The Oscars Proved the Importance of Learning Extra Languages

The Silent Child won the Best Live Action Short Film Oscar last night, and the most poignant moment of the night, was when Rachel Shenton did her entire acceptance speech in British Sign Language.

The Silent Child follows the life of a deaf girl who lives in a world of absolute silence, where her parents speak to her through sign because she’d promised the little girl who starred in the film, that if they won, she would sign so she could see.

This was a nice gesture, something a lot of people would shy away from, I can speak a small amount of sign language, but I’ll admit, it is tough to learn.

But then I went back to when I was in school, I kicked off at having to do French, Spanish and German. Why do we have to learn 3 languages that we’ll never fully utilize when we can’t even communicate with those who speak our mother tongue? Would it not be a more inclusive, simpler world if we were teaching BSL/ASL as a second language?

At the end of the day, it’s a language, it’s just a non-verbal language that heavily relies on facial expression and gestures. 2 Very difficult things to master.

If we started teaching our youngsters about deafness, the world wouldn’t be such an isolated place for those who are hard of hearing. It would also have financial benefits, for example, a translator wouldn’t be required for the simplest of tasks, like asking for a menu in a restaurant, or buying a bottle of liquor.

Also, just because someone is deaf, doesn’t mean that they are mentally handicapped, in fact, quite the opposite is the case. Although the language is quite basic, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t amazing things going on in the users head.

Just sit and think about it. If you worked in a supermarket, and you were able to communicate with a deaf person, even if they’re only asking where the soup is, you’ll have made that persons day so much more pleasant and made them feel acknowledged.

When I was in college training to be a hairdresser, I ended up with a weekly regular who was deaf, because I was the only person in a class of 30 people that could converse and understand what she needed. It was only the basic type stuff, and sometimes I’d have to write things down and she’d teach me the signs, but she relished the fact that she wasn’t alone.

She came in the day of her husband’s funeral after he’d suffered a heart attack, and was so lonely, because she’d never known anything but her husband for 50 years (who was also deaf), and cruelly, that one constant she had was taken away.

Being able to look after her, and get some pretty good gossip too (she could lip read), was the highlight of her week, and over time we developed more than a professional bond, but a kind of friendship.

Social Housing a Rethink Is Needed

In the UK, the benefits system is in place to help those that truly need it. It doesn’t matter if it’s because you’ve fallen on hard times, have recently be bereaved, have a disability (lifelong or temporary) rendering you unfit to work. The system is there to provide a much needed crutch to those that need it most. The same goes with social housing.

For a someone with 7 kids (all by different fathers) to be given £2000 a month in state handouts, to live rent and tax free to be able to afford over £100,000 worth of luxuries beggars belief! Then for police upon raiding the house to find £10,000 in cash under the mattress of the (four poster, water) bed just adds insult to injury.

To make matters worse, they are so notorious for violence that between them they have criminal convictions longer than my arms and legs combined. Someone on benefits should not be able to afford a £3000 TV. Nor should they be able to afford a swimming pool and sauna in the conservatory! Benefits are in place to keep you going, not afford you the lifestyle of a Saudi prince.

The courts have tried the family and found that the money that allowed them to afford such a grand lifestyle came as ‘proceeds of crime’ and that one of the woman’s many children had a drug problem.

Instead of setting an example for her children, the youngest of which is 10, she’s allowed the entire family to spiral into what can only be described as an episode of Shameless.

Completely feral, getting involved in bar brawls, drugs and stolen goods. In fact, I don’t think there is anything this family wouldn’t do to get ahead.

The idea behind council housing was that everyone would have a roof over their head, and that they would be able to afford a decent standard of living.

The beauty of council housing is that your house is your home, and you can do (nearly) anything you like to it. Redecorate, new kitchen, new bathroom, put shelves, cupboards and pictures up. Basically it is like you own the house you have the right to make it a home.

However, there is a huge difference between getting a new kitchen, and installing a swimming pool!

