Political calculations

Is the C of E's Synod House of Laity about to meet in order to oust its evangelical chairman for lack of impartiality?  - Jonathan Petre at The Mail website [here]  
This is particularly telling about the one-sided philosophy of the current General Synod, given that the Archbishop of Canterbury himself, forsaking what one might reasonably have thought would be a ministry to the minority as well as the majority in the Church, put his whole weight behind the passing of an admittedly unsatisfactory and unfair measure. We need to remember that the Archbishops' amendments in support of provision for opponents were repeatedly voted down by an intransigent feminist Anglican left: nevertheless the resulting measure was spun by Lambeth Palace as the best that could be achieved under the circumstances - that is not a 'kingdom' response, but a mere political calculation.

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The Director of Liberty opposes statutory underpinning of press regulations, deeming them to contravene human rights law [here,  and from the horse's mouth here] 

“The Prime Minister is right to be concerned about any Government-appointed body ‘supervising’ the independent regulator. That would bring about the danger of political control by the back door. It is unnecessary and must be resisted. Furthermore, the report contains a last-ditch alternative of compulsory statutory regulation, should the press be unwilling to implement his proposed scheme. Again, the Prime Minister is right to reject this unacceptable plan B, which Liberty would be unable to support.”

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And some light relief from Eccles & Bosco [here] with apologies to J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Hobbit' (not to mention Radio 4's  'Thought for the Day' )
I particularly liked this: 

"...One of the most loathsome creatures encountered en route is Gilesum, a strange twisted being that lives underground.

Gilesum - once human, but now distorted by a life of hatred.

Gilesum utters many strange cries like "BIGOTSES - I HATESEM" and "WE WANTS WIMMIN PRIESTESSES!" He is custodian of a mysterious ring, with various magic powers, including the ability to throw one's voice into innocent people's sleeping chambers early in the morning..."

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And in recognition of the work of our dear friends, the Anglican feministas, there is this excellent suggestion [here] that we all support the cause for the beatification of Queen Catherine of Aragon.