Are girls genetically predisposed to like pink, or do we teach them to love it? If we surround our children with pink everything, is it surprising that the link between being a girl and liking pink is reinforced? Toy manufactures are partly to blame but partly just following the trend. Girls love pink, therefore we sell pink things, thus contributing to the cycle.
We are complicit in the pinkification of our girls. And I don't just mean the colour. Studies have been done that show we just don't push our girls or let them take the same risks as we do with our boys; even parents who otherwise attempt to ignore gender stereotypes are guilty of these biases.
It's probably a case of both and, rather than either or.
There may be a genetic link, I don't claim otherwise. But there are studies around that show inadvertent biases that we cannot ignore such as this one i linked below
Far from being beyond satire, we are at least partially to blame for the increasing pinkification of our female children,.
It soundss to me very much like a rich person's problem.
My nieces are absolutely obsessed with fairies. My nephews aren't. It's probably in part, an inherent preference among girls and boys, and partly cultural conditioning. But, it seems a very minor issue to get bothered about.
Before my daughter went to school she was very happy playing with trains, cars and lions. As soon as she started at primary school it was horses, horses and more horses*.
The cultural forces are massive, but my daughter is happy with an interest in horses, and she pursues this interest in her own individual way. So it really doesn't matter, except when people pretend that it reflects inherent gender differences such that, say, the low number of female engineers should be considered "natural", as some people claim. And she's into fire-breathing dragons too anyway.
* Horses provide a good example for this sort of thing, because the time was when women were barely allowed to ride on a horse, and horse-riding was seen as an admirable male skill. In all my years of taking my daughter to riding schools we've only ever seen one boy taking horse-riding lessons. That is obviously reflecting a cultural change, rather than a change in the genetic predisposition for girls to like horses and boys not to.
Fascinating on how government has changed, on Cameron, on Greece, on the NHS and education.
And absolutely devastating in regard to Blair:
New Labour had been in about a fortnight, and one of the dramatic things that had been done had been to announce the independence of the Bank of England, and this very senior civil servant, upon getting wind this was coming, asked Tony Blair, ‘Shouldn’t we put this on the agenda for Cabinet?’ To which Tony replied: ‘What for? What’s it got to do with them?’
“And I was also told on very good authority that the very first Cabinet meeting that Tony ran, the only item on the agenda was Alastair Campbell briefing members of the Cabinet on the line to take on current topics for next week. Because of course Tony had never been in a government before.
Blair did not "do" Cabinet government. I think we knew that.
Hasn't raised my hackles, the pathetic attempt by the left to create a division in society that doesn't exist has. All stereotypes are based on truisms, as the toy industry would attest girls love pink.
Are girls genetically predisposed to like pink, or do we teach them to love it? If we surround our children with pink everything, is it surprising that the link between being a girl and liking pink is reinforced? Toy manufactures are partly to blame but partly just following the trend. Girls love pink, therefore we sell pink things, thus contributing to the cycle.
We are complicit in the pinkification of our girls. And I don't just mean the colour. Studies have been done that show we just don't push our girls or let them take the same risks as we do with our boys; even parents who otherwise attempt to ignore gender stereotypes are guilty of these biases.
It's probably a case of both and, rather than either or.
There may be a genetic link, I don't claim otherwise. But there are studies around that show inadvertent biases that we cannot ignore such as this one i linked below
Far from being beyond satire, we are at least partially to blame for the increasing pinkification of our female children,.
It soundss to me very much like a rich person's problem.
My nieces are absolutely obsessed with fairies. My nephews aren't. It's probably in part, an inherent preference among girls and boys, and partly cultural conditioning. But, it seems a very minor issue to get bothered about.
we may not hit our full potential as a nation if some of those girls are conditioned into media studies when physics would have been the best thing for them.
likewise boys missing out from their ballet careers.
and so on.
There are all sorts of things that prevent us maximising our GDP. People lead unhealthy lifestyles. Some people prefer leisure to hard work . Lots of women prefer to leave the workplace, or work part-time, when they have children. But, so long as people are content with this, I see no real problem.
You missed out "socialism", no surer way to screw up your GDP...
Mr. L, indeed. Coalition necessitating a return (at least in part) to Cabinet government is one of the less discussed but perhaps more interesting shifts that has occurred this Parliament.
Are girls genetically predisposed to like pink, or do we teach them to love it? If we surround our children with pink everything, is it surprising that the link between being a girl and liking pink is reinforced? Toy manufactures are partly to blame but partly just following the trend. Girls love pink, therefore we sell pink things, thus contributing to the cycle.
We are complicit in the pinkification of our girls. And I don't just mean the colour. Studies have been done that show we just don't push our girls or let them take the same risks as we do with our boys; even parents who otherwise attempt to ignore gender stereotypes are guilty of these biases.
It's probably a case of both and, rather than either or.
There may be a genetic link, I don't claim otherwise. But there are studies around that show inadvertent biases that we cannot ignore such as this one i linked below
Far from being beyond satire, we are at least partially to blame for the increasing pinkification of our female children,.
It soundss to me very much like a rich person's problem.
My nieces are absolutely obsessed with fairies. My nephews aren't. It's probably in part, an inherent preference among girls and boys, and partly cultural conditioning. But, it seems a very minor issue to get bothered about.
Before my daughter went to school she was very happy playing with trains, cars and lions. As soon as she started at primary school it was horses, horses and more horses*.
The cultural forces are massive, but my daughter is happy with an interest in horses, and she pursues this interest in her own individual way. So it really doesn't matter, except when people pretend that it reflects inherent gender differences such that, say, the low number of female engineers should be considered "natural", as some people claim. And she's into fire-breathing dragons too anyway.
* Horses provide a good example for this sort of thing, because the time was when women were barely allowed to ride on a horse, and horse-riding was seen as an admirable male skill. In all my years of taking my daughter to riding schools we've only ever seen one boy taking horse-riding lessons. That is obviously reflecting a cultural change, rather than a change in the genetic predisposition for girls to like horses and boys not to.
"The unemployed should be forced to take a job after no more than two years on the dole to end stop them spending a ‘lifetime on benefits’, Labour will say today.
Rachel Reeves is challenging David Cameron to back Labour’s plan for a jobs guarantee to limit Jobseekers Allowance to a year for under 25s and two years for older workers.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the shadow work and pensions secretary warned the country cannot afford leaving people ‘stuck on benefits for years on end’.
Are girls genetically predisposed to like pink, or do we teach them to love it? If we surround our children with pink everything, is it surprising that the link between being a girl and liking pink is reinforced? Toy manufactures are partly to blame but partly just following the trend. Girls love pink, therefore we sell pink things, thus contributing to the cycle.
We are complicit in the pinkification of our girls. And I don't just mean the colour. Studies have been done that show we just don't push our girls or let them take the same risks as we do with our boys; even parents who otherwise attempt to ignore gender stereotypes are guilty of these biases.
