[mattomac]

Rather an odd article and something that could be quite nasty for Joey Barton.

If Joey is indeed gay, then it is up to him to come out, it is not for a fat waste of space journalist to suggest he does, it's not a surprise that no player has come out with this attitude.

[D.C. Harrison]

Rather an odd article and something that could be quite nasty for Joey Barton.

If Joey is indeed gay, then it is up to him to come out, it is not for a fat waste of space journalist to suggest he does, it's not a surprise that no player has come out with this attitude.

As far as I know, Barton isn't gay. He's certainly got a wife/long time partner and a kid. He was picked on for that article because he "tries" to look modern/clever by using twitter to say what he's reading. He goes to art galleries and the like.

I was pissed off when Private Eye put Barton in Pseuds Corner for tweeting something like "off to bed now to read some Chomsky". Stick to reading comic books, pleb!

[Catkins]

And he's back...with an incoherent attack on the 'smug left' in the shape of author John O'Farrell, while praising Nick Clegg who does the best for his kids by going private.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/artic ... z2JiIYOrYn

What has John O'Farrell done? Well, he's sent his kid to the local state school in Lambeth and spent 8 years as parent governor at said school. Apparently he's wangled a "faux-private education" (even though only 58% at Lambeth Academy get 5 A-C grades at GCSE). Nearly a decade slogging away in the often thankless role of Chair of Governors in an inner-city comp? Pah, it buys advantage apparently: "One imagines, therefore, that being called O’Farrell at Lambeth wasn’t entirely a disadvantage. Not much chance of that kid getting the lousy English teacher in GCSE year, or not being closely monitored and nurtured to ensure untroubled progress through the system.

Anyway, anyone who volunteers at their kid's state school is a sneaky selfish bastard. Give up your time to coach the school football team? You only care about your own kid and put up with the other 10 players on the team for appearances' sake.

And to top it all off, O'Farrell's apparently a hypocrite as he's not Chair of Governors at every single state school in the UK, and he's no longer a parent governor as he has no kids of school age.

[satnav]

I reckon Samuel's is throwing his hat in the ring to replace Littlejohn when he gets the push.

[youngian]

"One imagines, therefore, that being called O’Farrell at Lambeth wasn’t entirely a disadvantage. Not much chance of that kid getting the lousy English teacher in GCSE year, or not being closely monitored and nurtured to ensure untroubled progress through the system.

What does that mean, is Lambeth now a distant outpost of 19th century US Tammany Hall politics?

[Tubby Isaacs]

And he's back...with an incoherent attack on the 'smug left' in the shape of author John O'Farrell, while praising Nick Clegg who does the best for his kids by going private.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/artic ... z2JiIYOrYn

What has John O'Farrell done? Well, he's sent his kid to the local state school in Lambeth and spent 8 years as parent governor at said school. Apparently he's wangled a "faux-private education" (even though only 58% at Lambeth Academy get 5 A-C grades at GCSE). Nearly a decade slogging away in the often thankless role of Chair of Governors in an inner-city comp? Pah, it buys advantage apparently: "One imagines, therefore, that being called O’Farrell at Lambeth wasn’t entirely a disadvantage. Not much chance of that kid getting the lousy English teacher in GCSE year, or not being closely monitored and nurtured to ensure untroubled progress through the system.

Anyway, anyone who volunteers at their kid's state school is a sneaky selfish bastard. Give up your time to coach the school football team? You only care about your own kid and put up with the other 10 players on the team for appearances' sake.

And to top it all off, O'Farrell's apparently a hypocrite as he's not Chair of Governors at every single state school in the UK, and he's no longer a parent governor as he has no kids of school age.

Any evidence O'Farrell's just helping his own kid?

Perhaps he's a hypocrite for sending his kid to an Academy as well, eh?

Academies only need two parent governors. Parents are a nuisance for Gove and all. LEA schools need a third of the governing bodies to be parents.

[Watchman]

When I was governor at my childrens secondary school, we had no direct influence over an individual child unless it was a disciplianry issue, and then it was under the auspices of a pre-selected committee, and if any governor had an interest thet would always step aside. So basically its bollox

[Malcolm Armsteen]

The only place I've seen Parent Governors attempt to act in the interest of their own child (and I've been a governor at 3 schools) was at a grammar school where I was the token Labour governor. Unfortunately the head went right along with it, over the objections of the other governors.

[Fozzy]

In my experience the downside of being a parent governor was that there were times when you had to refrain from wading in on behalf of your child when otherwise you would, precisely because there was a danger that it would be seen as an abuse of that position. It certainly didn't protect my children from the poorer quality teachers in the school. I still remember and resent that useless bat who taught young Miss Fozzy in year 5.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Well, as I always say, when schools are all academies you'll have to write to the Secretary of State with a complaint.

What a brilliant system.

[Messianic Trees]

Give us a break from the sound of silence...

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/artic ... z2QECA73va" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If there is a tribute this weekend it will be for the dead of Hillsborough. Football's dead. There will be no crocodile tears for a prime minister with only a tenuous connection to the national game, no echo of the shallow, glib tributes of various Twitter poseurs.

[Fozzy]

That term "competitive mourning" is a perfect description of what has been going on amongst the right wing press this week.

[davidjay]

That term "competitive mourning" is a perfect description of what has been going on amongst the right wing press this week.

Yet more irony - she hated sport but has given us another one. Freestyle mourning.

[sporran]

Fuck off, Samuel:

Everton fairytale has us hooked - shame it's built on £50m loan sham of Lukaku, Barry and Deulofeu (so Wenger's right to moan)

It is just that the loan system is an anomaly in these days of financial fair play, because the two concepts are idealistically incompatible.

That sometimes happens. Open-door immigration might be considered a good, progressive policy. The welfare state most certainly is. Yet open-door immigration and the welfare state combined are potentially catastrophic to a nation’s resources.

The same principle shadows the loan system and FFP. They might both be considered valuable in isolation, but together they conflict.

[davidjay]

He's right about the loan system being wrong though.