Lifestyle topics
John MacFarlane is the chairman of Barclays Bank. He recently deposed his CEO, a man called Antony Jenkins, and temporarily promoted himself, on the grounds that “a new set of skills were required for the period ahead”. The weasle phrase “new skillset (“or ‘skill set’ – no one seems able to decide”) first cropped up …
In 1982 an American college student with the maximum Pell Grant could pay for tuition by working 16 hours a week year-round (or a full-time job in the summer). Today, Pell Grant and wage levels lag behind the exorbitant cost of being at college. The same college student would have to work 35 hours a …
Fifty years ago only a small percentage of people were encouraged to go to university. In Britain the percentage was only about 4%. This was elitist and closed the door on many able people who would have benefitted themselves and the country from a rigorous university education. On the other hand, the old system did …
Continue reading ‘University entrance – have we lost something important?’ »
In South Korea there is a phenomenon called “mukbang” (a rather appropriate sounding word) in which viewers pay to watch strangers binge eat over a live video stream during dinnertime. It’s a way of being with people without engaging with them, eating alone without the bother of conversation. Epicurus once likened eating alone to “leading the …
The British Liverpool Care Pathway was created in the 1990s as a guide to medical staff dealing with elderly people near to death. It’s intention was to ensure people had a dignified and comfortable death. Unfortunately, it has been used by some as a “tick-box” checklist , and in such a way that some patients …
Continue reading ‘Better treatment for the old and the dying’ »