It's probably a case of both and, rather than either or.
There may be a genetic link, I don't claim otherwise. But there are studies around that show inadvertent biases that we cannot ignore such as this one i linked below
Far from being beyond satire, we are at least partially to blame for the increasing pinkification of our female children,.
.
Before my daughter went to school she was very happy playing with trains, cars and lions. As soon as she started at primary school it was horses, horses and more horses*.
The cultural forces are massive, but my daughter is happy with an interest in horses, and she pursues this interest in her own individual way. So it really doesn't matter, except when people pretend that it reflects inherent gender differences such that, say, the low number of female engineers should be considered "natural", as some people claim. And she's into fire-breathing dragons too anyway.
* Horses provide a good example for this sort of thing, because the time was when women were barely allowed to ride on a horse, and horse-riding was seen as an admirable male skill. In all my years of taking my daughter to riding schools we've only ever seen one boy taking horse-riding lessons. That is obviously reflecting a cultural change, rather than a change in the genetic predisposition for girls to like horses and boys not to.
In country districts, there must be plenty of boys who are as mad for horses as girls are.
While boys and girls should be encouraged to pursue any occupation that they have an aptitude for, I don't think we should expect to see men and women evenly distributed across all occupations. One wouldn't expect women to volunteer for the armed forces in the same numbers that men do, for example.
"The unemployed should be forced to take a job after no more than two years on the dole to end stop them spending a ‘lifetime on benefits’, Labour will say today.
Rachel Reeves is challenging David Cameron to back Labour’s plan for a jobs guarantee to limit Jobseekers Allowance to a year for under 25s and two years for older workers.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the shadow work and pensions secretary warned the country cannot afford leaving people ‘stuck on benefits for years on end’.
An idea I have espoused for a long time on this site to fierce opposition from lefties (the forcing unemployed to take jobs, not the jobs guarantee)
I am sure that the government can think of some 'disgusting' jobs for the unemployed to do - mucking out drains, clearing rubbish from the beaches or roadsides, perhaps forcing them to wear orange 'safety' clothing while they do so.
"The unemployed should be forced to take a job after no more than two years on the dole to end stop them spending a ‘lifetime on benefits’, Labour will say today.
Rachel Reeves is challenging David Cameron to back Labour’s plan for a jobs guarantee to limit Jobseekers Allowance to a year for under 25s and two years for older workers.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the shadow work and pensions secretary warned the country cannot afford leaving people ‘stuck on benefits for years on end’.
A trade union boss was today cut off on live radio during a bizarre rant over a planned Tube strike.
Steve Hedley, assistant general secretary to the RMT union, launched the tirade after being asked about strike action in support of a driver who allegedly failed a breath test.
@Markfergusonuk: Someone told me about Harriet Harman’s Pink Bus a month ago. I thought they were winding me up. It turns out it was not, in fact, a wind up
At least they decided after careful deliberation not to go for the big eyelashes too.
"The unemployed should be forced to take a job after no more than two years on the dole to end stop them spending a ‘lifetime on benefits’, Labour will say today.
Rachel Reeves is challenging David Cameron to back Labour’s plan for a jobs guarantee to limit Jobseekers Allowance to a year for under 25s and two years for older workers.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the shadow work and pensions secretary warned the country cannot afford leaving people ‘stuck on benefits for years on end’.
An idea I have espoused for a long time on this site to fierce opposition from lefties (the forcing unemployed to take jobs, not the jobs guarantee)
I am sure that the government can think of some 'disgusting' jobs for the unemployed to do - mucking out drains, clearing rubbish from the beaches or roadsides, perhaps forcing them to wear orange 'safety' clothing while they do so.
Or just take one of the unskilled jobs on offer at the job centre where they pick up their dole
In country districts, there must be plenty of boys who are as mad for horses as girls are.
While boys and girls should be encouraged to pursue any occupation that they have an aptitude for, I don't think we should expect to see men and women evenly distributed across all occupations. One wouldn't expect women to volunteer for the armed forces in the same numbers that men do, for example.
In country districts, there must be plenty of boys who are as mad for horses as girls are.
Have you been to a local horse show ? ^^;
More men the higher up the competition you get, but at a grass roots level it is overwhemingly female.
"The unemployed should be forced to take a job after no more than two years on the dole to end stop them spending a ‘lifetime on benefits’, Labour will say today.
Rachel Reeves is challenging David Cameron to back Labour’s plan for a jobs guarantee to limit Jobseekers Allowance to a year for under 25s and two years for older workers.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the shadow work and pensions secretary warned the country cannot afford leaving people ‘stuck on benefits for years on end’.
An idea I have espoused for a long time on this site to fierce opposition from lefties (the forcing unemployed to take jobs, not the jobs guarantee)
I am sure that the government can think of some 'disgusting' jobs for the unemployed to do - mucking out drains, clearing rubbish from the beaches or roadsides, perhaps forcing them to wear orange 'safety' clothing while they do so.
Of course the plan is not to do anything for the unemployed - but to court favour with the 'squeezed middle/ WWC' who see the effects of unemployment in the council estates.
So the macho philistines of Westminster and Fleet St don't like a pinkish* battlebus. Not too surprising but it might work a little better with the average female (non?) voter.
* From the picture I've seen it doesn't seem a particularly strong pink but that could be to do with lighting etc. Maybe Labour are moving away from the traditional blood red of the flag and the rose and moving towards a kind of rose wine pink. Very New Labour.
Not much interest in my constituency (South West Wiltshire, 10k Con maj), but the neighbouring one of Chippenham looks set to change hands this year (LD maj 2.5k). The MP Duncan Hames (married to Jo Swinson) became an MP in 2010 so is unlikely to have a huge personal following.
He beat "The Black Farmer" (Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones) last time and is up this time against a Michelle Donelan who I don't know a great deal about. I've had a quick glance at her website and she seems fairly normal. I doubt there'll be much tactical voting for or against her - last time Lab got 3,600 votes UKIP 1,800 - so I'll be surprised if Hames can overcome the national Lib Dem collapse.
Shadsy has Con 8/15, LD 6/4, UKIP 20/1, Lab & Green 100/1
I've met Michelle a couple of times: utterly normal, hard working person (originally, I think from Liverpool area). Sensible person, get the sense she is a bit of a hustler which is no bad think. On the traditional wing of the party: has some sympathies with the kippers although not seem exercised enough about immigration and Europe to actually be one.
Getting decent support from central office & senior cabinet. If I lived in her area, would be very tempted to vote for her myself (and may even donate) - not only just because I've known Duncan for 20 years and he's an utter dweeb.
I buy all the clothes for my granddaughter who is just 8. Up the age of 7 she requested pink or white or pastel colours. When she became seven, a sudden switch to no pink and preference for purple and other stronger colours. At the same age groups, she went from skirts to trousers and shorts.
Now age 8, she has become quite independent in her thinking and having given her a large tablet, she does her homework with me, which includes foreign languages and science and chess. So not quite sure where nurture replaces nature.
