Clarkkent

[quote user="Pommier"] I just cannot think of any good reason why the age of consent in Spain should be 13. A good many of the girls wouldn't even have reached puberty, let alone maturity! [/quote] I believe that it is generally agreed among theologians that the Virgin Mary would have been 13 or 14 at the time of the Annunciation. So what is good enough for God would be good enough for Spain. The age of menarche has been steadily reducing over the last hundred years or so. It could be argued that girls are biologically mature and possibly possessing strong sex drives earlier than the legal age of consent. It is quite likely that girls would listen to their own bodies rather than to legal dictat. By extending full-time education well into reproductive years may unwittingly encourage girls to experiment with sex as a rebellion against a continued, enforced childhood. This may encourage predatory older men to believe that their own behaviour is justifiable.

[quote user="Rabbie"] In Ted Heath's case he may have been gay but there is no evidence that he was not celibate. Not so uncommon among gay men of his generation. [/quote]   ... erm ... Celibate means "unmarried". There is plenty of evidence that Ted Heath was unmarried.

Savile and Peel may have liked young girls but that wasn't as bad as the former PM Ted Heath who was responsible for lowering the age of gay sex to fulfill his own wishes for young boys but we haven't heard so much about that. This statement appears to demonstrate an unnecessary degree of intolerance. That Ted Heath should have been homosexual comes as no surprise to me, but, frankly, is it any business of mine, or of anyone else? I thought that we were past the stage when people's sexuality could be used as weapons against them. The statement about his motives is pure speculation - perhaps he considered that heterosexuals and homosexuals should be treated equally in a fair society. The publication of a photograph of Ted Heath in an article about Savile is mischief and does not amount to evidence.

[quote user="Chancer"] British military officials in Afghanistan were today tight-lipped on the identity of the mother or the name of her son as they stayed inside the sprawling Helmand camp. “They might name him Harry,” one defence source told The Daily Telegraph. [/quote] Suggestion on the BBC News tonight that the woman may be from Fiji. That should increase the likelihood that she may be identied.

Well. At least it didn't say "squaddie". I think that all soldiers heading for Afghanistan should be given pregnancy tests. And that should include the women as well.

I'm largely with Idun on this. I respect the right of every person to hold whatever beliefs they wish. That respect does not extend, however, to the beliefs themselves. This does not mean that I would defame those beliefs but merely reflects that they are based on myth and cultural history, often with little supporting hard evidence and frequently highly irrational. If it were possible, I would insert into the Human Rights Charter a clause stating that the concept of blasphemy has no place in a modern state. In much of the Islamic world, religion is used as a method of maintaining power over a subservient population. Much as it was when the Inquisition was used to keep Christians in order. Any religion which cannot tolerate critical examination of itself is not worth the space it occupies. Nor is any religion which blackmails critical non-adherents into supine silence.  

[quote user="woolybanana"] Pondering Dr Johnson's words this morning, I wondered whether we could not come up with something similar concerning France, given the right pickle it seems to be in and conscious that the hand and suitcase man is going to Belgium if he can. The original is: "Why, Sir, you find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford." I thought perhaps: "Why, Sir, you find no man, at all intellectual or rich, who is willing to stay in France.When a man is tired of France, he is tired of State stupidity and taxes for there is in France little that he can now afford" But Norman who has a far sharper tongue than mine may be able to do a lot better! [/quote] Sorry to drag everyone back to the original posting, but ...     Many times, in France have I been obliged to listen as a resident Briton has assured me that "moving here was the best thing I've ever done. There is NO way you can ever get me back there ..." And, more often than not, on a subsequent visit, when I have enquired of that individual, I have been told that he or she has returned to the United Kingdom. This brings to mind the following quotation from Dr Johnson: Every man naturally persuades himself that he can keep his resolutions, nor is he convinced of his imbecility but by length of time and frequency of experiment. Prayers and Meditations, No. 1770 (1785). The noblest prospect afforded the Frenchman is the prospect of the high road to the Eurotunnel terminal ....

[quote user="idun"] I keep noticing that there is a very big fuss about an incestuous marriage between first cousins. Surely this is not incest. [/quote] Marriage between first cousins is not usually considered incestuous. First cousin marriages were usually the first choice among the royal families of Europe - including our own (Vicky 'n' Al). It kept the blue blood blue (and haemophiliac).

[quote]Have they not heard of skin cancer in the USA yet ?[/quote] I suspect that they have, but are more scared of parents threatening litigation for "assault".

