That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
A cynical response to the dependency ratio problem, perhaps?
If you provide the tax breaks (French style), compulsory/matching paternity leave, I'm sure more would oblige.
"AIUI rugby is one of the few sports that has shown some backbone and said No, trans athletes can’t compete in women’s rugby
For obvious reasons. There would be deaths quite quickly"
Not true anymore. The Australians are apparently about to allow a transwoman player join a womens rugby competition. Let's hope it does not end as you fear.
Lia Thomas and Emily Bridges are, bluntly, cheats. The advantages of male puberty do not disappear even if you transition surgically. And they certainly do not disappear if you retain your male body as both of these do. Nor does reducing testosterone help. This does nothing to counter the other advantages of male puberty - for instance: a male's height, limb length, rib cage and lung volume, fast twitch muscle mass, shoulder width, centre of gravity, ligament strength, hip-knee angle etc.
Still, if you create loopholes expect people to game them. Only the soft-headed and naive would expect anything different.
People pretended to have mental disabilities in order to win medals in a sport, never mind all the other cheating that has gone on with so many sports, people will try anything.
The sheet facts of physicality in some sports means it has become a real lynchpin to this whole issue, one where people cannot simply pretend it makes no difference, and so something a lot of people who do not feel strongly other than not wanting to be a dick about things, feel has to require the drawing of lines.
Do you think people transition purely so they can win a sporting medal?
I think the numbers who would do that for that sole reason are vanishingly small, practically inconsequential, but how interesting that was your sole takeaway from the uncontroversial point that people cheat in any manner of shocking ways, and that broader point that physicality in many sports does make a difference, which makes the motivation irrelevant if it would mean an unfair contest.
I don't think that I expressed a view on that. I just don't think that people transition as a form of cheating.
Sexually segregated sport and changing facilities are one of several legitimate exclusions under the Equality act. I think that should remain the case, whether or not we have self ID.
No, but the assumption you took away from my post was pretty revealing.
Incidentally, I have just been to a DELIGHTFUL SOCIAL FUNCTION with excellent free food and booze and lovely friendly people and absolutely no hint of Covid. No masks, no nothing, no faff, not even a face covering in the Uber
It was a Knappers Gazette industry gig in King's Cross (which was absolutely buzzing, and looking stunningly beautiful, despite horrible sleety weather)
It was - is - the closest I have felt to normal since January 2020
It would be SOOOOOOO nice if Vlad Putin didn't totally fuck this up. We are nearly there
We need to move on. Look at the excess deaths, they are actually DOWN
We have to cope with a new, nasty, endemic, potentially dangerous respiratory disease with unpredictable sequelae and no cure. That's it. Otherwise we end all human social life, and, basically, life
Cf China
Covid is now less dangerous than influenza. At some point we have to live our lives rather than obsessing over daily numbers in a way we never have over the flu.
Thats as mebbe, but when prevalence rates are as high as 1 in 11 adults in a week, even something less dangerous than influenza is quite some headache for a health care system.
Day 8 of mild covid says covid is worse than flu. An insidious bug.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery. Yet influenza is now more serious than flu, statistically, empirically, in terms of risk.
The original justification for restrictions was "protect the NHS". On that basis, it's still problematic.
OTOH, not convinced our extended restrictions in Scotland will make any difference whatsoever. You either have comprehensive measures, or none at all.
Quite frankly I think omicron BA2 is so infectious it would be hard to achieve anything short of genuine lock down (I.e the enforced by police, don5 leave your home unless you have permission kind). I don’t really understand why the Scottish government is still pissing about with light touch frustrations restrictions on people’s lives. It can’t be achieving anything.
I didn’t actually realise they were! Assumed all restrictions had been abolished up there a while ago… what’s left?
"AIUI rugby is one of the few sports that has shown some backbone and said No, trans athletes can’t compete in women’s rugby
For obvious reasons. There would be deaths quite quickly"
Not true anymore. The Australians are apparently about to allow a transwoman player join a womens rugby competition. Let's hope it does not end as you fear.
Lia Thomas and Emily Bridges are, bluntly, cheats. The advantages of male puberty do not disappear even if you transition surgically. And they certainly do not disappear if you retain your male body as both of these do. Nor does reducing testosterone help. This does nothing to counter the other advantages of male puberty - for instance: a male's height, limb length, rib cage and lung volume, fast twitch muscle mass, shoulder width, centre of gravity, ligament strength, hip-knee angle etc.
Still, if you create loopholes expect people to game them. Only the soft-headed and naive would expect anything different.
People pretended to have mental disabilities in order to win medals in a sport, never mind all the other cheating that has gone on with so many sports, people will try anything.
The sheet facts of physicality in some sports means it has become a real lynchpin to this whole issue, one where people cannot simply pretend it makes no difference, and so something a lot of people who do not feel strongly other than not wanting to be a dick about things, feel has to require the drawing of lines.
Do you think people transition purely so they can win a sporting medal?
I think the numbers who would do that for that sole reason are vanishingly small, practically inconsequential, but how interesting that was your sole takeaway from the uncontroversial point that people cheat in any manner of shocking ways, and that broader point that physicality in many sports does make a difference, which makes the motivation irrelevant if it would mean an unfair contest.
I don't think that I expressed a view on that. I just don't think that people transition as a form of cheating.
