I write as a non-American, but one who has watched, consumed and responded to American culture and it’s far reaching effect on my world. Firstly, forget all the clichés which are usually trotted out about being divided by a common language. Just as Scots experience the culture of England, our nearest neighbour, so do we...
What a huge pile of stinking, sloppy steaming turds we are being served, on the subject of employee contracts at the moment! It’s been common, in recent times, to hear people bemoan the lack of spelling, grammar, and correct use of English in public discourse. We laugh, when we receive a badly written CV. We...
This is for the benefit of my English friend’s, who don’t know what to think about the current political arguments concerning Scottish independence. Personally, I’m against independence, as are the majority of people in Scotland. Financially, it could work, but there would be 20 years of grief, that I’d rather do without. And frankly, I’m just not...
I am a feminist, if only because many women don’t think it’s important enough to bother about. Let me qualify that; I am for complete equality, in all practical regards, and against illogical inequality. I grew up in a house with three sisters, and my mum earned more than my dad. In the early years...
I was going to compose my thoughts here on the Leveson Enquiry, and the present state of the British Press. The so-called Third Estate has almost literally gotten away with murder, and is only now being called to account. I gave up writing, when I heard Marcus Brigstocke’s brilliant piece about it on The Now...
“This piece of software will quite literally blow your mind!” Really? I don’t think so. I am a literalist. Almost everything I do is driven by logic. I grew up playing with Mecanno, Airfix and home electronics sets. I have three sisters, who are all expert in giving and reading hints, undertones, inferences and covert...
If unemployment rates are at a 17 year high, and youth unemployment (16-24 year olds) especially has risen to 991,000 or 21.3%, then how can it be that businesses are struggling to find talent? Perhaps businesses are being too fussy, or maybe even a higher proportion of the young demographic are unemployable. Surely not, you...
As a recruiter of some 24 years now, I have become wearily familiar with my chosen profession being traduced and derided, along with other careers and jobs, such as estate agents, lawyers, and traffic wardens. 24 years ago this week, I got married. I was only 21, and immediately afterwards (the next week) joined HMS...
As is traditional at this time of year, many commentators are decrying the improved exam results achieved by our nation’s children, and accusing the exam bodies of “dumbing down”. Can this really be true? Are they coddling teenagers ever more each year, so that the poor dears don’t feel bad about themselves? Maybe they are...
Or ”How the media has eroded our right to be stupid” You might think my analogy is a little obscure, but bear with me. You may have noticed earlier this year, that there has been a flurry of marches held worldwide, called Slut-Walks. Mostly attended by scantily clad women, reclaiming the right to wear whatever...
