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12 years 11 months

Posts: 6,535

Let us hope that commonsense prevails and that they do not waste their precious youth, attending what is loosely described as a university having been 'rubber stamped' or 'massaged' thru' a third rate degree but, largely still illiterate and innumerate.

As for Ofsted, this deeply flawed instrument of Orwellian 'double-speak' is long past its sell by date and is long since unfit for purpose. It should be disbanded.

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9 years 6 months

Posts: 1,613

Let us hope that commonsense prevails...

An entirely subjective concept that aged right whingers such as yourself seem to cling to and fetishise for some reason, though only ever in the context of it being lost or eroded. Care to elaborate? I hazard a guess that you are old enough to remember a time when eugenics was considered common sense, after all.

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11 years 5 months

Posts: 11,141

[QUOTE=John Green;2183829

As for Ofsted, this deeply flawed instrument of Orwellian 'double-speak' is long past its sell by date and is long since unfit for purpose. It should be disbanded.[/QUOTE]

Like most of the other quangos prefixed "Of...". Now what did happen to that bonfire....?:rolleyes:

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12 years 11 months

Posts: 6,535

Belatedly, but more or less hot on the heels of the Ofsted condemnation of the Lincolnshire school for being too monocultural comes the 'evenhanded' condemnation of a number of Islamic faith schools in London who are deemed to be too 'faith exclusive' thus permitting no other influences of other faiths into their regime.

Well, that's a surprise ! Does the naivety of Ofsted inspectors know no limits ? Islam does not permit imput from other faiths. If it did, it would not be the prescriptive, monotheistic faith system that it is. It seems to be an acceptable state of affairs that imams recognise and accept only the requirements of Islam and not those of the country they live in - aided and abetted of course, by the Establishment.

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12 years 11 months

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Leave our Marigolds alone !

Is there no limit to the reach of the EU tentacles ? It seems (D. Tel. report) that protective gloves known widely as Marigolds and other plastic goods have now, according to a new EU diktat, to conform to new EU wide standards of strength, flexibility and er, 'rubberiness' !

Does this, one wonders, apply to French letters also known as skins or condoms ? Perhaps it is because there is no EU wide standard with the afore mentioned qualities.

Member for

9 years 6 months

Posts: 1,613

Leave our Marigolds alone !

Is there no limit to the reach of the EU tentacles ? It seems (D. Tel. report) that protective gloves known widely as Marigolds and other plastic goods have now, according to a new EU diktat, to conform to new EU wide standards of strength, flexibility and er, 'rubberiness' !

I shall ignore your attempt at droll humour for just now. Your beloved prophylactics are covered by EN ISO 4074:2002 Natural latex rubber condoms - Requirements and test methods (ISO 4074:2002). Without such standards there would be a proliferation of sub-standard and poorly manufactured prophylactics that would lead to a spike in unwanted pregnancies and STD transmissions.

Likewise, I imagine standards on Marigolds (and no, I'm not going to go on the Torygraph web page to find this non-story) are in place to prevent sub-standard rubber gloves reaching the market that would either dangerously impede the wearer through lack of flexibility or possibly lead to chemical burns or other injuries by being made of the wrong material. This sounds a lot like your beloved common sense, no?

Also, you don't understand the use of the pronoun 'their'. :rolleyes:

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12 years 11 months

Posts: 6,535

Re 207

I'll see you outside the Headmaster's study. It's six of the best for you.

"Their" is a possessive pronoun and indicates 'belonging'.

One more. "Also" is an adverb. It is syntactically clumsy to use it to start a sentence.

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12 years 11 months

Posts: 6,535

My wife to-day used her Marigolds on three separate occasions. Her Marigolds were constructed prior to the EU's very sensible strictures and advice on the new rules governing Marigold glove manufacture.

Using an uprated version of the aviation Bettsometer test to determine wear parameters, it was discovered that the gloves showed no sign of leakage, additional transparency or susceptibility to radiation attack.

These conclusive tests surely mean that these taxpayer funded additions to the rules of rubber glove construction should be consigned to the same landfill site as bent bananas and the entire EU Commission.

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12 years 11 months

Posts: 6,535

Does he set out deliberately to provoke ? My newspaper carries an announcement by David Cameron that he continues to support Turkey's proposed entry to the EU.

One would have thought, that with the latest YouGov poll indicating 55% of the people polled placed the problem of immigration above that of the economy, that Dave would be sensible enough not to make these very public announcements.

Imagine 80 million, mainly Moslem pashas, with the right of entry to Britain ! European wide Caliphate ? Here we come.

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12 years 11 months

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Here we go, yet again. You would think that he had by now learnt to avoid controversy. The D. Tel. (report, to-day) writes that Neil Hamilton, the UKIP vice chairman, (please, no cheap jibes) has been asked by Party officials to explain allegedly extravagant expenses claims relating to mileage and his wife's flat.

Having heard, on other occasions, Hamilton speaking on various matters and writing about Parliament, he is a very capable and lucid performer. He should not expose himself to controversy.

