Monday, 31 December 2012
Happy New Year 2013
Well, it's this time of year again, and I have been watching the New Year celebrations around the world. I would like to wish all of my readers a very Happy New Year 2013, and may it bring you one step closer to a life full of realised dreams and fulfillment. My best wishes.
Monday, 2 July 2012
Learning: 1
Quote of the day:
"School may be hard, but learning IS fun and easy"
Many students complain about the rigours of academic life, and perceive each new level of their education to be difficult, often beyond their abilities. School, as well as being a place of relaxation with friends, is seen as a necessary evil; a system designed to stand in the way of real achievement and success, although paradoxically it is also the path that the majority view as the road to that very same success.
As a consequence, barriers to learning are accepted, and tolerated. School is hard they say, so I'm never going to really learn; I just need to pass and get through.
This is a gross misunderstanding.
Let's have a reality check:
1) School is very LIKELY to be difficult, as life is not without its challenges. If you feel challenged, and overcome that challenge, you'll feel the real taste of success and achievement. This will become a part of you, and you will remember the moment for far longer than that moment you found out you passed.
Contrast "Phew, I passed." with "I really did it; I have it within me to overcome obstacles, and now I'd like to see what more I can overcome."
2) School is not an evil - it is there to help you learn and grow. The meaning of life is to grow. If you are finding school difficult, it's time to explore the real reasons why, because school is not working against you. Armed with the truth as to why school may be hard for you, you'll be able to do something about it.
3) Learning and school are two completely different things. Why? Because school is not the only place we learn! Learning takes place 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Each experience is one we can learn from; every day presents learning opportunities, from logging onto the internet to watch a seminar online to the challenges that our lives present us on a daily basis. (physically, emotionally, psychologically, socially)
4) If school is hard, it might be that you find learning difficult. The question becomes: "How can I make learning fun for me?" Because if it is fun, it is going to be easy....(to learn that is, not necessarily to pass - the challenges are still there!)
Herein lies the moral of the quote. What needs to change in your education to make it more fun? What needs to change in your education to make it more appropriate for you? Indeed, are you in control of your own education? Do you realise the challenges that lie before you? Do you embrace them instead of looking for an easy way out? The education system in the 21st Century needs to adapt to make itself more appropriate for today's students, encompassing the information that students need, transmitted in a way that is understood, and in a way where students can then go out and build upon what they've learned. But what about the third question? Are you in control of your own education? This is your responsibility as a school student, and, as time goes on, as a student of life.
Being in control of your own education will make learning easy and fun, even if school remains a challenge that is really not your favourite.
"School may be hard, but learning IS fun and easy"
Many students complain about the rigours of academic life, and perceive each new level of their education to be difficult, often beyond their abilities. School, as well as being a place of relaxation with friends, is seen as a necessary evil; a system designed to stand in the way of real achievement and success, although paradoxically it is also the path that the majority view as the road to that very same success.
As a consequence, barriers to learning are accepted, and tolerated. School is hard they say, so I'm never going to really learn; I just need to pass and get through.
This is a gross misunderstanding.
Let's have a reality check:
1) School is very LIKELY to be difficult, as life is not without its challenges. If you feel challenged, and overcome that challenge, you'll feel the real taste of success and achievement. This will become a part of you, and you will remember the moment for far longer than that moment you found out you passed.
Contrast "Phew, I passed." with "I really did it; I have it within me to overcome obstacles, and now I'd like to see what more I can overcome."
2) School is not an evil - it is there to help you learn and grow. The meaning of life is to grow. If you are finding school difficult, it's time to explore the real reasons why, because school is not working against you. Armed with the truth as to why school may be hard for you, you'll be able to do something about it.
3) Learning and school are two completely different things. Why? Because school is not the only place we learn! Learning takes place 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Each experience is one we can learn from; every day presents learning opportunities, from logging onto the internet to watch a seminar online to the challenges that our lives present us on a daily basis. (physically, emotionally, psychologically, socially)
4) If school is hard, it might be that you find learning difficult. The question becomes: "How can I make learning fun for me?" Because if it is fun, it is going to be easy....(to learn that is, not necessarily to pass - the challenges are still there!)
Herein lies the moral of the quote. What needs to change in your education to make it more fun? What needs to change in your education to make it more appropriate for you? Indeed, are you in control of your own education? Do you realise the challenges that lie before you? Do you embrace them instead of looking for an easy way out? The education system in the 21st Century needs to adapt to make itself more appropriate for today's students, encompassing the information that students need, transmitted in a way that is understood, and in a way where students can then go out and build upon what they've learned. But what about the third question? Are you in control of your own education? This is your responsibility as a school student, and, as time goes on, as a student of life.
Being in control of your own education will make learning easy and fun, even if school remains a challenge that is really not your favourite.
