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Part of the problem with the debate around schools is the obscure nature of the accusations against teachers
What exactly are teachers being accused of?
...
Is it that they are refusing to do their job? I.e. lazy
Simply untrue. They will still be teaching remotely, which is often more difficult than in person
If they can't do that because of lack of tech that's partly the govt's fault and it should have been better prepared by now
Is it that there is a low risk of teachers catching the virus? I.e. mountain out of a molehill.
AFAIK virus risk in schools broadly matches the wider population (happy to be corrected), which is rising rapidly
If there's increased risk everywhere, there is in schools too
Plus, no other group is being asked to remain in close contact with large numbers of potentially infectious people, i.e. children in this case, with little to no PPE
In some schools it is banned, in others simply frowned upon
Plus, 1 million people work in schools in England alone: https://t.co/UObIGpqszQ
Add to that almost 9 million pupils: https://t.co/DFV8X3Z7Cv
That's a lot of people (~18% of the population in England) mixing closely, even with mitigations in place, and should concern us all
What exactly are teachers being accused of?
...
Is it that they are refusing to do their job? I.e. lazy
Simply untrue. They will still be teaching remotely, which is often more difficult than in person
If they can't do that because of lack of tech that's partly the govt's fault and it should have been better prepared by now
Is it that there is a low risk of teachers catching the virus? I.e. mountain out of a molehill.
AFAIK virus risk in schools broadly matches the wider population (happy to be corrected), which is rising rapidly
If there's increased risk everywhere, there is in schools too
Plus, no other group is being asked to remain in close contact with large numbers of potentially infectious people, i.e. children in this case, with little to no PPE
In some schools it is banned, in others simply frowned upon
Plus, 1 million people work in schools in England alone: https://t.co/UObIGpqszQ
Add to that almost 9 million pupils: https://t.co/DFV8X3Z7Cv
That's a lot of people (~18% of the population in England) mixing closely, even with mitigations in place, and should concern us all
Why you SHOULDN'T move to Miami from an ex-Floridian:
1. No income tax may not mean you'll be paying less.
The government still needs to fund everything and they have to get the money from somewhere. Pay attention to sales and property tax rates. Also, lack of wealth distribution efforts puts extra pressure on the poor.
2. The weather is not friendly.
Be prepared for extreme humidity that will cause changes in your skin and hair. And the bugs that come with it. The seasons are hot and hotter. Tornados and hurricanes are not outside of the norm. My own home was destroyed by 2004 hurricanes.
3. Florida man is a thing.
Maybe it's the heat or something in the water but bizarre things happen in Florida. I don't know another state that has an entire subreddit dedicated to their crazy stories. Go check it out if you need entertainment.
Most importantly, don't move somewhere just because it went viral!
The best part about the expansion of remote work this year is you can finally choose where to live based on what makes you happy rather than where you "have" to be. Take advantage!
1. No income tax may not mean you'll be paying less.
The government still needs to fund everything and they have to get the money from somewhere. Pay attention to sales and property tax rates. Also, lack of wealth distribution efforts puts extra pressure on the poor.
2. The weather is not friendly.
Be prepared for extreme humidity that will cause changes in your skin and hair. And the bugs that come with it. The seasons are hot and hotter. Tornados and hurricanes are not outside of the norm. My own home was destroyed by 2004 hurricanes.
3. Florida man is a thing.
Maybe it's the heat or something in the water but bizarre things happen in Florida. I don't know another state that has an entire subreddit dedicated to their crazy stories. Go check it out if you need entertainment.
Most importantly, don't move somewhere just because it went viral!
The best part about the expansion of remote work this year is you can finally choose where to live based on what makes you happy rather than where you "have" to be. Take advantage!
4. Living where you want vs. where the work is:
— Marissa Goldberg (@mar15sa) August 2, 2020
You don't have to live in a tiny, expensive place just because that's where the jobs are. Miss small town life? Want to travel more? Be close to family? Choose a place that will make you happiest instead of a place you "have" to be
100%. Need clear separation of powers.
With direct elections for an executive President, who appoints the Cabinet of Ministers and sets government policy.
In parliament, the Speaker to be seen as the leader of the legislature. MPs responsible only for laws, amendments, repeals.