Sexually segregated sport and changing facilities are one of several legitimate exclusions under the Equality act. I think that should remain the case, whether or not we have self ID.
No, but the assumption you took away from my post was pretty revealing.
While we obviously love having you here, can you let me know why your IP address is listed with Spamhaus ZEN and with UCEPROTECTL2 as being a compromised open proxy?
Thanks, rcs1000
"theelephant"
Hmmm . . . is somebody trying to smear the good name of the Republican Party?
Sadly, not what you'd call heavy lifting these days. Even for Putin's slightly-refurbished lame-o Z-bots.
My son has just read Animal Farm, and he asked me: did Napoleon become leader because he was corrupt and ruthless or did he become that way because he became leader?
Any thoughts?
Not read it for thirty years, but that’s a great question. I’m not sure there is enough in the text to say, but given that he was modelled on Stalin (I think) I’d say the corruption was there all along. But great question.
He's moved onto 1984. I've warned him that it's an extremely depressing book.
No, it's quite a cheerful ending. Winston loves Big Brother.
Ben Elton, who has written several quite good novels, wrote one which was basically an updated 1984 but with imposition of a society with no personal boundaries on top of ignorance and oppression, but with a more hopeful (if not actually happy) ending. It wasn't one of his best admittedly.
David Starkey was on the box arguing the other day that the geopolitical divide is increasingly playing out as per 1984.
Incidentally, I have just been to a DELIGHTFUL SOCIAL FUNCTION with excellent free food and booze and lovely friendly people and absolutely no hint of Covid. No masks, no nothing, no faff, not even a face covering in the Uber
It was a Knappers Gazette industry gig in King's Cross (which was absolutely buzzing, and looking stunningly beautiful, despite horrible sleety weather)
It was - is - the closest I have felt to normal since January 2020
It would be SOOOOOOO nice if Vlad Putin didn't totally fuck this up. We are nearly there
We need to move on. Look at the excess deaths, they are actually DOWN
We have to cope with a new, nasty, endemic, potentially dangerous respiratory disease with unpredictable sequelae and no cure. That's it. Otherwise we end all human social life, and, basically, life
Cf China
Covid is now less dangerous than influenza. At some point we have to live our lives rather than obsessing over daily numbers in a way we never have over the flu.
Thats as mebbe, but when prevalence rates are as high as 1 in 11 adults in a week, even something less dangerous than influenza is quite some headache for a health care system.
Day 8 of mild covid says covid is worse than flu. An insidious bug.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery. Yet influenza is now more serious than flu, statistically, empirically, in terms of risk.
The original justification for restrictions was "protect the NHS". On that basis, it's still problematic.
OTOH, not convinced our extended restrictions in Scotland will make any difference whatsoever. You either have comprehensive measures, or none at all.
Quite frankly I think omicron BA2 is so infectious it would be hard to achieve anything short of genuine lock down (I.e the enforced by police, don5 leave your home unless you have permission kind). I don’t really understand why the Scottish government is still pissing about with light touch frustrations restrictions on people’s lives. It can’t be achieving anything.
I didn’t actually realise they were! Assumed all restrictions had been abolished up there a while ago… what’s left?
Remarkably for the first time the SNP is not standing a candidate in every mainland ward in an STV election. They are missing candidates in the Borders including a ward where Labour bizarrely has 2.
Even more remarkably, they are not standing in Caol and Mallaig ward where LD, Green and Tory candidates are returned unopposed.
Caol and Mallaig is strange. It's in Ian Blackford and Kate Forbes's seats (at Westminster, Holyrood respectively). Should be an SNP banker. Wonder if they somehow screwed up the nomination somehow - surely they could have found someone,
Could be lacking candidates to stand in some areas. They have also dropped from 13 to 9 in Moray which is a poor show particularly in Elgin at the same time the Tories have increased from 8 to 11.
Depends. May just be playing safe. Trouble with running two candidates is that the less valuable one could displace the favoured candidate if only one gets in. The candidate who appears higher up the ballot paper is in a much stronger position. I think SNP lost some sitting councillors in the past by running two candidates.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Fine in theory but we have enough problems at the moment getting houses for them to buy (especially in the South), funding them all with childcare costs and tuition fees etc.
2 is more than enough for most and even 1 is better than none if you can have them
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
A cynical response to the dependency ratio problem, perhaps?
If you provide the tax breaks (French style), compulsory/matching paternity leave, I'm sure more would oblige.
Yes, we need to do whatever the French (or whoever) are doing. Until AI is ready to supplant humanity the only route to longterm human happiness is children
I have quite a few childless friends - it is a common choice in my generation, male and female - but nearly all of them regret that. This is not good
I don't know any adults with kids who actually regret the whole kiboodle
We are designed to sprog
We were sold an illusion of permanent youth (and I readily bought into it, and how) but it is a cruel illusion
Wherever we land on the trans / self-ID issue, sport clearly has to be exempt and based on biological sex, not gender, where-ever physicality is a defining factor. There are a few sports which are divided by sex for no immediately obvious reason (is being male an advantage in rifle shooting? Dunno). But most sports are divided by sex for a very good reason.
While we obviously love having you here, can you let me know why your IP address is listed with Spamhaus ZEN and with UCEPROTECTL2 as being a compromised open proxy?
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Fine in theory but we have enough problems at the moment getting houses for them to buy (especially in the South), funding them all etc.