Are girls genetically predisposed to like pink, or do we teach them to love it? If we surround our children with pink everything, is it surprising that the link between being a girl and liking pink is reinforced? Toy manufactures are partly to blame but partly just following the trend. Girls love pink, therefore we sell pink things, thus contributing to the cycle.
We are complicit in the pinkification of our girls. And I don't just mean the colour. Studies have been done that show we just don't push our girls or let them take the same risks as we do with our boys; even parents who otherwise attempt to ignore gender stereotypes are guilty of these biases.
It's probably a case of both and, rather than either or.
There may be a genetic link, I don't claim otherwise. But there are studies around that show inadvertent biases that we cannot ignore such as this one i linked below
Far from being beyond satire, we are at least partially to blame for the increasing pinkification of our female children,.
It soundss to me very much like a rich person's problem.
My nieces are absolutely obsessed with fairies. My nephews aren't. It's probably in part, an inherent preference among girls and boys, and partly cultural conditioning. But, it seems a very minor issue to get bothered about.
Before my daughter went to school she was very happy playing with trains, cars and lions. As soon as she started at primary school it was horses, horses and more horses*.
The cultural forces are massive, but my daughter is happy with an interest in horses, and she pursues this interest in her own individual way. So it really doesn't matter, except when people pretend that it reflects inherent gender differences such that, say, the low number of female engineers should be considered "natural", as some people claim. And she's into fire-breathing dragons too anyway.
* Horses provide a good example for this sort of thing, because the time was when women were barely allowed to ride on a horse, and horse-riding was seen as an admirable male skill. In all my years of taking my daughter to riding schools we've only ever seen one boy taking horse-riding lessons. That is obviously reflecting a cultural change, rather than a change in the genetic predisposition for girls to like horses and boys not to.
The more gender equality of opportunity and richer a society, the lower the number of female engineers. Your daughter is in no way representative and is an irrelevant anecdote.
"The unemployed should be forced to take a job after no more than two years on the dole to end stop them spending a ‘lifetime on benefits’, Labour will say today.
Rachel Reeves is challenging David Cameron to back Labour’s plan for a jobs guarantee to limit Jobseekers Allowance to a year for under 25s and two years for older workers.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the shadow work and pensions secretary warned the country cannot afford leaving people ‘stuck on benefits for years on end’.
Speaking on 25 March in 2011 at a Fresh Ideas Q&A session, Miliband said: "You’re right that tax should play a part in reducing the deficit... that’s why we’ve said there should be another bankers’ bonus tax this year."
A trade union boss was today cut off on live radio during a bizarre rant over a planned Tube strike.
Steve Hedley, assistant general secretary to the RMT union, launched the tirade after being asked about strike action in support of a driver who allegedly failed a breath test.
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
Not much interest in my constituency (South West Wiltshire, 10k Con maj), but the neighbouring one of Chippenham looks set to change hands this year (LD maj 2.5k). The MP Duncan Hames (married to Jo Swinson) became an MP in 2010 so is unlikely to have a huge personal following.
He beat "The Black Farmer" (Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones) last time and is up this time against a Michelle Donelan who I don't know a great deal about. I've had a quick glance at her website and she seems fairly normal. I doubt there'll be much tactical voting for or against her - last time Lab got 3,600 votes UKIP 1,800 - so I'll be surprised if Hames can overcome the national Lib Dem collapse.
Shadsy has Con 8/15, LD 6/4, UKIP 20/1, Lab & Green 100/1
I've met Michelle a couple of times: utterly normal, hard working person (originally, I think from Liverpool area). Sensible person, get the sense she is a bit of a hustler which is no bad think. On the traditional wing of the party: has some sympathies with the kippers although not seem exercised enough about immigration and Europe to actually be one.
Getting decent support from central office & senior cabinet. If I lived in her area, would be very tempted to vote for her myself (and may even donate) - not only just because I've known Duncan for 20 years and he's an utter dweeb.
2013 UA results for wards making up Chippenham Parliamentary seat
LD 8320 Con 7716 UKIP 5349 Lab 2706 Ind 2192 Green 135 Others 431
@AndrewSparrow: My snap PMQs verdict - http://t.co/YUf2C4FTPA - Miliband fails to get thru Cameron's defences - Not so much a loss as a missed opportunity
Not much interest in my constituency (South West Wiltshire, 10k Con maj), but the neighbouring one of Chippenham looks set to change hands this year (LD maj 2.5k). The MP Duncan Hames (married to Jo Swinson) became an MP in 2010 so is unlikely to have a huge personal following.
He beat "The Black Farmer" (Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones) last time and is up this time against a Michelle Donelan who I don't know a great deal about. I've had a quick glance at her website and she seems fairly normal. I doubt there'll be much tactical voting for or against her - last time Lab got 3,600 votes UKIP 1,800 - so I'll be surprised if Hames can overcome the national Lib Dem collapse.
Shadsy has Con 8/15, LD 6/4, UKIP 20/1, Lab & Green 100/1
I've met Michelle a couple of times: utterly normal, hard working person (originally, I think from Liverpool area). Sensible person, get the sense she is a bit of a hustler which is no bad think. On the traditional wing of the party: has some sympathies with the kippers although not seem exercised enough about immigration and Europe to actually be one.
Getting decent support from central office & senior cabinet. If I lived in her area, would be very tempted to vote for her myself (and may even donate) - not only just because I've known Duncan for 20 years and he's an utter dweeb.
Thanks for the reply Charles, always nice to hear some first hand experience of our politicians.
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
If Ed has to drag Andy Coulson out he's not really cutting through. But he'll get a few decent news clips out of this.
The Labour benches looked glum - Cameron was prepared on Green - pointing out Labour's previous endorsement of him - I think Coulson is Miliband's own "Godwin's law"....
"Cameron says this is desperate stuff. Miliband cannot go in front of business, because he has offended them. He cannot go to Scotland, because he is toxic. He has even offended nuns."
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating. He's asking for a kicking and just cannot afford to sustain to many more.
Does anyone know what Cameron is talking about wrt wifi on trains? In my experience pretty much every train already has wifi, it's just that you pay extra for access (although included in first class ticket). So what is new?
Does anyone know what Cameron is talking about wrt wifi on trains? In my experience pretty much every train already has wifi, it's just that you pay extra for access (although included in first class ticket). So what is new?
I think it is free wifi for everyone, even those in pleb class.
Miliband won quite easily.. a signal of this is when he critques Cameron's tenure, all Cameron can do is talk about Labour in 1997/Gordon Brown and say they did the same thing. Ed had quite a good line saying the difference between them is his hands are clean on things like this
Cameron should have said "The difference is one of us is PM and one never will be"
"Cameron says this is desperate stuff. Miliband cannot go in front of business, because he has offended them. He cannot go to Scotland, because he is toxic. He has even offended nuns."
