civilservant

I thought I was ready - I had been previously a good and attentive and present aunt/godmother/cousin. I theorized about how I would love and cherish etc the poppet when she finally arrived, apply logic to solve problems arising, deal sensibly with anticipated challenges... Little did I even guess what it would actually feel like when it actually finally happened... I don't think I started feeling like a whole rational person until she started school! edited to say - I hope against hope that your neighbours' kids are having a good weekend!

your interpretation there may be other reasons for killing rats, but the disease one doesn't wash. let's take humans out of the argument, if you're uncomfortable with that. Let's say instead - should we also eradicate dogs and cats because they are also known vectors for leptospirosis which, as you know, SJ, is the same thing as Weil's disease (which is what rats are blamed for?) If you'll allow me, I'm going to carry on feeling sorry for rats, or for my fellow humans for that matter, if they suffer agonising deaths that are dictated by others' convenience

remind me where I was saying that animal life is of equal value to human life?

Moos, I don't have any disciplinary 'techniques'. My preferred reference book when my child was a baby was Dr Spock. maybe that tells you about me. I nag, and if that doesn't work, I might shout at my daughter when she's doing something I don't like, but that's it, and I will NEVER swear at her. She's never been sent to her room, put on a naughty step or been chucked out of the room, let alone the house. At worst, she might be threatened with being deprived of a treat. When she was a baby and I was having a hard time - and I had mild PND, so I know a little about hard times with a baby - I handed her over to her dad or someone else and took a few minutes time out that way. Edited to say - I entirely endorse cuppa tea's posts. We're all muddling through and like red1, sometimes instinct is the only guide. dullified, a garden may be a nice safe environment, but the point is that the kids are being punished by being put out in it. Don't you think that these kids will ever after associate gardens with the notion of punishment?

Not sentimental - a rat has a life too. If it dies on your doorstep because it was poisoned, surely it is ok to feel sorry for the wretched beast. And people carry disease too. Should we eradicate everyone suffering from a communicable disease because they might just transmit it to us?

you can never predict the impact of non-nurturing treatment on the child. Parents might think they're being loving and caring and acting in their child's interest etc but some time down the line, the child turns around and says 'you never understood what you were putting me through' and it comes as a shock to them. Some children are more resilient than others and will manage to survive whatever their parents throw at them (not speaking literally, of course) - it might even help them to take life's hard knocks. However, others will not, and where children are involved, its always better to be risk-averse I think that naughty steps and time outs are just the current fashion in dealing with parental stress. People have got very pious about not smacking etc but their (grand)parents got the cane and cold baths as recommended ways of dealing with disobedient children. How long before people get all pious about naughty steps and contorlled crying? anyway, back to topic - red1, I think you should go with your instincts and check in with the NSPCC

I read red1's original post last night and felt that something was very wrong too - I agree with Otta and cuppa tea I didn't know about 'time out' but I had heard of the naughty step. I wouldn't use either for my child, not even when she was being a terrible two. I know schools have 'thinking corners' in classrooms, but that's used in the context of a professional teacher-child relationship, and schools have safeguarding policies to protect against abuse. Even the governemnt understands that a child's early years experience and what happens to it in the home is crucial to the adult that a child becomes. Have these parents (and the nanny-people who advocate naughty steps and time-out and controlled crying as child-control measures) thought about the longer-term implications for their children? My blood freezes to think that these poor children are suffering in this way and that possibly well-meaning parents are laying the foundations of adult dysfunction in their children by treating them in such a callous way.

We flew to Sicily with daughter aged 6 months. She was breastfed so no extra luggage/gadgets needed, and breastfeeding when taking off and landing meant that she had a comfortable flight. While we were there, local people went out of their way to help and be friendly - a baby was the perfect ice-breaker.

His essays may have been double-marked by an external examiner or second tutor, which is why his tutor's assessment was inaccurate. This is normal practice. Nothing to be lost by appealing, but if it was indeed double-marked, the likelihood of the appeal being successful may be reduced.

