A University for Herefordshire - Hereford Times Letters page
Letter page HT 9 April p 7
University would be a huge folly
'TO my dismay, I see there is a move afoot to add to the motley collection of universities in this country by siting another in our own embattled county of Hereford. (Shire is Saxon for 'county' and should never have been put on recently replaced road signs.)
Can no-one see that the reason the UK is still over a trillion pounds in debt and in almost perpetual decline is primarily attributable to the fact that we are not producing things anymore?
I am convinced that only a third of the young people who attend university should do so and that Tony Blair's discredited mantra 'Education, Education, Education' has been a recipe for failure, resulting in a whole generation being conned into thinking that the only way to achieve success in life is to attend 'uni'.
This is a 21st century holy cow inflicted upon them by insidious and subtle indoctrination from the time they enter school to the time they leave college, mainly to satisfy the Government's imposed targets and to encase them in debt - leaving them little time to rebel or question the system.
What we really need are more 'doers' and less frustrated academics, a lot of whom go on to jobs which have nothing to do with the degree they have obtained.
And finally, to cast an eye on our often lamentable and misguided council! Why are they even contemplating a seminary for higher tertiary education when we are told that they scarcely have the resources to keep the public libraries or toilets open?
If there. is money to spare for such a doubtful undertaking as a local university, why are they making savage cuts in almost every other direction, and can they please get their priorities right before committing themselves to another futile and money-squandering exercise.
STEPHEN CONSTANCE
St Martin's Street
Hereford
Letter page HT 9 April p 7
University would be a huge folly
'TO my dismay, I see there is a move afoot to add to the motley collection of universities in this country by siting another in our own embattled county of Hereford. (Shire is Saxon for 'county' and should never have been put on recently replaced road signs.)
Can no-one see that the reason the UK is still over a trillion pounds in debt and in almost perpetual decline is primarily attributable to the fact that we are not producing things anymore?
I am convinced that only a third of the young people who attend university should do so and that Tony Blair's discredited mantra 'Education, Education, Education' has been a recipe for failure, resulting in a whole generation being conned into thinking that the only way to achieve success in life is to attend 'uni'.
This is a 21st century holy cow inflicted upon them by insidious and subtle indoctrination from the time they enter school to the time they leave college, mainly to satisfy the Government's imposed targets and to encase them in debt - leaving them little time to rebel or question the system.
What we really need are more 'doers' and less frustrated academics, a lot of whom go on to jobs which have nothing to do with the degree they have obtained.
And finally, to cast an eye on our often lamentable and misguided council! Why are they even contemplating a seminary for higher tertiary education when we are told that they scarcely have the resources to keep the public libraries or toilets open?
If there. is money to spare for such a doubtful undertaking as a local university, why are they making savage cuts in almost every other direction, and can they please get their priorities right before committing themselves to another futile and money-squandering exercise.
STEPHEN CONSTANCE
St Martin's Street
Hereford
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tony Blair's discredited mantra 'Education, Education, Education' is here and in Panel 5.
Letter page HT 9 April p 7
University would be a huge folly
'TO my dismay, I see there is a move afoot to add to the motley collection of universities in this country by siting another in our own embattled county of Hereford. (Shire is Saxon for 'county' and should never have been put on recently replaced road signs.)
Can no-one see that the reason the UK is still over a trillion pounds in debt and in almost perpetual decline is primarily attributable to the fact that we are not producing things anymore?
I am convinced that only a third of the young people who attend university should do so and that Tony Blair's discredited mantra 'Education, Education, Education' has been a recipe for failure, resulting in a whole generation being conned into thinking that the only way to achieve success in life is to attend 'uni'.
This is a 21st century holy cow inflicted upon them by insidious and subtle indoctrination from the time they enter school to the time they leave college, mainly to satisfy the Government's imposed targets and to encase them in debt - leaving them little time to rebel or question the system.
What we really need are more 'doers' and less frustrated academics, a lot of whom go on to jobs which have nothing to do with the degree they have obtained.
And finally, to cast an eye on our often lamentable and misguided council! Why are they even contemplating a seminary for higher tertiary education when we are told that they scarcely have the resources to keep the public libraries or toilets open?
If there. is money to spare for such a doubtful undertaking as a local university, why are they making savage cuts in almost every other direction, and can they please get their priorities right before committing themselves to another futile and money-squandering exercise.
STEPHEN CONSTANCE
St Martin's Street
Hereford
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tony Blair's discredited mantra 'Education, Education, Education' is here and in Panel 5.