Monday, 7 May 2012
French election? It's all about Europe in the end...
Where does one even begin to discuss the drama that just unfolded before our very eyes in Paris? Hollande's victory now cements a widely-expected change in the French political landscape.
But what changes can we expect? With Hollande returning socialism to French political life, we can expect the usual symptoms of spending, reaffirmed with promises that this will make all the difference. We can expect more "community" based measures, which ultimately, the wealthier part of French society will pay for, with their expected 75% tax rate. We can also expect other "bad" groups to be expected to pay, i.e. the financial sector, as Hollande will stubbornly introduce a Tobin tax on financial transactions in France, even if he can't first secure it at the European level.
However, hiding behind this wonderful illusion that spending solves all problems is the reality that you cannot spend what you don't have, so as well as increasing taxes you can expect the new French administration to borrow. Except that's not as easy as it once was, with the Euro debt crisis meaning that France is already up to its eyeballs...in debt.
As a consequence, we can expect France to be pushing at the European level for all measures to "save" the euro, which, when translated into French, means extracting money from the other 26 EU member states to save French banks....the more enlightened of us already know however that it's these banks, and not the German/Spanish/Irish/Portuguese/Italian/British ones that have the highest exposure to Greece.
With French banks saved, the French economy is prevented from collapse, and the French Government cannot become any more indebted to saving its own banks, (assuming that the money is eventually transferred from the EFSF/ESM directly to banks to avoid any bailout being recorded on a Government balance sheet) which have failed just as miserably as any "Anglo-Saxon" ones. But, the core problem will remain, and government debt will ensure that this socialist administration will not be able to fulfil its pledges. They will come to understand that if you don't have the money in your piggy bank, you simply cannot have what you want. It's a form of poverty, that some other political philosophies understand well.
Of course, the underlying aim of the French Government in joining the upcoming fiscal union/economic government/full monetary union/bank union or whatever they'll call it is not just to maintain the illusion of an economically strong France, but to continue to cement French political power within the European Union. The French have long benefited from being able to project French post-imperial power through the European project, and they will not let that go easily. Being able to influence the EU to do what France wants is the only real power France has.
If the French Government, in its likely disagreements with austerity-Germany is at risk of losing its influence in Europe and having other countries dictate to it through EU rules, you'll soon see just how much "solidarity" the French really believe in. They'll stamp their feet and make threats....
It's going to be an interesting few months, as the French desperately try to hang on to their influence as the Germans lead the way - but they won't like the German economic cure, so expect blackmail of some sort. France wants the political influence and the economic power - but you are in debt dear France, so you'll have to choose what is most important. You cannot have your cake and eat it.
In conclusion though, I sense that the idea of Europe is the most important thing. And the French will not sacrifice that for a few promises of government spending. So all Europe needs to do is to help Hollande save face by keeping his borrowing costs low so he can mortgage the next two generations of French children. With the EU extracting political power from France as its price of solving this crisis (Germany hiding behind the EU) and seizing the crisis as the moment it has been waiting for to build its federation, whatever Hollande promises, this French administration will be like the last one - all about Europe in the end....
But what changes can we expect? With Hollande returning socialism to French political life, we can expect the usual symptoms of spending, reaffirmed with promises that this will make all the difference. We can expect more "community" based measures, which ultimately, the wealthier part of French society will pay for, with their expected 75% tax rate. We can also expect other "bad" groups to be expected to pay, i.e. the financial sector, as Hollande will stubbornly introduce a Tobin tax on financial transactions in France, even if he can't first secure it at the European level.
However, hiding behind this wonderful illusion that spending solves all problems is the reality that you cannot spend what you don't have, so as well as increasing taxes you can expect the new French administration to borrow. Except that's not as easy as it once was, with the Euro debt crisis meaning that France is already up to its eyeballs...in debt.
As a consequence, we can expect France to be pushing at the European level for all measures to "save" the euro, which, when translated into French, means extracting money from the other 26 EU member states to save French banks....the more enlightened of us already know however that it's these banks, and not the German/Spanish/Irish/Portuguese/Italian/British ones that have the highest exposure to Greece.
With French banks saved, the French economy is prevented from collapse, and the French Government cannot become any more indebted to saving its own banks, (assuming that the money is eventually transferred from the EFSF/ESM directly to banks to avoid any bailout being recorded on a Government balance sheet) which have failed just as miserably as any "Anglo-Saxon" ones. But, the core problem will remain, and government debt will ensure that this socialist administration will not be able to fulfil its pledges. They will come to understand that if you don't have the money in your piggy bank, you simply cannot have what you want. It's a form of poverty, that some other political philosophies understand well.
