“I put men to death in war, I fought duels to slay others. I lost at cards, wasted the substance wrung from the sweat of peasants, punished the latter cruelly, rioted with loose women, and deceived men. Lying, robbery, adultery of all kinds, drunkenness, violence, and murder, all were committed by me, not one crime omitted, and yet I was not the less considered by my equals to be a comparatively moral man. Such was my life for ten years.”
Unquestionably there is much evidence to support the contention that the prime aim of modern curriculum changes is a better trained and more adaptable workforce, able to exploit the opportunities presented by new technologies. The institutional channels from which resources have flowed, and the accompanying rhetoric, frequently testify to concerns about the need for improved economic performance in a global struggle for survival. Read more…
Paul Kingsnorth, who emulated William Cobbett on journeys around Britain has described the erosion of social value. By that he means the quality of life derived from people developing all their abilities and bringing to bear an active orientation to life. In that idea of social value he loudly echoes the findings of Erich Fromm in his influential book TO HAVE OR TO BE.
Kingsnorth visited the towns of Middle England and found how they are now almost clones of one another but for a few historic buildings. A recent visit to Arbroath underscored this idea Beyond the harbour,the high street is just like any other in Britain with its shops encouraging people to live beyond their means. Read more…
The stock exchange (aka stockmarket) is “A physical and electronic market in which government bonds and the securities of companies are traded regularly [1]” In a simplified form, the stock exchange is a type of market place where entrepreneurs meet with investors to try and get finance to start their business. The entrepreneur gives some of the equity (shares) in the company to the investor who takes on the risk. The investor is paid dividends for taking on the risk inherent in attempting this business venture. Read more…
Named after John Ruskin, Ruskin College was founded in 1899 by Charles Austin Beard and Walter Watkins Vrooman with the aim to provide university standard education for working class people.
From the start the college was associated with the organised labour movement and these links remain strong today. The subject areas intentionally moved away from the classical studies of Oxford University to concentrate on the Social Sciences, a tradition that still holds true today. Read more…
