Messages

[want their cake and eat it.]

It's shocking that these bloody Government-supporting independents want their cake and eat it.

Verona out of her depth.

Nail on the head.

Did they not all get pay bumps on the back of being now Super Junior Ministers and that.

It seems to be the usual characters (chancers), the sort of boys if you shook their hand you would have to count your fingers afterwards.

Now that they are not allowed to continue their genocide in Gaza they are focusing their resources on the West Bank

https://www.channel4.com/news/israeli-settlers-attack-palestinaians-in-occupied-west-bank

I see one of the schools was in Lack.

Drove through it a few times on the way to Donegal, hardly see children in the street let alone adults.

No doubt sleepy Joe will try and take credit for it, pathetic in every sense of the word.

[It's been clear over the last few years with increasing numbers of these fires that something big was coming]

Think we could all end up paying for this with a hike in insurance premiums.

Is it true about a lot of people in LA that their Insurance Policies were cancelled about 4 months ago?

Not sure about that but I'd say there will be large numbers with no policies as a lot of the big hitters either exited the California market entirely, or didn't renew thousands of policies over the last couple of years, to limit their exposure. It's been clear over the last few years with increasing numbers of these fires that something big was coming and insurers aren't stupid.

https://x.com/marionawfal/status/1877190941909438598?s=51&t=GRr4f_6A-80R912F2TlGnw

I remember years ago Jim Allister giving off about to many people wearing GAA tops in J'town.

At the end of the day the majority of those in the Unionist side who have the brains to go to Uni usually go across the water, probably because they realise how backward thinking their own community is.

[A lot of kids are tutored to the balls]

Kids get to grammar schools as they're bright and gifted.

I always thought being a grammar school teacher would be easy as the kids are bright and for the most part, well mannered etc.

They kids are going to get A and B's etc. regardless of who their teachers are.

I think a pupil getting an A say, is a great result for the teacher in a 'normal' school. Exceptions to this always but that's my take on it.

There are plenty of dunces/ bastards in grammar schools.

Leave the teachers out of it. 

Teachers within secondary and grammar schools have different levels of expectations and demands..

Lots of schools in secondary are streamed and have been even in my day, even more so now, so there will be ones doing well in the better classes and others in the lower grade won't be and rather than present a poor achieving school these lads (rightly in many cases) are put into areas that look after NVQ's and other like that, which are more achievable and set them up for working within the trade/retail/beauty and so on sectors.

This helps to 'cook the books' when looking at schools tables

Grammar schools parents expect wee johnny to have A*'s and enter them into subjects that they haven't ability for, plus the schools expect also so pressure is on to might unrealistic targets with pupils that were tutored flat out to pass a entry test to get there and haven't the ability to work for themselves

Some teachers are happy to work in secondary and others happy to work in the grammar

A lot of kids are tutored to the balls to get past a SEAG test, that's not a measure of intelligence, that's a measure of memory and resources.

Getting into a Grammar school isn't the panacea a lot of parents think it is. It's an opportunity and that's all.

I know loads of Grammar educated lads who're builders, painters, civil servants etc etc along with plenty of secondary school educated people with degrees.

Would not be a big fan of the tutoring, if you need it to get your entrance exam then parent / child will feel the need to do likewise for GCSE and A-Levels.  There will come a point when there is no safety net and what do they do then.  For example if your child was tutored the whole way through school and they just about then scrape into something like Medicine there will come a point they will run out of road somewhere and will be out of their depth.

[I always felt there was a certain type of snobbery around places like the 'Convent' in Magherafelt]

Do you have to pay to go to those "grammar schools"?

No, there were some prep schools that allowed you to go to at primary level which gave you entry to that grammar that it was associated too

The big prep schools aren't free. Inchmarlo, Campbell, Victoria College etc. are all about 5 grand a year.

I meant not paying private to all grammars only those that had prep.

Though as said above Campbell do charge

I was once told by a Regent House illumni that Campbell college would enroll a donkey if they paid the fees..