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12 years 11 months

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This, if nothing else, tells us about the calibre of the people working in the justice system.

A Press report comments that it took an hour of expensive 'lawyer' time before it dawned on those supposedly paying attention, that the prosecution witness in a court case, had spoken for almost one hour without speaking a word of English !!

The witness was in fact speaking a dialect of Sierra Leone known as Krio. Help was at hand in the shape of the Clerk of the Court who was herself from that part of West Africa. She was swiftly co-opted to act as a Court interpreter.

If this isn't a totally bizarre story then I don't know what is. Perhaps a dozen, alledgedly educated Court officials of one type or another solemnly sat, quiescent and attentive, while the witness merrily 'spieled' away in what was, for everyone present, total gibberish without any one voice raised in dissent or protest. Was the Judge asleep ?

Truly are the lunatics........

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12 years 11 months

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I hope that others can spare a moment to write a congratulatory e-mail to Devon County Council. Why ? What's up? Yesterday's D. Tel. carried a report that a retired builder named, I believe Reg Winsor, much irritated by the number of potholes in his neighbourhood, has used his initiative and his own cash to start repairing them aided by one or two likeminded individuals.

Devon County Council got to hear about this and far from being extremely anti which seems to be the wont of Local Authorities when confronted with like matters, has seized an opportunity to aid Mr. Winsor by buying the materials for him to use on his repairs.

The result ? The potholes are disappearing at a very efficient rate from the roads of Devon. So members if you like this splendid example of private enterprise please e-mail D.C.C. They'd like to hear from you.

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11 years 5 months

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Superbly apt quote on Tony Blair reported in the obituary for John Freeman who described Blair as "ineffably insufferable". Perfect!

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12 years 11 months

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James Kirkup in his "Political Review of the Year", (D. Tel. 23rd Dec.) covers the major political events of 2014. He highlights the two major events. The outcome of the Scottish referendum and the rise of the SNP and the seismic arrival and on going consolidation by Nigel Farage and UKIP.

This is a well balanced report about the changing face of British politics and does Mr. Kirkup great credit.

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12 years 11 months

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Food for thought at the start of a New Year. Again, Greece looks to be leading an early exit from the Euro and the EU. A report covering Greek elections for a new President, specifies that if agreement cannot be reached then a General Election will be called.

If such happens, then the likely victor is the left wing, anti austerity Syriza party to run the country, who will reject all notions of monetary controls and 'belt tightening' and will re-adopt the drachma while seeking another write down of Greece's national debt.

There is some hint from the EU that perhaps an exit by Greece from the EU might not necessarily be that bad on the grounds that it would concentrate some thinking ! Other opinion is that Greece's exit would be the unplugable hole in the dyke which would rapidly enlarge when Portugal, the Irish Republic and a few others joined the stampede for the exit.

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11 years 5 months

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Spain and Italy perhaps before Ireland but as long as they all go who cares about the order?!!

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12 years 11 months

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Events have moved on and Greece cannot decide on a new President so, an election has been called for the 25th January next.

A rather excellent piece of financial analysis in the D. Tel. (1st Jan). by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard - a fine name - details the financial permutations likely to occur in the event that the left wing Syriza party gains power.

It is anticipated that Syriza will reject all austerity measures now in place. If, the European Central Bank steps in to the debacle acting as the 'lender of last resort' in defiance of its own rules, the German Bundesbank will not, as expected, provide support.

The Greeks will not support their euro debt because of the financial pain inflicted upon their country and will exit the EMU returning rapidly to the drachma.

Interesting times ahead !

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I thought the piece by Jeremy Warner on the stark contrast between the US' ability to pull itself out of the mire and the Eurozone's total failure, by virtue of its sclerotic fiscal model, to do so, even more revealing.

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Bogden Croiter sentenced after trying to smuggle wife into the country through Dover in a suitcase

Dover immigration officials are used to stopping vehicles and finding illegal substances hidden in suitcases.

But when they stopped Bogden Croitor’s vehicle and opened up a case, they weren't expecting to find his wife.

Croitor, 30, from Stanmore, is from Latvia and has permission to live in the UK – but his Maldivian-born wife had twice been refused the right to come to Britain.

He later told officials how he had travelled to Calais in October last year to spend the weekend with his wife and claimed she suggested hiding in the suitcase, Canterbury Crown Court heard.

Natasha Spreadborough, for Croitor, said his wife had made numerous applications for a visa but was refused each time.

Judge Adele Williams took the unusual step of suspending the jail sentence after he admitted the smuggling charge.

She told him: “You could have absolutely no complaint if I had sent you to prison straight away because those who commit this offence normally always go to jail immediately.

“But I take the view that the way you committed this offence does have extraordinary mitigating circumstances attached to it.”

The judge said Croitor had deliberately “flouted” UK restrictions on immigration which is “an unfair thing to do because many people seek to enter the UK lawfully.”

He was given a 14 month jail sentence suspended for two years, do 100 hours of unpaid work for the community and pay £400 costs.

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Well it was an open and shut case.