SO-CALLED experts on a variety of social problems are given far too much prominence.
They are encouraged by broadcasters and newspapers to spread barmy ideas that just make existing problems worse.
Earlier this week I heard a militant racial justice women banging on about the ‘need’ for compensation to be given to the descendants of people sold into slavery under the British Empire.
She was parroting a load of jargon on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4, and her tone was nasty, giving me the impression that she hated white people.

Now, because comments on the subject of racism are so frequently misinterpreted – and often wilfully so by vile, proscriptive, modern ‘liberals’ – I want to make my position absolutely clear…
To hate, discriminate against or abuse someone of a different skin colour to yourself is wrong. Utterly wrong.
All human beings are special creatures, created in God’s image. Every one is worthy of respect.
And we should certainly commemorate the bicentenary of the Slave Trade Act – but not in the way that Tony Blair and others – with their ‘deep sorrow’ sentimentality for past wrongs – would like to do it.
What we should be doing is celebrating the fact that Britain was the first country to outlaw slavery, and that British campaigners such as William Wilberforce MP, led the world in the struggle to achieve a ban on the slave trade.
However, in this country and in other western countries, there has grown up on the back of futile post-colonial guilt, a terrible race relations industry, largely funded by the taxpayer.
This industry, led by the soon-to-be-abolished Commission for Racial Equality, quite simply causes more problems than it solves.
The race relations activists encourage people to look for offence where none is intended and to be suspicious of a person’s motives. They also tend to be censorious of innocently used language.
The overall effect of all the racial justice agitation that goes on is to destroy trust and to encourage resentment.
I am therefore pleased that the Commission for Racial Equality is to be abolished, though I am appalled that it, and other Government-appointed busy-bodying organisations, are to be resurrected as part of a monstrous new equality commission.
Even worse, the new commission is to be headed by the headline-chasing Trevor Phillips, a former TV ‘journalist’ and classic New Labour luvvie and conference-junkie.
I have to ask: Will having a new load of equality-botherers rushing around the country, stirring up trouble, help make Britain a more socially inclusive and cohesive place? Of course not!
It isn’t only the subject of race that attracts a load of nonsense, jargon and crazy theories. The Today programme also hosted a discussion around the publication of an academic report on the supposed motivation of young thugs.
Apparently we should all feel sorry for vicious kids because, in the words of one “expert”, they lacked a “self-soothing repertoire”.
I’ll tell you what violent kids need. They need the fear of God putting up them and they need to be caned if they dare terrorise people or go on the rob.
However, our country cannot reintroduce corporal punishment because we have foolishly signed up to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and also because we are now bound by European human rights law.
The legal route to a solution is possible. We would have to first withdraw the UK from the European Union if we wanted to bring back the cane in our schools. I think we should do that – for the sake of our young people.
Being prepared to smack and cane errant youngsters is actually in their best interests.
Call it ‘tough love’ or whatever, physical chastisement of children and adolescents is both morally right and badly needed in the current social climate.

* Now that I’ve got all that off my chest, I have to admit that I never made it to Stanley’s Cask in Wallasey to read my poems last night (Tuesday), even though I said I was going to in an earlier posting of this blog.
The reason I didn’t make it is that I went for a pub curry first in New Brighton and then felt too stuffed and too lazy to leg it over to the open mike at the Cask.
Also I was enjoying the company of Commuting Mitch and his missus Greta, who both like a drink and a chinwag.
A friend of theirs, Palindroma, joined us, and then another couple and we all stayed on for the pub quiz, which we entered collectively as Viva New Brighton! We came third.
While there one of the girls drew a winning raffle ticket and chose the jackpot envelope from the quizmaster.
She won £200 – and didn’t hesitate to share the dosh out with everyone on our table. I got £30 from the winnings.
Later we all went off to see the end of the Recklessly Hellbent gig at the Ginny, and most of us finished the night in Hell’s Waiting Room. Top Tuesday night entertainment.

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