Dr.Stephen Whitehead
Dr Stephen M. Whitehead Blog
|
MMM (More Mad Men)
OK, here is the first one, or two as it happens, in my new series of MMM. It was actually difficult to decide which of these two characters to put up first. They are both bizarre, dangerous and, of course, completely bonkers. So in the end I decided to give them equal billing. I will leave it to you to decide which of these two men is exhibiting the more toxic masculinity (I know, difficult one that). 1. Feiz Mohamed: Yesterday this Australian Muslim preacher called for the beheading of right-wing Dutch MP, Geert Wilders. Why? Because Geert has been going round saying some not very flattering things about Islam. Geert has been saying such things since 2004, and, not surprisingly perhaps, has been under 24 hour guard ever since. Actually, I could include Geert in the MMM forum - he is clearly dangerous, a racist and bonkers also, but his nemesis, Feiz, makes it ahead (pun) of him. Feiz is obviously retarded, crazy, aggressive and not to be reasoned with. But he is also advocating direct violence. This is why he makes it to the list and Geert does not. (Actually, as an aside, this whole spectacle is so postmodernist and globalised. Here we have a Dutch MP campaigning against the 'Islamisation of The Netherlands', which spurs on a Muslim cleric in Australia to wish him dead, and then it gets reported in the European press, picked up and blogged about by an British guy living in Thailand - couldn't have happened even 20 years ago) In this series I am also going to make a recommendation (sentence if you like) for each MMM who makes it to my list. My sentence is that Feiz and Geert get put on a desert island together and left to get on with it. They have no weapons, no Bible, no Koran. They are given plenty of water but that is it. No radio, mobile phone, or tv. Just themselves and their mutual love for humanity to keep them warm at night. And if they appeal against this sentence I will increase the punishment to include the non-stop playing across the island of Tiny Tim's version of 'The Good Ship Lollipop'. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klwUGSScs0s) 2. David Bahati: Well I know its highly unlikely you've heard of David, unless you are gay - in which case you may have come across the extreme and bizarre utterances of this Ugandan MP who epitomises the most vehement form of homophobia. Yes, if you are a 'man who loves men', then David is not your friend and buddy. He actually hates you. Well, hate is putting it mildly. He loathes you to death. In a recent interview, David makes it quite clear he wants to "kill every last gay person". He is even advocating 7 years imprisonment for those who 'attempt gay sex' - though he hasn't yet clarified at what point in the proceedings an 'attempt' becomes 'a successful try'. Will leave him to sort that out. Maybe its all about the coming rather than the becoming, if you get my drift. http://www.fridae.com/newsfeatures/2010/08/30/10253.ugandan-mp-david-bahati-wants-to-kill-every-gay-person Gays may not love David, but someone does. Who? Well apparently he is backed by a highly secretive radical US-based Christian/political organisation called 'The Fellowship'. My sentence for David is that he be required to compete in 'Mr Gay Universe'. Yes, I know we will have to give him special dispensation, but I think you'll agree it will be worth it. And who knows, he may actually enjoy the experience - it will certainly be a learning curve for him. Though I am not betting on a win. And if David appeals? Well how about he does a nice little turn on Mr Gay Universe performing Tiny Tim's 'I'm a lonesome little raindrop'. (Actually, I'd pay good money to see that). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWO3x-Kr_uE&feature=related Honestly, I didn't choose to put a mad Muslim and a mad Christian together in my MMM forum, they sort of selected themselves. More Mad Men will follow in due course.................. |
|
MMMM: my more mad men....
My 'Mad Men' blogs have attracted comment and attention so I am inspired to take it further. Plus the fact that there is no shortage of material to fill such a blog with. From now on I am going to do a regular 'Mad Men' feature within my blog. This will target those men in the public eye who are clearly delusional, dangerous, and, of course, mad. These will all be titled 'MMM: More Mad Men'. Stand by, one such blog is coming up...... ps. If anyone out there feels I have missed a particularly onerous 'Mad Man' then please let me know. I will consider featuring him for you. |
|
Just William's luck
Interesting, sexy, stories about British politicians are like buses - you wait ages for one and then two turn up. In this case the stories are about gay male politicians, and those who are not gay but are being 'accused' of being gay. Yes, I am talking about William (Hague). (No, not Crispin, we had him last week and anyway he is gay, or so he claims. Keep up). Now I have never had a fondness for William, not since that memorable day in September 1977 when, as a 16 year old 'Tory Boy', he made a rather pretentious speech at the Conservative Party Conference. Thatcher was ruling the roost in those days and even she found him "slightly odd" albeit in a rather amusing way. William went on to become Conservative Party Leader himself, very rich, loads of company directorships, a published author, married to a beautiful woman, a close mate of Seb Coe (who I can confirm is definitely NOT gay), and, today, he sits in British government as the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (actually, I could do that job - had loads of practice). Now a guy like William has never been shy of publicity - evidence his 1977 Tory Boy speech. But I bet right now he wishes he could just get on a private jet and buzz off to a very remote desert island, surrounded only by the calming sound of blue warm water lapping rhythmically on a pure white sandy beach. Well, actually he could. He has enough money to buy the island. But he can't can he. He is an MP, a member of the British government and he must stick it out. You know, when a man has to claim sympathy from the baying press and voyeuristic public by revealing that he and his wife have, over the years, suffered 'numerous miscarriages' but that their marriage is now stronger as a result, then you know its bad. That is desperate stuff.(www.telegraph.co.uk) So what is all this about? Its about sex. As it often is. Poor William is 'accused' of being gay on the basis of his 'close relationship' with his political aide, 25 year old Christopher Myers. William has been forced to 'admit' that he and Christopher shared hotel bedrooms during the election campaign earlier this year. Wow! This is so bad. Maybe they actually saw each other naked, sitting on the loo, washing their private parts in the shower. Perhaps they even heard each other farting in bed. Perhaps they went so low as to watch a soft porn hotel movie together, their thoughts wandering, cheekily, to their absent loved ones. And, just maybe, they did a little more together. Who knows? Who bloody cares? As I say, I have no particular fondness for William but he should just tell the sexual reactionaries to F-off. Under no circumstances should he heed the words of that right wing bigot, Lord Tebbit, and resign from politics. Why? Because if he did it would imply that sex between men was somehow wrong. And it would encourage the vapid British tabloid press to carry on with these modern day sex-obsessed, witch hunts. Two male colleagues sharing a hotel bedroom (twin beds at that) while away on work - why is this such a big deal? More to the point, why is it even making the newspapers? What does this tell you about British attitudes towards sexuality? It is so sad. We really have to move on from this sort of situation. But we cannot. The reason being because the UK, like the USA, is in a state of denial about human sexuality. They have been since the 17th century. And its getting worse. Yes, I do believe the West is going through a stage of guilt-infested conservatism. And it is not pleasant to behold. Though if you look at the history of Western Europe you'll quickly see that religious puritanism has never been far from the surface (another reason not to live there). I am waiting for the day some British MP, having been found with his 'trousers down' just turns round and says "so what?". Just William's luck to be hounded by the British reactionaries, but without apparently even having had the pleasure of the illicit sex which he is being accused of. Better luck next time. |
|
Booze or Weed?: take your poison
There is a big debate now going on in the UK about the effects of alcohol. To be precise, excessive alcoholic drink consumption, particularly with the younger generation. Previous UK governments relaxed the licensing laws and this is being blamed on the fact that British hospital admissions due to alcohol have, in the past 5 years, risen by 845 per day, to one million a year. 15,500 Brits now die each year from alcohol abuse. I can confirm its a major problem. If you go into most any northern English city or large town after midnight, especially at weekends, you'll find that the vast majority of people out and about are drunk. The only ones who are not are the taxi drivers taking them home, the police arresting them, and the restaurants and pubs kicking them out. Many of these drunken individuals become violent, both men and women. So if you are planning a night out in, say, Manchester then make sure you are on your way home by midnight. Otherwise you risk slipping on someone's vomit at best, or being violently assaulted at worst. You think I am exaggerating? No way. Anyway, this quote below is from some British wit (pen name 'Riven87') who an hour ago made this contribution to todays' Independent newspaper discussion about this problem, comparing the effects of alcohol abuse with that of cannabis. I think its a brilliant quote, so just had to share it with you. Alcohol - Legal - Effects: Become violent; attack strangers, police, your spouse, hospital staff; vomit and urinate in the street, on cars, in letter boxes; theft of various assorted objects not bolted down. What happens if you drink too much alcohol? - You die. Cannabis - Illegal - Effects: Become extremely hungry; getting off the couch is like a protracted mission to Mars; mundane television becomes weirdly fascinating; sex feels fantastic. What happens if you smoke too much cannabis? - You fall asleep. Wonderful. Done my share of the weed, though don't do it now. Enjoyed it at the time. Actually, a nurse I was dating put me on to it. (I can confirm that its true what they say about nurses). Anyway, you can find the whole discussion, about the alcoholic United Kingdom, currently live, at: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/alcohol-related-hospital-admissions-soar-2067327.html |