2 is more than enough for most and even 1 is better than none if you can have them
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Fine in theory but we have enough problems at the moment getting houses for them to buy (especially in the South), funding them all etc.
2 is more than enough for most and even 1 is better than none if you can have them
Well then we will die out
No we wouldn't. 2.1 is all that is needed for replacement level and I also said even 1 is better than none
Wherever we land on the trans / self-ID issue, sport clearly has to be exempt and based on biological sex, not gender, where-ever physicality is a defining factor. There are a few sports which are divided by sex for no immediately obvious reason (is being male an advantage in rifle shooting? Dunno). But most sports are divided by sex for a very good reason.
I agree, hence it being a legitimate exclusion under the Equality act, whether someone has fully transitioned under current rules, or we go with self ID.
The implication that people transition to cheat at sport is a very odd one.
Wherever we land on the trans / self-ID issue, sport clearly has to be exempt and based on biological sex, not gender, where-ever physicality is a defining factor. There are a few sports which are divided by sex for no immediately obvious reason (is being male an advantage in rifle shooting? Dunno). But most sports are divided by sex for a very good reason.
I agree, hence it being a legitimate exclusion under the Equality act, whether someone has fully transitioned under current rules, or we go with self ID.
The implication that people transition to cheat at sport is a very odd one.
Is it that odd? People cheat in all kinds of ways. The cycling example seems on first look to be exactly someone transitioning to win at sport.
Poltico.com - Collins will support confirming Jackson, delivering Biden bipartisan SCOTUS vote The Maine senator is the first Republican to back Jackson’s confirmation. She also could be the only one, with Sen. Thom Tillis announcing his opposition Wednesday.
While we obviously love having you here, can you let me know why your IP address is listed with Spamhaus ZEN and with UCEPROTECTL2 as being a compromised open proxy?
Thanks, rcs1000
"theelephant"
Hmmm . . . is somebody trying to smear the good name of the Republican Party?
Sadly, not what you'd call heavy lifting these days. Even for Putin's slightly-refurbished lame-o Z-bots.
Not sure why Putin wants his bots to go after the GOP, seeing as half of them seem to want him to win and take over the rest of Europe in order to prove that Trump was right all along to cozy up to Vlad as he is a genius.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
"AIUI rugby is one of the few sports that has shown some backbone and said No, trans athletes can’t compete in women’s rugby
For obvious reasons. There would be deaths quite quickly"
Not true anymore. The Australians are apparently about to allow a transwoman player join a womens rugby competition. Let's hope it does not end as you fear.
Lia Thomas and Emily Bridges are, bluntly, cheats. The advantages of male puberty do not disappear even if you transition surgically. And they certainly do not disappear if you retain your male body as both of these do. Nor does reducing testosterone help. This does nothing to counter the other advantages of male puberty - for instance: a male's height, limb length, rib cage and lung volume, fast twitch muscle mass, shoulder width, centre of gravity, ligament strength, hip-knee angle etc.
Still, if you create loopholes expect people to game them. Only the soft-headed and naive would expect anything different.
People pretended to have mental disabilities in order to win medals in a sport, never mind all the other cheating that has gone on with so many sports, people will try anything.
The sheet facts of physicality in some sports means it has become a real lynchpin to this whole issue, one where people cannot simply pretend it makes no difference, and so something a lot of people who do not feel strongly other than not wanting to be a dick about things, feel has to require the drawing of lines.
Do you think people transition purely so they can win a sporting medal?
The only transition Lia has done is to change their first name. If that is all you need to do to make you a winner when before you were nowhere, to give you a chance to be in the Olympics when before you had no chance, then yes I think some sportsmen would do so.
Lots of sports people have cheated to win. We've had people cheating to get onto Paralympics teams etc. It is naive to think that some of them wouldn't use this to give them an advantage.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
just found out that our 5mo Labrador puppy has scoffed 3 hot cross buns earlier this evening. The internet is full of alarmist articles that she will die if she eats as little as 1 raisin, or will be fine. Any vets on?
just found out that our 5mo Labrador puppy has scoffed 3 hot cross buns earlier this evening. The internet is full of alarmist articles that she will die if she eats as little as 1 raisin, or will be fine. Any vets on?
While we obviously love having you here, can you let me know why your IP address is listed with Spamhaus ZEN and with UCEPROTECTL2 as being a compromised open proxy?
Thanks, rcs1000
"theelephant"
Hmmm . . . is somebody trying to smear the good name of the Republican Party?
Sadly, not what you'd call heavy lifting these days. Even for Putin's slightly-refurbished lame-o Z-bots.
Not sure why Putin wants his bots to go after the GOP, seeing as half of them seem to want him to win and take over the rest of Europe in order to prove that Trump was right all along to cozy up to Vlad as he is a genius.
True. Another sign that Putin's strategic genius may be flawed?
My own theory is that steroid abuse is really kicking in.
In case you need a good laugh (Leon taking a wee break right now)
Politico.com - McCarthy: Cawthorn's 'lost my trust' following orgy and cocaine comments The GOP leader is not yet revoking the North Carolina Republican's committee spots, but he signaled he's lost patience with the freshman lawmaker.
"AIUI rugby is one of the few sports that has shown some backbone and said No, trans athletes can’t compete in women’s rugby
For obvious reasons. There would be deaths quite quickly"
Not true anymore. The Australians are apparently about to allow a transwoman player join a womens rugby competition. Let's hope it does not end as you fear.
