Tuesday 17 May 2011

The New World Order

The accusation is sometimes levelled at me that I have a distorted view of the British home education scene because I rely too much upon what is said on the Internet and do not spend enough time mixing with real home educators. This is a fair point and I would be the first to concede that much of what one sees on sites such as Home Ed Forums and HE-UK is not at all representative of ordinary home educating parents. Indeed, I made that very point during the fuss about Schedule 1 of the Children, Schools and Families Bill. The point is that these Internet groups have a very great and wholly disproportionate influence upon what is going on with home education in this country. Opposition to changes in the law are generally coordinated via these lists and forums. For this reason, it is worth keeping a close eye on them.


Something which I have noticed, and I am not alone in this, is the extent to which those who have a high profile on these places are often adherents of strange ideas such as the New World Order. This was shown very clearly the other day when the owner of one of the largest lists expounded his geopolitical world-view. While every other rational person in the world is aware that sub-Saharan Africa has for many years been teetering on the brink of starvation and gripped by regular famines which kill millions of people, this individual believes that Europe will be building a bridge across the Straits of Gibraltar and importing most of its food from Africa. This is all tied in somehow with the bombing of Libya and the invasion of Iraq. This is of course classic New World Order conspiracy theory. If it were an isolated example, it would hardly be worth mentioning, but it is not. I have exchanged emails and spoken on the telephone with a few of the well known figures on the Internet home education campaigning front and have been surprised to hear both the New World Order idea and even David Icke mentioned favourably.


If you read the lists and forums with this in mind, a lot becomes clear. Just as in some home educating circles in the USA, many of these people believe that attempts to monitor home education are part of a wider attack on liberal parents being coordinated by the United Nations/Illuminati/New World Order/sentient reptiles from outer space. It's all tied in with Big Pharma and the military-industrial complex, you see.


Before anybody asks, no I don't believe that the majority of British home educators are mad enough to believe in stuff like this. But when some of the most influential groups 'supporting' home educators are influenced by nonsense of this sort, it is bound to have an effect. Has anybody noticed that even on this blog, nothing ever happens by accident? When Blogger helpfully installed an anti-spam filter here without my asking for it, some comments vanished. At once, the assumption was that I was censoring people. When the Department for Children, Schools and Families website was being reorganised a while ago, the 2007 guidelines went missing for a while, along with a lot of other stuff. Coincidence? I don't think so! Many of the people on the home education Internet circuit thrive upon conspiracy and the idea that they are being persecuted by dark forces. They clearly enjoy believing that they are the targets of a wider international conspiracy to suppress freedom. This is one of the reasons that stories from Sweden and elsewhere are so popular; it confirms that they are fighting a battle across the world.


I am not going to direct attention at individuals, but if readers care to look at a few of the lists with what I have said in mind, they might spot some of what I have been talking about here.

28 comments:

  1. Simon said "Before anybody asks, no I don't believe that the majority of British home educators are mad enough to believe in stuff like this. But when some of the most influential groups 'supporting' home educators are influenced by nonsense of this sort, it is bound to have an effect. "

    What effect do you think it is likely to have?

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  2. 'What effect do you think it is likely to have?'

    If a lonely and vulnerable home educating parent finds her way onto a sympathetic community such as HE-UK and after being reassured that she is doing the right thing in deregistering her child and so on comes to believe and trust the people there, then of course there is a problem.
    One day, she reads the list owner talking knowledgably about the 2007 Guidelines for Local Authorities and then he segues seamlessly into a speech about Europe being fed by Africa. She may not be well informed about world affairs and treat this too as being a sensible viewpoint. These lists often attract the lonely and vulnerable and people like this are at particular risk from offbeat ideas of this kind.

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  3. Ah.

    Given the prevalence of these ideas in many political and religious groups, as well as internet sites dedicated to conspiracy theories, I'm not sure that home-educating lists pose a particularly high risk to the lonely and vulnerable.

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  4. It's not paranoia if they really are out to get you.

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  5. 'It's not paranoia....'
    Er...actually it is, often a symptom of Querulous Paranoia.

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  6. More rantings of raving lunatic Webb who is considered by most to be the David Icke of home education!


    Just another chance to berate Home Educators and feed his delusion that he is the only perfect Home Educator in the world.

    It is Webb and Webb alone that has done more to harm to the image of Home Education than any individual or group.

    That is why he is banned from these groups and his defamation will be his downfall.

    Soothsayer David M

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  7. In reality it's Eunice Spry and Angela Gordon that did most of the damage.

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  8. The rest was done by Martin Smith. But I doubt that EO would admit to that.

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  9. Regarding Martin Smith, perhaps readers should study the implications of this before making a judgement . . .

    http://www.ukcolumn.org/articles/public-denied-right-%E2%80%9Csee-justice-being-done%E2%80%9D-manchester-trial-alleged-paedophile-martin-smi

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  10. ooh, more conspiracy theories....

    Actually sometimes home educators are very odd- on the one hand they (correctly) stand up for the rights of the child - see the thread below this about the abuse of some children in the US whose parents followed the Pearls "teachings" yets there is also a number who looked at the whole Martin Smith/Lianne Smith tragedies and shout "conspiracies".

    (I know someone will now say that this inconsistency isn't just a home ed thing, but I don't have enough experience of other online communities to be sure about that!)

