 |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
|
Zulu Elephant
|
|
Went off to sit an exam. Replies here for anyone who's still here/cares
quote:
No, a growing number of university students is a stupid ideal. It devalues degrees, it practically forces people to go to university to get any sort of decent job, and it means that all the practical trades have massive trouble getting skilled workers. Plus, tuition fees don't even come close to covering the university's expenses for the student, so they still can't afford to keep the increased numbers anyway. |
quote:
I agree entirely with Immortal Wombat on University by the way – far too many school leavers now go and it has turned Universities into degree factories not centres of learning. Employers have stopped trusting degree classifications - how can this be good? |
It all depends on what you see the point of education is.
The old (some would say Conservative) view is that the education system exists to 'rank' people in terms of intelligence. If this is the way you look at then, yes, if too many kids go to university then a degree is 'devalued' because a lot of people will have degrees and therefore be 'ranked' in the top bracket of intelligence, stopping employers from easily identifying the 'most intelligent' to hire.
The modern way of looking at it (the one new labour subscribes to) is that education is not there to rank people along a single line that represents intelligence, but to train people to a high level in whatever form of 'intelligence' they display.
Someone who excels in philosophy or metaphysics has a very different form of intelligence from someone creative such as an artist or engineer/designer and they both have a very different form than the practical intelligence of a fantastic electrician or plumber. Therefore, New Labour have opened up the degree route to anyone who feels that they would benefit from it, while extending Modern Appreniship schemes and practical GCSEs.
So i'd say it doesn't matter about 'devaluing' degrees. To me that's just a very elitist view that only those who display VERY high levels of academic skills deserve to go to university and that it is wasted on anyone else.
Furthermore, with the decline of manufacturing in the advanced west, a higher and higher percentage of jobs are going to be management jobs - whichever country has the best pool of highly educated workers will be the best able to cope with the global economy.
quote:
But the I think the problem is we have different definitions of ‘middle class’ looking at what you subsequently say. Middle class doesn’t even start for me until you get to affluent Professional careers. |
I think we do have pretty different definitions of working class. I assume you don't subscribe to the idea that a 'new' middle class emerged during the 80s.
quote:
Negative on that for me – the Labour party is for the working man. It is the counter and the balance to the Tories. To be the everyman party just leaves us with the wishy washy mob we have now. Low taxes for all but we are left really – we just won’t talk about it too much. |
Im just a bit of a social contractarian. The government is meant to be the government for everyone. Besides, governing according to class interests just pisses everyone off from different classes and its difficult to build social solidarity.
quote:
Do you truly believe that? If it is true the axis (null point) has moved hugely to the right IMO. |
Yes, i think Labour are on the left. At a push I might say they are a centrist party. Just because they are in a difficult position with regards to civil liberties (something btw that the middle class are much more concerned with than the working class) because of terrorism and have started to take an interest in crime (that hits the working class a lot harder than anyone else) doesn't mean they'r eon the right.
quote:
HA HA HA HA HA
sucker |
*bites tongue*
|
|
| |
|
|
|
Zulu Elephant
|
|
who was the candidate?
|
|
| |
|
|
|
Zulu Elephant
|
|
I have to say. The one thing Im sure of is that the majority wont be 68. The marginals are so up in the air to judge any kind of swing(s).
We'll just have to see
|
|
| |
|
|
|
Zulu Elephant
|
|
Its not a bad majority by historical standards. Its just that Blair would find it difficult to get his market-led public service reforms past the left-wingers who will now make up a larger percentage of his majority.
|
|
| |
|
|
|
Zulu Elephant
|
|
quote:
Originally posted by lord of the mark
so what was the percentage the last time Labour won its third general election in a row? |
Labour have NEVER in their whole history won three elections in a row
|
|
| |
|
|
|
Lancer
|
|
Oregon Coast, USA! or Bohol, Philippines!
Apr 1999
time: 05:19
|
|
I'm watching this on C-SPAN2. What party took over for the Tories and which took over for Whigs? Labor is whig, right?
|
|
| |
|
|
|
Zulu Elephant
|
|
quote:
Originally posted by Ramo
So, what are the chances of a coup within Labour (i.e., by Gordon Brown) if their majority is relatively small? |
Very little. In UK politics, the guy holding the knife NEVER becomes Prime Minister. You just have to wait your turn
Brown will wait, because if he doesnt, he'll go the way of Heseltine.
|
|
| |
|
|
|
Lancer
|
|
Oregon Coast, USA! or Bohol, Philippines!
Apr 1999
time: 05:19
|
|
Thanks Krill...So Labor is workers?
|
|
| |
All times are GMT. The time now is 05:19.
Apolyton Time is 00:19. |
top of page
|
|
|
Forum Rules:
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
|
HTML code is ON
vB code is ON
Smilies are ON
[IMG] code is ON
|
|
|
|
|
|
05-05-2005 22:10
)
From today's Mirror frontpage:
|