[quote user="You can call me Betty"]There's nothing wrong with a degree in any subject per se, but just how many JOBS are available in Media Studies? And how many people undertake a degree in something like that with a clear objective in terms of future employment? Yes, of course, the same applies to many courses. I obviously hit a very raw nerve with you by choosing only one.[:D]. I could have said "English" or "History", but I didn't. [/quote]   You haven't hit any nerve at all. But I fear you have missed the point that I was trying to make: that it does not matter what subject is studied, it is the development of intellectual, general, non-specific skills not vocational skills (which may have a useful life of only a few years anyway) which is important. These intellectual skills can be developed just as easily in Media Studies as in any other subject.   [quote]Just out of idle curiosity, have a look at the "Prospects" website, and you'll see that in 2004/5 there were more Media Studies graduates than those graduating in, for example, Electrical Engineering. There were more than double the number of Media Studies grads than Civil Engineers. I don't remember reading that the country was crying out for Media Studies graduates anywhere, though.[/quote]   I doubt that the country is crying out for English graduates, either, but I'll bet that there are even more of them. [quote]Graduate employers (generally speaking) are looking for people who have not only "skills", but skills applicable to their business requirements...many of them quite specific. In addition, they're looking for evidence of common sense and the ability to work well in a team, to understand and correctly interpret instructions, and  some track record of previous employment, even if it's only a long-standing holiday job or Saturday job. [/quote]   Graduate employers ought to be looking for people who can be developed into managers at some time in the future. The higher an indivdual progresses through an organisation, the less important their technical, vocational skills become. Their high level intellectual skills - the ability to define a problem, analyse its components, develop alternative possible solutions, evaluate those solutions and then convince the organisation to adopt the solution you have determined - are much more useful than technical skills. These skills are the important ones being developed by a university degree. [quote]When I was actively involved in graduate recruitment over a period of some eight years, one of the things I always looked for was the ability to write and spell. That's a fairly rare commodity regardless of the discipline studied.[/quote]   When I was teaching in a university business school, I, too, concerned myself with the ability to write and spell and developed assessment strategies which highlighted the importance of written (and spoken) language skills. I agree with you about their importance. I was also concerned with students' numerical skills and their ability to use quantitatative information effectively. [quote]I don't think you can generalise that any particular subject area produces people that are better at one thing than others, as much depends on the institution. For example, there was much ado about our local University (Thames Valley) releasing people into the world of work, clutching a Law Degree where the pass mark in finals was a whopping 23%. (That's "mark"..not a misprint). [/quote]   Interesting, but probably acceptable to the external examiners whose role is to ensure that the examination process is valid. What do you know about pass standards at other institutions, especially those which employ the external examiners?  What do you know about the process or circumstances which resulted in 23% being accepted as an appropriate mark? Or did the Slough Gazette (or whatever it may be called) present this story sensationally?

[quote user="You can call me Betty"] Universities don't just produce a bunch of useless tossers, but there could do with being a fairly rigorous overhaul of the range of subjects available, and perhaps more families should be asking themselves whether they're pushing their kids to do a 3-year Media Studies course because it's the done thing rather than a wise choice. [/quote] And what is wrong with Media Studies? And why is studying for a degree in Media Studies less wise than studying for one in reading novels by dead authors? Or in extinct Mediterranean languages? (Or in pictures painted by other people, for that matter?) The main point in a university education (except in a few specialist areas) should not be that it is a fast track to a specific job but that it is a rigorous training in intellectual skills such as comprehension, analysis, application, communication, decision making and the development of ideas. The subject studied merely provides the context in which these skills can flourish. Any employer worth his salt will be looking for evidence of high level skills because the future of his business depends on them. It is also interesting to note that many of the "high status" subjects contain no quantitative content whereas the "low status" subjects produce people with good numerical analysis and evaluation skills - essential for any area of employment. All other things being equal, I would sooner employ someone with a degree in Media Studies than someone with a degree in English or Classics?

[quote user="Hoddy"]The third thing I think that is sadly missing now is the firms who used to give apprenticeships, particularly to likely lads. The training they had from working beside decent working men taught them much about skills for life as well skills for a particular job. Hoddy[/quote] Times have changed. Apprenticeships provided individuals to work with an individual craftsman and so end up with all the skills they would need to perform their trade for the rest of their working lives. Technology, in particular information technology, has changed that. The industrial landscape has changed so comprehensibly that apprenticeship is no longer an appropriate training method. Its only large scale retention (in a disguised form) is in such things as the clinical component of medical training where students are attached to a consultant's firm. When I was young, manufacturing companies employed people as toolmakers and draughtsmen. These jobs are, in the main, long gone, replaced by CAD/CAM.

[quote user="Russethouse"]A young relative of mine took GCSE Maths last week which he swears started with the question:how any times does 7 divide into 21? !!!!!!! [/quote] In my O-level Geography paper (c. 1958) there was an outline map of the British Isles with four rivers marked. One was quite long and entered the sea between Kent and Essex, a short way inland a town with a name beginning with L was shown. The river and town had to be identified. Another river entered the sea in the wide estuary between Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, and part way along its U-shaped progress was a town beginning with N. The other rivers and towns were equally obvious. This question earned 20% of the marks available. Easy questions are not new.