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  11. And through UK column it comes around in a full circle, all the way back to conspiracy theorists. How neat is that?
    For your information Brian Gerrish is the BNPs favourite conspiracy theorist.

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  12. I'm sure that if there is a question surrounding the conviction of Martin Smith an appeal will be pending. Should that appeal process conclude to quash the conviction then Martin Smith will be freed.

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  13. Lianne Smith should have considered that fact before taking the lives of her children.

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  14. Lianne Smith was a Regional Advisor for the Home education charity Education Otherwise and a Director of the Children's Services Team.

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  15. Hi Julie,

    "Actually sometimes home educators are very odd- on the one hand they (correctly) stand up for the rights of the child - see the thread below this about the abuse of some children in the US whose parents followed the Pearls "teachings" yets there is also a number who looked at the whole Martin Smith/Lianne Smith tragedies and shout "conspiracies"."

    Is this the same people, though? It's not inconsistency if you're talking about different people. Also, we should remember that those on the lists are a tiny proportion of home edders nationally. Then there are those (like me) who belong to a few lists and watch them in a very half-hearted way. This is the first I've ever heard about the home ed link to the Smith case, for example. Now I see it my heart sinks a little further. Tragedy? Yes. Conspiracy? I don't think so. But then I do work in the public sector and so I'm probably part of some conspiracy too...

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  16. Getting a glimpse of the bigger picture yet?

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  17. 'Anonymous said...
    Getting a glimpse of the bigger picture yet?'

    And nobody has even mentioned Jo Berry's husband yet...

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  18. Another abuse case?

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  19. 'Anonymous said...
    Regarding Martin Smith, perhaps readers should study the implications of this before making a judgement . . .

    http://www.ukcolumn.org/articles/public-denied-right-%E2%80%9Csee-justice-being-done%E2%80%9D-manchester-trial-alleged-paedophile-martin-smi'

    And before reading this, readers should be aware that this is one of the New World Order conspiracy sites which I have talked of before. By all means look at this site and then look at the section on it headed 'children'. You will find a piece about 'One World Governance'. This whole site is run by a New World Order conspiracy theorist and its contents should be treated with caution.

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  20. 'Anonymous said...
    Another abuse case? '

    Until the last AGM, a trustee of Education Otherwise. The scandal concerns her husband and the extent to which she should have continued to remain responsible for child protection in the charity. Some local authorities made a good deal of capital from this case.

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  21. 'Getting a glimpse of the bigger picture yet?'

    No. Tell is what it is. Could you also explain how you know what it is? Thanks.

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  22. Open your eyes anon..

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  23. "Open your eyes anon.."

    Since the case Simon refers to had a gagging order placed on it by the courts, anon. may well have trouble finding out for themselves however wide their eyes are opened. Maybe you could help them out and at the same time test the power of the gagging order?

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  24. Maybe you could...or are you biased?
    Either way, it speaks volumes about EO.

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  25. "Maybe you could...or are you biased?"

    I don't know the details so it would be difficult. It sounds as though you know the full details if you are able to make this judgement about EO. I certainly do not know enough about this issue to make that type of judgement.

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  26. this was great!! I got thorugh a whole pack of rich tea biscuits and countless cups of clipper tea whilst reading...marvellouus stuff. !

    Anyway...I've other, more realistic and less conspiratory things to be doing.

    *skips off to feed the alien in hanger 9, then to have a sing song with elvis in the back of a double decker bus on the moon*

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  27. "While every other rational person in the world is aware that sub-Saharan Africa has for many years been teetering on the brink of starvation and gripped by regular famines which kill millions of people, this individual believes that Europe will be building a bridge across the Straits of Gibraltar and importing most of its food from Africa."

    I think Mike was thinking long term, rather than tomorrow, along with those investing in Africa. Yet some parts of Africa are net exporters of agricultural produce even today, South Africa for instance, and agricultural exports are important to Tunisia. Both China and India are investing heavily in Africa and this includes investment in agriculture. The need for bio-fuel crops may be a significant attraction!

    http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a1e122da-80ef-11e0-8351-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1N7e87qJM

    http://www.investorschronicle.co.uk/InvestmentGuides/Funds/article/20110509/81baaa1a-772d-11e0-817b-00144f2af8e8/Investing-in-food.jsp

    http://www.independent.co.uk/money/spend-save/beyond-brics-new-investment-hotspots-2276743.html

    "In particular he highlights Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya as countries with potential. Nigeria has a population of about 155 million, and it is rich in oil and gas reserves and raw materials such as iron ore, coal and bauxite. In addition, its climate and large areas of fertile land lend themselves favourably to agriculture."

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  28. (From an expat overseas):
    I subscribe to the HE-UK and EO forums and they have scared the living daylights out of me and put me off home educating for good. Apparently the local GP will report you to the LA if you say your child is being home educated. Next the LA will insist on coming into your home and if not satisfied by what they see they may report you to Child Services. You child will be taken away, etc. However the forums go to great lengths to assure you are within your rights to home ed. Very confusing, no? I home ed because I live abroad but according to the HE-UK forum home ed in the UK and you might end up living the life of an outlaw (hiding and being passive-aggressive about questions about your life style). Is stilling this fear in home educators part of their conspiracy theory?

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