Lia Thomas and Emily Bridges are, bluntly, cheats. The advantages of male puberty do not disappear even if you transition surgically. And they certainly do not disappear if you retain your male body as both of these do. Nor does reducing testosterone help. This does nothing to counter the other advantages of male puberty - for instance: a male's height, limb length, rib cage and lung volume, fast twitch muscle mass, shoulder width, centre of gravity, ligament strength, hip-knee angle etc.
Still, if you create loopholes expect people to game them. Only the soft-headed and naive would expect anything different.
People pretended to have mental disabilities in order to win medals in a sport, never mind all the other cheating that has gone on with so many sports, people will try anything.
The sheet facts of physicality in some sports means it has become a real lynchpin to this whole issue, one where people cannot simply pretend it makes no difference, and so something a lot of people who do not feel strongly other than not wanting to be a dick about things, feel has to require the drawing of lines.
Do you think people transition purely so they can win a sporting medal?
The only transition Lia has done is to change their first name. If that is all you need to do to make you a winner when before you were nowhere, to give you a chance to be in the Olympics when before you had no chance, then yes I think some sportsmen would do so.
Lots of sports people have cheated to win. We've had people cheating to get onto Paralympics teams etc. It is naive to think that some of them wouldn't use this to give them an advantage.
Do you mean Lia Thomas?
She has had hormone treatment for several years. It is rather more than a name change.
I don't think she should compete as a woman, but to suggest that her transition was to cheat (implying deliberate breaking of the rules) is incorrect.
As an aside from the covid debate, I reckon I am right in thinking most of the following jobs in a school did not exist when I was school age:
Apart from IT manager (showing my age!) And inclusion officer, all those existed at my school in the Seventies, albeit slightly different titles.
I think we had maybe 1/2 of that list of roles.
Edit: Although maybe some of the roles were done by LEA and not school, whereas now everything is academy this and academy chain that. So there was a truant officer (e.g. attendance) - but they worked for LEA and oversaw several schools across the city.
As an aside from the covid debate, I reckon I am right in thinking most of the following jobs in a school did not exist when I was school age:
At my boys' grammar school the only non-teaching member of staff was the headmaster's secretary, aka the "school sec". If a visitor showed up looking bewildered they would be redirected to the school sec's office, which often left them looking even more confused.
"AIUI rugby is one of the few sports that has shown some backbone and said No, trans athletes can’t compete in women’s rugby
For obvious reasons. There would be deaths quite quickly"
Not true anymore. The Australians are apparently about to allow a transwoman player join a womens rugby competition. Let's hope it does not end as you fear.
Lia Thomas and Emily Bridges are, bluntly, cheats. The advantages of male puberty do not disappear even if you transition surgically. And they certainly do not disappear if you retain your male body as both of these do. Nor does reducing testosterone help. This does nothing to counter the other advantages of male puberty - for instance: a male's height, limb length, rib cage and lung volume, fast twitch muscle mass, shoulder width, centre of gravity, ligament strength, hip-knee angle etc.
Still, if you create loopholes expect people to game them. Only the soft-headed and naive would expect anything different.
People pretended to have mental disabilities in order to win medals in a sport, never mind all the other cheating that has gone on with so many sports, people will try anything.
The sheet facts of physicality in some sports means it has become a real lynchpin to this whole issue, one where people cannot simply pretend it makes no difference, and so something a lot of people who do not feel strongly other than not wanting to be a dick about things, feel has to require the drawing of lines.
Do you think people transition purely so they can win a sporting medal?
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
The majority of women in the UK aged 30 haven't had children for the first time.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
The problem is that more people start families in their 30s or even 40s now, not their 20s.
However that is not merely a matter of house prices (in the North prices are still relatively cheap), even if Levittowns help with that, it is also a matter of far more people going to university as well. They then join the workplace later and have student debts to pay off too and more women now are highly educated and want careers and also delay having children as a result.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
As a pedant I feel compelled to point out that STARTING a family is easily done in a one bed flat, and indeed quite a popular activity.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
As a pedant I feel compelled to point out that STARTING a family is easily done in a one bed flat, and indeed quite a popular activity.
For first baby maybe but if you have more than 1 you certainly need a 2 bed property and ideally a 3 or 4 bed property
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
With 8% inflation and interest rates on the up, I have a feeling house prices might be about to become a tad more affordable.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
As a pedant I feel compelled to point out that STARTING a family is easily done in a one bed flat, and indeed quite a popular activity.
For first baby maybe but if you have more than 1 you certainly need a 2 bed property and ideally a 3 or 4 bed property
I was more thinking of the activity involved in the “starting”.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
With 8% inflation and interest rates on the up, I have a feeling house prices might be about to become a tad more affordable.
Yes but those factors also reduce buyers disposable income and ability to borrow
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
The problem is that most people start families in their 30s or even 40s now, not their 20s.
However that is not merely a matter of house prices (in the North prices are still relatively cheap), even in Levittowns help with that, it is also a matter of far more people going to university as well. They then join the workplace later and have student debts to pay off too and more women now are highly educated and want careers and also delay having children as a result
I agree with you there.
House prices are definitely cheaper in some places, though salaries are also lower.
