Economics and similar, for the sleep-deprived
A subtle change has been made to the comments links, so they no longer pop up. Does this in any way help with the problem about comments not appearing on permalinked posts, readers?
Update: seemingly not
Update: Oh yeah!
Friday, December 03, 2010
Great British Traditions
I quite like the new addition to the State Opening Of Parliament - the tradition whereby an incoming government commissions a report on inequality and the benefits system from Frank Field and is then horrified at its quality. The Sacking Of The Field has a nice ring to it, it sounds like the sort of thing that's gone on since time immemorial.
Via Chris at Crooked Timber. I must say I like this "A working class version of Mumsnet" idea; it really does indicate to me that I wasn't swindled when I bought those Philip K Dick drugs.
Afterthought: "Poverty is a much more subtle enemy than purely lack of money", apparently. And we are to have a new "index of life chances". Another one to add to the lists of reasons why there are much worse things for economists to be than soulless calculating machines, and to suspect that we might look back on the days when economics regarded market value as the single measure of all things with a degree of nostalgia. Also, clearly another one to put in the category.Labels: Frank Field, intrinsically risible people (non Denis MacShane category), mtbwotw
this item posted by the management 12/03/2010 03:21:00 AM
Monday, November 01, 2010
Nudge nudge, wank wank
I think this probably falls into the category of "hope in one hand and shit in the other, see which gets full first" rather than "money talks and bullshit walks" strictu sensu, but it does have this passage, which I think exemplifies what it is that I find so irritating about the MTBW series - the sending out of a self-congratulatory press release in anticipation of having actually done the thing:
Windsor and Maidenhead council hopes to join forces with a commercial rewards scheme such as Nectar – whose points can be redeemed in Sainsbury's, Homebase and Argos among others – or RecycleBank, whose vouchers can be spent in outlets including Marks & Spencer and McDonald's. [...] Officers are still working out the practicalities, but it is likely residents would get a loyalty card similar to those available in shops.
Via Chris. Armando Ianucci must be laughing up his sleeve.Labels: mtbwotw
this item posted by the management 11/01/2010 02:13:00 AM
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Money talks and bullshit drinks
Another one for this "occasional series", I think. Questions raised include:
Q1. Is South Dakota a place very similar to London, particularly when the context is drink driving?
Q2. How does this idea, which is rather intensive in the use of the time of probation officers and courts, interact with other decisions recently taken about funding?
Q3. Has a pilot scheme been costed?
Q4. What will the cost per test be, given that we are told that offenders would "pay for the tests themselves", and does this really mean that "it would not cost taxpayers a penny" (ie, are offenders to pay the fully loaded costs of the entire scheme, including enforcement, administration, etc)?
Q5. Would it not have been a better idea to save the press release for when the scheme was actually launched, rather than when the decision was taken to ask the government for permission to carry out a pilot?
A1, A2, A3, A4, A5: Money talks and bullshit walks.Labels: difllic, mtbwotw
this item posted by the management 10/27/2010 08:23:00 AM
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Money talks and bullshit walks, an occasional series
This week in MTBW, Michael Gove:
I am delighted to announce today that Professor Simon Schama has agreed to advise us on how we can put British history at the heart of a revived national curriculum.
What, precisely, has Professor Simon Schama agreed to do?
I am delighted to announce today that Professor Simon Schama has agreed to advise us on how we can put British history at the heart of a revived national curriculum.
No, sorry, that's not actually very precise at all. It sounds as if Professor Schama has agreed to write a national curriculum or possibly to direct the assembly of source and classroom materials for one. But that would be a very large administrative project, of a scale which would surely be incompatible with his existing teaching, writing and broadcasting commitments if he were to have more than token involvement with producing it. Or perhaps he has agreed to put aside those other commitments to concentrate on this, a self-sacrificing act of public service of the sort that should surely be rewarded with a peerage or knighthood. But it doesn't actually say what level of involvement Prof. Schama has committed to. What is the deliverable, when is the due date for Prof. Schama's contribution and, if I may be so vulgar, what sort of fee arrangement has been agreed?
I am delighted to announce today that Professor Simon Schama has agreed to advise us on how we can put British history at the heart of a revived national curriculum.
"Money talks and bullshit walks".Labels: "occasional series" with only one post in them, mtbwotw, occasional series which now apparently have two posts in them
this item posted by the management 10/12/2010 01:25:00 AM
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