Advent Christmas 2015

The season of Advent is midway, and Christmas already here in the minds of many, while others wait in anticipation, participating in the religious rituals of the Church and preparing in their hearts and minds for the  commemoration of the birth of the Christ child as redeemer and hope for our times.

The season of Advent is a mixture of prophecy, politics and prayer. It is a season of hope in challenging and troubling times. Times where leadership across the world struggle to find just and longterm  solutions to conflict and terrorism alongside poverty and homelessness for 53 million people .

The Gospel stories set for Advent  this year from Luke, seek to remind us that it was an aging childless couple, a peasant girl and a wild man from the desert, who foreshadowed and announced the coming of God in human flesh. All these were outsiders, not mainstream or politically correct as we say today. There response were challenged and ridiculed by the power brokers and the religious elite of the day. They were concerned that their own  power base would diminish or fall, and a new order emerge, that would set different priorities and see justice proclaimed for all people. The call of the Gospel to a radical change to the structures of the world today still remain a stumbling block and a challenge to all who seek to deny justice to  others by their own quest for naked power.

The season of Advent and Christmas stand in contrast to the celebrity worship of our times and the increasingly commercialization of the day. We hear constantly that the fate of our economy rests with how much we spend at Christmas on gifts, parties, holidays and the trivia associated with the sentimentality of the season .  The advertisers and the commercial elites, the profiteers and traders , holidays and family celebrations have taken over  in many places centre stage. Do not get me wrong. I am not a wowser  and I recognize the place of family gatherings, feasting and holidays, but surely Christmas offers more than this ?

Some sections of the media and others with loud voices call for a complete or near abandonment of any religious observance at Christmas while equally others want to enforce their religious views on all the community. I do not suggest that people of no faith and other faiths have to conform to the Christian story but I do not want to be, condemned or marginalized for my faith and understanding of the meaning of Christmas while being generous to others in how they wish to celebrate the season. There is room for us all in a multicultural and faith society like Australia and why should the secularists have it all their own way?

Christians of all traditions at Christmas come together to sing a song of hope praying that the light of Christ "will transfigure the cultural noises, the over consumption, the sentimentality, obsessive work, the violence and fear of our times, the homeless and the  demand of family and shine through into the darkest places to illuminate God's love and dream for the creation that we may all live in harmony with God and each other. May this Advent be a time of reelection and peace to all.

Where is the Moral Compass?

Watching the atrocities of war and violence being committed in the name of religion and against innocent men, women and children, whether in Iraq, Syria, Gaza, Israel or the Ukraine, and the continuous street violence in our cities and communities challenges each and every one of us in our daily life. Has it ever been any different some people ask? Are we more aware of these atrocities because of the instant reporting in the media and the graphic images shown on television and in social media? Are we more enlightened about human rights or still defined by brutality and the ongoing quest for power over others?

 Many are  asking  where is the moral compass that defines who we are and our integrity in our relationships with one another across the globe?  Beheadings and brutal attacks on individuals are highlighted and condemned and so they should be, but are they any more tragic than the killing of innocent women and children? Others ask where do we find hope in this `modern world where ethnic and religious tensions appear to be at the core of many of the atrocities, some claiming that their actions to be the will of God. As President Obama recently said no just God would agree with such sentiments or condemn innocent people across the globe as they go about their daily busy life  of caring and supporting their families.   A world in which 2 billion people across the globe struggle to find sufficient food to place on the table, who live in constant survival mode on less than $2 per day and whose future is uncertain if not grim. A world in which political expediency, ideology, the abuse of power and greed increasingly appear to be the order of the day and takes precedence over vision and policies that will ensure the well-being and good ordering of communities and societies. Where rhetoric replaces substance, opinions not facts are considered more important, religious values are manipulated to suit political or institutional objectives and the poor and the disenfranchised are called to share more of the cost than the rich when things go wrong. A world that seems to want to abolish or at least modify the difference between right and wrong, who blame others for their own blindness of events of abuse and destruction and where the eternal human values embodied in many religious traditions, of compassion and justice have become marginalized or forgotten, and in the eyes of some a denial of self and a relic of a past era.

