BRFR Cake Stop 'breaking news' miscellany

[First Aspect]

Italy are concerned enough about these events to suspend the free movement of people arrangements with Spain.

Ceuta wasn't in Schengen to begin with, so all of this posturing is an opportunity for other southern European countries to raise concerns about immigration from north Africa.

 

[Stevo 666]

Ceuta wasn't in Schengen to begin with, so all of this posturing is an opportunity for other southern European countries to raise concerns about immigration from north Africa.

True, but knowing that the Spanish government recently did a amnesty for all illegal immigrants and made them legal was likely a factor here. If they don't send them back then Ceuta is too small to deal with them all (population 84,000 iirc, last reported number of arrivals 60,000). In that case, what do think will happen?

 

[First Aspect]

True, but knowing that the Spanish government recently did a amnesty for all illegal immigrants and made them legal was likely a factor here. If they don't send them back then Ceuta is too small to deal with them all (population 84,000 iirc, last reported number of arrivals 60,000). In that case, what do think will happen?

Sort of. There was a Spanish Supreme Court decision that if asylum seekers do not arrive via a land border, their claims have to be processed. Hence, lots of people swam from Morocco to Ceuta (57 didn't make it).

Separately, Spain recently announced the amnesty for undocumented migrants already in Spain. This would not apply to new migrants, but good old social media conflated the two and created this mania.

 

[briantrumpet]

Sort of. There was a Spanish Supreme Court decision that if asylum seekers do not arrive via a land border, their claims have to be processed. Hence, lots of people swam from Morocco to Ceuta (57 didn't make it).

Separately, Spain recently announced the amnesty for undocumented migrants already in Spain. This would not apply to new migrants, but good old social media conflated the two and created this mania.

We probably don't need too many guesses as to one of the major sponsors of the spreading of this misinformation, especially with all the evidence coming to light with Farage and his crew.

 

[Pross]

Second fire in 10 days within quarter of a mile of my house last night, this time a big one on an industrial estate they are still fighting (but judging by the lack of smoke must now have under control). I woke around 3,25 to what I thought was fireworks and thought it was risky in the current conditions as well as anti-social, I then heard sirens I thought might be police going to deal with it then having dosed off again for half an hour got woken again by what sounded like the culmination of a firework display. I didn’t smell smoke but as soon as I came downstairs at 7am I could and it turns out the ‘fireworks’ had been explosions. Could smell the smoke a good 5 miles away when I dropped my daughter at the bus station (the local bus was cancelled as they had to close the road).

Not sure if it’s a coincidence but the first time I woke there were people talking and laughing in the street (it’s a very quiet cul-de-sac where you normally don’t hear anyone after 10pm).

 

[Psamathe]

Italy are concerned enough about these events to suspend the free movement of people arrangements with Spain.

Maybe I don't appreciate the practicalities but does Italy have land border posts checking people walking across. Border posts with Spain?

All my trips to EU cycling I've bounced across borders loads of times, no fences, no immigration officials checking anything, never showing my passport to anybody.

So how is Italy going to implement this?

 

[Pblakeney]

Maybe I don't appreciate the practicalities but does Italy have land border posts checking people walking across. Border posts with Spain?

All my trips to EU cycling I've bounced across borders loads of times, no fences, no immigration officials checking anything, never showing my passport to anybody.

So how is Italy going to implement this?

There are border posts but they are generally unmanned. This could be changed.
They sometimes randomly man them and stop motorised vehicles. I've been waved though while cycling a couple of times.

 

[Psamathe]

Good way to win when you keep losing

Boxer secures Tuvalu’s first Commonwealth Games medal without winning a bout​

Twenty-year-old Tarona Taafaki, ⁠one of five entrants in the women’s 75kg category, received a bye to the semi-finals where she lost on an unanimous points decision to India’s Lovlina Borgohain on Friday. At Commonwealth Games, all boxers eliminated in the semis receive bronze medals.

 

[briantrumpet]

This is an interesting read on the threatened academic redundancies at Exeter University.

https://democracyforsale.substack.c...&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action

 

[First Aspect]

This is an interesting read on the threatened academic redundancies at Exeter University.

https://democracyforsale.substack.c...&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action

That's quite a bleak read, but the author only alludes to the underlying problem. Whilst finding has become increasingly problematic for UK universities, they have been sluggish at reducing waste. The use of management consultants has always been a means to indemnify the decision makers who can't figure it out for themselves.

I still can't see the merit in cutting academic positions, rather than central admin positions, though. Having held one of those positions once, way back in time, I have direct experience how how little some people do for their salaries. I felt fairly pointless in my role, and I could identify possibly half of the people in similar roles scattered though the university who achieved even less.

 

[briantrumpet]

That's quite a bleak read, but the author only alludes to the underlying problem. Whilst finding has become increasingly problematic for UK universities, they have been sluggish at reducing waste. The use of management consultants has always been a means to indemnify the decision makers who can't figure it out for themselves.

I still can't see the merit in cutting academic positions, rather than central admin positions, though. Having held one of those positions once, way back in time, I have direct experience how how little some people do for their salaries. I felt fairly pointless in my role, and I could identify possibly half of the people in similar roles scattered though the university who achieved even less.

Thanks. I was hoping you might reply with your knowledge of current HE.

As yet, there's no mention of axing the well-paid role of graduation music provider. Another four years and I'll just about hit 500 ceremonies, at which point, if I'm not already dead, I might retire.

 

[First Aspect]

Thanks. I was hoping you might reply with your knowledge of current HE.

As yet, there's no mention of axing the well-paid role of graduation music provider. Another four years and I'll just about hit 500 ceremonies, at which point, if I'm not already dead, I might retire.

My experience is far from up to date, I am afraid. But I know quite a few people still doing what I used to do (tech transfer, hypothetically, given how little tech ever actually transfers) and basically nothing has changed. You will get incredibly productive people who help graduates and academics set up SMEs or licence their work, where even trying to do so is a boost to a student or postdoc's CV. These people will work side by side with others who flit from networking event to networking event with absolutely no tangible output. From what I could see of departmental admin teams doing accounts and wotnot, it was a similar story.

Universities are also typically very reluctant to let people go, so there was something of a "repurposing" culture, where roles would be fashioned from the ether and the arse end of some budget or another to keep someone around.

My guess is that some, not all, of the reaction to proposed redundancies is because historically it's not been a thing. That and it seems misdirected to the parts of the university that justified the existence of the institution per se.

 

[briantrumpet]

My guess is that some, not all, of the reaction to proposed redundancies is because historically it's not been a thing. That and it seems misdirected to the parts of the university that justified the existence of the institution per se.

I think that's a fair summary. Obviously I know several and past UoE academics, right from cutting edge commercial-application nano-technology to 'world-leading' research into medieval manuscripts with no commercial application whatsoever. I suspect that their experiences will be different, though I do know that their views of the amount of teaching they are expected to do, and treating all students as 'customers with expectations' does not bring them great joy on the whole.

 

[briantrumpet]

I guess this didn't work.

 

[Ian H]

I guess this didn't work.

View attachment 16555

Not all electioneering works. But we know that.