Tom Edwards – författare

Written by a distinguished group of internationally renowned scholars, this volume provides a comprehensive and contemporary overview of the major issues dominating British politics. The book not only maps the current political agenda, but actively contributes to the debates surrounding British politics in the international community at the beginning of the twenty-first century. British Politics Today examines key developments in British politics such as the shift in focus by parties away from their traditional voting base towards ‘consumers' at large, and the rise in identity voting following devolution. The book is characterized by a broad and inclusive conception of British politics, resolutely refusing to reduce political analysis to a narrowly conceived sphere of government, and it explores contemporary British political developments in the broader context of European, international and global dynamics. Some of the major issues discussed include the Belfast agreement, Britain's future in Europe, the political economy of contemporary Britain, the representation of women within the British polity, the politics of welfare reform, and the ethics of foreign policy. This collection provides a valuable teaching resource for courses on British politics, as well as a crucial focus for debate by academics and researchers in this dynamic field. It will be essential reading for all those interested in the political science, political economy and political sociology of contemporary Britain.

Two Southern boys bring a miracle—and chaos—to their small town in “a deceptively fun read packed with colorfully realized characters” (Atlanta Journal Constitution).This is the compelling story of two boys, one white and one blue, who live in a small town in the North Georgia mountains in 1963. The trouble begins when the boys find the body of a baby abandoned in the town garbage dump. The narrator of the tale, Buddy, runs for help. His best friend, Early, a gentle boy with blue skin descended from the Blue People of Troublesome Creek, takes that dead baby in his hands and conjures the infant back to life.This miracle ignites a firestorm of controversy—and Early becomes known as Blue Jesus, the blue boy with the power to heal. Colorful and honest, with humor, heartbreak, and ultimate redemption, Blue Jesus, inspired by the true story of the Fugates, a nineteenth-century Kentucky family with a genetic condition that turned their skin blue, is a novel of friendship, family, faith, and the power in a commonality of differences.

Prologue Lethal Legacy started off as a novel set in the year 2050; purely fictional. But the situation in which the main character found himself had to be explained in terms of the deterioration of the environment. Weeks of research uncovered an amazing saga of doom and despair; wrong decisions made for the wrong reasons, criminal neglect and appalling apathy on the part of many from the top to the bottom of every strata of society. Most of the incidents depicted in the book are fictional, but many more are fact, frighteningly so. It is a scenario that could quite easily eventuate; indeed many of the events are occurring now and have been for some time. Many of those in a position to help eliminate pollution will not do so because of vested interests. Many turn a blind eye because the truth is too horrible to contemplate, and some feel helpless in the face of such a massive task. There are of course many selfless people throughout every level of society who strive constantly for the betterment of mankind; the weekenders who plant trees and vegetation along river banks, clean the rivers, estuaries and bushland of all manner of detritus; the many environmental groups, some of whom risk their lives to save various endangered species and prevent tree felling. But all too often they lack resources and coordinated direction; this must originate far higher up the corporate and governmental ladder. Inevitably they tackle the results of degeneration and not the causes. There are also many good environmentally aware people in all walks of life, from the bottom to the top, who try to do the right thing, sometimes to their disadvantage. But many of those who really have the power to effect change are apparently not loving enough or caring enough to slough off their indifference to the ultimate fate of their children and grandchildren because they are the ones who will carry the brunt of our reckless behaviour in the years ahead. I have kept the central theme as a vehicle to carry the environmental message.TomCopy of letter written in March 2006Dear Friends,Most of you will be pleased to hear that I will not be plaguing you any further with doomsday scenarios regarding the sad demise of our planet; I have given up. My last book, "Lethal Legacy sums up most of what I have to say on the subject. I am now nearing 80 years of age and have been writing and arguing the topic for over forty years - mostly with little success. One day in the future politicians and the world''s manipulators will have a sudden burst of enlightenment and realise that they have killed the goose that laid the golden egg, but it will be too late. In my opinion we have passed the point of no return and even, if by a miracle, we stopped all pollution we could no longer hope to reverse the process. Throughout the history of the earth the masses have been manipulated by the few, the greedy few, it has always been so. Even as recently as two hundred years ago we had families who grew what they ate and made what they wore; they lived by natural cycles; albeit under a feudalistic system. The Industrial Revolution mechanised industry and people alike and made time a major factor in our lives, we became virtual automatons that produced goods that we mainly did not need to further enrich the rich. Our lives were circumscribed not by what we needed but what we wanted which in turn was encouraged and perpetuated by the manipulators via advertising agencies and the media. Our shops are filled with masses of goods that we can well do without, all of which require power, materials and machines to make and which invariably create pollution of one sort or another. We came to believe that we needed the mass of appliances and entertainment units; the clothes to match changing fashions and all those objects of self indulgence; that they were essential to our happiness. We live lives full of excesses and believe that this is an essential prerogative for a su