At home leadership concentrates on winning the next election.  Where vision and compassion are relegated to second place and with many of our corporations seeking ways to avoid paying tax while demanding wage restraint and changes in tax rates.  Prime Ministers have short memories and accuse each other of lying and manipulate words to suit their own political ends along side members of parliament smoking cigars at budget time and drinking champagne, when signing agreements to incarcerate refuges and asylum seekers.

 This is the same world that has the capacity to feed itself and to ensure no one goes hungry and has housing, employment, healthcare and education. Good and evil remain on a collision course and the difference between them on both sides often clouded and obscure.

The atrocities that appear daily in our media have the potential to desensitize us all and familiarity appears to lessen the impact.   Alongside this there is the added danger that we retreat into the safe and allow others to solve or ignore the problem.

Many of the commentators and opinion writers claim that religion is the sole cause of most of the atrocities at home or abroad.  They refer to the abuse of human rights by religious groups while ignoring the same events in countries where religion does not play a dominant or significant role.  Nor do they acknowledge the role of religion in freeing people from oppression, advocating for human rights, in the provision of aid and addressing the plight of the oppressed.

 Religion is not alone the sole cause of the current or past atrocities, although religious faith, like many other human endeavours that allows fundamentalists and extremists to control the agenda, and go unchecked, have inflicted much suffering and abuse throughout history.  Likewise many political and corporate leaders in Australia, who claim belief in the Christian God and the values of justice, compassion, and mercy alongside the sharing of the world’s resources, enact policies that discriminate and punish those most in need ignoring their plight.

The battle between good and evil is not confined to people or nations with a religious agenda, nor is abuse in all its forms. It is prevalent in a range of political ideologies that demonize the poor, the unemployed, women, men and children, and all who do not dance in step with the controlling political and corporate elite and their agenda.  Difference, freedom to express an opinion, religious or otherwise, is rejected and discouraged when narrow ideological or political agendas are allowed to blossom without restraint, often due to apathy or lack of interest on the part of the general populace.

Does Christian faith then provide a way forward and hope? The answer to the question is a challenge. The answer in our present time is both yes and no. It depends upon who you ask and their experience of the church. Ask a gay person? Ask a woman who is denied the right to participate fully in the life of the church? Ask those who see religion as a sledge hammer or who have been denied baptism or not allowed to be remarried in the church. Ask those who ask questions about faith and suggest alternative ways of understanding scripture. In my own ministry the stories told of rejection and those who are made to feel inadequate can be overwhelming. Yet this is not the whole story. There are many who have been healed, encouraged and enriched in their life’s journey. They are often the silent ones.

Where then is hope to be found? In the 19^th and first half of the 20^th century we have been encouraged to place our hope for the future in science and technology and to reject religion as a relic of a past era.  World hunger would be solved. Disease and war eradicated. But this has not been the case. Both World Wars and continuing international conflicts have put an end to this dream and leave people across the globe uneasy and without clear directions. Instead we are moving from one international crisis to another. Millions remain homeless and on the move while others struggle to stay alive. Countries like Australia appear to lack interest in addressing the issues of climate change or world hunger and homelessness, by our lack of action and commitment and by rationalizing truth on matters of life and death to fit ideology or lack of understanding. This approach dismisses our shared humanity by concentrating on self and ignoring the plight of others.

To be a Christian or a person of any faith for that matter in todays’ context is not easy. Christian witness requires a deeper conversation within the faith and in the wider community to tackle issues of human rights, abuse, the growing disparity between the rich and powerful and those without resources. A conversation that will without doubt be difficult, challenging and confronting. For the person of faith our contradictions and differences on issues will be exposed, and diverse views on important matters from other perspectives highlighted.   Too often our discussions with those who differ with us is from the inside, while the outsider has a different perspective that is often both challenging and can cause fear and doubt. True religion and Christian faith will unite people in compassion, joy and meaning- a world view that reflects belonging and relating to God, one another and to the planet with a divine agenda of love and harmony. The Kingdom of God that Jesus proclaimed is experienced in mutual love, economic sharing and social inclusion.

