Ban on veils

so Belgium has had its veil ban upheld as lawful by the EU court of human rights.
I have always wondered why they're not banned here ? You can't go into a bank with a motorcycle helmet on for obvious reasons. In our society we are are all open about our identity and are suspicious of those who hide.

Education is undervalued

Student Loans at 6.1% interest is outrageous. It would be cheaper to get a commercial loan, if you can without an income. (Bank of MumnDad?). anyway, when I went to Uni (40+ yrs ago) we had Grants. Means tested yes, so the poor got the money. Also only the top 20% went to Uni, the elite yes? The point is why does everyone have to go to Uni.? Surely the value of a “Degree” is devalued. The Best Unis – yes they are still the best but there are so many “Degrees” now Employers I’m sure don’t value your “BA” in “Economic prestigitation”. Don’t get me wrong I’m all for Education . the more the better but we need Better schools. So many have now failed and kids are not being educated. Yes, when I went in the ‘60s I was in a class of 48! Sat in rows, one teacher, no support – but we all got educated. The numpties weren’t pandered too they got on with it (with parents support) education was valued. SO many now say “I don’t need to learn that , I can google it, or I’ll get a job at Lidl. My Mam and Dad don’t work so why should I?” and so on. It’s heart breaking. The good, the elite, the rich, they get educated and get the best jobs but we’re failing so many. Yes in my time there were those who actually were abandoned by the system and I wouldn’t want that to happen again.  Now we have Policemen and Nurses have to have a degree – why? I think they should be allowed to study and get degrees but surely we

are losing the bottom end. Would you want to wipe bottoms and clean floors if you had a degree? We are a rich country and we should value education, we should look after the sick and vulnerable but help them not pander to them. Also not expect everyone to go to Uni. Taylor education to the right skills for the right people. Everyone has a place in society and should be valued. Education is NOT a commercial business it should be a right and Teachers should be valued, respected and repositioned as the Elite in Society.

Another ransomware attack.

I don’t understand why our Security services (and others) can’t find these criminals?

As I see it the Internet depends on a web of connections across the globe, but fundamentally underneath all the names and trickery at hiding YOU have an IP address. All computers must have a unique IP address. Like your car registration plate. If it is duplicated then the massages fail to get through correctly.

To get their money these people must have a base somewhere to “host” their systems and to get their ransom must be able to be communicated with. The authorities can track where their IP address goes to. They can “translate” it to another address by using proxies but in my book anyone actually involved in this process should be warned to stop allowing it or they will be shut down. This may be a whole country, Tough! Until we get tough with these criminals then it won’t stop. Do we want a few idiots to undermine our whole society?

Manchester. How do we stop ISIS?

I am old enough to remember the IRA and their bombs and atrocities but at least they usually gave warnings. Today what/who are these terrorists? The main difference is they seem to be loners and suicide bombers. At least they won't do it again and saves us the bother of jailing them.

Today, why is it different. I have a theory. I don't think the authorities and medics have realised yet and they won't like it. Today we have a class of people (not all terrorists thankfully, they are just the extreme end), who I believe have a dissociative disorder. They have brainwashed themselves by viewing things on the internet, using social media and playing computer games. They have little or no family life and probably live alone, (or at least isolate themselves from the rest of their family). They have been loners for most of their teenage years. They feel different and don't relate to/interact with their peers. They have a disorder that allows themselves to exist in a fantasy world but yet at the same time can live with you and me and seem relatively normal. They may go out shopping, may even have a job, but one where they don't need much interaction. The problem is that the fantasy world in which they live can exist in parallel to their "normal" selves. 

Unfortunately I blame the rise of technology. This didn't exists in the IRA days. They lived in NI they were fanatical about the situation there, they wanted change and were prepared to go to almost any lengths to get it. Yet it was ALL NI based. Hardly any technology involved. They bombed and killed on the "Mainland". Our so called ISIS fanatical terrorists exist worldwide but what is their cause and what do they want? They haven't really got a country. There are obviously some people here who must get online and find info relating to them and in their fantasy world as described above they "believe" that they must do what they must do to exist in this "ISIS" world. They find info on bomb making and via social media/email/text they communicate with other fanatics (maybe even in the Middle East, they could be anywhere) and because they believe anything that comes over the internet (their version) they enjoy the experience just like computer games. Only this is at the highest level almost real! The ultimate end game is to do what happened last night in Manchester. Only unlike computer games there is not a reset and the game starts again. This time they are really DEAD and other people are dead, maimed, injured and traumatised.

Currently the authorities have no real way of finding tracking and stopping this carnage. You might as well lock up every spotty teenager playing computer games in his bedroom. However this is very real and growing problem. Even if these people don't become suicide bombers we are allowing our children to be perverted into and abnormal behaviour. Look at our teenagers today. They all exhibit the traits described above to a greater or lesser degree, dependence on the electronic communication, games and a fantasy online world. We must tackle it. At the earliest age children are using tablets/phones/computers. Parents see it as an innocuous way to occupy their children. A 2yr old watching Paw Patrol on YouTube is harmless? NO, the eye is a direct connection to the brain. Sitting and being transfixed by a video image for hours on end is conditioning the child in ways we are yet to understand but it’s not what we evolved for. We need the traditional interactions with people, children, the environment. Learning that it hurts when you fall over in the yard and graze your knee but what fun it is to look at the world from up a tree. It’s your Castle? Talking to parents, peers etc. teaches you social interaction not Peppa Pig videos although they could teach middle class ideal family values. Then they look at their dysfunctional family and are confused. This is the start. Later they use the same technology to build their fantasy world to escape from what they don't like. At the same time this fantasy world can exist in their head quite separately from the real" world and even in their head the two worlds don't interact. That's how we end up with suicide bombers.

The authorities need to monitor Internet usage and find the people/sites that these nutcases are communicating with and shut them down. Also somehow we need to be monitoring the rise of online gaming, the effect it has on young people, and control what is available and what can be done with it. It is NOT just a game.

Just reset and all will be fine and we start again.

Fuss over Hijabs

Ridiculous, do the religious police seriously consider it an offence for a lady to wear a head scarf?
I'm old enough to remember when ladies always covered their heads, especially in church. This was a Christian custom too.
We were a Christian country. It was out custom for ladies to cover their heads, men, because they all wore hats too, took them off in defference.
Look back in the Bible at 1 corinthians 11. Paul's letter states, every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven."

The Queen is often seen with a headscarf on. Does this make her disrespectful? She is the head of the Church here after all.
Isn't this all rather silly, a fuss about scarves.

Professional Footballers?

So we've seen recently several professional footballers convicted of serious crimes yet seem to be able to continue playing. Why?  Adam Johnson is a convicted paedophile. There seems to be a campaign to find so called paedophile coaches going back decades. They never work with children again, quite right. I ask why the difference. Teachers, council workers etc. Lose their jobs if convicted of crimes, so how can footballers continue? They are very much role models for the young and are very privileged and well rewarded. Isn't it about time the FA had rules to bar convicted criminals from the game regardless?

Green Energy swindle?

Green Energy like Solar panels on your roof or Wind Turbines are seen as green but HMG wants to cut subsidies to save money , why?

ls

A fraction of the Nuclear subsidy could be given back to encourage folk to put solar panels on their homes to save money on their bills. The energy companies don't like it but its still pennies compared to CONSTRAINT payments that Wind Farms get to NOT generate electricity. When it’s too windy we can't use all the power so they are guaranteed a refund for actually NOT being able to sell their electricity. Now that is true Alice in Wonderland economics