|
KFC and the resistant cyclist
I've just been sitting on my patio, looking out across my garden (and ponds), having my dinner and drinking an ice cold Singha beer. Now because my wife, Mam, is in Bangkok on business for a couple of nights, I have had to make my own arrangements for food. Normally she cooks Thai dinner for myself, Idea (our daughter) and Somchai - an 11 yr old Akha (hill tribe) boy who we have sort of informally adopted. But tonight I have had to sort myself out. The kids are sorted anyway - a local restaurant is booked to bring them their Thai food each evening while Mam is away. And don't ask me why I don't cook. There would be no point in it, not least because the two kids would definitely not eat any Thai food cooked by me. Wise decision. So what about my dinner? Well, I could have gone out to a restaurant but didn't fancy that this evening, so chose the easy option - a KFC takeaway. There are many KFC restaurants in Chaing Mai and the nearest to me is situated in a supermarket complex about 10 mins drive away. So that did it. 5 pieces of original KFC chicken, and fries. Not healthy, I know, but I can handle it occasionally. And this evening was such an occasion. It is not just KFC that is here in Chiang Mai, but every major global fast food outlet - all the usual ones, plus Swensens, Haagen-daaz, and, more recently, some Japanese Suchi fast-food restaurants which the Thais love. Believe me, when it comes to food we are spoilt for choice. For you Brits reading this, and who have never been to southeast Asia, you might be surprised to learn that Tesco is here big-time. There are at least two massive Tesco superstores here, plus many Tesco Express, 24 hour mini-stores. And we have Boots Chemists (two stores), Makro, and Carrefour (the French supermarket chain). Ikea have just opened in Bangkok so I reckon its only a matter of time before we have them here too. Plus we have two large department stores and more shops than you could ever visit in a single lifetime. Fifty years ago, this place had pretty much nothing, and certainly no big stores. Nor did Bangkok. That is just two generations ago. For many of the older local, rural, Thais who have only ever lived in Chiang Mai and never traveled beyond the city, then all this rapid and dramatic change must come as a bit of a shock. Globalisation has suddenly landed in their back garden - (literally in some cases) - and they have yet to adjust. Occasionally one gets a glimpse of this. Two days ago I was travelling along one of the super highways which circumvent Chiang Mai city, speed around 100kph on the outside (fast) lane and suddenly I see this old bloke on a push bike right in front of me, leisurely cycling towards me in the fast lane! He seemed completely oblivious to the traffic bearing down on him, just carried on cycling wrong way down this one-way super-highway, as if it was the most natural thing to do. For him, the road was just open and a means to get from A to B. This is what he's always done. Why should he change just because there are now loads of Toyota 4x4s, Honda saloons, BMWs, trucks and wagons, and dozens of motorcycles, all using the same road - but all going in the opposite direction to him! Globalisation or not, he didn't give a monkey's - he was not for turning! Anyway, I think he survived. Must have very good karma. For a really good summary of what Chiang Mai is now like go to; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiang_Mai I don't know who wrote this page but they've done a good job. Lots of useful info on it and very up-to-date. |
|
Crispin, James, and the King of Swaziland
I am not sure I can find the words to summarise these different but related news items. So I will leave it to you. See if you can spot the common theme. 1. Crispin Blunt. Crispin Blunt, Britain's Justice Minister has announced today that he is separating from his wife and that he is gay. Blunt has 'asked for privacy as he comes to terms with his homosexuality'. BBC News, 27th August, 2010. OK, Crispin. So you are gay. Its not a problem. It never was. Welcome to the world of complicated sexuality. You are 50, but you got there eventually. I know, you are a Conservative and alas such political standpoints are not known for their intellectual insights into, or acceptance of, the real world of diverse sexual and gender identities. In which case it is not surprising that throughout your political career you have, directly or indirectly, promoted the discourse of 'compulsory heterosexuality', nuclear family life, while combining this with at the very least a general antipathy towards LGTB people. But you have finally 'come out' and believe me, you're going to feel a much better man as a result (sorry, not sure I intended a pun there). In fact you might now even be able to read the unintentionally hilarious website http://christwire.org/2010/08/is-my-husband-gay/ and laugh out loud rather than be tempted to use it as a research source for your next political statement on gay rights. Whereas a while back you could perhaps have found inspiration and temporary existential solace from such crass right-wing Christian websites, maybe today you will see their 'belief system' for the mindless stupidity it really is. And, on a very personal note, no more will you have to wonder about any "strange sexual demands" which kept popping up in your marriage. Now you know where they came from. (only joking). So in the spirit of comradeship (we're all bi actually), and an earnest desire to further your path towards enlightenment and understanding (not only about you but the rest of us), I direct you to the following websites. Clearly, as a senior British politician you will now be seeking to use your political profile, power, and newly found candid realism, towards promoting sexual and gender equality. In which case you will quickly need to get up to speed on gay rights, identity, and the rest. So here you go: http://www.anythingbutstraight.com/ But before you do, please just watch this youtube video. Really, its a hoot. Yes, as we both know, the gays have all the fun. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kelUCEcdO8M&feature=player_embedded# 2. James Ellroy. The 'Demon Dog' of American crime fiction, James Ellroy, and his lifelong pursuit of women. (see The Times, today - discussing his new memoir 'The Hilliker Curse') Apparently, James, like Crispin, is also obsessed with sexuality, though not quite the same type. James, throughout his writing career, has never tried to hide the fact. Unlike Crispin, he never had to 'come out' of any closet. He's never been in one. As he puts it (and I love this quote): "To me there is nothing on earth other than women. Its why I get out of bed every morning. You have the opportunity to have a cup of coffee, write, serve God, and you may damn well meet a woman." http://www.goodreads.com/interviews/show/49.James_Ellroy Apparently James considers himself an eternal romantic, always in search of 'The One'. From what James indicates, this lifetime quest has clearly not been without its moments. That is the thing about searching for 'The One'. One can have so much fun while doing it. Its not like saying, 'OK, I am going to make my life's work the exploration of Mars; navigating the bottom of the Atlantic ocean; breeding rattlesnakes; or bringing peace on earth. No, I am going to search for 'The One'. Much more fun. Believe me, this I know. James, if you get a free moment from all your 'searching' please come to Chiang Mai and call me up when you get here. I will introduce you to some hardened veterans of this 'eternal search'. They sort of congregate here like frogs in a breeding pond. Not sure why, but they do. Admittedly, those in their 80s are slowing down a bit now, though not as much as you'd expect. I know you'll enjoy it here. Trust me on that. 3. King of Swaziland. King on lookout for bride number 14. The King of Swaziland will attend a dance by thousands of girls to select a new wife after No.13 was caught in bed with a minister. (The Times, today). Really, what can one say to this? I am still laughing. Though apparently the king was not so amused. Mind you, I reckon he's having more fun tonight than the other two participants in this affair: He has placed his 22yr old ex-wife under house arrest, while his one-time friend and minister, Ndumiso Mamba, now faces execution. Come on, king. Surely that's taking it a bit far. Its only sex. Don't get too hung up about it, or your minister. You and I both know 14 was being greedy. As my mum used to say "your eyes are bigger than your stomach". Though I think in your case we should replace 'stomach' with another part of your anatomy. And anyway, you need some good karma right now. Choosing a wife in Swaziland is a bit like motorbiking at 150mph in a snowstorm - but with poor eyesight and no helmet. Highly risky. Just be careful who you choose for wife No. 14. Do you know your country has one of the highest rates of Aids in the world, with over 40% of the population HIV positive? In life, as in love, what goes around comes around. Doubt me on that? Well, just ask Crispin and James. |
|
MMM - more mad men.......