There is definitely a load of snobbery within the PUL community in terms of the Grammar/secondary split and you really couldn't see the likes of a St Pats, Maghera, St Ronans in Lurgan or the new Lecale Trinity in Downpatrick getting off the ground in the likes of Newtownards for example.

I always felt there was a certain type of snobbery around places like the 'Convent' in Magherafelt and the 'College' in Newry.  They just quietly thought they were a wee bit better.

While running around Cookstown in the 90s if you ended up courting a girl from the Convent this definitely carried a out certain amount of kudos.  They always seemed to be at a higher level than girls from other schools.

[Mr.Girvan wants a replica body established fir the controlled sector to raise standards and outcomes.]

In the medium to long term integrated education further diminishes Unionism as it depends on a hard core and segregation to survive. It's in the DUP's interests to say No. Nothing new or unsurprising about that.

The Catholic church will also hold onto their lofty CCMS position as well, so there's that as well.

CCMS was formed in 1989 in response to the pitiful state of the maintained sector in terms outcomes for young people and school building. The Maintained sector is now the highest achieving sector by outcomes. So much so, that Mr.Girvan wants a replica body established fir the controlled sector to raise standards and outcomes.

He will have his work cut out.

Worked a 20 years ago with those would describe themselves as middle class unionists.  The thought of their children going to the local high school in the likes of Ballyclare / Bangor / Newtownabbey / Newtownards / Carrickfergus was just unthinkable, it was simply not an option.  I'm sure things have not changed.

Yes there might be a bit of snobbery in the nationalist side but gulf in academic standards between grammar and high school on all fronts is nowhere near as much.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c390914zkd9o

Disappointing but at the same time not surprising.

Parents and Principal both supported the move to integration yet the Minister believes he knows best.

[How old are the kids]

We were in union Lido last year. How old are the kids. It has its own water park. It has four or five decent slides. Loads of restaurants. We left the resort once! Lots of people don't leave at all. There is a big proper water park about a 20 minute bus ride from the resort. But the mobile homes are small.
We got an Airbnb in Pescheira,the town is fabulous and as Rois says you can get the train to Garda Land which is brilliant but busy. There's also a water park that is extremely good and quieter because everyone is going to Garda Land. If your kids are young (5-10) I'd say UL but if a bit older then I'd say Bella Italia

By next summer they will be 16, 14, 10 & 8.

Point noted re the small mobile homes, might be a bit of a squeeze with 6 of us in total.

Folks going to be booking the summer hols this week hopefully, we have 4 kids (2 primary and 2 secondary school) , missus has narrowed it down to the following camps / resorts:

- Union Lido, Italy
- La Rive, France
- Park Albotros, Italy
- Sanguli (Was in Cambrils last year so fairly familiar with the general area)
- Bella Italia, Italy
- Le Clarys Plage, France
- Altominico, Lake Garda

Would welcome any feedback from anyone who has been to any of these places.

Many Thanks

Yeah it's just the nature of rural communities really. Forgot about Naomh padraig.

Still waiting for the dervock, portrush, ballymoney combination 

(Ballymoney did have football at one point mind you).

Maybe get a team gathered up in Portballintrae / Bushmills / Mossside....already have an idea of the colour of their jersey and crest.

Read the article in the IN yesterday with Calon Mooney.

Seemed to be fairly open and honest about a lot of things.  For some guys the penny drops when they have hung up the boots and by that stage it is too late on so many fronts and importantly the last thing that they would do is admit it.

From reading the article it would seem he was at Jordanstown for a couple of years however I imagine it was purely for football reasons with no benefit gained academically .  I'm sure he would not be the first baller that has went through Jordanstown and career wise down the line have realised that it did not help them in the long term.

When you go looking for a mortgage in years to come payslips have more relevance than having played Sigerson.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0ewz77lngzo

Did not come across well in an episode of Spotlight earlier in the year, appeared to have dropped the ball so to speak on a murder case.  I presume now this means he is off the hook in this regard.