The Constitution and laws need to be democratised.
Rewritten in simple language, translated into every state language, and made available as original sources online, so people can access them and understand laws themselves instead of being dependent on self-appointed custodians.
We need more local democracy and fewer regional satraps.
Dissolve the current states and upgrade 740 districts into elected Janapadas/Prefectures, to improve policy outcomes on the ground.
No more MLAs and DMs acting like local feudal lords. Bottom-up, accessible institutions.
In each Janapada, assign community policing/crime prevention to local police, accountable to local citizens.
Assign law and order, crime investigation, counter-terrorism to a new central police force, independent of executive. Like the armed forces, with parliamentary oversight.
Split the Supreme Court into a Constitutional Court and Court of Final Appeal, with clear and separate functions and duties.
Give each Janapada a system a decentralised system of courts and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, working in local languages and jargon-free.
With direct elections for an executive President, who appoints the Cabinet of Ministers and sets government policy.
In parliament, the Speaker to be seen as the leader of the legislature. MPs responsible only for laws, amendments, repeals.
Westminster model is so bizarre that we elect legislators to form Executive Govts.
— M. Nageswara Rao IPS (@MNageswarRaoIPS) December 27, 2020
Most problems are due to interference of MLAs/MPs in governance who legally can't but people expect them to.
Hence, new model to elect Govts &MLAs/MPs separately has to evolve [avoiding US defects] https://t.co/Oyujk365IE
The Constitution and laws need to be democratised.
Rewritten in simple language, translated into every state language, and made available as original sources online, so people can access them and understand laws themselves instead of being dependent on self-appointed custodians.
We need more local democracy and fewer regional satraps.
Dissolve the current states and upgrade 740 districts into elected Janapadas/Prefectures, to improve policy outcomes on the ground.
No more MLAs and DMs acting like local feudal lords. Bottom-up, accessible institutions.
In each Janapada, assign community policing/crime prevention to local police, accountable to local citizens.
Assign law and order, crime investigation, counter-terrorism to a new central police force, independent of executive. Like the armed forces, with parliamentary oversight.
Split the Supreme Court into a Constitutional Court and Court of Final Appeal, with clear and separate functions and duties.
Give each Janapada a system a decentralised system of courts and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, working in local languages and jargon-free.
Better late than never. Here we go. What does this deal mean for borders, border formalities, customs & trade facilitation?
Long one. TL:DR very little at the moment but has potential
/1
Borders
When compared to no deal the deal changes very little in terms of border procedures. All formalities and checks will still be required.
Reminder - we're not starting from 0 here – both our container ports and our ro-ro ports are already congested
/2
On top of that, all the issues related to border readiness: lack of capacity and space, IT systems not ready, shortages of customs agents, treader readiness – have not been solved.
The deal doesn’t help with that.
/3
Here is where we are:
☑️The UK will phase-in border formalities over 6 months (customs and SPS)
☑️The EU will introduce full formalities in 3 days (customs + SPS)
☑️Irish Sea border also fully operational in 3 days with some short-term SPS easements
/4
Pre-notifications (safety & security declarations) not initially required on the UK side, needed for imports into the EU.
So what's in the deal?
/5
Long one. TL:DR very little at the moment but has potential
/1
Lots of stuff on technical barriers and customs cooperation. See @AnnaJerzewska for more on the latter. pic.twitter.com/3sC5xHD3Z8
— Steve Peers (@StevePeers) December 26, 2020
Borders
When compared to no deal the deal changes very little in terms of border procedures. All formalities and checks will still be required.
Reminder - we're not starting from 0 here – both our container ports and our ro-ro ports are already congested
/2
On top of that, all the issues related to border readiness: lack of capacity and space, IT systems not ready, shortages of customs agents, treader readiness – have not been solved.
The deal doesn’t help with that.
/3
Here is where we are:
☑️The UK will phase-in border formalities over 6 months (customs and SPS)
☑️The EU will introduce full formalities in 3 days (customs + SPS)
☑️Irish Sea border also fully operational in 3 days with some short-term SPS easements
/4
Pre-notifications (safety & security declarations) not initially required on the UK side, needed for imports into the EU.
So what's in the deal?
/5