I would like to draw your attention to a current news item. It concerns the Philippine ex-policeman who, on Monday, hijacked a bus in central Manila, threatened to kill the passengers unless he was reinstated in his job, and then duly shot dead eight hostages (all Hong Kong tourists) when the police attempted to end the hijacking. I am not directly interested in the actual circumstances, nor indeed whether or not the Philippine police did a good job, though of course my condolences go out to the relatives of those murdered. I am interested in the larger phenomenon which this tragedy relates to. That is the phenomenon of men killing innocent strangers in order to appease their own emotional pain. I know, you may well sigh at this point but bear with me. Today we have so much international focus on the actual mechanics and conditions of the hijacking and siege, while most of us forget, or fail to realise, that this is yet another example of the frailty of men's masculinity. Now all men, including me, have frail masculine identities. There is no avoiding it. But why do some men, indeed so many men, kill at random when they lose the argument - when they feel aggrieved, angry, hurt? I just want you to ponder on this question. What is it about men which is fatally flawed? Because something is. We have so many examples of this phenomenon in the USA to the point that when another manic American male goes out and kills his fellow citizens at random it now barely makes the international news. Reflective Americans blame their 'gun culture'. Fair enough. But then it happens in Europe - look at my blog of 2nd June which refers to shootings that week in northern England by another 'mad male'. And we have seen almost identical events in Australia, Russia, China, and now this week, in the Philippines. If guns are not available, these men use knives, axes, anything they can lay their hands on. And they kill anyone - other men, women, even young children. It is all around us. It could well happen to someone, somewhere, near you in the not too distant future. It is that close to all of us. But still we are not facing up to the question. Which is: Why men? What is it about men and their masculinity which is so fucked up? Because something is. We have to stop thinking of such killings as being 'natural'. We have to stop thinking of these examples of random, horrific, violence, as 'natural male behaviour'. It is not. Why I can I claim that? Because not all men do it. Only a few, a minority. But we hardly ever see women do this and to be honest, they have probably more reason to be angry than do men. But women are not going to pick up an AK47 and blast innocent people to death. At least I hope not. I hope that women don't start to copy this tragic male behaviour. OK. So we know its men, and not just young or old men, but all adult males who are vulnerable to carrying out this sort of violence. What do we do about? I do not know. But maybe we can start by teaching males about peace and passivity, calmness and gentleness, love and kindness, forgiveness and honesty. You know, good old Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist principles. Not aggressive, individualised, masculine competitiveness. In other words, teaching men how to be emotionally intelligent, not just for their sake but for the sake of their families, our children, the human race. It may not solve it all, but for sure it would be a start. |
|
Miss Universe - A postmodern pastiche of 'real' brilliance
Just had a very unusual, slightly disorientating, experience, which I must share with you. In work-related email contact this morning with a friend and colleague of mine, he mentioned to me that I should watch 'Miss Universe' on Thai tv, being broadcast at the time live from Las Vegas. Now I have to say this is not the sort of thing that he or I, normally watch. Neither of us would ogle these 'beauties' in 'normal life' - (well, maybe I would). But as a postmodern spectacle for the global masses it is fascinating to deconstruct and this is what he was indicating. So I duly switched on my tv to channel 7 and there it was: glitzy, glamorous and completely OTP cringeworthy 'entertainment' from Las Vegas (where else?). I had no idea who the two presenters were, but was fascinated by the guy as he had this scarf wrapped round his head and was making strenuous efforts to appear 'cool'. Checking him out on google I find he was a 'successful' contestant in the USA's very own 'Big Brother' series. So he is very famous then. Still no idea who his female co-presenter was. Though no doubt she must be just as famous. And the ladies themselves? Well they were attractive but in that chocolate boxy, saccharine way which the Yanks especially seem so attached to. All long dresses, sequins, hair going off in different directions, and very fixed, white tooth, big, big, 'yes I am a genuine and sincere person, and loving every minute of this' smiles. What an effort it must take. And this is just the final. Think of all that endlessly parading up and down in front of the leering crowds over the past months in order to get this far. I switched on just 30 minutes before the 'climax' so caught the selection of the last five contestants (30 minutes was enough actually). As each was called out they could barely contain themselves, while the five left standing continued to smile fixatedly, almost as if their very lives depended on it. I can imagine they were not smiling too much inside. Each of the final five then had to answer one question (picked at random from a box). Questions like; 'what negative or positive impact do you think the internet is having on today's young people? (I thought, fuck, that's a tricky one to answer in one minute, but she gave a good answer - Miss Mexico I think it was). Another question was, 'what was the big mistake of your life, how did you overcome and what did you learn from it'? I was really hoping the contestant with this question would answer something like "my biggest mistake was entering this sterile, vacuous contest for juvenile-minded, impotent old men and pathetically ego inflated nobodies like yourself" but she didn't. Instead, she answered by saying how much she loved her family and that she hadn't made any mistakes in her life because her family's love had always protected her. That was Miss Philippines. Not surprisingly, she didn't win. So we had these two, plus Miss Jamaica, Miss Ukraine, and Miss Australia. (I think Miss UK got the boot well before this stage). Four of these five all looked like sisters - same features, size, height, hair styles (almost) and general look, the only one who looked like she had any character - and was my preferred choice - was Miss Jamaica. Lovely. (Yes, I admit, I would have taken her out to dinner, and still will if she sends me an email). But Miss Mexico won it. Miss Jamaica was runner up. So well done young lady, I hope you have a great year as 'Miss Universe' (bloody hell, the whole thing is so tacky), and that it changes your life for the better. But make sure you keep the lecherous males at a distance because they are going to be swarming around you like randy dogs to a bitch on heat. (Talk about a 'trophy catch': "Hey, bro, you'll never guess who I scored with last night".) But the real star of the show (broadcast live from that most sophisticated and cultured of modern American entertainment palaces - the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino) was the organiser and apparent 'brains' behind the whole sad affair - Donald Trump. The cameras had him at one point towards the end - and there he was; sat at the front, surrounded by what one assumed to be his acolytes and sycophants, not smiling, well, just barely, looking every bit as if he had inadvertently stumbled into some bizarre alternative universe, one inhabited by the intellectually challenged and cast-offs from some reality tv show. Which, on reflection, he had. Donald, you don't look well. In fact I half expected to see you hooked up to some sort of life support machine. Though it could just be your haircut. At the end, when the presenters showed how Miss Universe was going to be physically crowned as "royalty" (yes, they said "royalty") - this proud and important coronation to take place in some mock Las Vegas castle complete with 'medieval attendants' - I nearly threw up. So there you have it. The Donald Trump version of Miss Universe. Wonderful. So tasteful; the ultimate postmodern pastiche of manufactured authenticity and signified sincere reality. Good on you Donald. Hope you can keep it up. |
|
How long is a record?
