What a disgusting comment. There is NOTHING "hard left" about wanting to protect people's lives. You, like @BorisJohnson & @Keir_Starmer haven't thought this through 1/

@afneil You clearly don’t care about people’s lives; you just want the chance to have a go at a trade union. FYI, schools need to be made SAFE b4 reopening. 2/
@afneil You must’ve seen the figures: Covid cases increased via schools after reopening in September & cases are now increasing in nurseries, left open since Xmas. 3/
@afneil Why hurt or kill more people? Ensure safety FIRST. 4/
@afneil How to make schools SAFE? a) Vaccinate all school staff & all students, with both vaccine shots. That'll take us until May as second shots are only being given after 3 months. 5/
@afneil b) Set up smaller classes so social distancing is possible, with a shift system, morning & afternoon school, 6/
@afneil c) arrange deep cleaning after every class & d) provide adequate ppe for staff & students. 7/
@afneil e) set up a proper test & trace system & quarantine/self-isolation with furlough funding for families so parents can stay off work to isolate. 8/
@afneil Unless all these things & more are in place, schools will not be safe to reopen & the NEU is 100% right to say so. 9/

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Two things can be true at once:
1. There is an issue with hostility some academics have faced on some issues
2. Another academic who himself uses threats of legal action to bully colleagues into silence is not a good faith champion of the free speech cause


I have kept quiet about Matthew's recent outpourings on here but as my estwhile co-author has now seen fit to portray me as an enabler of oppression I think I have a right to reply. So I will.

I consider Matthew to be a colleague and a friend, and we had a longstanding agreement not to engage in disputes on twitter. I disagree with much in the article @UOzkirimli wrote on his research in @openDemocracy but I strongly support his right to express such critical views

I therefore find it outrageous that Matthew saw fit to bully @openDemocracy with legal threats, seeking it seems to stifle criticism of his own work. Such behaviour is simply wrong, and completely inconsistent with an academic commitment to free speech.

I am not embroiling myself in the various other cases Matt lists because, unlike him, I think attention to the detail matters and I don't have time to research each of these cases in detail.

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The chorus of this song uses the shlokas taken from Sundarkand of Ramayana.

It is a series of Sanskrit shlokas recited by Jambavant to Hanuman to remind Him of his true potential.

1. धीवर प्रसार शौर्य भरा: The brave persevering one, your bravery is taking you forward.


2. उतसारा स्थिरा घम्भीरा: The one who is leaping higher and higher, who is firm and stable and seriously determined.

3. ुग्रामा असामा शौर्या भावा: He is strong, and without an equal in the ability/mentality to fight

4. रौद्रमा नवा भीतिर्मा: His anger will cause new fears in his foes.

5.विजिटरीपुरु धीरधारा, कलोथरा शिखरा कठोरा: This is a complex expression seen only in Indic language poetry. The poet is stating that Shivudu is experiencing the intensity of climbing a tough peak, and likening

it to the feeling in a hard battle, when you see your enemy defeated, and blood flowing like a rivulet. This is classical Veera rasa.

6.कुलकु थारथिलीथा गम्भीरा, जाया विराट वीरा: His rough body itself is like a sharp weapon (because he is determined to win). Hail this complete

hero of the world.

7.विलयगागनथाला भिकारा, गरज्जद्धरा गारा: The hero is destructive in the air/sky as well (because he can leap at an enemy from a great height). He can defeat the enemy (simply) with his fearsome roar of war.