 How do we then as people of faith speak with integrity, transparency and in a prophetic way? This is the prime question that all people of faith should ask at this time.  Jesus in his life and ministry embodied the wisdom of God as the foundation stone of his life.  He named the context of the day. He challenged traditional religious teaching and the political leaders of the day. He called for a commitment to a kingdom that puts others first. This is a good starting point that may be the pathway for all of us who likewise follow Jesus. It will without doubt raise profound and disturbing questions about our own role in the global and national agendas of our time and challenge priorities and principles that have been held sacred.  We need to vigilant recognizing the part we all play in building social cohesion at the local, national and global level. There are some who will seek to divert such an agenda by ideological commitments that divide and discriminate. Debate must challenge this agenda and replace them with values that define what it means to be human at the core of public discourse. Religion has an important part to play in these conversations and actions but must not be shackled by fanatics, fundamentalists and extremists. Their agenda is not faith but a grab for power and their own self-interest.  With rights go responsibilities and a commitment to the building of the Common Good.

Ray Cleary

30^th September 2014

Investing in Children and Families

Investing in Children and Families

International Forum for Child Welfare 2014 

Thank you for the opportunity to present at this WorldForum.  Along with climate change, the future of the world’s children and their families remains the greatest challenge facing the global community.  While the recent Millennium Development Goals report highlight some progress there is still much left undone and the number of children in protective custody, prisons, and mental health institutions are a constant reminder of the pain and suffering still inflicted on children by people in authority.  Day by day we hear regular horrendous stories about the treatment of children and the seeming powerlessness of the world community to prevent and to respond to their exploitation and abuse. There are still enormous barriers to overcome and the solutions are not only the need for more financial resources but also a change in attitudes as to how we treat children.  The welfare of children and their families is our prime focus at this WorldForum and the challenge is to raise the profile of children and to demand of governments, corporations, institutions and the wider community that they invest in the health and wellbeing of children, not only with rhetoric but in service provision, as advocates and as a voice for their future. Healthy children need healthy families. Nurture, protection and safety of children are the hallmarks of a civilized society, and healthy communities and those institutions or organizations committed to the care of children and families must ensure their wellbeing. We know from bitter experience that this has not always been the case and still is a challenge.  An environment that continues to punish the poorest, blame victims, allows tribal rivalries, hatred and intolerance to continue, should be totally unacceptable in a civilized community whether rich or poor and as a place in which to nurture and raise children. As a global community we have the research and knowledge to protect children and build stronger families, yet we fail at times even to use common sense, and often rationalize why we do not more on the basis of ideological, free market economics or political grounds and ideology, rather than human need. International research unanimously affirming that investment in the first two years of life will not only ensure the best possible chance for children in the future but also makes economic sense. Disappointingly, in recent times the Australian government has implemented policies that incarcerate children of asylum seekers and refugees in detention and has reduced funding for health and education services that impact disproportionately on the poor.  Currently there are 4000 children held in detention. I refuse to describe these children as illegals as the Australian government encouraged and promoted.  This seems even more outrageous when only a few years ago the Australian government with the then opposition apologized to Australia’s indigenous children and also the Forgotten Australians.

 In this presentation I would like to begin with a few reflections and comments on the need for greater investment of the world’s resources in children and the outcomes that can be achieved, and then secondly, to speak about Australia’s challenges in meeting and responding to the needs of our indigenous people.

A recent report in the British Medical Journal the Lancet noted that substantial reductions in maternal child health deaths have been achieved worldwide over the past two decades.  This study demonstrated how investment in women and children’s health can bring about significant health, social, and economic change enabling greater participation and engagement in community life. The report went on to speak about greater change if countries invested more in the health needs of both children and their families, thereby preventing the deaths of 147 million children, 32 million stillborn and 5 million women by 2035.

 The report in the Lancet noted that the global maternal mortality rate was reduced over the period, 1990-2010 by 47%, and under 5 mortality by a similar percentage. However these improvements fall far short of the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations in 2000:

·      Goal 4: reduce the under 5 child mortality rate by two- thirds between 1990 and 2015

·      Goal 5: reduce by three- quarters between 1990 and 2015 the maternal mortality rate and to achieve universal access to reproductive health that aims to decrease child and maternal deaths worldwide by 2015.

The most recent MCD reports indicate substantial challenges ahead.  Six and half million children died in 2012.   This is 19000 deaths each day.  The leading causes of death in children under 5 are pneumonia, pre- term birth complications, diarrheoa and malaria.  Nearly 45% of deaths are linked to malnutrition. Children in the sub-Saharan Africa are 16 times more likely to die before age 5 than in developing countries.