How long is a record? Well, in the case of the fastest time ever set for the 5000 metres by a British athlete, it is exactly 28 years. That is one long time in athletics. Especially in an era of drug-enhanced performances. I can recall David Moorcroft setting this record at the Bislet Games in Oslo in the late summer of 1982. It was the most amazing run - a time of 13.041 minutes. Not only was it the fastest British time for 5000m, it was also a world record - Moorcroft the first person under 13mins for 5000m. However, he never again equalled that stunning performance. It was his peak. But what a peak. That was a generation ago, but now the record is broken. The king is dead, long live the king. And who is the new king of british distance running? Why, Mo Farah of course (see my blog of 1.8.2010) Last night Mo ran 12.57.94 minutes for the 5000 and duly broke Moorcroft's 28 year old record. He did it at the Weltklasse meeting, in Zurich. OK, I accept that he still came 5th in the race, but last night he was running against the world's best and anyway, that just shows much athletics middle distance has progressed this past three decades, and mostly at the hands of the East Africans. Just 4 weeks ago Mo was winning the 10k and 5k races in the European Champs. For sure, he has more to come yet. This is not his peak. Hopefully that will come in the 2012 London Olympics. Looking forward to it. Wish I could run half as fast. |
|
The Terrors of Performativity - Robotics of Schooling
Today I change direction. Today I am looking at something which has attracted my attention, and at times frustration and anger, for more than a decade. It is 'performativity'. Now unless you have a particular academic background then this sociological concept won't be familiar to you. But trust me, you know its practice only too well. Performativity in organisations is an obsession with targets, measurable outcomes, pseudo-scientific assessments/evaluations, inspections, performance indicators, all of which, at least in the UK public sector, get translated into positions within League Tables. So we have University, College and School League Tables. We have League Tables of Hospitals in terms of pretty much every criteria from death rates to the quality of the canteen food, and we have League Tables for Social Workers, the Police, Civil Servants, though surprisingly enough, not for British Members of Parliament, or indeed Prime Ministers and their cabinets. An academic friend and colleague of mine, Prof Mike Dent, and I produced a book called 'Managing Professional Identities; knowledge, performativity, and the 'new' professional' (Routledge, 2001). In it we, and the other contributors, explore this concept. And our conclusion is that performativity is an insidious device which purports to produce 'clear results and measurements' but actually leads to stress, loss of trust, deprofessionalisation, and simplistic, instrumental, responses to their job by otherwise professional persons. This is why performativity is important: Because it changes the very nature of work and organisations. The meeting of the target becomes the single only aim. Not the particular needs of the client, customer, or, indeed, the pupil. Just follow the system, have the meetings, produce the paper trail, show 'evidence' and that way you'll get a good inspection and consequently end higher up on some spurious League Table. But most of all, you'll get to keep your job. Successive Labour governments since 1997 introduced performativity into the UK public sector and it is here to stay: Politicians just love to be able to spout off that their department is 'meeting its targets'. But does it work? Well for that judgement I will let two others give their views on performativity (both writing on performativity in education - probably the professional arena where it is now deployed to such devasting effect in the UK). "It is the data-base, the appraisal meeting, the annual review, report writing, the regular publication of results and promotion applications, inspections and peer reviews that are the mechanics of performativity. The teacher, researcher, academic are subject to a myriad of judgements, measures, comparisons and targets. Information is collected continuously, recorded and published - often in the form of League Tables, and performance is also monitored eventfully by peer reviews, site visits and inspections. Within all this there is a high degree of uncertainty and instability. A sense of being constantly judged in different ways, by different means, through different agents and agencies...We become ontologically insecure: unsure whether we are doing enough, doing the right thing, doing as much as others, or as well as others, constantly looking to improve." "This [concept of performativity] relates to the exact things I have realised about the British education system. It explains perfectly what I like to call the left brain, robotics of schooling. It is about how the teachers feed us information and reward us through league tables and publishing to the class etc, and this changes, our performance is judged in different ways and this is progressive over time. We are constantly being held up against fellow pupils and shunned if we are beaten by somebody else, thus making us insecure and uncertain, and ultimately makes us feel like we aren't doing enough, or the right thing, or as well as others, and making us constantly trying to improve, be excellent." The first quote is from Professor Stephen Ball's article titled 'The teacher's soul and the terrors of performativity' in Journal of Education Policy, 2003, 18:2. (page 220). The second quote is from an email I received yesterday from my 14 year old son, Robert. He is currently studying at what is generally regarded as a 'good' school in the north of England. He is about to do his final year of GSCE's. (It was he who raised this issue of the 'robotics of schooling' (his term) first with me, I didn't raise it first with him.) Something is badly amiss in British education. Fortunately, the Brits still have one of the best HE systems in the world, but they have to be careful. This obsession with targets actually ends up reducing the quality of teaching and learning. It is just too simplistic, too instrumental. People do not learn in a predictable, formative, linear way. Learning is unpredictable, messy, fragmented, up and down, it has highs and lows. Targeting misses all that. It also misses the very important truth that there are different types of intelligence; and these are not all simply reducible to the result of a test or exam. Today the A level results come out in the UK. For sure, there will be higher results than ever before. But even so we are increasingly hearing some disquieting voices of dissent from the corporate world. Despite the UK's so-called 'good school system' the likes of Tesco, and similar major employers are saying that they are increasingly having to teach Britsh people the basics of writing, maths and reading when they start work with them. The British school system has somehow not managed it, despite over a decade of having 'performativity' imposed upon it. My son Robert is very clever. You can see that from his writing, his thought processes, his reflexivity, his assessment. By any measure he is in the top 5% of learners in the UK. But increasingly I am realising that this is in spite of, not because of, his teachers, the school he attends. I am sure his teachers are doing their best under the circumstances, and at the end of the day, they are the ones who have to 'manage the ontological insecurity' of this process every day of their working lives. I feel sorry for them, truly I do. But I will be glad when Robert finishes compulsory education and then can really start to flower intellectually. Likely this will be at some university, though I no longer assume it has to be a British one. But his schoolteachers can no longer help him. In which case Robert will have to read and learn on his own volition - which as you can see, is what is happening. His teachers are just too busy - obsessed now- with trying to meet the bloody target. |
|
'Dignified humanity' (an oxymoron?)