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating. He's asking for a kicking and just cannot afford to sustain to many more.
Ben - and any other Labour supporter - if EdM was knocked over by a (pink) bus tomorrow, who would be your preferred replacement? Who could best boost the party's performance and secure a Labour or Labour-led government?
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating.
Yes, that is right. Quite apart from anything else, it was completely obvious to everyone, except apparently Ed Miliband, that Cameron would be very well-prepared for any question on tax avoidance.
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating.
Yes, that is right. Quite apart from anything else, it was completely obvious to everyone, except apparently Ed Miliband, that Cameron would be very well-prepared for any question on tax avoidance.
Even Betfair Sportsbook gave Miliband more credit than that, with tax avoidance at odds-against...
Not since Maggie stroked the Union Jack logo on the tail of a British Airways Jumbo Jet have so many Tories climaxed at the same time. I'm beginning to think the Pink Battle Bus might have some mileage if you'll excuse the pun
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
99% of physical sports it would do, there is the occasional sport where it doesn't (Equestrianism), sports where you'd have thought men and women perhaps should be able to compete equally (Darts, snooker, chess ?) but men enjoy a clear advantage and one or two that men simply don't compete in (netball) and the odd one or two where the sport is different for men & women (gymnastics)...
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating.
Yes, that is right. Quite apart from anything else, it was completely obvious to everyone, except apparently Ed Miliband, that Cameron would be very well-prepared for any question on tax avoidance.
I get the feeling Cameron is upping his game -- he demolished subsequent questions on tax avoidance too - rather than "winging it" as he has done in the past, we may be in "essay crisis' election mode.....
Mr. CD13, not to mention women get equal pay for playing best of 3 rather than best of 5 (which the men do) in Grand Slams.
It genuinely puzzles me. After all, women can run full length marathons, a good indicator of fitness levels. Why not play best of 5 matches? Is it because female muscle is more prone to injury [it is, but I thought that related to bearing heavy loads rather than over-exertion in an aerobic sense]?
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
99% of physical sports it would do, there is the occasional sport where it doesn't (Equestrianism), sports where you'd have thought men and women perhaps should be able to compete equally (Darts, snooker, chess ?) but men enjoy a clear advantage and one or two that men simply don't compete in (netball) and the odd one or two where the sport is different for men & women (gymnastics)...
Chess is a real puzzle.
There is no obvious reason why women should not be able to compete equally with men, yet apart from a few famous exceptions (Vera Menchik and the Polgar sisters) they have rarely featured amongst the elite players. Nobody can explain why. Former British Champion, Bill Hartston, who was also a research psychologist suggested that the reason ws that 'women are too sensible.'
That's probably as good an explanation as we are ever likely to have.
Not much interest in my constituency (South West Wiltshire, 10k Con maj), but the neighbouring one of Chippenham looks set to change hands this year (LD maj 2.5k). The MP Duncan Hames (married to Jo Swinson) became an MP in 2010 so is unlikely to have a huge personal following.
He beat "The Black Farmer" (Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones) last time and is up this time against a Michelle Donelan who I don't know a great deal about. I've had a quick glance at her website and she seems fairly normal. I doubt there'll be much tactical voting for or against her - last time Lab got 3,600 votes UKIP 1,800 - so I'll be surprised if Hames can overcome the national Lib Dem collapse.
Shadsy has Con 8/15, LD 6/4, UKIP 20/1, Lab & Green 100/1
I've met Michelle a couple of times: utterly normal, hard working person (originally, I think from Liverpool area). Sensible person, get the sense she is a bit of a hustler which is no bad think. On the traditional wing of the party: has some sympathies with the kippers although not seem exercised enough about immigration and Europe to actually be one.
Getting decent support from central office & senior cabinet. If I lived in her area, would be very tempted to vote for her myself (and may even donate) - not only just because I've known Duncan for 20 years and he's an utter dweeb.
Thanks for the reply Charles, always nice to hear some first hand experience of our politicians.
Mr. CD13, not to mention women get equal pay for playing best of 3 rather than best of 5 (which the men do) in Grand Slams.
It genuinely puzzles me. After all, women can run full length marathons, a good indicator of fitness levels. Why not play best of 5 matches? Is it because female muscle is more prone to injury [it is, but I thought that related to bearing heavy loads rather than over-exertion in an aerobic sense]?
Tennis is one of the sports where the difference is the biggest imo, right now there is a very uncompetitive women's game with Serena Williams a country mile above the competition vs a strong and deep men's game with some of the greatest players of all time near the top of the rankings.
5 sets of women's tennis would bore people shitless.
"Cameron says this is desperate stuff. Miliband cannot go in front of business, because he has offended them. He cannot go to Scotland, because he is toxic. He has even offended nuns."
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating. He's asking for a kicking and just cannot afford to sustain to many more.
Ben - and any other Labour supporter - if EdM was knocked over by a (pink) bus tomorrow, who would be your preferred replacement? Who could best boost the party's performance and secure a Labour or Labour-led government?
Nicola Sturgeon. She would be brilliant leading the Labour Party.
I would vote for her if she was standing in England.
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
99% of physical sports it would do, there is the occasional sport where it doesn't (Equestrianism), sports where you'd have thought men and women perhaps should be able to compete equally (Darts, snooker, chess ?) but men enjoy a clear advantage and one or two that men simply don't compete in (netball) and the odd one or two where the sport is different for men & women (gymnastics)...
Chess is a real puzzle.
There is no obvious reason why women should not be able to compete equally with men, yet apart from a few famous exceptions (Vera Menchik and the Polgar sisters) they have rarely featured amongst the elite players. Nobody can explain why. Former British Champion, Bill Hartston, who was also a research psychologist suggested that the reason ws that 'women are too sensible.'
That's probably as good an explanation as we are ever likely to have.
I think you could build a case (this is just a thought - I have no evidence to support it!) that men will tend to excel at the elite levels of any sport or hobby because they have a greater tendency toward being obsessive, and to succeed at that level you need to exclude an awful lot of the normal things that normal people do. Basically, women are too sensible and too well rounded!
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
99% of physical sports it would do, there is the occasional sport where it doesn't (Equestrianism), sports where you'd have thought men and women perhaps should be able to compete equally (Darts, snooker, chess ?) but men enjoy a clear advantage and one or two that men simply don't compete in (netball) and the odd one or two where the sport is different for men & women (gymnastics)...
Chess is a real puzzle.
There is no obvious reason why women should not be able to compete equally with men, yet apart from a few famous exceptions (Vera Menchik and the Polgar sisters) they have rarely featured amongst the elite players. Nobody can explain why. Former British Champion, Bill Hartston, who was also a research psychologist suggested that the reason ws that 'women are too sensible.'
That's probably as good an explanation as we are ever likely to have.
I think men have more of a tendancy toward obsessive and autism-like behaviour than women. Trainspotters, computer geeks, stamp collectors - all overwhelmingly men.
