Comments for Real Street

Comment on Propaganda film from Stonewall to be shown in all secondary schools by Pilgrim 1526

Pilgrim 1526 — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 12:32:39 +0000

Thank you Stewart for arguing so coherently and persuasively against this film and its use in our schools.
I am a teacher, currently working for a supply agency, and on Monday I went into a local secondary school for the day for ‘general cover’ duties. My first two lessons were teaching citizenship to two Year 10 groups. I was informed that I would be showing them an anti-bullying DVD, which dealt with sexual orientation. There was no lesson plan and the Head of Department simply loaded the DVD (I didn’t have access to the IT facilities)and told me to press ‘Play’ when I was ready. He said they had been shown parts already and loved the film.
Once he had gone, I introduced the lesson objective and started the film. After a few seconds it was obvious this was not just a video against bullying people on account of their sexual orientation. I was angry that I had not been given all the facts about the film and deeply concerned for the children on the receiving end of this blatant indoctrination. In discussion with the children afterwards, it was clear that many of them had bought the ‘normal and harmless’ line completely, and I had to be very careful in trying to introduce some fact and balance into the lesson during the discussion time at the end. It would have been very easy for one of the class to make baseless allegations of homophobia against me.
I confronted the head of department about the use of the film afterwards and my worst suspicions were confirmed: parents didn’t know the film was being used; there was no designated lesson to give the counter-arguments and this film was regularly used as a stand-alone lesson with no attempt to help children sift out the facts and opinions (or indeed to flag up that some of the assertions were just opinions). In the teacher’s mind the film ticked the box to say the school had dealt with homophobic bullying and the children enjoyed it. It was doing Stonewall’s work very nicely – children completely desensitised to the moral and medical issues surrounding a gay lifestyle.
I am now going to try to turn my experience of this outrageously unprincipled attempt by Stonewall to play with children’s minds into something more positive. There is a great need for educational resources to counter this film and, on the basis of equality, there is every right to makes sure they are out there being used in schools.
Thanks again for your courage in speaking up.

Comment on More Amazing Tesco Dirty Tricks Revealed by Stewart Cowan

Stewart Cowan — Mon, 27 May 2013 16:16:36 +0000

Unfortunately, Sainsbury's has followed the other supermarkets, other than Waitrose, in allowing its poultry suppliers to use GM feed.

Comment on More Amazing Tesco Dirty Tricks Revealed by JJ

JJ — Thu, 23 May 2013 15:31:43 +0000

They also sell foie gras in Hungary and live turtles in China, no supermarket in the UK would dare to support these cruel practices.

Go to Sainsburys instead.

Comment on More Amazing Tesco Dirty Tricks Revealed by Young Mr. Brown

Young Mr. Brown — Fri, 10 May 2013 08:26:22 +0000

Yes, I’m blogging a little. We’ll see how long it lasts!

Comment on More Amazing Tesco Dirty Tricks Revealed by Stewart Cowan

Stewart Cowan — Thu, 09 May 2013 18:49:57 +0000

I’d completely forgotten they did that as well. I see you’re blogging again. I’ll try and tune in, although I don’t have much time these days.

Comment on More Amazing Tesco Dirty Tricks Revealed by Young Mr. Brown

Young Mr. Brown — Thu, 09 May 2013 12:48:49 +0000

I dislike big supermarket chains for many reasons, Stewart. I dislike them because they put rural grocery shops and petrol stations out of business – though I do realise that most of the blame lies with the individuals who fail to support their local shops.

But, like you, what I find really offensive is the cynical public relations gimmickry of big corporations pretending to be caring – of which “vouchers for schools” is just one example. The money is a pittance, and it comes out of the pockets, not of the Tesco directors, but of shoppers, employees and shareholders.

I’ve only been boycotting Tesco for about 18 months, myself – and that was over one of their brilliant wheezes for generously handing over some of their corporate profits to a (cough, choke, splutter) good cause. I’m sure you know which one.

Comment on Tories to Tax Children’s Pocket Money by angryoldgit

angryoldgit — Sat, 04 May 2013 22:03:52 +0000

‘Social Housing’, refers to homes paid for by the taxpayers, that’s those of us who can afford neither, an accountant, or offshore bank account. This tax will hammer our MP’s whose second homes, and often their third are paid for by expenses, paid by, yes you guessed it, us taxpayers. Our honest upstanding MP’s (Masters at Pocket-filling) will obviously demand inclusion, equality under the law – won’t they?

They want old gits, like me out of the home my wife and I bought and mistakenly, thought we owned, to house immigrants, preferably from Eastern Europe, where democracy is an alien concept.

They used to hang Traitors, til Blair ended it, and insisted that prosecutions for High Treason must be made within two years, but prosecutions for indecent assault, up to sixty years. Nice to see they have their priorities right.

Comment on Amazing diagram shows who really runs the World by Stewart Cowan

Stewart Cowan — Sat, 04 May 2013 15:52:22 +0000

Sackerson – It is difficult to see where the lines go. If I have time later, I’ll look at one at random and see what their list of interests actually is.

Comment on Amazing diagram shows who really runs the World by Stewart Cowan

Stewart Cowan — Sat, 04 May 2013 14:44:51 +0000

Thanks Captain. When I posted the link on Facebook this morning, someone commented, “More paranoid delusions from everyones favourite acid casualty.” To which I replied, “Usual Pavlovian response to the truth from cultural casualties like you, Ian.”

These people are either too lazy to check the facts or too scared to admit it might be true – like some of the captives in Plato’s cave, who, when finally released and confronted with reality for the first time, couldn’t handle it and turned back to watch the shadows.

It is annoying because if these people woke up then we would all have a better life.

Comment on Amazing diagram shows who really runs the World by Sackerson

Sackerson — Sat, 04 May 2013 14:22:59 +0000

Deliciously conspiratorial, but when I look closer I can’t see exactly what the threads connect. Is this diagram any more that “the usual suspects” and a lot of cross-hatching?