At the risk of repeating myself, and indeed getting predictable, I must just refer to today's headline story concerning the comments by Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google. He has issued a 'stark warning over the amount of personal data people leave on the internet and suggested that many of them will be forced to change their names in order to escape their cyber past' (Independent, today). Well, as I said last blog, I have found myself in the zietgeist for sure. OK, Eric, not discounting the fact that 1. you've made billions out of the internet, 2. have made your billions from providing us all with precisely the access to information which now concerns you, and 3. are about to launch google's own version of 'facebook', then thanks for the warning. It is duly taken. Indeed, i remember thinking the very first time I posted my first blog, over 18 months ago, that my words would go out into the ether and never return - to be accessible to anyone who was duly bothered to read them. A rather daunting moment actually. I was quite nervous at what I would write and how it would be received by the faceless few who would read it (much less so now - too blase maybe?). Though as a published writer and academic I was already in the knowledge dissemination profession anyway and just approached the blog as an extension of that process. Even so, it is clearly a powerful medium and none of us know exactly what the consequences of the internet are for the human race, never mind ourselves. So I still watch what I write. I hope I always do. (those of you who read me regularly may have spotted that I stay clear of certain topics/personalities/themes. But not, of course the ones that matter. And you and I both know what they are) Anyway, back to Eric. As he goes on to say (and these are quite profound words): 'the internet is the first thing that humanity has built that humanity doesn't understand. The largest experiment in anarchy that we've ever had.' What, more than the Sex Pistols?! OK, yes he is right. Which is the argument i have been making in my last two blogs. But we are now beyond the point of no return. We are stuck with the internet. it is so empowering (well, I can now work, teach, research and write quite comfortably in Chiang Mai, don't need to live in the UK; I can see and speak to my various kids on skype, for free, no matter where they are in the world; and communicate with everyone else in my life). I cannot live without it! It is truly a 'free-for all' and we are seeing, as a consequence, the absolute rawness which is at the heart of humanity - warts and all. Everyone, everything, is exposed (often literally). It completely and totally, starkly and unforgivingly, illuminates the strengths and weaknesses of human beings. I look at facebook and the like and you know what strikes me, apart from the fragility of the human ego - the exposed and trembling heart of our ontological insecurity - I see a chronic lack of human dignity. Low self-respect, low self-esteem. I see existential anxiety rite large. In our desire to be visible - (someone, anyone, please look at me!) - we all come tumbling down to the lowest common denominator. I remember a famous media person (think it was Rupert Murdoch) saying that no one lost money by underestimating people's love of trash. And he should know. Humans are not a dignified species. Elephants have dignity - it oozes from their thick hides. Dolphins, Whales and Porpoises have intelligence and dignity - and thereby give the appearance of recognising they are better than us. Emperor Penguins have loads of it - especially when standing stoically in an Antarctic blizzard. And that most graceful of creatures, the giraffe, even though cursed with the most unlikely skeletal framework, manages to conduct itself in way which makes us humans look quite hopeless. (have you ever seen a giraffe, or indeed any other animal trip over itself? - of course you haven't. Well, maybe the odd dog, but you get my point). No, we are many things but we are not dignified. Those of us who do have some dignity have had to learn it. And we've probably learned it by trial and error. All those nights when we got plastered in some bar, stripped off and danced on the pool-table (yes, done that, or the equivalent), and then one morning we wake up, hung-over, but a little wiser. Never again, we say. I want my dignity back, we cry. And so we become dignified. At least some of us do. Others never quite make it. For them, the bar and pool table is their only place of existential validation. But then, even for the supposedly dignified among us, along comes facebook and twitter, and all is lost. Humanity gets exposed. And it is not a pretty sight. In our scramble to be seen and gazed upon by others, so our dignity flies out of the window. We didn't have it long. It was only ever a very light covering over our more base instincts. (think of the Romans, all those beautiful togas and profound speeches in the senate, and then in the afternoon slaughtering innocents in the amphitheatre). We may have thought we were cultured and sophisticated, but really we humans are just undignified animals. Reality television is another example of the same problem. What do these people think they are signing up for when they sign up to be living in a house full of tv cameras 24 hours a day? And why do people watch this rubbish? OK, I know, its voyeurism. We actually cannot resist finding out if people are actually 'just like us'. Well now we know. They are. Depressingly. |
|
The Internet and my zeitgeist moment
Honestly, I didn't realise that I had touched a vein. When I blogged about the internet just three days ago I really did think I was having an 'original moment'. OK, ego now down a little, clearly I am not. What I am doing, apparently subconsciously, is contributing, in a very minor way, to the current zeitgeist moment, at least in critically questioning the worth and consequences of the internet, and especially social networking sites. The evidence for this is that only today I pick up two articles which pretty much reinforce my own concerns about this ubiquitous communication device. First one has come to me from Dr Paul S, in Ireland. Having read my blog he kindly sends me this link in yesterday's Irish Times, proffering the connection with my thoughts about what facebook and the like indicate for our real-time 'social networking' needs and skills. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2010/0814/1224276813508.html (thanks Paul, hope all is well with you! - I appreciate this one, will be using it in future writings on modern relationships, for sure.) Then today I read this in the Guardian online website: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/aug/15/internet-brain-neuroscience-debate I sense this 'brain disturbance' to be accurate, though not at all sure what we can do about it. Maybe just make sure we read excerpts of 'War and Peace' or maybe something by Nietzsche, in between our facebook messaging. Finally, my friend Trey, (he the American in Japan whom I mention in my last blog) sends me this email message....... Liked the blog entry. I think you have hit on something that is The phrase 'information overload' suddenly takes on a whole new (literal) meaning. 'Facebook makes you fat'. A bit of viral marketing (internet enabled, of course) of that particular slogan could maybe solve it. I am not optimistic. |
|
The Internet - magnifying the best and the worst in us
My theme in this blog is something that I am likely to return to time and again over the course of the next few months. Basically, I am reflecting on the value of the internet. I know, like you probably, I would now find it hard to live without (for one thing, I couldn't write this blog). And its worth remembering that only a decade or so ago most of us did live without it. But not now. It is in our lives and apparently here to stay - so long as the natural energy which enables it continues to flow. But that is not my concern. My concern is with the mountains, actually Everests, of complete and utter garbage which now infest the internet. We call a lot of it 'social networking', which is an endearing term, though actually there is too often little of the social or the networking in it. Mostly it is about ego and narcissism. That is, twitter and facebook (prime examples) are of little use to humanity in themselves, they make no contribution whatsoever to the sum total of human knowledge, they are merely vehicles for the ignorant, egotistical, lonely, insecure, and sometimes downright insane, to propogate their opinions. Of course, I know that lovely people, like you no doubt, do invest some time in these communication forums also, though I do wonder why. More to the point. Do you know why? I am currently in email communication with a friend of mine, Trey, an American guy who lives in Japan, about this very issue. He takes my point but reminds me that the mass dumbing down of human communication started with television and that the internet merely accelerates the process. Its a good point, indeed I think it is the right point. The issue, for me at least, is that television is seen as 90% entertainment, while the internet purports to provide us with information as well as entertain. I know wikipedia and the like work very well, at least most of the time, and frankly who on earth could afford the hard copy alternative, as it used to be - the Encyclopedia Britannica? But the problem is the lack of intellectual and critical filters. There are none. If you want to learn about anything in this world go first to the books - not to the internet. The internet will provide you with a source, but don't expect to learn about philosophy, psychology, sociology, or indeed any other 'ology' by going to a social networking site. It worries me that university students especially don't see this. They want easy answers, shortcuts, little realising that in so doing the only cut they are going to get is to their brain. This is a pathetic way of learning. In fact it is no learning at all. But we have a younger generation addicted (and I use that word deliberately) to social networking and the internet generally. Basically, the internet reveals all the possibilities and all the problems of humankind. It is certainly not our saviour, it may actually speed up our extinction. My sense is that it does not augur well for the human race. For the moment, I am going to let Trey have the last word on this issue.... Left to ourselves, not having to deal with [intellectual] opposition, we, as humans, Less than creating a new phenomenon, I just think the internet has |
|
Come East (to Payap)