Jane Sinclair is the daughter of Angus and Matilda Sinclair, who have a farm bordering on the New Forest in Hampshire. The story depicts life in 1850 England.Whilst picking blackberries in the New Forest, she meets Charles, the son of Sir Richard Cholmondelay, pronounced Chumley. Sir Richard threatens to ruin her family should she persist with this liaison. She runs away to London hoping to avoid a catastrophe where she ends up in dire straits. She is befriended by an avuncular figure, Bob, who finds her work in a flower shop, the owner of which dies and leaves all to Jane.It depicts the struggles of a young woman against adversity who ends up owning two garment factories, in spite of opposition to her ideas on the advancement of women.Reunited with Charles, she moves to Fordingbridge Hall. Charles decides to have one last fling before marrying and sails to Algiers together with the new Head of Mission. The boat is lost, and Charles and the son of the owner are captured by slavers and held for ransom. Jane, hearing of his supposed loss, falls into a coma, where she is force-fed by her maid.Charles fights his way to freedom, and all ends well.This is not a romantic book. It has romance in it. It depicts the struggle of a young woman of the time who fights against prejudice and ingrained misogyny. On one occasion, when her factory outlets are closed to her by the opposition, she is assisted by Mrs. Goulden, the mother of Emmeline Pankhurst, and her suffragettes. Her workforce, unbeknown to her, takes a day off without pay to mount a protest outside the shops. Jane joins them and informs the reporters, This is the sort of loyalty that you can expect when you treat your workers like human beings and not like animals. When first inspecting her new acquisition, she insisted on seeing the WCs against advice.Sir, if they are not suitable for me, then they are not suitable for the workers. There are many twists to this story that cannot be described in three hundred words.The English attach who turns spy in order to discover where Charles is being heldof the English crew of a freighter who affect his release. The old sea captain who befriends her and of those who would break her. It is a story of many parts.

The Honourable Catherine is the sequel to my last book, Jane Sinclair. It was written in behalf of those who asked for it.Catherine (Poppet) and Christopher are the children of Lady Jane and Sir Charles Cholmondelay, pronounced chumley. The two have an uncanny rapport that is activated in times of extreme stress, in peacetimes, and during action in the First World War. Chris loses his memory due to a wound incurred during an action against the Germans. Rescued by Poppet, he is lost to her for several years.

This is not a pleasant book. It depicts the worst side of lifethe extreme cruelty of gangs that live off demeaning women. I did not like writing it, but I thought it needed to be exposed.A senior police officer runs afoul of the local boss of an international crime syndicate who has his wife gang banged and beaten up. He vows retribution outside of the parameters of the law and hunts the gang down to exact his revenge. During his pursuit of the gang, he meets up with the brother of his wife, who is attached to M16 who has the same intention. Jason has been ordered to destroy the women-smuggling side of a massive crime syndicate based in America; they team up. The final chapter asks why the police do not clean up this appalling trade in humanity.

This is the compelling story of two boys, one white and one blue, who live in a small town in the North Georgia mountains in 1963. Trouble starts when the boys find a dead baby whose body has been abandoned in the town garbage dump. As the narrator of the tale, the boy Buddy runs for help. His best friend, Early, a gentle boy with blue skin, who is descended from the Blue People of Troublesome Creek, takes that dead baby in his hands and conjures the infant back to life. This miracle ignites a firestorm of controversy and Early becomes known as Blue Jesus, the blue boy with the power to heal. Colorful and honest, with humor, heartbreak, and ultimate redemption, Blue Jesus is the story of friendship, family, faith, and the power in a commonality of differences.