Of course, the underlying aim of the French Government in joining the upcoming fiscal union/economic government/full monetary union/bank union or whatever they'll call it is not just to maintain the illusion of an economically strong France, but to continue to cement French political power within the European Union. The French have long benefited from being able to project French post-imperial power through the European project, and they will not let that go easily. Being able to influence the EU to do what France wants is the only real power France has.
If the French Government, in its likely disagreements with austerity-Germany is at risk of losing its influence in Europe and having other countries dictate to it through EU rules, you'll soon see just how much "solidarity" the French really believe in. They'll stamp their feet and make threats....
It's going to be an interesting few months, as the French desperately try to hang on to their influence as the Germans lead the way - but they won't like the German economic cure, so expect blackmail of some sort. France wants the political influence and the economic power - but you are in debt dear France, so you'll have to choose what is most important. You cannot have your cake and eat it.
In conclusion though, I sense that the idea of Europe is the most important thing. And the French will not sacrifice that for a few promises of government spending. So all Europe needs to do is to help Hollande save face by keeping his borrowing costs low so he can mortgage the next two generations of French children. With the EU extracting political power from France as its price of solving this crisis (Germany hiding behind the EU) and seizing the crisis as the moment it has been waiting for to build its federation, whatever Hollande promises, this French administration will be like the last one - all about Europe in the end....
Wednesday, 25 January 2012
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)
There is a lot of talk at the moment about if the ECHR is fit for purpose. Some say that without it, our entire evolution and understanding of human rights since WWII is lost, others say that the Court has evolved beyond its remit and is now infringing upon its members sovereignty, particularly in their abilities to prevent terrorism and other security threats.
This is certainly the current point of view of the UK Government, who have made it clear in recent days that they feel the Court needs to change. The catalyst is of course that the UK currently holds the Chair of the Council of Europe, and has the political will and place to now effect change. The other catalyst that has caused uproar is the recent judgement of the ECHR that the UK cannot deport the terrorist suspect Abu Qatada back to Jordan, after three UK trials determined that he is a risk and should be sent back.
David Cameron is right to seek change. He is right to say that human rights laws are becoming distorted (see here) He is also right that the Court should be the last resort, and used where a national justice system is unable or unwilling to deal with or decide upon a case.
Europe agrees that there should be reform, although apparently doesn't much like the idea of deferring to national governments. So, should the ECHR become supranational? That's not what it is about; it is not the EU. It is still based on intergovernmentalism, and David Cameron should perhaps consider the idea of withdrawing the UK from the Court if it continues to infringe on our sovereignty and put the country at risk. These arguments are strong ones, and should not be disregarded on a whim.
Those who say that our voice would be lessened are thinking from a supranational perspective. The UK is not about to abandon its commitment to, or respect for human rights. Very likely the UK would remain in the Convention even if it were to withdraw from the Court.
It's true that where the court has helped UK human rights culture to evolve has to be acknowledged. But we are now talking about putting our national security at risk, and the even more-worrying evolution of an institution that has gone beyond, and will continue to go beyond, its raison-d'etre, if not put in check. Looking at the EU as the best example, I don't want to see this happen with the ECHR - that's where things may just get really dangerous.
This is certainly the current point of view of the UK Government, who have made it clear in recent days that they feel the Court needs to change. The catalyst is of course that the UK currently holds the Chair of the Council of Europe, and has the political will and place to now effect change. The other catalyst that has caused uproar is the recent judgement of the ECHR that the UK cannot deport the terrorist suspect Abu Qatada back to Jordan, after three UK trials determined that he is a risk and should be sent back.
David Cameron is right to seek change. He is right to say that human rights laws are becoming distorted (see here) He is also right that the Court should be the last resort, and used where a national justice system is unable or unwilling to deal with or decide upon a case.
Europe agrees that there should be reform, although apparently doesn't much like the idea of deferring to national governments. So, should the ECHR become supranational? That's not what it is about; it is not the EU. It is still based on intergovernmentalism, and David Cameron should perhaps consider the idea of withdrawing the UK from the Court if it continues to infringe on our sovereignty and put the country at risk. These arguments are strong ones, and should not be disregarded on a whim.
Those who say that our voice would be lessened are thinking from a supranational perspective. The UK is not about to abandon its commitment to, or respect for human rights. Very likely the UK would remain in the Convention even if it were to withdraw from the Court.
It's true that where the court has helped UK human rights culture to evolve has to be acknowledged. But we are now talking about putting our national security at risk, and the even more-worrying evolution of an institution that has gone beyond, and will continue to go beyond, its raison-d'etre, if not put in check. Looking at the EU as the best example, I don't want to see this happen with the ECHR - that's where things may just get really dangerous.
Monday, 16 January 2012
Scotland, oh Scotland.....