I know there is a lot of bad news coming out of the UK at the moment, and frankly one is pushed to say which pieces of news are worse than others, but I have my choice for one of the most depressing. That is the current crisis in Higher Education. How can it be that so many worthy, hard-working students will get turned away from university this coming academic year? With many of the top universities already full, and that before the A level results have even been announced, then clearly it is a dire situation. Some estimates suggest that maybe 170,000 individuals are going to be excluded from HE this year, with similar numbers being excluded each year for the foreseeable future. And on top of that, getting a UK degree is going to get a lot more expensive. So in short, if you are poor then the chances of you getting to a good university are diminishing as I write. You may get to university, but not one of the better ones. This fact may not have been so important in the recent past, but it is now. Why? Because employers can be, and are being, much choosier about which graduates they take on. Unemployment is continuing to rise and good employment opportunities are drying up. If you've got a 2.1 or 1st from a top university, then you'll probably be ok. But if you've got anything less then you could well find yourself unemployed for a long time to come. What can I suggest? Well, you might consider coming to Payap University, in Chiang Mai. They offer four international degrees (all in English) including an excellent Computer Information Systems degree overseen by Dr Ken Cosh (a British academic who did his PhD at Lancaster University). You will pay far less than if you would for a comparable degree in the UK; you'll have a truly multicultural experience because all your fellow students will also be from around the world; you'll have superb weather; the beer is cheaper; the food is far, far better, and you'll have lots of fun. In short, you'll have the most profound and holistic learning experience, one which will stay with you for the rest of your life. Check it out: http://ic.payap.ac.th/university/intro.php But be warned, if you do come out here then the chances are you won't want to leave. |
|
Happy Birthday and many of them
Yesterday was my birthday - 4th August. I was born .. years ago. OK, I know, I am vain about my age. Well, here goes...I am 61. Still got 30 years to go to reach my father's age - and he is still with us so my chances are not unreasonable of reaching that pinnacle myself, if not surpassing it. In fact several of my close relatives reached 90 and above, so there is obviously something in my genes. (I hope) To all those in the UK who were born yesterday - have a good long life! In fact, according to the latest data from the UK Office for National Statistics you actually have a 1 in 4 chance of reaching 100! That is quite amazing. In the past we lived much shorter lives - in fact if you were unfortunate enough to be born in the time of Britain's (or should that be England's?) Queen Elizabeth I and Shakespeare (rather than during the reign of Elizabeth II as I was - just), then you reached old age around the time of your 4th decade. At my fourth decade I was just getting started. For British boys born this year, the average life expectancy is now 89, while for girls it is 90 - this is a rise of nearly TWO DECADES since 1940. Which is the main reason why the UK state pension age will shortly be rising to 66. And upwards no doubt over the coming decades. I retired at 58. Or didn't as it turned out. Actually, I didn't want to retire, I just wanted to live in Thailand and couldn't see any other way of doing it other than taking early retirement before my 60th. But I am now as active as I have been this past 10 years. What is the secret? Well, I go to bed early (10pm), rise early (6 am), meditate daily, go to the gym twice a week for a good weights work-out, run, don't eat too much, keep the alcohol under control, no drugs or cigs, and keep myself mentally active. Oh, and a good sex life - most important of all. My four children all have a very good chance of going beyond 90, maybe reaching the 100 mark. A century. That's a long time by any measure. Though one never knows what is in store. Take each day as it comes. That is another lesson I have learned these past six decades. |
|
The world at one's feet
One of the reasons I am sat here today in Chiang Mai, is because of a marathon race in Horsforth, north Leeds, UK, back in April 1981. It was a 'trigger moment', one of those occasions that marks a new turning in one's life, though I hardly recognised it as such at the time. Marathons were just getting really popular in the UK back then and this local race ran past the pub/restaurant I was then managing with Rosemary, my wife. I had never seen a road race before and was totally fascinated by the sight of these several hundred men and women running past my pub, and doing it for 26.3 miles. I was motivated! Within a few months I was running myself. Within a year I had joined Skyrack running club and was competing over many distances, including cross-c0untry, but mostly 10km and 10 miles. I did my first marathon that October, and in a respectable 4hrs 20 mins, but could hardly walk for days afterwards! The next marathon I did in 3 hours. That was my last. I stopped competing in 1984, with a personal best of 55 mins for 10 miles. I only came back into competitive road racing last December, after an hiatus of over a quarter of a century. From 1984, I went on to coach my brother, Peter, who subsequently became a top international runner, competing in the World Champs and Olympic games at marathon distance during the second half of the 1990s. I was very serious about the athletics coaching and went to university to study sport and PE part-time; started doing the occasional lecture to other, budding, coaches in the north of England, and eventually left the pub business to take up full-time teaching in sport and leisure at Thomas Danby College, Leeds. By 1997 I had an MA and PhD. Then Keele University beckoned, and by 2001, trips to Southeast Asia, and Thailand especially. Books got published, articles got written, lectures got taught, but I never stopped running. As they say, 'one thing led to another' and for me such a truism has never been more accurate. The 1980s, when I first started running, were a golden age for British Athletics: Seb Coe, Daley Thompson, Steve Ovett, Steve Cram, Tessa Sanderson, Kathy Smallwood, and many others. An amazing era and I was privileged to witness it. Which is why I am following the current European Athletics Championships with more than a passing interest. We have a new hero on the block. A guy called Mo Farah. He is British, born in Somalia, emigrated to UK when he was 7, and boy, are the Brits lucky to have him wear the Union Jack. This 27 year old has, this week, re-written the British record books. He has won gold at the Europeans in both the 10,000 metres and the 5000 metre races. Believe me, that is one incredible achievement. You are unlikely to see it again for a long time, if ever. It has certainly never been done before. Even the other greats of British distance running such as Brendan Foster, David Bedford, Liz McColgan and Paula Radcliffe couldn't manage that feat. Mo, I salute you. What a wonderful, brilliant, uplifting symbol of human physical and mental ability you are. Run like the wind, the world is surely at your feet. |
|
Fact in the Sky or Pie in the Sky?
Within British education, certainly Higher Education, there is a general perception amongst lecturers that students from the East/Orient/Asia, are less critical in their thinking than those from the West. They are happy to go along with the perceived 'truth' as it is presented in whatever book they are currently reading, rather than deconstruct and critically examine such truths. Certainly this has been largely borne out by my own experiences of teaching Chinese, Singaporean, Thai and Taiwanese students, especially. They tend to sit in the lecture very quietly, not engaging critically with the discussion, appearing to lack the confidence to interject in the stimulating, sometimes heated debate going on with the British students. They are oh so polite and deferential, but just too much so. It is not that they don't have the intellect, but rather that their culture has instilled in them an overwhelming respect for the tutor - they just cannot bring themselves to question the 'wisdom of the teacher/elder'. This is a great pity because no one person is the fountain of all wisdom and knowledge. Indeed, the very point of learning is to subject your knowledge and assumptions to critical analysis and debate. (As an aside, this is one of the main reasons why globalisation is Western driven in culture and education/knowledge rather than Eastern, and will remain so even as the economic centre of gravity shifts to Asia. So long as most Asians are unable to intellectually challenge the status quo in term of culture, politics, ideas or whatever, then it will be left to the West to do so. And the West does this extremely well, as we already know) The exceptions to this rule are those mature students who have had experience of the West, maybe through undertaking an MA in the UK, for example. A further exception are those Asian lecturers in HE who did their doctorates in the West. I am currently working with such a lecturer. Her name is Napisa, she is 37, Thai, and did her doctorate in the USA. Like myself, she is a teacher/researcher at Payap University's Southeast Asian Institute in Global Studies (SEAGIS). I don't want to embarrass her, but I must say that in 20 odd years of teaching I have rarely come across anyone with such a questioning mind and critical approach as she. In fact, in this regard she is almost more Western than the average Western lecturer. Napisa questions pretty much everything, which makes for some stimulating conversation, as you can imagine. She and I are currently engaged in a fascinating discussion (via email and verbally) about 'fact'. Just what is 'fact'? I am not going to burden you with the details of our discussion so far, but we have both come to the same conclusion on this. Which is that there is no such thing as 'fact'. There is only interpretation, and this is highly subjective - it is ultimately about what people perceive. Fact is then, less important that what people believe. And people can believe all sorts of strange 'truths'. I will give you an example.... Some years ago I briefly dated a British woman who was highly educated and mature. She had a degree in crminology, an MA in Law and subsequently went on to do a second MA in nursing. Impressive stuff for a 40 year old single mother, with two teenage kids to bring up. We got on very well and I think fondly of her to this day. Apart from one aspect of her subjectivity which I found difficult to accept. She was a Creationist. Not just an 'ordinary' Christian, but one right at the extreme of Christian radicalism. She really, firmly, believed that God created the whole world about 5000 years ago, and that the bible was the only 'reality'. When challenged by 'facts' such as 20,000,000 year old fossils, she just dismissed this as 'false science'. For her (and all creationists like her) the full reality of the world was reflected in the words of the bible - quite literally. Despite her impressive intellect in other respects, she had succumbed to a religious ideology and was living it out as truth and fact. This was her fact, and no other. She managed to ignore and disregard the mountains of facts about the creation of the earth which have accumulated over centuries and from the best scientific minds of humankind. She just believed it was all down to Him in the Sky, and, yes, just 5000 years ago. Amazing. As I say, fact is nothing, what is really powerful is what people actually believe. |
|
What women want?