It would seem to me that this would be an advantage in chess (or go - which also has few top-flight women players).
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
99% of physical sports it would do, there is the occasional sport where it doesn't (Equestrianism), sports where you'd have thought men and women perhaps should be able to compete equally (Darts, snooker, chess ?) but men enjoy a clear advantage and one or two that men simply don't compete in (netball) and the odd one or two where the sport is different for men & women (gymnastics)...
Yeah I am sure there are some in which women are better.. by all means have a flat tax there too, I am sure the men wont mind
It just boils down to money.. women aren't as good at tennis, football, rugby, boxing, golf etc etc as men so why should they get subsidies? If they are as good, let them compete on a level playing field and if they win, by all means get the same dough as a man who won would have got.. that is equality
I buy all the clothes for my granddaughter who is just 8. Up the age of 7 she requested pink or white or pastel colours. When she became seven, a sudden switch to no pink and preference for purple and other stronger colours. At the same age groups, she went from skirts to trousers and shorts.
Now age 8, she has become quite independent in her thinking and having given her a large tablet, she does her homework with me, which includes foreign languages and science and chess. So not quite sure where nurture replaces nature.
Good afternoon Mr. Financier,
Some time ago when I was ranting about how much I want grammar schools brought back, I am sure you said your daughter went to Beaconsfield High Grammar School, the same as my two youngest girls.
Well I am pleased to say that my granddaughter has just been accepted into the same school.
"The unemployed should be forced to take a job after no more than two years on the dole to end stop them spending a ‘lifetime on benefits’, Labour will say today.
Rachel Reeves is challenging David Cameron to back Labour’s plan for a jobs guarantee to limit Jobseekers Allowance to a year for under 25s and two years for older workers.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, the shadow work and pensions secretary warned the country cannot afford leaving people ‘stuck on benefits for years on end’.
Speaking on 25 March in 2011 at a Fresh Ideas Q&A session, Miliband said: "You’re right that tax should play a part in reducing the deficit... that’s why we’ve said there should be another bankers’ bonus tax this year."
Remarkably, considering EdM is taking the 'policy lite' approach to an entirely new level, it seems that the tax on Bankers Bonuses has been allocated rather thinly.....
Do we know who the people purchasing at the Tory auction were? So far all I've seen are the prizes and the amounts paid. Do they not need to be named for reasons of transparency?
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
99% of physical sports it would do, there is the occasional sport where it doesn't (Equestrianism), sports where you'd have thought men and women perhaps should be able to compete equally (Darts, snooker, chess ?) but men enjoy a clear advantage and one or two that men simply don't compete in (netball) and the odd one or two where the sport is different for men & women (gymnastics)...
Chess is a real puzzle.
There is no obvious reason why women should not be able to compete equally with men, yet apart from a few famous exceptions (Vera Menchik and the Polgar sisters) they have rarely featured amongst the elite players. Nobody can explain why. Former British Champion, Bill Hartston, who was also a research psychologist suggested that the reason ws that 'women are too sensible.'
That's probably as good an explanation as we are ever likely to have.
I think men have more of a tendancy toward obsessive and autism-like behaviour than women. Trainspotters, computer geeks, stamp collectors - all overwhelmingly men.
It would seem to me that this would be an advantage in chess (or go - which also has few top-flight women players).
It soundss to me very much like a rich person's problem.
My nieces are absolutely obsessed with fairies. My nephews aren't. It's probably in part, an inherent preference among girls and boys, and partly cultural conditioning. But, it seems a very minor issue to get bothered about.
I agree, the pinkification stuff is minor. Wasn't it the case that a few generations ago, boys were typically dressed in pink and girls in green(?). This stuff changes over time.
Here's another anecdote
A good friend of mine has a 5 year old girl who started primary school last year. It was kinda interesting to see the huge change - all of a sudden she wanted everything pink, certain things she wouldn't do because they were for boys etc etc.
The thing that worried me most was when she was playing one of her little games pretending her teddies were in hospital needing operations - she was convinced that only a man could be a surgeon, and her role in this little play was to make the tea for the doctors. because apparently girls aren't real doctors. She wanted me or her dad to be the doctor.
I was like, "it's fine to make the tea, but you can also be the doctor if you want." She was like "no i can't"
That hit a nerve in me.
So, I devoted 5 minutes of my life to her little roleplay, on the condition that she would be the surgeon and I would make the tea. Then we'd swap.
When it was my turn to play the *surgeon* on her teddies, I was obviously doing it wrong and got her to say *that's not how you do it* and take over.
For the next hour she was happily occupied in her little play-hospital while we watched the football
I think she *got it* She now wants to be a doctor.
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
99% of physical sports it would do, there is the occasional sport where it doesn't (Equestrianism), sports where you'd have thought men and women perhaps should be able to compete equally (Darts, snooker, chess ?) but men enjoy a clear advantage and one or two that men simply don't compete in (netball) and the odd one or two where the sport is different for men & women (gymnastics)...
Yeah I am sure there are some in which women are better.. by all means have a flat tax there too, I am sure the men wont mind
It just boils down to money.. women aren't as good at tennis, football, rugby, boxing, golf etc etc as men so why should they get subsidies? If they are as good, let them compete on a level playing field and if they win, by all means get the same dough as a man who won would have got.. that is equality
The easiest way to pay women exactly the same as men, is to count the number of sets played by the men's finals winner, divide the purse by that number to get the going rate for a set and multiply that figure by the number of sets played by the winning woman. Equal pay for equal work.
"Cameron says this is desperate stuff. Miliband cannot go in front of business, because he has offended them. He cannot go to Scotland, because he is toxic. He has even offended nuns."
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating. He's asking for a kicking and just cannot afford to sustain to many more.
Ben - and any other Labour supporter - if EdM was knocked over by a (pink) bus tomorrow, who would be your preferred replacement? Who could best boost the party's performance and secure a Labour or Labour-led government?
Nicola Sturgeon. She would be brilliant leading the Labour Party.
I would vote for her if she was standing in England.
And if there is a Lab/SNP coalition, who knows how her role will develop? Next CoE?
She certainly talks like a "traditional" Labour politician - despite its repudiation, Ed still comes across as New--Labour- lite - hence the agonies of SLAB....
Do we know who the people purchasing at the Tory auction were? So far all I've seen are the prizes and the amounts paid. Do they not need to be named for reasons of transparency?
Of course, in the normal Electoral Commission submissions. Do you have a problem with this?
I didn't see PMQs but it does not sound as if I missed much. The BBC seem to think this was a highlight:
" Ed Miliband hits back, saying Mr Cameron is a "dodgy prime minister surrounded by dodgy donors"."
I think my 11 year old would be a bit embarrassed if he had to respond at that level in the playground. He is usually much more cutting.
Ed seems, on reports, to have decided that Labour must attack Cameron personally and try to smear him with those around him. Interesting tactic.