The real problem is as a society we don't value having kids and raising families any more in our 20s and 30s, men and women. We applaud focusing on our careers, we applaud sleeping around, we applaud "focusing on ourselves". We kid ourselves that there is always time to start a family, when really that time is very limited by biology.
On an individual level it's a tragedy (ask anyone who's too old to have kids and now regrets it), but on a societal level it's a catastrophe, as societies with an aging demographic are discovering.
The Flynn effect is the substantial and long-sustained increase in both fluid and crystallized intelligence test scores that were measured in many parts of the world over the 20th century.[1] When intelligence quotient (IQ) tests are initially standardized using a sample of test-takers, by convention the average of the test results is set to 100 and their standard deviation is set to 15 or 16 IQ points. When IQ tests are revised, they are again standardized using a new sample of test-takers, usually born more recently than the first. Again, the average result is set to 100. However, when the new test subjects take the older tests, in almost every case their average scores are significantly above 100. . . . Some research suggests that there may be an ongoing reversed Flynn effect (i.e., a decline in IQ scores) in Norway, Denmark, Australia, Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, and German-speaking countries,[4] a development which appears to have started in the 1990s.[5][6][7][8] In certain cases, this apparent reversal may be due to cultural changes which render parts of intelligence tests obsolete.[9] Meta-analyses indicate that, overall, the Flynn effect continues, either at the same rate[10] or at a slower rate in developed countries.[11][12]
In the US, the Freakonomics guys have argued that abortion has contributed to the decline in crime.
(For the record: I have no position on any of these claims, not having spent weeks reading the original papers.)
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
Most young people these days cannot even afford one bedroom for themselves, let alone an entire house for kids.
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
You also want green spaces and parks for all these children to breathe in, play in and enjoy their childhood in. A concrete jungle across half the country is not the answer either.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
I would turn vast swathes of what is now countryside into Levittowns, simple prefab homes with a bit of space and gardens. It is better than keeping the vast majority in rabbit hutches in cities where families can't grow.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
The problem is that most people start families in their 30s or even 40s now, not their 20s.
However that is not merely a matter of house prices (in the North prices are still relatively cheap), even in Levittowns help with that, it is also a matter of far more people going to university as well. They then join the workplace later and have student debts to pay off too and more women now are highly educated and want careers and also delay having children as a result
I agree with you there.
House prices are definitely cheaper in some places, though salaries are also lower.
The real problem is as a society we don't value having kids and raising families any more in our 20s and 30s, men and women. We applaud focusing on our careers, we applaud sleeping around, we applaud "focusing on ourselves". We kid ourselves that there is always time to start a family, when really that time is very limited by biology.
On an individual level it's a tragedy (ask anyone who's too old to have kids and now regrets it), but on a societal level it's a catastrophe, as societies with an aging demographic are discovering.
I agree, we treat our twenties and even sometimes much of our 30s now as a time for fun, especially if educated graduates, rather than a time for family.
As for house prices, in Stoke they are only 4 times average income, in Sunderland only 5 times local average income.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
I agree.
But we also, as a culture, need to value the idea of having a family rather more in comparison to having a career, freedom, all the things we've been taught to value over the last forty years.
I'm lucky enough to have three. But I wish I'd had them sooner.
It's very difficult to explain to a younger self why you should have kids. Without kids I could be retired by 50; I could lie in until 8am every day; I could go out whenever I wanted... the number of days I get to myself each year can be counted on the fingers of one hand; even a night out at the pub has to be carefully planned in advance. I always knew I wanted kids, but couldn't really say why. The best reason I could think of was that I didn't really want to be doing the same things at 50 that I had been doing at 25. But that is a vague and half-formed answer. Basically what I get out of it is existential satisfaction. I never really doubt my existence. Even if all I have achieved in a day is kept three small people alive, that's still a day well spent. I rather liked this explanation: https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/happiness-spigot
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
The majority of women in the UK aged 30 haven't had children for the first time.
And we are storing up disaster: emotional as much as demographic
Isn't some at least of that a matter of youngsters not bothering to keep iup with the news/have an opinion?
Maybe, but there's no excuse for "accidentally" supporting Russia because you haven't been taking an interest in the news.
Nah, for this century America has been led by Bush 43 and Trump, you can see why people aren't enamoured by America.
For some there's no difference between the invasion of Ukraine and the liberation of Iraq in 2003.
I wonder if the yoof also think more globally than we old farts. Despite the fact I have lived most my life outside Britain (46/17 years out/in), I tend to think about Ukraine being a European war and hence 'our' problem, whereas Syria, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Burma, Nagorny-Karabakh, etc... are really other peoples' problems (until we made them ours, where we did). So they are fundamentally different in my mind.
But for many of the younger generation, it appears that what is front and centre for them is the contrast in how the West has reacted to 'like' situations, and hence for them the hypocrisy in our actions.
I doubt they care any more about other places.
I suspect its more some embittered resentment of the western world which manifests itself in supporting anything opposed to it.
Also, young people are just a lot more stupid than us oldsters. IQs are declining across the West
And they really obviously ARE stupider. You can see it all around you. Less questioning. Sheeplike. Idiotic. Look at @CorrectHorseBattery and @Gallowgate on here. Fucking morons
It's actually a bit more complicated than that.
Today's 21 years olds are not scoring as well as those born in 1974 (for example) and testing in 1995.