Nearly 300,000 women die from treatable complications of pregnancy and childbirth. Alongside these figures sit 1 billion people who continue to live in extreme poverty. Fifty-seven million children do not attend school and over half the developing world lacks sanitation.

The report further highlights that despite economic growth in many Asian countries, South Asia still accounts for one- third of child and maternal mortality while sub- Saharan Africa accounts for 25% of deaths. While global and regional efforts are being made to accelerate improvements, much more needs to be done. The report highlights, as does both common sense and other research , what is required if we are to successfully reduce the level of infant mortality and improve the mother’s health. The simple answers are political will and resources. The leading causes of maternal mortality are in many cases preventable when well- equipped health services are present alongside education, parenting services, sanitation and fresh water, housing and an adequate income to ensure healthy eating, clean water and caring and nurturing families.

Australia, while having a national health service accessible to all Australians and supported by a robust and growing private health sector, is experiencing a range of challenges including an ageing population, rising obesity and high costs associated with advances in technology, longer waiting periods for elective and non- life threatening surgery and a growing demand for ante- natal and post- natal services. These challenges, alongside claims of financial unsustainability by those who advocate choice and free markets, will require a strong community and political will to ensure health care is available to all in the future. In Australia today we are beginning to see attempts at eroding a national and universal free health care system and welfare for all, from vested interests and powerful elites. The voices of the sick and the needy are shouted down by powerful lobby groups arguing for a free market approach to service provision instead of community well--being and need.   Investing in children and families is a political issue as much as a policy and best practice matter. And professionals working in the field of children’s services need to be advocates and voices for those who are unable to be heard in the market place. Research and common sense tells us that global priorities need to change if the future of millions of children are to be protected.

I want to now shift my focus in this presentation to how Australia has sought in more recent times, to address the health and well-being needs of our indigenous people, in particular children and families. The past is not one the nation can be proud of and it is only in recent times that greater attention has been given to their needs, partly driven by a stronger indigenous voice, and by the nation’s guilt and moral failure in the area with a growing awareness that more needs to be done, sooner rather than later. It has only been in the last 8 years that the lives of the nation’s indigenous communities have been recognised as an urgent priority and attention focused on addressing their health and welfare needs. Since the arrival of the British in 1788, the past 230 years have seen indigenous Australians decimated and abused, and annihilated would not be too strong a word, in some parts of the country. Today there remains a crisis in the delivery and provision of health, education and welfare services for our aboriginal and Torres Strait islander communities. Many were massacred for their land. And had their health adversely affected by European diseases, and the availability of alcohol, while thousands of children were “stolen”, removed from their families on account of being mixed race children . The decline of the indigenous population continued well into the twentieth century. Today they represent about 3% of Australia’s population numbering 600000. They were first recognised in the Australian constitution in 1967, although many fought alongside other Australians in the two World Wars, yet they still remain in many places on the margins, struggling for identity and awaiting full recognition. In February 2008 the then Prime Minister of Australia made a formal apology on behalf of the people of Australia to the “StolenGenerations” for the hurt and pain of the past inflicted on indigenous people by previous governments and the general population vowing to do everything possible to enable reconciliation and to ensure their future health and well-being. In 2009 a further apology was made to the Forgotten Australians, those children and young people, many British children sent to Australia during and after the Second World War and those of indigenous descent, who had experienced institutional care. Both occasions have been recognised as significant steps in the healing process and provided the background and motivation for greater investment in services for children and families to improve health services, schools, employment, housing and a voice in the formulation of public policy on indigenous issues. Outcomes have been mixed and not always successful. Voices have differed on needs and how they should be met even among Indigenous communities themselves.  When government leaders across the country met in 2008 to agree to a set of policies and objectives to be achieved, they set ambitious targets to address priority areas for change. The initiative is called “Closing the Gap”, a strategy of the Australian government in partnership with the States .The report outlines a level of investment unprecedented in the area of indigenous well-being, underpinned by a series of indigenous -specific and mainstream partnerships. The “Closing the Gap” strategy aims to reduce disadvantage in respect of life expectancy, access to education, employment, health matters and identity. How well this is achieved will depend on implementation, skills, listening and commitment not only by governments, but also by all Australians and the range on non-government and faith- based agencies willing to assist. Listening to and engaging the indigenous communities themselves will also be crucial. Perhaps the greatest risk or fear in achieving outcomes that reflect resource allocation is a belief that it is possible to move forward. The challenge is great. Compared with non–aboriginal Australians, Australia’s indigenous child population is:

·      More likely to be stillborn, to be pre-term, to have low birth weight, or die in the first month of life

·      Two to three times more likely to die in the first 12 months of life.