Labour realised that they will never get the public to like Ed, so the best option is to damage Cameron.
I've been looking at the scores during this parliament.
Labour's biggest leads occurred when Dave's personal ratings were at their lowest.
Yes, I think the analysis is right even if the execution leaves something to be desired. Cameron is by far the Tories' biggest asset, more popular than the party itself and clearly and obviously Prime Ministerial material. Labour have to damage that perception (as shown by the polling) if they are to win.
I think Ben M is being a little generous in describing the HSBC fiasco as mood music though. The original leak was in 2007 but it seems that HMRC really got concrete information in 2010. In 2011 they did the deal with Osborne which seems to have allowed a bunch of crooks to avoid prosecution. There were allegedly 7000 UK taxpayers on the list and 1 has been prosecuted.
Surely that is the point: how many people been prosecuted for benefit fraud in that same period? Why is there one law for the rich and one for the rest of us?
There is nothing to indicate of course that it would have been better under a Labour government. The record of the last government in dealing with tax evasion was awful and this government has done a lot to tighten the net in terms of payment, if not criminal liability. I simply do not think that this is an acceptable state of affairs under any government.
Once again incompetent execution seems to have stopped a proper point being made.
"Cameron says this is desperate stuff. Miliband cannot go in front of business, because he has offended them. He cannot go to Scotland, because he is toxic. He has even offended nuns."
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating. He's asking for a kicking and just cannot afford to sustain to many more.
Ben - and any other Labour supporter - if EdM was knocked over by a (pink) bus tomorrow, who would be your preferred replacement? Who could best boost the party's performance and secure a Labour or Labour-led government?
Nicola Sturgeon. She would be brilliant leading the Labour Party.
I would vote for her if she was standing in England.
And if there is a Lab/SNP coalition, who knows how her role will develop? Next CoE?
Hi Barnesian - noted the other day you said you were rejoining the LDs to vote in the leadership election - do you think there are many doing this? Presumably there's a real 'risk' that the hollowed-out membership is much more right-wing than the 2010 membership.
"He's a dodgy Prime Minister surrounded by dodgy donors" Great line from Ed which will be the one picked up by the bulletins"
Helped by the fact it's 100% true and in todays zeitgeist hits the bulls eye. Who does Ed's scripts for him we all want to know
The funniest, most ironic thing about this is the Labour front bench are jealous as feck, and pine for the halcyon days of Lord Levy in his tennis shorts and Mandelsonian soirees on Meditterenean yachts.
I suspect the electorate couldn't give a monkeys. Blair got back in despite Old Bill knocking on doors in Downing St.
I think Ben M is being a little generous in describing the HSBC fiasco as mood music though. The original leak was in 2007 but it seems that HMRC really got concrete information in 2010. In 2011 they did the deal with Osborne which seems to have allowed a bunch of crooks to avoid prosecution. There were allegedly 7000 UK taxpayers on the list and 1 has been prosecuted. .
A deal with Osborne? The Chancellor doesn't get involved in tax collection.
Just to stir the pot even more, can I mention tennis? The equality meme says men and women should earn the same; unfortunately, the sexes don't start off equal so even with equality of opportunity you will not get equality of outcome.
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
It's all pretty much a waste of time... but the loudmouths don't get it
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
99% of physical sports it would do, there is the occasional sport where it doesn't (Equestrianism), sports where you'd have thought men and women perhaps should be able to compete equally (Darts, snooker, chess ?) but men enjoy a clear advantage and one or two that men simply don't compete in (netball) and the odd one or two where the sport is different for men & women (gymnastics)...
Chess is a real puzzle.
There is no obvious reason why women should not be able to compete equally with men, yet apart from a few famous exceptions (Vera Menchik and the Polgar sisters) they have rarely featured amongst the elite players. Nobody can explain why. Former British Champion, Bill Hartston, who was also a research psychologist suggested that the reason ws that 'women are too sensible.'
That's probably as good an explanation as we are ever likely to have.
I think men have more of a tendancy toward obsessive and autism-like behaviour than women. Trainspotters, computer geeks, stamp collectors - all overwhelmingly men.
It would seem to me that this would be an advantage in chess (or go - which also has few top-flight women players).
EDIT: Charles and I were separated at birth.
If I were a Batman villain, I would like to be called The Trainspotter
"Cameron says this is desperate stuff. Miliband cannot go in front of business, because he has offended them. He cannot go to Scotland, because he is toxic. He has even offended nuns."
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating. He's asking for a kicking and just cannot afford to sustain to many more.
Ben - and any other Labour supporter - if EdM was knocked over by a (pink) bus tomorrow, who would be your preferred replacement? Who could best boost the party's performance and secure a Labour or Labour-led government?
Nicola Sturgeon. She would be brilliant leading the Labour Party.
I would vote for her if she was standing in England.
Miss Vance, Red Ed has copied Blair's mannerisms and speaking style, but his voice is worse and his acting ability lesser. That may be why he's seen as New Labour rather than the socialist he is.
But not quite as incompetent as the party being so anti-EU which, if they look like winning, will really put the wind up business.
We are fine. Rich business men are willing to pay 17grand to go shoe shopping with Theresa May.
Business knows Dave will be on the "in" side in the referendum, and in two past plebiscites, Dave has won them both, He smashed Nick Clegg in the AV referendum, and he mullered the Scot Nats in the second one.
He'll destroy Farage in the in/out referendum.
Which of course will make the problem go away... just like Nationalism did in Scotland. Or more likely you will see UKIP continue to pick up votes at the expense of the Conservative Party.
Dave managed to save the Union and destroy Scottish Labour in the process.
You misunderestimate his strategic and tactical brilliance.
After yesterday's YouGov, Crossover of 0.4% now becomes a Lab lead of 0.3% in ELBOW...
Paul Waugh @paulwaugh 3m3 minutes ago Lobby: Did Cam discuss HSBC tax with Green? No10:"He answered that". Lobby: No he didn't. No10: "He was asked the Q + he gave his answer"
I didn't see PMQs but it does not sound as if I missed much. The BBC seem to think this was a highlight:
" Ed Miliband hits back, saying Mr Cameron is a "dodgy prime minister surrounded by dodgy donors"."
I think my 11 year old would be a bit embarrassed if he had to respond at that level in the playground. He is usually much more cutting.
Ed seems, on reports, to have decided that Labour must attack Cameron personally and try to smear him with those around him. Interesting tactic.
Labour realised that they will never get the public to like Ed, so the best option is to damage Cameron.
I've been looking at the scores during this parliament.
Labour's biggest leads occurred when Dave's personal ratings were at their lowest.
Yes, I think the analysis is right even if the execution leaves something to be desired. Cameron is by far the Tories' biggest asset, more popular than the party itself and clearly and obviously Prime Ministerial material. Labour have to damage that perception (as shown by the polling) if they are to win.
