The Mitre

[munchingfoo]

Quoting Steveo from 18:23, 18th Dec 2006

Quoting TCT from 12:20, 18th Dec 2006

Quoting Steveo from 01:42, 18th Dec 2006
I don't see that as being either good or bad.

It's simply a fact.

What I do dislike is the social engineering of this Labour government to place people where they don't necessarily fir or belong.

Yes, let's keep the servants in the sculleries and eliminate their ambition.

COCK.

Everyone should go to University then? Leave us with a lot of people with useless degrees who could have went, successfully, usefully and lucratively into another field.

That's a great plan.

Idiot.

I probably fit into the category "not fitting" or "not belonging", atleast in your rather skewed view, and yet I have a degree (which I completed without failing a module - not that I'm pointing any fingers) and I am now doing a well funded PhD.

Damn Blair's Britain.

University is for the intellectual elite, not the social elite. I was intending to infer you fit into the later, but after a second thought I realised that you were neither.


[hr]

Tired Freudian references aside - your mother played my mighty skin flute like a surf crowned sea nymph trying to rouse Poseidon from his watery slumber!

[exnihilo]

The intellectual elite might be expected to know the difference between infer and imply. Just an observation. Though how an arbitrary target of 50% regardless of overall performance satisfies the criterion of being intellectually elite, I have never quite understood.

Obviously university attendance should be about intellect and not social status, entry to a given institution should be about satisfying that institution's entry requirement. What is iniquitous is quotas from certain regions or postcodes, fines for universities that simply do not appeal to certain socio-economic backgrounds, and other clumsy and counter-productive tools of government engineering.

Nobody is saying that people should stay in their sculleries, but a university has a particular character and will appeal to particular people. To deny someone from a certain background entry because the government deems it appropriate that someone from a certain other background should attend instead is not fair. And to offer a place to a 'non-traditional' applicant with lower grades is a slap in the face to every previous 'non-traditional' applicant who worked hard and got the grades they needed.

[October]

Untill I saw this thread I'd never even heard of "the Mitre".
I think they really should of worked on their advertising.

[hr]

I'm Telling you.
It was the Ninja Robot Monkeys that did it.

[munchingfoo]

Quoting exnihilo from 20:12, 18th Dec 2006
The intellectual elite might be expected to know the difference between infer and imply.

How can you tell whether I intended to infer or imply since the substance of the inference or implication was omitted?

P.S. I agree with you on the academic merit issue. There are too many people at University who do not deserve it. I was replying to Steveo about his "who do not fit" comment. This, combined with numerous other posts falsely contrasting his social status with others, led me to believe he was making a comment about "Worthless working class scum" (yes, thats a quote from Steveo)

[hr]

Tired Freudian references aside - your mother played my mighty skin flute like a surf crowned sea nymph trying to rouse Poseidon from his watery slumber!

[exnihilo]

With ease, "intending to infer" makes no sense, you were intending to draw something from what he said but chose not to? Surely in order to have chosen not to you would already have drawn the inference? Intending to imply, on the other hand, makes more sense, you were going to make a suggestion about him, but thought better of it.

Is that not what you meant? Have I drawn the wrong inference? Or are you just trying to defend a weak position?

[munchingfoo]

Quoting exnihilo from 20:41, 18th Dec 2006
With ease, "intending to infer" makes no sense, you were intending to draw something from what he said but chose not to?

Not quite, I was going to infer from evidence outwith the post but on reflection the evidence did not infer my initial conclusion.

In other words, I used my initial mistaken inference to imply, you see?

[hr]

Tired Freudian references aside - your mother played my mighty skin flute like a surf crowned sea nymph trying to rouse Poseidon from his watery slumber!

[The Bitter Historian]

See, this kind of debate makes me remember just how much I do hate the classist attitudes at this university.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I shouldn't be posting this. I'm off down t'pit to dig some coal for a pittance so that I can feed my fourteen children who all live in two bedrooms. Ey oop there, lad, we can go down t'races after this with the whippet!

(Alas, I came to university too late to read the Mitre in print. I am glad of this fact.)

[hr]

http://bitterhistorian.blogspot.com

Life. St Andrews. Budgeting. Some history. Mostly bitterness.

[Hughie Throbbingphallus]

Why did Steveo's remark have to spark such a tangent?

Let's get back to bishop beating -as you see wanking isn't completely deviant, you can carry out the class war on any thread its worse than flamers, or maybe it just is a sort of flaming.

Can't we get back to mine and Comedy's toss.

[hr]

[s]"Ooh Megatron!" -Carry On Transformers[/s]

[exnihilo]

Quoting The Bitter Historian from 23:23, 18th Dec 2006
See, this kind of debate makes me remember just how much I do hate the classist attitudes at this university.

What??

