UK Politics VIII

[Ser_not_appearing_yet]

More student protests going on. Looks like more violence. I would have joined the walkouts this morning, but it's Wednesday, and I don't have any lectures on Wednesdays.

Which university are you at? I just joined a walkout about an hour ago here at Essex.

Was pretty amateurish, but fun none the less.

[MinDonner]

I wonder what a professional walkout would look like. :unsure:

[Night Watchman]

Which university are you at? I just joined a walkout about an hour ago here at Essex.

Was pretty amateurish, but fun none the less.

Keele, in Staffordshire. Most of the first years get Wednesday off, it seems. Not to mention we're pretty far removed from anywhere worth protesting at, though apparently the university does have a tradition of student movements. We had a lot of people down in London two weeks ago.

[Ser_not_appearing_yet]

I wonder what a professional walkout would look like. :unsure:

Good point, lol.

I only meant half the people didn't really know what was going on, and we could barely hear the speakers due to their loudspeaker malfunctioning. Plus the whole thing was advertised via students earlier chalking the event and time on the walls and paving stones around campus. :lol:

Watchman, Staffordshire does sound kinda out of the way, yeah.

[ljkeane]

Do you have to actually go to lectures in the first place to walk out? Seems far too much like hard to work to me.

[Ser_not_appearing_yet]

Thats the idea. They timed the walkout to start midway through lectures and seminars, at least here. A lot of people just followed the crowd as an excuse to escape. Quite a few staff took part too.

[Night Watchman]

The nationwide walk outs were set to 11, so if people did that here that'd be between lectures, though if they had been tomorrow I have a double Metabolism lecture between 10 and 12, so I'd have gotten to walk out during that one.

[BigFatCoward]

Have you seen the age of the girls who have seized the police van on the front of the BBC website? They look about 11. Clearly today the police are taking a softly softly approach.

[Slick Mongoose]

1556: Michael Gove says: ...."On any issue my mind can be changed by passionate argument and logic." But Mr Gove goes on to say his views on fees will not alter.

[Derfel Cadarn]

In the spring/summer of 1998 I worked as a temp at the Student Loans Company in the Glasgow City Centre for a few months during my gap year before going to uni. This was after the new Labour Government announced the end of the student Grant (I got mine as I'd officially deferred entry to uni). There was a big protest outside the Studen Loans Company by students about the loss of the Grant. No idea why considering the Student Loans company had fuck all to do with the grant. Some of them tried to force their way inside but were held back. Bit like protesting outside a bus company about train fare hikes :rolleyes:

[slim da reaper]

Bit like protesting outside a bus company about train fare hikes :rolleyes:

This analogy is a good one: it's like protesting at the train station for horrendous pricing if the bus company has been shutdown by the government.

[MinDonner]

The idiot students of Sussex (or Brighton? not sure which one my mate works at) went one better, and decided to storm one of the University buildings, all the staff and lecturers had to be evacuated. Nothing like putting the blame in the right place! :rolleyes:

[Night Watchman]

The idiot students of Sussex (or Brighton? not sure which one my mate works at) went one better, and decided to storm one of the University buildings, all the staff and lecturers had to be evacuated. Nothing like putting the blame in the right place! :rolleyes:

That's why I don't agree with all the protesting by occupying University buildings, and especially the storming of those buildings. It's not the university's fault, they're in the same position.

[mormont]

That's why I don't agree with all the protesting by occupying University buildings, and especially the storming of those buildings. It's not the university's fault, they're in the same position.

To be fair, the senior management of most of these universities have been lobbying the government to remove the tuition fee cap for years. So in a way, it is their fault. Of course, they wanted to remove the cap to increase the amount of money in the system, not to replace the swingeing government cuts that have actually led to this outcome: so it's the most pyrrhic of victories for the vice-chancellors and governors. Nonetheless, it's arguably fair to give them some of the responsibility.

[Night Watchman]

To be fair, the senior management of most of these universities have been lobbying the government to remove the tuition fee cap for years. So in a way, it is their fault. Of course, they wanted to remove the cap to increase the amount of money in the system, not to replace the swingeing government cuts that have actually led to this outcome: so it's the most pyrrhic of victories for the vice-chancellors and governors. Nonetheless, it's arguably fair to give them some of the responsibility.

I didn't know that. Fair enough then. I suppose the thing that confused me is that Lecturers and stuff have been protesting as well, so I kind of assumed that Universities were against the raise in fees (kind of a brain fart on my part when I put it like that). I suppose I just didn't think about the possible differing in opinions between staff and senior management.

[Poobah]

I didn't know that. Fair enough then. I suppose the thing that confused me is that Lecturers and stuff have been protesting as well, so I kind of assumed that Universities were against the raise in fees (kind of a brain fart on my part when I put it like that). I suppose I just didn't think about the possible differing in opinions between staff and senior management.

Yea there's a big difference between the actual people I would consider university staff - eg. the lecturers, advisors, and whatnot and the bureaucrats / management. Sadly.

[MinDonner]

Yet another Tory Peer puts his foot in it

Mr Flight says "We're going to have a system where the middle classes are discouraged from breeding because it's jolly expensive.

"But for those on benefits, there is every incentive. Well, that's not very sensible."

Can't have those commoners breeding, what?

[Derfel Cadarn]

Yet another Tory Peer puts his foot in it

Mr Flight says "We're going to have a system where the middle classes are discouraged from breeding because it's jolly expensive.

"But for those on benefits, there is every incentive. Well, that's not very sensible."

Can't have those commoners breeding, what?

In fairness, that's largely the case now, though the phrasing could have been better. Working couples I know who've recently had children, on two incomes, are struggling financially. My sister and her partner both work, are both circa average UK wage, and can only afford the one child at present. They both have to work, but nursery fees are very expensive. My sister had to cut down to working 4 days a week. Her partner managed to cut down to 4 days though works longer hours to make up for it. His elderly parents look after the baby one day a week. And the nursery fees for 2 days a week are still a major financial drain.

On the other hand, non-working parents at present get paid more benefits, get larger council houses and as they don't work, dont have to pay nursery fees. Every now and then the media will do a story on some unemployed couple getting a large house for free and £40-odd thousand in benefits due to having a huge number of children. A workmate's friend left her job as she worked out she was better off being unemployed.

Whilst those on benefits have the right to have children, they shouldn't be given carte blanche to have as many kids as they see fit and expect the state to keep giving over more and more money. Working families have to plan out their family per their means, non-working families shouldn't get special treatment.

[kiko]

I don't think non-working families get special treatment. They still receive just enough to survive. The problem is, that the working class is getting a special treatment too, but an especially bad one. They have to share the burdens of society equally (costs of living) without getting an equal share of the wealth (social support, revenue from other sources than labor) of society.

[Commodore]

I've seen the mentions of Willam and Kate on TV, and it made me curious.

Is there any resistance in the UK to the idea of nobility? Is anyone upset by the stipend/services the royal family receives from taxpayers by virtue of their birth? Have any of them ever been asked to justify their circumstances, or if they feel any guilt about it?