I think Ben M is being a little generous in describing the HSBC fiasco as mood music though. The original leak was in 2007 but it seems that HMRC really got concrete information in 2010. In 2011 they did the deal with Osborne which seems to have allowed a bunch of crooks to avoid prosecution. There were allegedly 7000 UK taxpayers on the list and 1 has been prosecuted.
Surely that is the point: how many people been prosecuted for benefit fraud in that same period? Why is there one law for the rich and one for the rest of us?
There is nothing to indicate of course that it would have been better under a Labour government. The record of the last government in dealing with tax evasion was awful and this government has done a lot to tighten the net in terms of payment, if not criminal liability. I simply do not think that this is an acceptable state of affairs under any government.
Once again incompetent execution seems to have stopped a proper point being made.
Desperate times for the Tories if Dave is their biggest asset, he only looks good when compared to Wallace, in reality he is a duffer.
Do we know who the people purchasing at the Tory auction were? So far all I've seen are the prizes and the amounts paid. Do they not need to be named for reasons of transparency?
Of course, in the normal Electoral Commission submissions. Do you have a problem with this?
No, so long as the individuals are named. I'd say the same for any party.
"Cameron says this is desperate stuff. Miliband cannot go in front of business, because he has offended them. He cannot go to Scotland, because he is toxic. He has even offended nuns."
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating. He's asking for a kicking and just cannot afford to sustain to many more.
Ben - and any other Labour supporter - if EdM was knocked over by a (pink) bus tomorrow, who would be your preferred replacement? Who could best boost the party's performance and secure a Labour or Labour-led government?
Nicola Sturgeon. She would be brilliant leading the Labour Party.
I would vote for her if she was standing in England.
And if there is a Lab/SNP coalition, who knows how her role will develop? Next CoE?
Hi Barnesian - noted the other day you said you were rejoining the LDs to vote in the leadership election - do you think there are many doing this? Presumably there's a real 'risk' that the hollowed-out membership is much more right-wing than the 2010 membership.
And who are you intending to vote for?
I'll be voting for Tim Farron.
I agree the membership has been hollowed out and probably is more right wing. On the other hand I am surprised by many of my LibDem friends who have stayed with the party to fight back against the neo-liberals who temporally have taken control. I was also impressed by Antifrank's analysis of the composition of the likely surviving LibDem MPs who will be decidedly more left wing. Post May should be very interesting in all sorts of ways!
Surely that is the point: how many people been prosecuted for benefit fraud in that same period? Why is there one law for the rich and one for the rest of us?
Because the HMRC's mandate is to maximise tax revenues.
So if someone will settle on the basis of full disgorgement of tax due, plus interest, plus penalties they will typically accept that. Tax evasion prosecutions are often difficult due to limited paperwork/proof beyond reasonable doubt, expensive and complex.
In addition, they want to maintain the incentive for people to come forward and admit to previous wrongdoing - if you prosecute a bunch of people that becomes harder.
Comments
The cultural forces are massive, but my daughter is happy with an interest in horses, and she pursues this interest in her own individual way. So it really doesn't matter, except when people pretend that it reflects inherent gender differences such that, say, the low number of female engineers should be considered "natural", as some people claim. And she's into fire-breathing dragons too anyway.
* Horses provide a good example for this sort of thing, because the time was when women were barely allowed to ride on a horse, and horse-riding was seen as an admirable male skill. In all my years of taking my daughter to riding schools we've only ever seen one boy taking horse-riding lessons. That is obviously reflecting a cultural change, rather than a change in the genetic predisposition for girls to like horses and boys not to.
I would like to see the Tories offering the referendum on Europe in 2016.
Good fun to ride mind.
While boys and girls should be encouraged to pursue any occupation that they have an aptitude for, I don't think we should expect to see men and women evenly distributed across all occupations. One wouldn't expect women to volunteer for the armed forces in the same numbers that men do, for example.
"So show me"
http://hurryupharry.org/2013/03/08/accusations-against-rmts-steve-hedley/
Have you been to a local horse show ? ^^;
More men the higher up the competition you get, but at a grass roots level it is overwhemingly female.
* From the picture I've seen it doesn't seem a particularly strong pink but that could be to do with lighting etc. Maybe Labour are moving away from the traditional blood red of the flag and the rose and moving towards a kind of rose wine pink. Very New Labour.
Getting decent support from central office & senior cabinet. If I lived in her area, would be very tempted to vote for her myself (and may even donate) - not only just because I've known Duncan for 20 years and he's an utter dweeb.
I buy all the clothes for my granddaughter who is just 8. Up the age of 7 she requested pink or white or pastel colours. When she became seven, a sudden switch to no pink and preference for purple and other stronger colours. At the same age groups, she went from skirts to trousers and shorts.
Now age 8, she has become quite independent in her thinking and having given her a large tablet, she does her homework with me, which includes foreign languages and science and chess. So not quite sure where nurture replaces nature.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/ed-miliband/10687424/Ed-Miliband-pledges-jobs-guarantee-paid-for-by-bankers-bonus-tax.html
Bankers Bonuses for Child Care
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/dec/30/labour-free-universal-childcare-miliband
Bankers Bonuses for Cutting the Deficit Bankers Bonuses for Community Centres
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/why-we-need-action---by-chuka-umunna-1699209
Bankers Bonuses for New Homes and a Regional Growth Fund and more Youth Jobs
https://archive.labour.org.uk/ed-miliband-and-ed-balls-press-conference
http://www.rexbionics.com/products/
https://carolineleneghan.wordpress.com/2013/03/08/3/
"They've even offended Britain's nuns, no wonder people say 'Labour haven't got a prayer'
So ignore that and ensure equality of outcome in financial terms. But what about the seniors who play just as long but receive less? Is that not ageism?
I can claim to be a pioneer of equality. Years ago, I used to arrange the five-a-side footy games where I worked and would happily let the woman play with the men. When we had enough for two games, the women were inevitably in the B game.
Some complained. I explained that they weren't good enough for the elite male game and neither was I (I was playing prop for a local rugby club at weekends so was at least three stone too heavy for five-a-side). Yet one or two still had delusions of grandeur. They were good (and definitely better than me) but the A game used to include some seriously good players.
LD 8320
Con 7716
UKIP 5349
Lab 2706
Ind 2192
Green 135
Others 431
Will be tight in May
I've just found this article by her on ConHome, http://www.conservativehome.com/platform/2010/05/michelle-donelan-quality-not-quotas-why-we-need-to-encourage-not-coerce-women-into-politics.html , with a video of her coming over pretty well on CH4 news (though it contradicts what I claimed earlier - she was 26 in 2010, not 24, so 31 now).
Best idea would be to have a free for all where both sexes play against each other in fierce competition in all sports.. natural selection would then relegate women to the 5th or 6th tier tier (at best) with the lack of wages that come with it and they would be demanding the system we have now
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/blog/live/2015/feb/11/cameron-and-miliband-at-pmqs-politics-live-blog#block-54db4672e4b084a328bb9fd8
It hurts because it's true.