[Fawksie]

Quoting Hughie Throbbingphallus from 23:57, 18th Dec 2006
Why did Steveo's remark have to spark such a tangent?

It's the Sinner for Christ's sake.

[Dave the Explosive Newt]

Quoting exnihilo from 20:12, 18th Dec 2006
The intellectual elite might be expected to know the difference between infer and imply. Just an observation. Though how an arbitrary target of 50% regardless of overall performance satisfies the criterion of being intellectually elite, I have never quite understood.

Obviously university attendance should be about intellect and not social status, entry to a given institution should be about satisfying that institution's entry requirement. What is iniquitous is quotas from certain regions or postcodes, fines for universities that simply do not appeal to certain socio-economic backgrounds, and other clumsy and counter-productive tools of government engineering.

Nobody is saying that people should stay in their sculleries, but a university has a particular character and will appeal to particular people. To deny someone from a certain background entry because the government deems it appropriate that someone from a certain other background should attend instead is not fair. And to offer a place to a 'non-traditional' applicant with lower grades is a slap in the face to every previous 'non-traditional' applicant who worked hard and got the grades they needed.

Agreed - of course. But the original comment that sparked this discussion (that St Andrews is below the norm in terms of lower SEC students) perhaps indicates that something has gone wrong somewhere...

[hr]

Mmmmmmm, cake.
http://standrews.facebook.com/profile.php?id=37102114

[exnihilo]

Wrong? Or just different?

[Guest]

Is the Mitre still being published?

[Dave the Explosive Newt]

Quoting exnihilo from 10:59, 19th Dec 2006
Wrong? Or just different?

Well - something worthy of investigation, I'd put it that way.

Is the Mitre still being published?

I believe the editor left town, persued by a score of tailors specialising in tweeds.



[hr]

Mmmmmmm, cake.
http://standrews.facebook.com/profile.php?id=37102114

[Darshybaby]

Quoting from 19:13, 18th Dec 2006
Is the Mitre still being published?

Haha nah...Andrew graduated (no idea how!) and is back in the States. You should have seen his room, when he first started publishing that thing! Total chaos! But was pretty hilarious....some of the stuff he put in that. Oh dear Cusack!

[beeny]

Quoting Steveo from 18:23, 18th Dec 2006

Everyone should go to University then? Leave us with a lot of people with useless degrees who could have went, successfully, usefully and lucratively into another field.

That's a great plan.

Idiot.

Right you can piss off for a start. Nice bastardation of the english language - looks like your high social status does nothing for poor grammar.

I sincerely hope you're not doin an english degree or so help me my getting in to this 'elite' university will mean NOTHING.

Cock.

[hr]

'But what do I know? I'm a bear; I suck the heads off fish.'

[Lid]

Quoting darshybaby from 16:50, 20th Dec 2006
Andrew graduated (no idea how!)

Rumour has it that your disbelief at the awarding of a degree to Mr Cusack was nothing compared to his disbelief at being awarded at 2.ii rather than a more gentlemanly Douglas.

[hr]

We are not drunks, we are multi-millionaires

[Lid]

Quoting beeny from 17:22, 20th Dec 2006
Right you can piss off for a start. Nice bastardation of the english language - looks like your high social status does nothing for poor grammar.

I sincerely hope you're not doin an english degree or so help me my getting in to this 'elite' university will mean NOTHING.

Cock.

I fail to see how a small grammatical error detracts from his point. Could it, just possibly have been a cunning conceit?

[hr]

We are not drunks, we are multi-millionaires

[the graduate]

Quoting Dave the Explosive Newt from 09:50, 19th Dec 2006
Agreed - of course. But the original comment that sparked this discussion (that St Andrews is below the norm in terms of lower SEC students) perhaps indicates that something has gone wrong somewhere...

Why? As Steveo says it is a fact. It does not necessarily follow that there is a problem. Wolverhampton University is below the norm in terms of higher SEC students - has something gone wrong there?

[Dave the Explosive Newt]

Quoting the graduate from 23:19, 20th Dec 2006

Quoting Dave the Explosive Newt from 09:50, 19th Dec 2006
Agreed - of course. But the original comment that sparked this discussion (that St Andrews is below the norm in terms of lower SEC students) perhaps indicates that something has gone wrong somewhere...

Why? As Steveo says it is a fact. It does not necessarily follow that there is a problem. Wolverhampton University is below the norm in terms of higher SEC students - has something gone wrong there?

To be honest, yes. Part of the university learning experience is the ability to interact with people from a wide spread of cultures and backgrounds, some radically different to your own. If something is skewing this balance (in whatever direction) then it's something the university needs to look into. If there is an artificial barrier to entry existing at a particular university (usually cost for lower SEC students, perhaps perception of the university for higher SEC students) then it's something that should be redressed.



[hr]

Mmmmmmm, cake.
http://standrews.facebook.com/profile.php?id=37102114