However, we all suffer from cognitive decline as we get older, particularly if we're gin-riddled. This mean that a 21 year old today will score more highly on an IQ test (on average) than a 54 year old.
I wonder why you chose 1974? My limited understanding of the latest research is that the peak was sometime in the 70s. I have no idea whether this is having a noticeable affect on the workplace.
I have heard from several people - not given to trolling like me - that their younger employees are noticeably dimmer, and more annoying and simultaneously more sensitive and entitled. But definitely dimmer
I'm not entirely making this up to irritate (tho that too)
On the evidence here, it looks like Absolute Peak Human IQ was achieved by people born in the mid 1960s, and then measured in the mid 1970s, which makes total sense
Interesting that the decline in IQ coincides with the start of the almost dysgenic breeding programme we now have in the west whereby low iq women and men have been allowed by the benefits system to breed to their hearts content. At the same time many intelligent women prioritise their career and may have put off having a family to the last minute often having one or zero children. We are now seeing the effects of this which will only get worse and will cause much of the economy to start operating at 3rd world levels
Sterilize the poor!
My point made....its impossible to have a sensible conversation about things such as this. Might as well put your feet up and enjoy the decline
Isn't some at least of that a matter of youngsters not bothering to keep iup with the news/have an opinion?
Maybe, but there's no excuse for "accidentally" supporting Russia because you haven't been taking an interest in the news.
Nah, for this century America has been led by Bush 43 and Trump, you can see why people aren't enamoured by America.
For some there's no difference between the invasion of Ukraine and the liberation of Iraq in 2003.
I wonder if the yoof also think more globally than we old farts. Despite the fact I have lived most my life outside Britain (46/17 years out/in), I tend to think about Ukraine being a European war and hence 'our' problem, whereas Syria, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Burma, Nagorny-Karabakh, etc... are really other peoples' problems (until we made them ours, where we did). So they are fundamentally different in my mind.
But for many of the younger generation, it appears that what is front and centre for them is the contrast in how the West has reacted to 'like' situations, and hence for them the hypocrisy in our actions.
I doubt they care any more about other places.
I suspect its more some embittered resentment of the western world which manifests itself in supporting anything opposed to it.
Also, young people are just a lot more stupid than us oldsters. IQs are declining across the West
And they really obviously ARE stupider. You can see it all around you. Less questioning. Sheeplike. Idiotic. Look at @CorrectHorseBattery and @Gallowgate on here. Fucking morons
It's actually a bit more complicated than that.
Today's 21 years olds are not scoring as well as those born in 1974 (for example) and testing in 1995.
However, we all suffer from cognitive decline as we get older, particularly if we're gin-riddled. This mean that a 21 year old today will score more highly on an IQ test (on average) than a 54 year old.
I wonder why you chose 1974? My limited understanding of the latest research is that the peak was sometime in the 70s. I have no idea whether this is having a noticeable affect on the workplace.
I have heard from several people - not given to trolling like me - that their younger employees are noticeably dimmer, and more annoying and simultaneously more sensitive and entitled. But definitely dimmer
I'm not entirely making this up to irritate (tho that too)
On the evidence here, it looks like Absolute Peak Human IQ was achieved by people born in the mid 1960s, and then measured in the mid 1970s, which makes total sense
Interesting that the decline in IQ coincides with the start of the almost dysgenic breeding programme we now have in the west whereby low iq women and men have been allowed by the benefits system to breed to their hearts content. At the same time many intelligent women prioritise their career and may have put off having a family to the last minute often having one or zero children. We are now seeing the effects of this which will only get worse and will cause much of the economy to start operating at 3rd world levels
Sterilize the poor!
My point made....its impossible to have a sensible conversation about things such as this. Might as well put your feet up and enjoy the decline
My understanding - and I don't have the stats to hand - is that in general the rich have more kids than the poor, and that the balance of rich kids/poor kids is currently more skewed towards rich kids than at any time in British history. I may be wrong and am too cold to look up the details.
All, on the subject of babies you could do worse, if you haven't already, than re-read the thread header that @tlg86 did a while back, linked to above.
Has there been any mention on here of the Commons vote on abortion pills at home?
Government repeatedly said (including Boris at PMQs) that it would reinstate ban on taking both pills at home (ban had been lifted due to Covid).
Anyway, Lords amendment to Health Bill lifted ban permanently. So it went to Commons and Govt had to allow free vote (as it is accepted that abortion matters are non Party).
Well surprise, surprise, MPs have agreed to lift ban permanently.
Con MPs: 72 lift ban; 175 reinstate ban.
With only 4 Lab MPs for reinstating ban, lift ban wins easily.
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
I agree.
But we also, as a culture, need to value the idea of having a family rather more in comparison to having a career, freedom, all the things we've been taught to value over the last forty years.
I'm lucky enough to have three. But I wish I'd had them sooner.
It's very difficult to explain to a younger self why you should have kids. Without kids I could be retired by 50; I could lie in until 8am every day; I could go out whenever I wanted... the number of days I get to myself each year can be counted on the fingers of one hand; even a night out at the pub has to be carefully planned in advance. I always knew I wanted kids, but couldn't really say why. The best reason I could think of was that I didn't really want to be doing the same things at 50 that I had been doing at 25. But that is a vague and half-formed answer. Basically what I get out of it is existential satisfaction. I never really doubt my existence. Even if all I have achieved in a day is kept three small people alive, that's still a day well spent. I rather liked this explanation: https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/happiness-spigot
Yes, I would find it very hard to articulate what I mean to myself aged 25. That Leon would have laughed in my face
And there is no doubt I have had WAAAAAAAAAAAY more fun (and sex) by being relatively unencumbered compared to some dutiful family man with 4 kids.
