about me (wrtten for my Strategic Voter site)

We’re none of us special but all unique. I find it helps me to understand other people’s initiatives if they explain where they are coming from. So in the interests of transparency in politics, here’s some more background.

I’m 56 and a proud grand-dad, mostly at a distance. I’ve made lots of mistakes over the years, but fortunately some really good friends as well.

My parents were Christian missionaries, these days I’m a practicing Buddhist with a positive inter-faith orientation.

I studied Sociology and Psychology at Keele University, followed by postgraduate work on the history of the ‘alternative’ socialist traditions at Birmingham University Politics Dept.

I’ve been involved in several social movements over the years, including men’s anti-sexism, Agenda 21 work for sustainable development, and in the peace movement (Institute for Law and Peace and World Court Project).

I think I was a member of the Labour Party Young Socialists for half a term at college, where I was a ‘revolting student’. Since then I haven’t been a member of any political party, and much of that time I’ve been very critical of party politics. I don’t think elections are the be-all and end-all – in fact much of my life I thought voting a waste of time.

But these days I feel overwhelmed by a sense of how we all depend on Society and on Mother Nature, so I hope to use whatever opportunity arises (not excluding voting) to express this gratitude and contribute as best I can - however inadequately - to defending and expressing our 'Motherland' of peaceful civilian life worldwide.

I’m not very high-powered and not very organised. I live remote from centres of political influence. I’ve zero ‘political credibility’ because I will tend to pop in softy stuff like the above paragraph. Basically I’m no threat to anyone, I hope!