[quote user="Rabbie"]Many years ago when I took A levels the grades were fixed by the percentage of candidates who reached a certain mark. So to get an A you needed to be in the top 10% and to get a B to be in the top 20% and so on.[/quote] This was the case. It was known as "norm-related assessment". Marks were adjusted to fit in with the norms and so were relative to the performance of the entire population of students taking that examination. One of the consequences of this when applied to grammar school selection was that the performance of girls was significantly superior to boys (since girls mature earlier than boys). Based on performance, more girls were likely to qualify for grammar school entry than boys, but keeping the numbers equal meant that some girls who had performed better than boys were denied entrance. With the growth of bodies like BEC and TEC, "criterion-related assessment" became common. This involves setting standards for performance at various levels and and awarding the qualification at that level to all students who achieve the appropriate standards. It is regarded as much fairer since it is not arbitrary or discriminating. I think that one of the main educational problems in the UK is the fact that the political elite come mainly from a very narrow segment of society and have little real knowledge or understanding of the world outside that experience. The country does need graduates - universities should be training people in the intellectual skills required of high level managers (analysis, decision making, presentation and so on) but university should not be seen as the only educational experience available at post-compulsory education level. It is bizarre that nursing should have become a graduate-only profession and the proposal to do the same with the police is ludicrous.

Interesting article - but mainly impressionistic journalism and anecdotal supported by bogus statistics. After all, the "percentages" quoted were from voluntary responses to an online questionnaire. In such circumstances, only people with some sort of axe to grind bother to respond. This does not mean that it does not address some very important social issues and RH's contributions are pertinent and valuable. There are serious social problems associated with poor parenting that have to be tackled. And yes, bring back domestic science!  

Indeed you did, Lucy, and thank you very much, too.    

Thank you for your confirmation, John. I have just called LD Lines and made a booking. They actually give a 20% discount. Had I have booked my crossing on line it would have cost £165, I paid £132.

[quote user="Chancer"] I do miss the forum of old. [/quote] How I agree. Where is Dick Smith when you need a measured a sane, sensible, informed contribution? Where is the obdurate and intractable Outcast? Could we not let back the St Malo One into our fold?   ... I was going to add the knowledgable, experienced and sensible Teamedup, but thankfully she has been reincarnated ...

Does anyone know whether LD Lines still offer discounts to passengers in particular age groups (over 65, under 25 etc)? There is no information on the web site.

  To get back to the original post: [quote user="Pommier"]So if Scotland votes for independance, will the Union flag be re-drawn excluding the Scottish flag?[/quote] The design of the flag reflects the history of the United Kingdom but is not predicated by the composition of the Union. There is no reason to redesign it if Scotland leaves the Union, it was not redesigned following Irish independence. It has achieved an identity of its own and can continue unchanged - it will be up to Scotland to create a new flag for itself. All the talk I have heard suggests that most Scots do not want independence. There is a case for arguing that if the Union is to be broken up then all members should should have a vote. Were that to be the case then the English vote may well be for independence from Scotland - so Scotland would not secede but would be ejected from the United Kingdom.      

Those Swiss - exporting their cuckoo clocks and locked away in their little mountainous retreat - not in the Euro and not troubled greatly by the problems affecting the rest of the world. They think they can tell everyone else how to behave. Did you know that their latest wheeze is to make people carry blazing torches? Are they telling the rest of the world that in Cameron's Britain the street lights don't work? The next thing you know we will be overrun with foreigners arriving at Heathrow demanding to be taken to Stratford ... and they won't for a second be interested in Hamlet or As You Like It ...

[quote user="Rabbie"] ... Too many of them have gone straight from their privileged backgounds to university and then to jobs as political research assistants and then as elected MPs etc ... [/quote] I think that the situation is even worse than this. They work in the central office of the political party not only as researchers but as policy developers. The policies are often based on a narrow philosophical viewpoint which has little relevence in the real world and then seek election so that they can foist their barmy ideas on to the electorate.

For me, the role and subsequently the quality of a Head of State (let's just settle for US President, UK PM, French President, German Chancellor etc) I know it may be considered only a minor point, but in this context you mean Head of Government not Head of State. In the case of the UK and Germany the roles you mention are not Heads of State. I think that there is a major problem with having executive presidencies (USA and France) in that the demands of sound government are often seen as subordinate to national pride. I suspect that Sarkozy sometimes confused his role as national figurehead with that of political leader. It will be interesting to see if Hollande suffers similar confusion.

There doesn't appear to be much comment about this anywhere - and it won't have a big impact on travelling to and from France - but bmibaby is to cease operations on 10 September - the last services will fly on 9 September. This is a consequence of the takeover of its parent company BMI by AIG and the likely integration of BMI and British Airways.

I don't really see how reading the Bible can ever improve anyone. The Old Testament is a collection of the myths, legends and fairy tales of a small group of bronze age arab goat herders which involve a rather capricious and bad tempered god who keeps killing people. The New Testament seems to suggest that if you are nice to people and go round doing good you will end up having a public and excrutiatingly painful death. Stick to Harry Potter.