There just isn't enough money in the pot to pay everybody the pensions people have been used to in the past. Basically, why should public sector workers not suffer when everybody else has to.