So in the end it is a kind of battle between Immediate Fun versus Later Life Satisfaction and how on earth do you judge that? There are probably plenty of people with impeccable family lives and 3 lovely kids who think Shit, I wish I'd stayed single and seen the world! - and how can I argue with that?
I can't. I've just come to the conclusion that on some primal level: when Having Kids versus Not Having Kids is the question, Having Kids is better, and if you're gonna have kids, have a bunch. That is the extent of my wisdom, and it is fragile. Tho I do wish someone had at least attempted this argument on me, when I was in my 20s
That would be a lot more sleepless nights though, and I find those nights more common with a twenty year old than a two year old.
And yet, I increasingly realise: they are the only true wealth. Your children
I am lucky to have two daughters I adore. But I could have have 4, 6, 8 - there were willing partners and more
And at the same time I have had a peerless life of adventure: beyond the dreams of most, to put it gently. A life impossible with a fixed situation. And yet I find myself wondering, would I swap my amazing life for five or six kids all growing up in exciting ways? I genuinely dunno, perhaps yes
Maybe I made the wrong choice
My advice to youngsters: have kids. Have as many as you can, within reason. The government - of any complexion, I am beyond any Tory-Labour bollocks- should focus on this. We Need Kids
I agree.
But we also, as a culture, need to value the idea of having a family rather more in comparison to having a career, freedom, all the things we've been taught to value over the last forty years.
I'm lucky enough to have three. But I wish I'd had them sooner.
It's very difficult to explain to a younger self why you should have kids. Without kids I could be retired by 50; I could lie in until 8am every day; I could go out whenever I wanted... the number of days I get to myself each year can be counted on the fingers of one hand; even a night out at the pub has to be carefully planned in advance. I always knew I wanted kids, but couldn't really say why. The best reason I could think of was that I didn't really want to be doing the same things at 50 that I had been doing at 25. But that is a vague and half-formed answer. Basically what I get out of it is existential satisfaction. I never really doubt my existence. Even if all I have achieved in a day is kept three small people alive, that's still a day well spent. I rather liked this explanation: https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/happiness-spigot
Yes, I would find it very hard to articulate what I mean to myself aged 25. That Leon would have laughed in my face
And there is no doubt I have had WAAAAAAAAAAAY more fun (and sex) by being relatively unencumbered compared to some dutiful family man with 4 kids.
So in the end it is a kind of battle between Immediate Fun versus Later Life Satisfaction and how on earth do you judge that? There are probably plenty of people with impeccable family lives and 3 lovely kids who think Shit, I wish I'd stayed single and seen the world! - and how can I argue with that?
I can't. I've just come to the conclusion that on some primal level: when Having Kids versus Not Having Kids is the question, Having Kids is better, and if you're gonna have kids, have a bunch. That is the extent of my wisdom, and it is fragile. Tho I do wish someone had at least attempted this argument on me, when I was in my 20s
"And there is no doubt I have had WAAAAAAAAAAAY more fun (and sex) by being relatively unencumbered compared to some dutiful family man with 4 kids. "
The sex? Maybe. Although some may argue that quality matters more than quantity...
But fun? Surely that depends on what someone feels is fun. You go to loads of places, and get your fun out of that. Cool. Others may find that lifestyle deathly boring, and find their fun elsewhere. Even something like fishing. Or walking.
Has there been any mention on here of the Commons vote on abortion pills at home?
Government repeatedly said (including Boris at PMQs) that it would reinstate ban on taking both pills at home (ban had been lifted due to Covid).
Anyway, Lords amendment to Health Bill lifted ban permanently. So it went to Commons and Govt had to allow free vote (as it is accepted that abortion matters are non Party).
Well surprise, surprise, MPs have agreed to lift ban permanently.
Con MPs: 72 lift ban; 175 reinstate ban.
With only 4 Lab MPs for reinstating ban, lift ban wins easily.
A majority of 27 is hardly an easy win and pro lifers will be back to try and ban it again
Comments
If you provide the tax breaks (French style), compulsory/matching paternity leave, I'm sure more would oblige.
Hmmm . . . is somebody trying to smear the good name of the Republican Party?
Sadly, not what you'd call heavy lifting these days. Even for Putin's slightly-refurbished lame-o Z-bots.
https://scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/nicola-sturgeons-mask-hypocrisy-laid-26584766
2 is more than enough for most and even 1 is better than none if you can have them
I have quite a few childless friends - it is a common choice in my generation, male and female - but nearly all of them regret that. This is not good
I don't know any adults with kids who actually regret the whole kiboodle
We are designed to sprog
We were sold an illusion of permanent youth (and I readily bought into it, and how) but it is a cruel illusion
Ah, I see. I didn’t actually realise masking had been retained in Scotland!
The implication that people transition to cheat at sport is a very odd one.
Poltico.com - Collins will support confirming Jackson, delivering Biden bipartisan SCOTUS vote
The Maine senator is the first Republican to back Jackson’s confirmation. She also could be the only one, with Sen. Thom Tillis announcing his opposition Wednesday.