·      Bear a disproportionate 2.5 times the burden of disease, 5 times diabetes, 4.5 times cardiovascular disease and 4 times intentional injuries, such as suicide or harm from violence. They are more likely to have infection of the middle ear leading to cognitive deafness and blindness with implications for education and hospitalisation.

·      Many live in communities that do not have sanitation or clean drinking water.

·      Disproportionally represented in Out of Home and residential care programs

The impact of the removal of children from their families continues to affect health outcomes. It is estimated that 38% of children 15 and over were removed from their families and these children still suffer from a variety of emotional issues including loss of family and identity. This prevents many indigenous adolescents from participating fully in the community while suffering depression and other related illness. Twenty years ago one in 20 suicides in Australia were of aboriginal descent. Given they make up only 3% of Australia’s population that was far to high. Today half of deaths by suicide in northern Australia are those of indigenous people.  Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show, that indigenous men, die 4 times and women 5 times higher, from suicide, than non-indigenous people. The group most at risk today is children mostly boys between the age of 10-14. These young men account for 4 out of 5 of all indigenous deaths,

“Closing the Gap” targets for Indigenous Australians are to:

1.   Close the life expectancy gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians within a generation, currently approximately 10-12 years less for indigenous Australians of both sexes

2.   Halve mortality rates for children under 5 within a decade by 2018

3.   Ensure all children in remote communities have access to early childhood learning by 2013

4.   Halve the gap for students in reading, writing and numeracy within a decade;

5.   Halve the gap for those in year 12, the final year in secondary schooling;

6.   Halve the gap in employment outcomes.

The building blocks to achieve these goals are:

1.   Early childhood services

2.   Schooling

3.   Health, including sanitation and access to fresh drinking water

4.   Healthy homes

5.   Economic participation

6.   Safe communities

7.   Governance and leadership.

The process for the implementation of the “Closing the Gap” framework involves financial investment in a range of partnerships to address lifestyles, health issues, truancy, poor schools, inadequate housing and easy access to alcohol. As well as government policies and agencies, non-government, charitable and faith-based agencies are also engaged in service provision, advocacy and research designed to enhance the well-being and opportunities for indigenous children and families.

The key elements of the “Closing the Gap” initiative are :

1.   Sexual health- sexual disease and infections continue to be reported at alarming and much higher rates compared to the non- indigenous population

2.   Mental health-$2.2 billion is to be spent over 5 years for suicide prevention, alcohol and drug addiction, preventative care, addressing past abuse

3.   Provision of culturally sensitive services and accommodation for older people

4.   Housing management and safe families especially for children and women as violence resulting from alcohol and drug abuse remains high

5.   Road safety

6.   Outlawing discrimination particularly in the sporting arena.

Having outlined the policy directions and key components of the program there is no cause for complacency. A great deal still needs to be done and many mistakes have occurred. Undoing 200 years of mistreatment cannot be achieved overnight or even in a single generation. It will require a continuing strong political will, community support and advocacy, as well as a reordering of priorities. Along the way respect for and the preservation of indigenous culture must be a priority. Self- esteem and participation by indigenous people must be taken seriously and accepted as a priority. Decisions cannot be left to government bureaucrats no matter how well intentioned or motivated. On a recent trip to a settlement in Arnhem Land in Northern Australia I saw new housing in a remote and isolated community being built while young people sat around smoking, drinking and bored. There were no jobs and schools. The complexity of the challenge in investing in the future is not easy. While housing needs to be addressed, the immediate goals remain to be addressed:

·      Getting children to school

·      Getting adults into work

·      Ensuring safe communities .

