[crabcakes_windermere]

oh well, it's not like he's doubling down on ham-fisted misdirection or anything

[Tubby Isaacs]

He's still pushing September's numbers, I see, despite having his arse handed to him about this before. Last 2 days of October alone has 600 Covid deaths announced.

Anyway, people died "with" all those things, not "of" them, surely?

[Catkins]

He tweeted that he didn't know anyone who had been affected by Covid.

I'm not saying that Peter is Mr No-Mates, but...

[crabcakes_windermere]

Glorious

[Tubby Isaacs]

[Biggus Robbus]

Hitchens has entered pointless tit phase.

Christ.

[Bones McCoy]

He's still pushing September's numbers, I see, despite having his arse handed to him about this before. Last 2 days of October alone has 600 Covid deaths announced.

Anyway, people died "with" all those things, not "of" them, surely?

I think it's most certainly "with" in the cases of Dementia and Ill defined conditions.
"Of" with most of the cardiac conditions and cancers.

Hitchens claims many of these are preventable.
If he has a miracle cure (beyond thoughts and prayers), I think he owes the medical profession an insight into his unique genius.

[Bones McCoy]

What is it about the likes of Hitchens, Young and Hartley Brewer that they've all at sea with basic arithmetic.
Could it be that their "classic liberal" education neglected practicalities like numeracy in favour of class shibboleths and nicely curated storytelling.

The Anglosphere establishment has barely moved since: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Two_C ... me%20year.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Exactly so. I used to do the subject-choices interviews with Year 9 going into GCSE. One parent asked me if his daughter could stop doing Maths altogether (none of us in the family have ever been any good at it) and do double Art instead. And he wasn't alone.

That sort of sentiment was probably dominant amongst the Putney Mafia. Not so with the Roehampton Boot Boys, some of whom are now coining it nicely in the city...

[Andy McDandy]

Because maths and science were for the nerds, while the cool kids didn't particularly bother with anything. After all, who needs qualifications when a few phone calls can get you sorted with a plum job at the Spectator?

[Malcolm Armsteen]

More than that - the arts were the only acceptable field of study, dahling, none of that mechanical stuff, that was for the little people

[Bones McCoy]

More than that - the arts were the only acceptable field of study, dahling, none of that mechanical stuff, that was for the little people

I don't have the figures, but wonder how many members of Government have any significant science.
The dishonest Dr Fox, with his Doctoring is one, we might struggle for more.
Does a diploma in fireplace sales count?

Snow's criticisms was that our "leaders" regard classics and humanities as the mark of class (leadership?).
He argued that this left them lost and unable to make sound choices in an increasing technological world.
He also contrasted this with the situation in German and the USA; a point that he ceased to emphasize after his first publication.

I would argue that a sound understanding of science is even more important in an increasingly digital and post-truth world.
Look at the example, and relative decline, of the USA.
Consider its retreat from reason compared to the days of the space race.

Then ask why we would consider the words of folk like Young, Pearson, Hitchens and their wishful thinking on subjects of any complexity.

[Admirable Chrichton]

The sentiment that science (particularly chemistry and physics) and maths are subjects "beneath" right-wing commentators is fairly widespread. I remember Hitchens once complained that the contestants on University Challenge weren't too familiar with some obscure poet, and how there were too many questions on the "blasted" periodic table (his words!)

I mean we all know that its a waste of time applying yourself to demanding subjects, when all being clever requires is having a bit of rhetorical flair and being able to quote C. S Lewis every now and then in a column on the Mail on Sunday.

John Humphries was the same. On junior Mastermind a few years back there was a young lad of about 10 on whose specialist subject was black holes. If his subject knowledge in the round was anything to go by he'd have easily done well in a physics A - Level exam. You couldn't miss the condescending smirk in Humphries manner (you could see Humphries visibly stopping himself from sniggering out loud) when he introduced the lad's specialist subject.

And these pricks have the gall to complain about dumbing down.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Hold my beer;

Alexander Johnson - Classics, Oxford
Rishi Sunak - PPE, Oxford
Dominic Raab - Jurisprudence (BA and LLM), Oxford
Priti Patel - Economics, Keele
Steve Barclay - History, Cambridge
Michael Gove - English, Oxford
Robert Buckland - Law, Durham
Matt Hancock - BA PPE, MPhil Economics, Oxford
Kwasi Kwarteng - Classics, Canbridge
Liz Truss - PPE, Oxford
Therese Coffey - PhD Chemistry, Oxford
Gavin Williamson - BSc Social Sciences, Bradford
George Eustice - No HFE qualifications.
Robert Jenrick - History, Cambridge
Grant Shapps - HND, Manchester Polytechnic
Brandon Lewis - Economics, Buckingham; Law, London
Oliver Dowden - Law, Cambridge
Jacob Rees-Mogg - History, Oxford
Suella Braverman - Law, Cambridge

[Bones McCoy]

Excellent research Malc'.

I make that one out of n-n-n-n-nineteen.

A modest proposal - that the girly swot Dr. Coffey be awarded a deserved post rather more adjacent to fighting Covid.
Good for us, as she could wield he talents at the heart of this crisis, and a fine opportunity for her as well.
The rest of the rabble can go fuck themselves.