It sounds as if the rats have been disturbed out of their usual space, so they're fetching up on your property - hence the dead ones and the ones running around in plain sight in daylight(?). The cause could be building or road works nearby or someone else putting down poison to kill them. I can't help but feel sorry for them...

:))

The advice seems to be that you've got to give it four hours of your life! David Sexton in the Evening Standard, Peter Bradshaw in the Guardian, Jason Solomon in the Observer, admitted that it made a lot more sense second time round, although Nigel Andrews in the FT only gave it 2 out of 5.

one nation under a groove - funkadelic

ianr - sorry only just seen your question! Thaddeus was the sole survivor, hence his (her?) name Then he too, alas, succumbed... ave atque vale! he was blood brother to Sue's greedy little sprogs

Tomk, I don't understand what you mean by 'deliberate misread'. You can believe what you like, I have no problem with that, it's a free country and some people believe in Santa Claus after all. But... I was surprised before by your casuistry and am now nearly speechless with astonishment at how neatly you've fallen into your own trap, implying as you do that the Catholic Church is capable of using even school admissions to 'encourage' people into joining its fold.

Tony Rabbit, thank you for clarifying. I think we agree that the problem is the closed-shop that operates at faith schools. I have no problem about non-secular education in general, but the point here is that we are talking about a primary school that does not serve its local community. Any argument about how all classes and communities rub along so well and result in a super-diverse school will fail against the single fact that even if a small child lives next door to this school, he or she will not be able to attend it because its admission policy discriminates against non-Catholics. I note with astonishment the unblushing admission somewhere on this thread that 'St Anthony?s admissions criteria is as fair as, if not fairer than, any other school?s in the area. After SEN/looked-after etc, it is dependent on faith, and anybody can be Catholic. It is not a closed shop.' Eh? was the poster expecting to be taken seriously?

Tony R - I do so laud your concern for extremely poor suffering countries and the pitiful existence of their church foundation schools! I myself, although a non-Catholic, went to one of these charitable institutions, of which you seem to know so much, in a country in the 'developing world'. It occupied a vast and extremely valuable tract of real estate in the middle of the capital city and was clearly lavishly funded and endowed. However, it understood the value of taking in children from a wide range of religious backgrounds - even (gasp!) Muslims - provided of course that they could afford the fees (which were pretty steep for this extremely poor suffering country...). So I'm nonplussed when I see church schools in this country try to keep themselves free of pagan/heathen/atheist heresies by keeping non-Christians at arms' length. Another thing - as for providing millions of children the 'privilage of even basic reading and writing', you might want to investigate the phenomenon of the 'rice Christian' and how churches in the Third World have exploited the extremely poor suffering populations. Anyway, back home in ED, how is this school doing a good job? It insists on excluding the majority of the local population, it insists on keeping its kids in some kind of faith-based ghetto, its policies cause nuisance to local residents. Hardly a local asset!

God is a DJ - Faithless

sugar mountain - neil young

American Pie - Don McLean

I suspect that Tarot's friend is talking about restaurant practice in this country rather than true South Asian cooking, and as Nette points out, the key ingredient in a vindaloo is vinegar rather than chilli. My Sri Lankan friends tell me that pepper (Sinhala - gam-miris or 'village chilli', Tamil - milagu) was the original heat source in South Asian cooking. At some point, it was supplemented by chilli (Sinhala - miris, Tamil - milagai or 'chilli fruit') and Sri Lankans use different combinations of pepper and chilli to create a variety of spicy flavours. But I have no idea what South East Asians used, nor the Chinese (Szechuan cooking is searingly hot as well.) A related question - how did the tomato, also introduced to Europe in the 16th century, become such an essential component of Italian cuisine?

Thanks, Admin! I didn't know Peter of Shawbury Rd whom Brummie was remembering, but it might have meant something to others in ED.

the Sound of Silence - Simon & Garfunkel

or you can ask John at Chener Books to order it for you

are the savings from axing lollipop people being recycled into free school meals for all primary school children in Southwark? a more targeted redistributive agenda, therefore? does anyone know?