Chiang Mai is full of fascinating people. There is no end to them. And I keep meeting them. Which is great. This week I met up with a very interesting man (sorry, this all has to be anonymous for reasons which will soon become apparent). But I can tell you that he is a mature, middle-class, well-educated, high-ranking professional. And good looking (which given the nature of our conversation is not surprising). I wanted to talk to this Thai man about a major sociological research project he undertook some years ago for a postgraduate degree. He did ethnographic research into the Thai sex industry. None of his research was published. Why not? Because it was deemed too sensitive and he wouldn't have been given access to his subjects if it was known he would ever publish anything in the public domain. How, you may ask, can research into the Thai sex industry be sensitive? There are loads of books and articles on this subject - just check out amazon.com for a sample. Well what was unique about this male sociologist's research was that it examined sex clubs for ladies. Yes, they have them here, and several different types, mostly in Bangkok. My contact explained the different types of clubs, where they are located, who visits them, how much it costs, and what 'services' are available. We also discussed his research methodology, his data analysis and the theoretical underpinning to his study (which was symbolic interactionism) - just so you know that I was not just talking to him about the sex bits but also very interested in how he actually went about this original research project and wrote up his thesis. As you can imagine, it was a fascinating, revealing conversation. This research was undertaken over a decade ago, and took 12 months to do, so to what extent this aspect of the Thai sex industry has since developed I have no idea. But I expect it has grown considerably - as most things have here. There is a big debate currently taking place in the West, and the USA especially, about 'The End of Men' (I will blog on this in the near future), but for now just think about what it means for women to go out and buy sex from men - which essentially is to commodify and objectify them (you know, the sort of thing men have done to women throughout history). For years the dominant discourse in the West has been that 'women won't want to buy sex, they are only looking for emotional engagement - the sex is the value added aspect of this.' Well, I have to tell you this perception is so misguided. Like many aspects of love, sex and relationships, we much prefer to hold on to the long-standing myths rather than accept the reality. Women want different things, and at different times of their life. At 25 years old they may well be seeking some idealised, 'happy-ever-after' romantic relationship which leads to marriage and kids, but at 40 years old they may just want a well-hung guy two or three times a week. As my contact said, the attitude of many of the women clients is simply "if its good enough for my husband to play around, then its good enough for me". In fact he told me about one married couple who go out together to these clubs. The husband drops his wife off at her club, while he goes off to his club in another part of the city. They meet back home later that night or early in the morning. Works for them. My contact explained that being 'physically fit, with good pecs, six-pack, and, of course, a healthy cock, were essential to do the job of being a male host in one of these clubs. Though in the upper class clubs you also had to be a good listener, culturally sophisticated, educated, very well mannered, and impeccably dressed. These are the three main types of clubs for ladies in Bangkok. 1. The Hi-So Club. For (30-something) upper class Thai ladies (married or single) who want to meet an educated, handsome, fit, experienced, sophisticated younger Thai man for chat, dinner, drinks, maybe a little more. The ladies are often busy senior professionals and they love being able to have a sympathetic male listen to their lives and work situations. There are several such clubs in Bangkok, but you would never, ever find them. They usually take up the higher floors of top hotels in the city. They have private lifts, women security guards, private parking, and its all so discrete. And very expensive. Don't go there, as a woman, without lots of cash in your wallet. This is not a sex club, but a place to meet 'male hosts'. Other men are not permitted to enter, just women clients are allowed in, and of course the male hosts (who are all dressed in tuxedos). Many of the male hosts end up getting 'looked after' by their client - e.g. bought a condominium, nice car, and kept on a monthly 'retainer'. 2. The Middle Class Club. This is for women who are definitely in search of some 'extra satisfaction'. The club has good looking Thai men (dressed in jackets, ties and jeans) who are available to be taken out of the club and back to a hotel or apartment by their lady client, for the night. Not too expensive, but certainly more than your average Thai woman could afford. Unlike the Hi-So club, the men hosts are selected to work there less for their educational qualifications and cultural sophistication, than other abilities, especially their physical prowess (apparently). Clubs like this can be found in many parts of Bangkok, some connected to hotels, others just down sidestreets. Again, men are not allowed in, only women. Many young male university students like to work these types of clubs. 3. The Sex Club for Ladies. Which says it all really. Though included in this club will be Kathoeys, gay men (both seeking male clients), and straight men (who are mostly seeking women clients). Though just to confuse you even more, lots of the men who make themselves available to other men for paid sex are not actually gay but straight. They just play gay for the money. Who visits such a club? Well most anyone who is interested in what is on offer. These clubs do sex shows between men, but not between women and men. No sex takes place at the club, just in the shows. The male hosts are scantily clad (maybe just a thong, or perhaps nothing at all). Penis size is important, as is the ability to maintain an erection. Endurance counts. There is at least one such club like this in Chiang Mai, but many in Bangkok. This type of club is very much 'in your face', if you know what I mean. But remember, all this is primarily for Thais. Clubs 1 and 2 only have Thai male hosts and Thai women clients. Westerners would never know about such clubs, even though they could be staying in the hotel which has one on its top floor. Club 3 type is different, that will have interested Westerners visit occasionally though even this club is mainly for locals and expats, not tourists. I may blog more on this aspect of the Thai sex industry. Fascinating place Thailand. But then again, its not called 'the land of smiles' for nothing. |
|
M6 - an absent but not missed friend
My whole plan was to take early retirement from Keele University and live full time in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Easy. Well, I actually managed it. Officially retired from Keele in mid 2008, though continued teaching on an occasional basis for about 12 months. I moved into my Chiang Mai home in March 2009, by which time my working life was meant to be, well if not all over, at least significantly winding down. I have to say that while most of this plan has come about, the working life winding down bit has not. This is what I am involved in right now: I am Keele's Asia Programme Coordinator, managing and delivering the new MBA Education (International) programme which I have helped set up between Keele and Payap (first cohort started in May this year). I am working with Keele and Payap to establish a new Keele EdD (professional doctorate) programme to be delivered out here in collaboration with Payap University (hopefully starting in May 2011). I am a Senior Lecturer on Payap University's, International College, 'Thai and Southeast Asian Studies Programme', teaching 'gender identity, sexuality and transformation in Thailand' module 3 times a year (total 120 hours). The Thailand office of the British Council have approached me to deliver a high level management/leadership short-course programme for headteachers, on behalf of the Thai Ministry of Education. I am still undertaking postgraduate supervision for Keele University (albeit at a distance) with 6 (UK-based) MBA and EdD students currently working on their theses under my direction. I am regularly being asked to review articles submitted to academic