Mailwatch(ed) Forum

Andy McDandy wrote: ↑Tue Nov 11, 2025 1:22 pm Education's an odd one. Going by coverage in the media, what people want is good schools and nice universities for their kids, and when it comes to the curriculum, 'not this'.

Vocational courses, apprenticeships, academic rigour, compulsory sport for everyone, must be competitive, not inclusive, traditional material, relevant to the modern world, transferable skills, fronted fucking adverbials, phonics, 3 Rs, SEN for my kids because not all learning issues are obvious, that kid on the other hand is just bone idle and thick.

Indeed. Though looking on the bright side, have we got past "mixed school for my son, single sex for my daughter"?

Aditya Chakraborty has come out with "Bad Starmer, bond markets are in charge", I see.

What do these people actually want? Increasingly there's a strand of comment and left think tankery that seems to be about getting tropes in rather than solving problems.

Dark forces are preventing us fighting the climate crisis – by taking knowledge hostage
George Monbiot

Certainly the attack on knowledge is part of the reaction to net zero. But are most European Governments struggling with the transition because they've had seeds of doubt sown by their equivalents of Tufton Street? Surely the big political problem is the cost.

George, as his wont nowadays, shows up with a soundbite BTL that renewables are cheaper. This is misleading when you take back up, grid connections etc into account, as various people point out.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... -173082282

Simon Jenkins blames the Government for homelessness. Among other factors, he picks out the Government's planning reforms, which will apparently only lead to executive homes in rural areas.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... bour-party

Woman jailed for harassing Rachel Reeves’ sister

Or as Ellie Reeves is otherwise known, the Solicitor General.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... ster-ellie

It is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the supposition that Teh Graun is adopting the old business model of their right-wing competitors; praying for a diametrically opposed regime so that it will rile their own base.

These days, that'll amount to feverish clicks on deportation images and videos - ergo; more revenue. Monetising misery.

It'll make a few quid. It's nothing new.

Another sighting of a Guardian hobby horse- the four day week, which the government are being "urged" to consider by a group set up to urge governments to consider the four day week.

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2 ... -and-wales

The argument here is burn out, while saying the same amount of work will be done over four days as five. I don't see how that can work. What time is actually saved here, some commuting time one day a week? That'll be very handy for some teachers, but a virtual irrelevance to lots of others. Can't schools by themselves take this into account already, like any other organization does with its work from home policy? Why does the Government have to get involved, and why does it have to be offered to every teacher? Would it be easy to timetable anyway?

It's the work paradox - we're apparently a country of hard working families, yet simultaneously plagued by legions of workshy bastards.

Or to put it another way, I'm a grafter, but I remember to keep work and home life in balance, and have some me time. They're lazy cunts who are always swinging the lead and spending time on their fantasy football.

I guess the real issue is that our culture says you need money to live, and the only way of making enough money is to work as much as possible - up to the point you pass through the glass sphincter and you're suddenly an asset and just start raking in money while doing fuck all.

Yep, that paradox is exactly it. One man's work life balance is another man's never around when you need them. In terms of policy, and the Guardian's interest, I think this is all pretty middle class. Lots of people's reaction to "do you want Friday off?" would be to think they could do with the extra money of working the odd Friday extra. This, I think, is why the policy didn't really land for Corbyn in 2019.

I'm skeptical of this stuff when an in person presence is required. And can you even organize your week where all the marking is done on one day? Would you want to? Wouldn't it be better often to get the work back to them in the next lesson, not next week? Can you teach the next bit without having gone through the last bit properly?

I've some friends (senior City lawyers) who do lots of working from home, but one problem they've run up against is that part of their job is being there for less experienced staff. They've had to make an effort to be in the office more than they would be for exactly this reason. I'd guess teaching was something where a personal touch in person was even more important.

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Mon Dec 01, 2025 12:35 pm Would it be easy to timetable anyway?

No. It would be a nightmare.

The most misleading thing about Rachel Reeves’s budget? Who it was really for
Aditya Chakrabortty

Labour backbenchers have been cheering it as a win for the most vulnerable in society. In fact it was aimed at the bond markets

How many more variants on "nobody elected the markets, maaaaan" can they crank out? By next week, they'll have replaced the good and competent Heather Stewart with Richard Murphy.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... nd-markets

Is it possible to combine the two Guardian threads? Cheers.

I've got irritated with some of Marina Hyde's stuff against Starmer, so I can't really criticize Greens for getting annoyed with her. I don't think this stuff is particularly in the commercial interest of a paper who, lest we be allowed to forget, keep asking for money.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... rty-leader

Make a political hero of Zack Polanski if you want. Just don’t forget to engage your brain
Marina Hyde

I see Aditya Chakraborty is on to "Starmer and Streeting killing 15,000 with their pharma deal with Trump". Pharma and Trump were aligned in wanting to shake down the NHS. What cards did we have exactly? That of course doesn't allow that some taxes could go up to pay the cost, because of course the government would never put up taxes for public services, except for in both budgets so far.

The Guardian will probably have Ed Davey and Zack Polanski writing a joint editorial about how this was caused by Starmer "not standing up to Trump".

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Tue Dec 09, 2025 5:44 pm Is it possible to combine the two Guardian threads? Cheers.

I can only see one, unless you're suggesting that I merge this one with the Express. Harsh but fair.

viewtopic.php?p=101667#p101667

In the other forum.

Well indeed. Not just modernity, but electrically powered mass transport modernity.

The Guardian's going to come out for the Greens and ultra nimby Lib Dems at the next election, with perhaps influence from someone who thinks growth isn't all that, and that there are enough houses.

Arguably, the impact of HS2 is in part due to the drawn out nature of the project. Would have been so much easier if the government had gone "eminent domain, compulsory purchase" after the start.

It's been very instructive the difference between HS1 and HS2 in terms of political impact. I guess not so many important people live in Kent as Buckinghamshire.

Never underestimate the gobshites of the fucking Chilterns, because it is they who have caused this. Perhaps putting an eight-lane motorway through their precious fucking landscape would have been preferable to them? I know someone on another forum who likes taking photographs of steam trains in say, Scotland but he hates the modern railway, drives everywhere and has been a very vocal critic of HS2, living as he does in... Buckinghamshire.

The M40 got driven through there without too many problems. Is any of that in tunnels?