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/03/30/collins-will-vote-to-confirm-jackson-00021619
We do indeed need kids, the whole economy depends on it.
Instead we prop up pensioner property prices instead of building lots, lots more houses.
Lots of sports people have cheated to win. We've had people cheating to get onto Paralympics teams etc. It is naive to think that some of them wouldn't use this to give them an advantage.
We do need more affordable housing, particularly in London and the South East where prices are highest but it should be focused on brownbelt land first
My own theory is that steroid abuse is really kicking in.
Politico.com - McCarthy: Cawthorn's 'lost my trust' following orgy and cocaine comments
The GOP leader is not yet revoking the North Carolina Republican's committee spots, but he signaled he's lost patience with the freshman lawmaker.
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/03/30/mccarthy-cawthorn-lost-trust-orgy-cocaine-comments-00021816
Is Kevin McCarthy upset because Cawthorn is tarnishing the Congress and GOP House Conference?
Or is it because the most exciting things KMcC gets invited to are evangelical prayer breakfasts and corporate bowling tournaments?
She has had hormone treatment for several years. It is rather more than a name change.
I don't think she should compete as a woman, but to suggest that her transition was to cheat (implying deliberate breaking of the rules) is incorrect.
https://twitter.com/politic_animal/status/1509035606067888129
@Sunil_Prasannan
Edit: Although maybe some of the roles were done by LEA and not school, whereas now everything is academy this and academy chain that. So there was a truant officer (e.g. attendance) - but they worked for LEA and oversaw several schools across the city.
Ultimately Leon is right, what we need is more people starting families, that's very hard to do when you're stuck in a one bedroom flat.
However that is not merely a matter of house prices (in the North prices are still relatively cheap), even if Levittowns help with that, it is also a matter of far more people going to university as well. They then join the workplace later and have student debts to pay off too and more women now are highly educated and want careers and also delay having children as a result.
House prices are definitely cheaper in some places, though salaries are also lower.
The real problem is as a society we don't value having kids and raising families any more in our 20s and 30s, men and women. We applaud focusing on our careers, we applaud sleeping around, we applaud "focusing on ourselves". We kid ourselves that there is always time to start a family, when really that time is very limited by biology.
On an individual level it's a tragedy (ask anyone who's too old to have kids and now regrets it), but on a societal level it's a catastrophe, as societies with an aging demographic are discovering.
(For the record: I have no position on any of these claims, not having spent weeks reading the original papers.)
As for house prices, in Stoke they are only 4 times average income, in Sunderland only 5 times local average income.
In London by contrast property prices are now an astonishing 15 times the average income in the capital
https://www.comparethemarket.com/home-insurance/content/house-prices-vs-income-in-the-uk/
(And you can buy a copy, if you want.)
But we also, as a culture, need to value the idea of having a family rather more in comparison to having a career, freedom, all the things we've been taught to value over the last forty years.
I'm lucky enough to have three. But I wish I'd had them sooner.
It's very difficult to explain to a younger self why you should have kids. Without kids I could be retired by 50; I could lie in until 8am every day; I could go out whenever I wanted... the number of days I get to myself each year can be counted on the fingers of one hand; even a night out at the pub has to be carefully planned in advance.
I always knew I wanted kids, but couldn't really say why. The best reason I could think of was that I didn't really want to be doing the same things at 50 that I had been doing at 25. But that is a vague and half-formed answer.
Basically what I get out of it is existential satisfaction. I never really doubt my existence. Even if all I have achieved in a day is kept three small people alive, that's still a day well spent.
I rather liked this explanation:
https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/happiness-spigot
All, on the subject of babies you could do worse, if you haven't already, than re-read the thread header that @tlg86 did a while back, linked to above.
Government repeatedly said (including Boris at PMQs) that it would reinstate ban on taking both pills at home (ban had been lifted due to Covid).
Anyway, Lords amendment to Health Bill lifted ban permanently. So it went to Commons and Govt had to allow free vote (as it is accepted that abortion matters are non Party).
Well surprise, surprise, MPs have agreed to lift ban permanently.
Con MPs: 72 lift ban; 175 reinstate ban.
With only 4 Lab MPs for reinstating ban, lift ban wins easily.
And there is no doubt I have had WAAAAAAAAAAAY more fun (and sex) by being relatively unencumbered compared to some dutiful family man with 4 kids.
So in the end it is a kind of battle between Immediate Fun versus Later Life Satisfaction and how on earth do you judge that? There are probably plenty of people with impeccable family lives and 3 lovely kids who think Shit, I wish I'd stayed single and seen the world! - and how can I argue with that?
I can't. I've just come to the conclusion that on some primal level: when Having Kids versus Not Having Kids is the question, Having Kids is better, and if you're gonna have kids, have a bunch. That is the extent of my wisdom, and it is fragile. Tho I do wish someone had at least attempted this argument on me, when I was in my 20s
Have Kids. And Have Them About 5 Years Before You Want Them
The sex? Maybe. Although some may argue that quality matters more than quantity...
But fun? Surely that depends on what someone feels is fun. You go to loads of places, and get your fun out of that. Cool. Others may find that lifestyle deathly boring, and find their fun elsewhere. Even something like fishing. Or walking.
https://www.theverge.com/2022/3/30/23000577/dyson-zone-noise-cancellation-headphones-built-in-air-purifier