journals, and the various writings of my academic friends around the world (especially Sian and Sheila, and, soon I expect, Miguel). And last but not least, I have just signed a new contract with Oxford University Press (Canada) for a major text book titled 'Gender and Identity: key themes and new directions' (with my friend and colleague, Roy Moodley). Much of this is already written but needs to be amended and updated for submission in August 2011. So retired? Not a chance. I am probably busier than I have ever been. And I have my ponds and garden to look after. Plus keep track of my five children spread around the world. Sat at my computer this morning, dealing with various emails from around the world, I reflected on how I am managing to live a balanced life, do all this work, and still not feel pressured. Then it dawned on me. The moment of enlightenment. What is so different to my work routine here in Chiang Mai, and that which I had for so many years in the UK? Its the traveling stupid! I don't have to drive the 75 miles south down the M6 motorway to Keele (Staffordshire) and back again to my home in Lancashire, two or three times a week. Do you know, this absence of commuting by car to Keele is saving me 8-12 hours a week! That is more than one full working day. (And its spared me a lot of stress and headaches) M6? I am grateful that you were there to get me to Keele and back for 12 years, and you made sure I always traveled safely. We did actually have our moments some mornings, for example, listening to John Humphreys do his inimitable thing on the BBC Radio 4 programme 'Today'. But truth is, I don't miss you at all. And especially not on a Friday afternoon, around 5pm, heading north for home (along with 500,000 other vehicles). What a nightmare that used to be! (Oh nearly forgot, and I am writing this blog....) |
|
Heatwave warning
The Brits used to be seen as the most stoic of races, used to any hardship, tough, resilient, competitive, able to conquer their fears, and, as history shows, at one point in the 19th century over one quarter of the human race and its associated landmass. How times have changed. Today the British Metrological Office issued a 'heatwave alert' across the UK. Spotting the headline I thought, ok, this is interesting, must be predicted to be coming up over 40 - as it often is in Bangkok and Southern Thailand. Time to get the shorts out, suncream, iced drinks, and head for the shade. That is hot. But no, what is the Met Office warning the hardy Brits against? Well, would you believe, temps of 32, with maybe 20c at night. One prominent daily put it like this: "Forecasters are particularly concerned because there is likely to be no respite from the heat when the sun goes down with the mercury not dipping below 68f (20c) overnight". Come on, this is not hot. I set my aircon at 23c at night and its as cool as can be. 32c during the day? Nice temperature. Just right for getting out and about. Anything less than 30c and the Thais put on an overcoat. Difficult to believe that this same race of people being warned against a 'heatwave of 32c' is the same race of people that once set about colonising (successfully) some of the hottest places on this planet. |
|
2010 World's Best Cities Survey - Travel + Leisure Magazine
A friend of mine in the USA informed me yesterday about the findings of research undertaken by the American-based travel journal - 'Travel + Leisure Magazine' - (www.travelandleisure.com). This monthly magazine has, apparently, 4.8 million readers. Their survey of the '2010 World's Best Cities' (to visit and holiday in) is as follows; 1. Bangkok; 2. Chiang Mai; 3. Florence; 4. San Miguel De Allende, Mexico; 5. Rome; 6. Sydney; 7. Buenos Aires; 8. Oaxaca, Mexico; 9. Barcelona; 10. New York City. Well there you go. I told you Chiang Mai was special. However, please don't all come here. Its lovely as it is. Don't want all you tourists spoiling it for us locals. However, not sure Thailand will make to the top 10 next year. This survey was undertaken, apparently, before the troubled month of May. Though as we know, people, especially tourists, have short memories. Just as well. |
|
Radio Stoke - Looking at Modern Relationships
Stuart George, Radio Stoke presenter of their morning show. Very professional. A light touch but persistently inquisitive interviewer. Thanks Stuart, listened today to the first of the interviews you did with me last week on modern relationships. Excellent. And you didn't edit my laugh out! Yes, we should laugh about modern relationships, there are lots of aspects which are highly amusing, at least to me. If you would like to listen in to the interviews then the first was yesterday, the second is on Wednesday, and I think a third comes up on Friday. Go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p008l6fy/MidMorning_with_Stuart_George_05_07_2010/ Comments welcome! |
|
Why don't marriages last?
Here is a question for you... Why don't marriages last anymore? Answer: Because they go on too long. See, it really is that simple. If only we had realised it before. If you would like to know more about what I am calling my 'Relationship Manifesto' then anytime next week check out bbc.co.uk/stoke - click 'Listen again' and look for Stuart George on Monday. Yesterday evening I did a phoned interview with Stuart for his morning BBC Radio Stoke programme, going out this coming Monday. But be warned. Pretty much everything I am saying is radical and controversial. You won't have heard it anywhere else. Sex, fidelity, swinging, sex work, love, delusion, 10 year marriages. Yes, its all there. At least I hope it is. BBC Radio Stoke may have edited it all out! Now working on a book of the same name. |
|
Ben and the Pit Viper
One Beagle, a 4 foot mangrove pit viper, and all hell let loose in the garden! And this before 10am. Who came off worse? Well, Ben the Beagle got a bite on his nose (I have come to realise that Beagles have very bad karma regards their noses), but it was the viper who went into defence mode before swiftly sliding off into the undergrowth. Beagles are fascinating dogs. One does not own a Beagle, one merely provides it with a home. They are independent, intelligent and pretty much untrainable hounds. Well, they are trainable, but in the end they do what they want. Ben is such a dog. We love him, but we cannot wholly control him. Unlike our Shi Tsu who will do pretty much anything we ask her - albeit in slow motion. But Ben must learn not to tackle the big snakes, or even the little ones. This viper is poisonous but not deadly. So he was lucky. Maybe next time, not. Nevertheless, we had to get Ben to the local vet and quick. A couple of injections, some tablets, and he is merely having a bad day, nothing worse. Even so, after just two hours recuperation and what is he doing? Out and about in the garden, sniffing around, looking for a rematch with the viper. He either knows no fear or he's quite stupid. Whatever, we love him. |
|
Those were the days my friend......
So, England are going home. Not too surprised. In fact, to be frank, I am rather relieved. Puts us all out of our misery and now we can get on with enjoying the rest of the world cup. I reckon Argentina, though Ghana could surprise many. I used to be quite an avid Liverpool FC supporter. Went to see them many times when I lived in the north of England. And Leeds FC (I lived in Leeds for 20 years), though I was never a supporter of theirs. But probably the best football match I ever saw was England vs Argentina, 1980, at Wembley. It was a friendly and England won 3.1. Brilliant. Beautiful sunny day, amazing atmosphere, and just wonderful football. Wembley packed and everyone relaxed and enjoying the spectacle of truly world class football. Kevin Keegan, Ray Clemence, Trevor Brooking and several, such as Neal and Thompson, from the then unstoppable Liverpool team of the era, and to cap it all, Diego Maradona. What a player. Watch the YouTube video of the game and look out for Maradona's breathtaking sprint from midfield to the England goal. He goes through about 4 England players and slips it past Clemence - just for the ball to whisper beyond the goalmouth. 90 minutes? I could have watched a game like that for hours. Didn't want it to end. A few years later Maradona goes on to give England the Full Monty in the 1986 world cup. No need to mention the hand of God...but I will do. Looking back to that era of English football its hard to imagine the state we are in today. Argentina still resplendent, while England stumble from boring draw to embarrassing defeat. I blame it all on Rupert Murdoch. No, seriously. |
