Weekend of protests across the UK

reply to post by MMPI2
Higher educations costs and cutting down of university staff. Reread the article.

While I was out photographing yesterday's protests, you got a very real sense of dissent (and violent at that) in the air. People want to rebel and we aren't just talking those from the left. There is a mixed bag of people who believe a movement is developing and one that can enact change - whatever that may be.

I'm all for the rise in tuition fees. People need to learn that education (I'm talking about university education not primary and secondary school) should be a privilege not a right. It annoys me these days that people think it is their right to go study basket weaving in Edge Hill university, then spend the entire 3 years getting absolutely wasted every day. The end result is a lot of people graduating with degrees that will not get them anywhere far in life so they end up working 40 odd hours a week in a minimum wage job barely managing to break even.

Don't get me wrong I love going out and having a drink at the weekends, more so than most, but people have to understand that they can't be depending on tax payers to fund their life. Not everyone is cut out for university a lot of people would be better suited to a hard days work in the office. They wouldn't doss around if their parents were paying them through uni, why should they because the tax payer is (yes I know their parents will contribute to paying their taxes)

reply to post by Griffo


It is going beyond tuition fees and into the realms of class war as unions get on board with the current protest movement and their militant arms are openly calling for direct action. Yesterday saw a whole cross section of people take to the streets and their voices are angry. The big union demo in March will set a trend for the rest of the year. Either that or the Met will break out their new riot toys.

reply to post by Griffo


It is becoming a privelige again - for the rich and powerful!

reply to post by Freeborn


No, not just for them. The people who will be going to uni in the next few years will be people who actually want to succeed in life, not the ones who are going just because their mates are. Those are the sorts of people like doctors, lawyers etc who will have good jobs later on in life and will be able to pay off their tuition fee in their life time

reply to post by Griffo


There are many faults with current university system, as with the education system as a whole, and the value of a degree has certainly been devalued over recent years.
But this will only compound the issue.

Entrance should be solely based on ability and talent and not ability to pay, either now or in the future.

Many people from less affluent backgrounds will choose not to attend university and they will become even more the reserve of the rich and powerful regardless of intellect.

Originally posted by NonKonphormist
What ever happened to education for the sake of education?
Why do degrees have to be geared towards making future profits?
Why does everything have to have £'s attached to it before it's worth something?

I think going to university to do a subject that you're passionate about with possibly no job prospects at the end, or going because you need a degree to get the job you want are both equally valid reasons for going.

But the people I mean that will be filtered out are those that seem to be going to university to get a degree in a subject that doesnt particularly interest them, simply so they can say they have a degree and/or because it seems an easier option than going out then getting a job.

reply to post by Freeborn


Yeah I agree with what you said about people who have talent should be able to go to university. But there are people going to uni now who have little or no talent, who we need to divert from going for the sake of both parties. People who actually have talent will be more inclined to go to university because they know in the future they will be able to reap the benefits.

The key word in this is "trade union".

translated?

socialists.

they have a bunch of pissy twenty somethings that are bored.

Has the govt goofed by letting all of the foreignors in and taking jobs? hell yeah. Kinda like here in the states.

There govt is starting to get it. 500k jobs cut in the govt? wish we could do that.

its socialist bolsheviks. as usual.

Apparently the police fired tear gas grenades on protesters in London today who were trying to bring peoples attention to the big businesses who dodge paying taxes. The protests in this country are not about anything imparticular to be honest as it seems every person who lives in this country is being hounded and worn down by its corrupt government. Basically it goes like this. The government want you to work for as little money as possible, then pay more than half of it to the government in the way of direct and indirect taxes. It then adds Value Added Tax (VAT) to everything, and then to add insult to injury allow energy providers to put up prices as and when they want. Everything you need to live goes up in price while wages are frozen or in a lot of cases, are reduced! The bankers took all our money, Europe took what was left to bail out Ireland, and we are left to pay for it. And finally, who is the government made up by? Multi millionaires who themselves dodge tax and use all the loop holes to ensure they pay as little as possible...
This is why the UK is about to either explode in city wide riots and demonstrations, or simply grind to a halt in a national strike. Ordinary Brits have simply reached that tipping point when you have to say, "Enough is enough!"

reply to post by Griffo


But those with limited academic ability but with affluent and influential parents and have come through the private schooling system will still be able to take their PPE degrees and then waltz into positions of influence as Daddy pays off the loan.

Privately educated people currently have far more control over British society than they have done for decades, and this will only increase as long as ability to pay takes priority over talent and intellect.

reply to post by CholmondleyWarner


No, one police officer decided to use his pepper spray and ended up getting himself covered too.

Link to the real story

I know the photographer personally and it is always good to verify hearsay before committing to a post.

reply to post by felonius


Do you have any understanding of the achievements of the Trade Union movement and where the working man would be without it?

And how convenient and predictable to blame all the world's ill's on Johnny Foreigner.

I have genuine concerns about the UK's immigration policies but I suspect they might be quite different to yours.

reply to post by LarryLove

I see you're right about the tear gas although I heard this on local news. As far as I'm concerned I think we have reached that tipping point. The British people are now standing up and saying enough is enough. And whatsmore it seems to be happening all over the world. I see trouble ahead in this country... Riots, blockades, protests and a national strike.

reply to post by CholmondleyWarner


I agree. When out photographing yesterday's London protests, there was a definite sense of class war to come. The people (from all walks and political persuasions of life) are angry and I believe things are going to get a lot worse.

reply to post by TedHodgson


Ted, your points are valid, and everyone is entitled to an opinion, but like you say you got a job as a special on the streets Manchester, which is great. Dont get me wrong, you do a great job, and free up police to do other things, but if I was you, I would take your pic down when speaking out against your employers and those you protect. We all need a job to get by, and many of us have opinions on here that arent necessarily the best in every day life.

I just thought I would give my opinion to your posts with the job you have.

Carry on, nothing to see here!

The problem with voting is the entire system is rigged.

Pick one party over another - so what. It still ends up with a bunch of idiots who have NO idea how to fix things.

Having been the first generation who had to pay some level of student tuition fees, I have to simply ask what on earth is that GBP 9000 going toward? (Australian keyboard has no pound sign lol).

My full time degree course (of which I am now working in the industry) had me at my uni for less than 20hrs per week. We had a class of over 20 students and our main lecturer was probably paid around GBP 40,000 tops. Based on that same scenario today, there is an over spill of GBP 140,000/year. Where does that money go towards?

Education, like government needs a massive overhaul. Business which ultimately benefits mostly from it, should be making a massive contribution to the education of potential employees.

My old UK employer would charge GBP 100/hr for my services, yet I was only paid GBP 14,000/yr when I started. Does that seem fair and right? Does it also seem fair and right that there is no program identifying key skills shortages with government and/or employers offering incentives to encourage candidates into those roles through education and work placed experience?

This debate goes far beyond and above fees. A well educated workforce can help create additional wealth for a country and as some have discussed, with the UK all but out of industrialized goods, we need to start applying a new model which is more efficient and gives people real choice in terms of education.

i just cant wait tell this hits the usa