The problem with categorising Young People

Comments by Simon Belt August 2011

I've come into contact with a section of society known as Young People quite a bit recently, and to be honest I don't care for the category much. Having worked in the civil service and an international outsourcing company for long stretches, I'm familiar with the concept of new this, that and the other, which are usually recycled and repackaged presentations of something very similar to what existed before. Young people are clearly not a new occurrence, but I get the feeling that the use of the term has moved from being a description of comparative or relative age to a category or identity of a relatively separate group, for more than marketing reasons.

Slutwalks and the future of feminism

Opinion piece by Katherine Sansom June 2011

In January this year, addressing a group of students at a Toronto college, PC Michael Sanguinetti expressed the view that women “should avoid dressing like sluts in order to not be victimised”.(1)

In February, a man in Canada was found guilty of rape but sentenced to probation, with Justice Robert Dewar asserting that the victim’s ‘tube top and heels’ must have suggested to the rapist that she wanted sex.(2)

It's a job centre, but not as we know it... 

The unemployed are now being offered counselling when what they really need is a decent job!

Rant by Jane Turner May 2011

When you’re looking for a job and you want a job (to bastardize a line from Morrissey) what you really don’t want or need is therapy, especially from a Government agency, or what is optimistically known as Jobcentre Plus.

Not the sort of place I’d ever drop into for a friendly pep-talk and certainly not the place to go if you really are looking for a job, as the few vacancies “on offer” are limited in every possible way.

Being transported back to the future?

Musings by Jane Turner September 2010

What is the future of travel in the 21st Century?

Imagine, just imagine the possibilities… 

Cars that take off and fly? High speed rail links across the world? Personalised vehicles powered by hydrogen or electricity?  Vehicles fitted with wireless communication and GPS that can drive and park themselves? Travelling free from congestion, accidents and air pollution? Co-ordinated and efficient transport networks? Door-to-door flying?

Or maybe you think we have gone too far already and that we should stop now and stay put in order to save the planet? You might value mobility and the freedom that travel affords, and don’t want to sacrifice this for the sake of the planet or because of the recession? You may be interested in a highly mobile future rather than a low-carbon one and think that we need more flights, wider roads, innovative personal vehicles and faster trains? Or you may think that we should be travelling less, staying local and learning to love our bikes? What are today’s guiding principles shaping our future vision?