“Military funerals have become pagan orgies of idolatrous blasphemy, where they pray to the dunghill gods of Sodom & play taps to a fallen fool.”
Statement issued by the never knowingly understated Westboro Baptist Church. More here.
Archive: 13 November 2012
Journey’s end recedes
As medicine, diet, lifestyles etc reconfigure the landscape of dying by enabling us to live longer / enjoy extra twilight years (not me, I smoke), our relationship with death is altering. When death cuts a life cruelly short it is held to be a Bad Thing; when it brings to a merciful close a too-long life it is held to be a Good Thing. And the balance is shifting in favour of the latter — viz the recent and growing assisted dying movement. Lives are still cut cruelly short, but fewer than ever before.
Stats produced by the International Longevity Centre UK, reported in the Sunday Times, may induce in some a sentiment which chimes with that of Leslie Sarony in his song, Ain’t It Grand To Be Blooming Well Dead.
More than a third of babies born today will live to a hundred, the report suggests. It’ll take them til they’re 52 to pay off their university debt and til they’re 61 to pay off their mortgage. Marriage will come later at age 33.
Retirement will not start until they are 70.
Pay up or else
Ian Godfrey’s brother Michael died intestate aged 40 in August of this year. His funeral arrangements were undertaken by Ian’s sister, Sally. The chosen funeral director was the Nailsea branch of Co-operative Funeralcare, who duly prepared an estimate. Click on it to bring it up to full size (Sally’s full name and address have been redacted):
The funeral went ahead and, throughout, the people at Nailsea weren’t just exemplary, they were lovely.
Ian and Sally did not have ready funds to pay for Michael’s funeral but they explained (this happens all the time, doesn’t it?) that there was money tied up in assets which would have to be sold.
They explained this also to Michael’s credit card company, who froze his account and will add no further interest payments to the outstanding sum. They, together with Michael’s other creditors, are happy to wait until funds are available. “We understand that these things take time,” they all said.
All, that is, except for Co-operative Funeralcare who, Ian tells me, are “threatening to sue my sister, who paid the deposit and is therefore now considered to be the customer.” There have been demanding letters. Here is the latest demanding letter. Again, click on it to brig it up to full size.
The staff at Nailsea have continued to be sympathetic and helpful. It’s the people at “‘credit control’ or whatever they like to call themselves” who are, Ian and Sally feel, being very hard-nosed. Ian adds: “it is on the phone that the threat to sue was more explicit – however they do make it clear that they will not hesitate to do that in their letter.”
Ian and Sally are desperately anxious about Funeralcare’s behaviour and feel that, though they have kept in constant touch and tried to keep them informed, they simply haven’t been listened to. They don’t want to be sued and they don’t think it’s right that they should be sued. But they don’t know who they can speak to in the organisation to ask for the time they need to liquidate Michael’s assets.
In their position, what would you do?