Progress so far:

1.   Only a small improvement in life expectancy has occurred since 2007

2.   The target to halve the gap in child mortality is on track although no actual figures seem to be available

3.   By 2012, 88% of indigenous children in remote communities were enrolled in pre-schools

4.   Progress to halve gaps in writing, reading, and numeracy have been disappointing and have not reached projected targets with only 2 regions out of 8 showing significant improvement

5.   Little progress has been made to halve the employment gap

6.   Improvements have been achieved to increase participation rates a year 12 level.

Investing in children and families requires more than best practice. It requires more than financial resources. It requires a full understanding of what it means to be human in a world where 80% of the world’s wealth is in the hands of 20% of the global population. Investing in children is a global concern and requires a political solution where more than lip service is given to the challenges. It requires a political will driven by a community belief that all children and families have a right to education; freedom from abuse and discrimination; access to clean water and sanitation, to shelter, and employment. These principles are at the centre of the UN Declaration of Children’s Rights and we all have a responsibility to speak with and on behalf of children and their families to prevent or correct failure.  Investing in children and families makes good economic sense, as does the opportunity for ensuring that all children and families are able to reach their potential.

The future of Australia’s indigenous children and their families is Australia’s  challenge in a rapidly expanding urban context. This challenge sits alongside the high level of service already achieved for the rest of the community. This shows that it can be done . Respecting human dignity and promoting the rights of the child are fundamental to any civilized society. Children are more at risk  of poverty and less likely to succeed when adults fail in their obligation to provide services and to protect young people from exploitation.

Finally it does not matter who you are, or your status or experience. The future of our children is the responsibility of each of us. It is not someone else’s problem, and we in our attitudes and values may in fact be part of the problem as we are the solution. As citizens of the world we need to continue to challenge and expose hypocrisy and self-interest that prevents children from reaching their potential and demand that international and national priorities in spending  be directed first and foremost to the needs of the most vulnerable children and families in our own communities  thereby raising the profile of political action as well as high quality service delivery.

References;

1.   Closing the Gap, Prime Minister’s Report on progress on addressing indigenous disadvantage, April 2014.

2.   Unnamed paper presented by Associate Professor Jane Fremantle at an oral presentation in St Paul’s Cathedral Melbourne April 2014.

3.   www.thelancet.com.journals/Lancet/article/PH140-6736{13}62231-X/fulltext. This was a report entitled, Advancing social and children’s health.

Ray Cleary

8th June  2014.  

A budget of spin, ideology and lacking vision.

Tuesday night's Federal budget reinforced the views of many Australians, of all political leanings, of the lack of leadership, integrity and vision to be found among our elected leaders. While the views expressed from many quarters in both the Government and opposition may be sincerly held, it is clear that vision and compassion are not at the top of this budget. The tampering with Medicare is short sighted and deceitful, likewise the $80 billion cuts to education and health leave the responsible and caring citizen dismayed. Further  the cuts to overseas aid, assisting some of the most disadvantaged people on the planet , the unemployed and those with a disability at home leave us all diminished . Why appoint a committee of audit  that does not include a cross section of expertise other than business?  There is little brave or affirming in cutting support programs to the most disadvantaged or placing a temporary tax on those able to afford it . As most economists noted prior to the budget, Australia's economy is not in crisis and while steps may need to be taken to priorities future spending attention also needs to be given to the GST and other forms of revenue raising. Australians do not support wasteful expenditure but are willing to pay more tax for the common good.

This budget is entirely political and driven by the influence of market economists and big business while deprived of the need for a vigorous community debate about the future shape of Australian society and our global responsibilities as being one of the richest countries in the world. It should be remembered that the discipline of economics does not profess a moral code nor address the common good.  Where will those who are denied a disability pension find work? Where will young people find work? How will reducing the minimum wage enable families to secure housing and to care for their children? With the reduction in the funding of schools and health services what quality of life can be guaranteed for future generations? How will this decision ensure that we invest in future generations?  At a time when property values are rising faster than incomes are there not  opportunities for new sources of income.?What  other tough choices should be considered in the future that enables the needs of an aging population to be met ?

The challenge for us all is now to find a way in our democracy to bring back intergrity and compassion as hallmarks of political debate and policy . Both a political and community campaign to lift our heights above the immediate and the idealogical to a commitment to the common good and what it means to be human in the world today. Surely this is more than economics and ideology ?

Justice: Reclaiming the Voice of Theology in the Public Sphere

Attached is a PDF of the lecture that I gave on Justice at the 2014 Trinity Summer School. It is a PDF file that can be downloaded.

Click to Read (PDF)

Cheers, Ray.