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It was rather impossible to miss the the explosive debate that began just last week when David Cameron threw down the gauntlet to Alex Salmond and demanded a referendum on the Scots leaving the United Kingdom. I'd like to offer my thoughts.
It is well-known, and I noted myself in my blog post on St. George's Day 2008, that the debate about Scottish secession has been looming for quite some time. What nobody really expected was the extent of the Scottish National Party's (SNP) victory in the Scottish Parliamentary elections in May 2011. Since this occurred, it is now politically possible for the SNP to table a referendum to the Scottish people.
Cameron started the official "war" over secession last week when he demanded that a referendum be held sooner rather than later. Rather surprisingly, this prompted Alex Salmond to reveal hitherto unknown information about when exactly he was planning his referendum - late 2014 to coincide with Scotland's greatest military victory (were there many others?) over England 700 years ago.
Now that we know the SNP's plans, the Government demanded that it be sooner, and has now given a list of conditions that the SNP must meet for the referendum to be legal under UK (and inherently Scottish) law.
My aim here is to simply draw a clear picture. Certain elements of the story are wholly misrepresented and/or plainly misunderstood by a large number of people.
First of all, this is not actually an "independence" vote at all. The word "independence" has connotations that usually imply that one party/country has been dominated by another, usually through conquering or colonisation. This is simply not the case. This is about Scotland choosing to leave the United Kingdom; a union that it agreed to in the first place. It is not for me to judge the circumstances under which Scotland joined the Union, but it is perfectly free to choose to leave should it so wish. The language of the debate really needs to be accurate, for the Scots are deciding whether to leave a union that it joined as a sovereign nation, and the people are simply now voting for the return of full sovereignty to Edinburgh as supposed to London. The consequence of course is that the English will regain full sovereignty from the Scots too, a point not often mentioned.
Secondly, I have read a wide range of comments and articles from those who feel that England should have a say in this. The logic goes that as the UK will be affected, everyone in the UK should decide if Scotland leaves. My view is that this is incorrect. If everyone was to decide if Scotland should leave, how would we ever know the true wishes of the Scottish people? It doesn't seem democratic to me to not allow the Scots to choose to restore sovereignty by themselves. It is on the other hand perfectly reasonable that if the Scots want to leave, they have the right to make the choice. True, there are consequences for all of us in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but should the tables be turned and one of us wanted to cede from the UK, we wouldn't want the Scots to decide for us either.
Those supporting the idea of the entire UK having a say is making an argument akin to all EU members having a vote on whether the UK should leave the European Union. The UK is still in many ways (but dwindling I acknowledge) a sovereign nation, but even if we were a part of a United States of Europe we would not allow 26 other countries to prevent us from doing what we wanted to do. We can expect no less from the Scottish people. The problem is though in our relationship with the EU is that we have agreed to the fixed procedure for leaving, as written in the Lisbon Treaty, and we would need to determine our position with regards to the treaty.
Thirdly, I concur with the clear legal view that under the Scotland Act of 1998, Alex Salmond has no legal mandate to conduct the referendum - it is for Westminster to determine constitutional issues, and for Westminster to give Alex Salmond the necessary legal powers for the referendum vote to be considered legal. It really is stupid that the SNP are denying that Westminster has this right when it is plainly written in law - and worse for them to use Westminster's conditions as proof to their followers that "the English want to interfere." There is a major alarm bell going off in my head here. The law is the law, Mr Salmond - the UK will respect the rule of law, and you shall challenge it at your peril!
Fourthly, I've noted the interesting attitude reflected in the opinion polls - that more Englishmen and women are keen for the Scots to leave the UK than the Scots themselves. This reflects years of Alex Salmond antagonising the English, and thus attempting to link Scottish secession with English desires. He is playing with fire and might just get his wish. But he shall be to blame for the consequences, not the rest of us.
Finally, I am not prepared to debate in full the financial side of Scottish secession, however I side with the view that the Scots will be worse off. Some believe that the Scots should shoulder a proportional amount of UK debt based on their population, but I disagree. Population was not the measure used when the debt was generated and nor should it be if the debt has to be shared. A substantially large amount of UK Government debt was spent stopping the collapse of Scottish banks, therefore those Government liabilities should in due course become the liabilities of a fully-functional Scottish Government.
To close, there is much more to say when you hold this debate up in the mirror and compare it with the ongoing debate of the UK's changing relationship with the EU. It is quite amazing and hypocritical to see the UK Government saying things in relation to Scottish secession that they would never say in relation to the UK leaving the EU. The hypocrisy stinks when Cameron says that "the Scottish people must have a vote sooner rather than later" and yet denies a vote on EU membership when there is a clear public demand to do so. These issues are for another post, as well as Scotland's and the UK's overall place in the EU given the outcome of a yes or no vote in Scotland.
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