Tim Matthews is one of my best friends, and also - coincidentally - one of the most controversial figures in contemporary forteana. He has been involved with the CFZ for nearly a decade now, raising eyebrows wherever he goes.There have been some interesting comments made in light of things that are happening to various members of the CFZ and they cast a sharp light onto the society we live in and the background against which we must currently operate.
Over the last 20 years we have seen various "movements" come and go; for example, the green movement has become mainstream and much talked about and despite the efforts of many good people to make a difference locally very little has happened nationally and internationally. The environment is a mess, big business continues to wreck the planet, roads spring up everywhere, more and more children - including my own - have asthma because of all the crap in the air and food is packed with chemicals, additives and a lot of nasties.
As a people, we have never been more divorced from nature or the urgent need for our families and friends to be surrounded by animals and the wilderness. Most people within the CFZ crave the peace and quiet, have a fascination for the unusual and the seriously off key and are fascinated to discover answers to the mysteries we are presented with whilst we have time.
Where so many families fail, it is to be hoped that something like the CFZ can draw together a disparate yet merry band of travellers to really make a difference. Over the years, so many things have happened in my life and the only people to actually ask about what's been going on have been people I know in the CFZ. On a more general note, so obsessed are we with our technology that little else matters. We are also obsessed about gaining money and promotion. We turn a blind eye to the excesses of government and the micro-managed control freakery that now exists at its heart. Many of those Nu Labour leading lights and ideologues were never friends of the natural world from their early political years in the Communist wildernesses of concrete campusses. They just wanted to control everything and to dehumanise us and one result is that children cannot properly read or write, they cannot go on nature walks or field trips because of new regulations. Only the best schools and bravest teachers appear to be able to get around all this nonsense.
We have a situation where justice and common sense are replaced by cameras, courts and further legislation. Your rights are vanishing and your ability to find redress within the system is severely limited. We only need to look around us to see that something very serious is wrong in Britain 2009 and this is leading to a major breakdown in society. The law of the jungle increasingly applies and political extremism is the order of the day...
Sometimes within the CFZ we speak of community and many of us are drawn to England's South West as a result. We get fleeting glimpses of new possibilities. Here, in my experience and just as an example, we can see that true community still exists in small pockets and that by engaging with local people ecologically sound projects can be designed and that a real impact can be made on people's lives. Thus we change the world, just a little bit, which is perhaps all we can do if we're moved to do so.
When we do these things we find that the modern afflictions of crime, antisocial behaviour and bad education can be tackled by encouraging people to take more of an interest in natural history, in their own lives and in the world around them...
Over the last 20 years we have seen various "movements" come and go; for example, the green movement has become mainstream and much talked about and despite the efforts of many good people to make a difference locally very little has happened nationally and internationally. The environment is a mess, big business continues to wreck the planet, roads spring up everywhere, more and more children - including my own - have asthma because of all the crap in the air and food is packed with chemicals, additives and a lot of nasties.
As a people, we have never been more divorced from nature or the urgent need for our families and friends to be surrounded by animals and the wilderness. Most people within the CFZ crave the peace and quiet, have a fascination for the unusual and the seriously off key and are fascinated to discover answers to the mysteries we are presented with whilst we have time.
Where so many families fail, it is to be hoped that something like the CFZ can draw together a disparate yet merry band of travellers to really make a difference. Over the years, so many things have happened in my life and the only people to actually ask about what's been going on have been people I know in the CFZ. On a more general note, so obsessed are we with our technology that little else matters. We are also obsessed about gaining money and promotion. We turn a blind eye to the excesses of government and the micro-managed control freakery that now exists at its heart. Many of those Nu Labour leading lights and ideologues were never friends of the natural world from their early political years in the Communist wildernesses of concrete campusses. They just wanted to control everything and to dehumanise us and one result is that children cannot properly read or write, they cannot go on nature walks or field trips because of new regulations. Only the best schools and bravest teachers appear to be able to get around all this nonsense.
We have a situation where justice and common sense are replaced by cameras, courts and further legislation. Your rights are vanishing and your ability to find redress within the system is severely limited. We only need to look around us to see that something very serious is wrong in Britain 2009 and this is leading to a major breakdown in society. The law of the jungle increasingly applies and political extremism is the order of the day...
Sometimes within the CFZ we speak of community and many of us are drawn to England's South West as a result. We get fleeting glimpses of new possibilities. Here, in my experience and just as an example, we can see that true community still exists in small pockets and that by engaging with local people ecologically sound projects can be designed and that a real impact can be made on people's lives. Thus we change the world, just a little bit, which is perhaps all we can do if we're moved to do so.
When we do these things we find that the modern afflictions of crime, antisocial behaviour and bad education can be tackled by encouraging people to take more of an interest in natural history, in their own lives and in the world around them...
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