The HSBC stuff is mood music, not a PMQs topic. A brighter LoTO would leave it humming in the background while asking questions on stuff that actually matters to voters. Especially this close to the election. That Ed can't see that is frustrating. He's asking for a kicking and just cannot afford to sustain to many more.
Cameron should have said "The difference is one of us is PM and one never will be"
It genuinely puzzles me. After all, women can run full length marathons, a good indicator of fitness levels. Why not play best of 5 matches? Is it because female muscle is more prone to injury [it is, but I thought that related to bearing heavy loads rather than over-exertion in an aerobic sense]?
...which will be driven by UNITE
" Ed Miliband hits back, saying Mr Cameron is a "dodgy prime minister surrounded by dodgy donors"."
I think my 11 year old would be a bit embarrassed if he had to respond at that level in the playground. He is usually much more cutting.
Ed seems, on reports, to have decided that Labour must attack Cameron personally and try to smear him with those around him. Interesting tactic.
There is no obvious reason why women should not be able to compete equally with men, yet apart from a few famous exceptions (Vera Menchik and the Polgar sisters) they have rarely featured amongst the elite players. Nobody can explain why. Former British Champion, Bill Hartston, who was also a research psychologist suggested that the reason ws that 'women are too sensible.'
That's probably as good an explanation as we are ever likely to have.
I've been looking at the scores during this parliament.
Labour's biggest leads occurred when Dave's personal ratings were at their lowest.
LOL is one of your hobbies poking wasps' nests?
5 sets of women's tennis would bore people shitless.
If they had best of five matches they'd need to pay spectators to stay on
I would vote for her if she was standing in England.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-31377373
And if there is a Lab/SNP coalition, who knows how her role will develop? Next CoE?
It would seem to me that this would be an advantage in chess (or go - which also has few top-flight women players).
EDIT: Charles and I were separated at birth.
It just boils down to money.. women aren't as good at tennis, football, rugby, boxing, golf etc etc as men so why should they get subsidies? If they are as good, let them compete on a level playing field and if they win, by all means get the same dough as a man who won would have got.. that is equality
Some time ago when I was ranting about how much I want grammar schools brought back, I am sure you said your daughter went to Beaconsfield High Grammar School, the same as my two youngest girls.
Well I am pleased to say that my granddaughter has just been accepted into the same school.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/why-we-need-action---by-chuka-umunna-1699209
Bankers Bonuses for New Homes and a Regional Growth Fund and more Youth Jobs
https://archive.labour.org.uk/ed-miliband-and-ed-balls-press-conference
Remarkably, considering EdM is taking the 'policy lite' approach to an entirely new level, it seems that the tax on Bankers Bonuses has been allocated rather thinly.....
17-2
Federer - Djokovic head to head
19-17.
Says it all.
"He's a dodgy Prime Minister surrounded by dodgy donors" Great line from Ed which will be the one picked up by the bulletins"
Helped by the fact it's 100% true and in todays zeitgeist hits the bulls eye. Who does Ed's scripts for him we all want to know
You need a couple of weeks rehab in ConHome. That'll do the trick.
Guido Fawkes @GuidoFawkes 1m1 minute ago
Labour Having Difficulty Parking Pink Van: http://order-order.com/2015/02/11/labour-having-difficulty-parking-pink-van/ … (Pic via @jessbrammar)
Left hand down a bit.
What did Cameron say?
Mr. Anorak, quite agree. Men are likelier to be autistic, have learning disabilities, or be geniuses.
Cabinet was never more insignificant than in Mrs T's day, when she towered over pygmies like him and Heseltine.
Still, the conspirators got her in the end.
EDIT: Lucky you! (Only joking, Charles.)
Here's another anecdote
A good friend of mine has a 5 year old girl who started primary school last year. It was kinda interesting to see the huge change - all of a sudden she wanted everything pink, certain things she wouldn't do because they were for boys etc etc.
The thing that worried me most was when she was playing one of her little games pretending her teddies were in hospital needing operations - she was convinced that only a man could be a surgeon, and her role in this little play was to make the tea for the doctors. because apparently girls aren't real doctors. She wanted me or her dad to be the doctor.
I was like, "it's fine to make the tea, but you can also be the doctor if you want." She was like "no i can't"
That hit a nerve in me.
So, I devoted 5 minutes of my life to her little roleplay, on the condition that she would be the surgeon and I would make the tea. Then we'd swap.
When it was my turn to play the *surgeon* on her teddies, I was obviously doing it wrong and got her to say *that's not how you do it* and take over.
For the next hour she was happily occupied in her little play-hospital while we watched the football
I think she *got it* She now wants to be a doctor.
I think Ben M is being a little generous in describing the HSBC fiasco as mood music though. The original leak was in 2007 but it seems that HMRC really got concrete information in 2010. In 2011 they did the deal with Osborne which seems to have allowed a bunch of crooks to avoid prosecution. There were allegedly 7000 UK taxpayers on the list and 1 has been prosecuted.
Surely that is the point: how many people been prosecuted for benefit fraud in that same period? Why is there one law for the rich and one for the rest of us?
There is nothing to indicate of course that it would have been better under a Labour government. The record of the last government in dealing with tax evasion was awful and this government has done a lot to tighten the net in terms of payment, if not criminal liability. I simply do not think that this is an acceptable state of affairs under any government.
Once again incompetent execution seems to have stopped a proper point being made.
And who are you intending to vote for?
I suspect the electorate couldn't give a monkeys. Blair got back in despite Old Bill knocking on doors in Downing St.
"I think my 11 year old would be a bit embarrassed if he had to respond at that level in the playground. He is usually much more cutting."
And I bet his chums haven't employed nearly as many crooks as the Prime Minister
Lobby: Did Cam discuss HSBC tax with Green?
No10:"He answered that".
Lobby: No he didn't.
No10: "He was asked the Q + he gave his answer"
I agree the membership has been hollowed out and probably is more right wing. On the other hand I am surprised by many of my LibDem friends who have stayed with the party to fight back against the neo-liberals who temporally have taken control. I was also impressed by Antifrank's analysis of the composition of the likely surviving LibDem MPs who will be decidedly more left wing. Post May should be very interesting in all sorts of ways!
So if someone will settle on the basis of full disgorgement of tax due, plus interest, plus penalties they will typically accept that. Tax evasion prosecutions are often difficult due to limited paperwork/proof beyond reasonable doubt, expensive and complex.
In addition, they want to maintain the incentive for people to come forward and admit to previous wrongdoing - if you prosecute a bunch of people that becomes harder.
https://twitter.com/50shedsofgrey
Fifty Shades of Gran!
https://twitter.com/50ShadesGran
'Labour Having Difficulty Parking Pink Van: http://order-order.com/2015/02/11/labour-having-difficulty-parking-pink-van/ … (Pic via @jessbrammar) '
Is Harman driving it?