There are ex army personnel out there shivering on the streets, while yobs and thugs are being allowed to live the life of Riley on tax payer’s hard earned cash.

Why don’t we start using a little common sense and looking at the claimant’s history. This family are repeat offenders who haven’t fallen on hard times, they are chancers who seem to have constantly got lucky by playing the system against itself and successfully achieving everything that they desire, including 2 cars, a scooter, several bikes, DVD players, expensive TV’s, SKY, Internet, Cigarettes, Alcohol, Plush furniture and much more. This isn’t fair for anyone, especially when the hard working public struggle to get by.

Are Skilled Trades Really Dying Out?

I’m a country boy at heart, growing up with a Green Grocer, a Butcher, a Baker, a local corner shop, a florist, a hairdresser and a barbers shop and a local pub, all in the village square, or about a 200ft radius. The Green Grocer got all of his fruits and vegetables from local farmers and suppliers, the butcher got his meats from various farmers in the surrounding villages.

The baker used local ingredients where possible and made his own cakes, pies, breads, at one point he even did his own pizza by the slice. The corner shop used either a local wholesaler or they would use one of the ethnic wholesalers for the more exotic stuff. The florist would grow most of her own, and as she was an arty type, would also make all of her own decorations and cards. The Barber and the Hairdresser and everyone in the local pub knew you by name.

Yes, it does sound very picture perfect, but that honestly is what it was like. Local people supported local business who then in turn supported local suppliers, keep the local economy afloat.

However, with the rise and rise of the supermarket, there are trades dying out because it’s quicker and cheaper to nip to the supermarket and pick up what you need.

After the decline of the local pub, a big supermarket moved into the premises. And within 8 months, the butcher, the baker, the green grocer, the corner shop and the florist have shut up shop. All that remains now is the barber, the hairdresser and what once was the corner shop, has been turned into a luxury beauty spa.

However, people are beginning to bite back. Seeing the cost of food rise constantly, people are sick of buying large chickens that once cooked look more like budgies, and sausages that are so laden with fat they need draining halfway through cooking. They’re sick of buying flowers that last for less than a few days. Basically it’s not only the fact they feel ripped off, they feel that the sense of community that we all once enjoyed is gone.

No longer can we pop into the greengrocers and ask them to order in a couple of cases of wine, or book an appointment with the baker to discuss making a wedding cake. Having a lot of dogs in the area, the local butcher also made sure he had doggy bags with off cuts from his cooked meats that would otherwise be thrown in the bin and donated all the money they made to a local animal rescue centre.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom, as these skilled trades are seeing resurgence with college applications up for Baking, Butchery, Floristry, Brewing, Pub and Bar Management, Small Business and Enterprise management and Horticulture and Agriculture. So for all we know, that little village I once called home, could end up being like it was, forcing the much larger chains out and going back to feeling like a tight knit community.

BHS workers could wait years for pensions answers

Beleaguered former BHS workers could have to wait years until they get answers about what will happen to their pensions, say experts.
The Pensions Regulator has become so fed up with waiting for former BHS owner Sir Philip Green to provide reassurance about pensions, that formal legal proceedings have now been begun.
In a dramatic move, the regulator has sent out enforcement notices to Sir Philip after failing to agree a deal to resolve the £571 million pensions deficit.
Pensions expert John Ralfe now says former employees could be waiting years for any sort of resolution to the standoff.
The regulator does have the power to insist that Sir Philip pays the deficit. However, the retail entrepreneur could decide to launch an appeal and take that all the way to judges at the supreme court.
Mr Ralfe described the situation as “very rare,” saying that there weren’t any precedents to compare it to.
He added: “It will take years. It’s going to be a long war of attrition.”
Analysts believe that this drastic action by the pensions regulator could now increase the likelihood that Sir Philip will be stripped of his knighthood.
MPs have already voted symbolically to take the honour away from him.
It is believed that Sir Philip had made an offer, which was turned down by the regulator because the amount he was putting forward was too low. The proposed deal was also seen as too risky to go ahead with.
So far, it is unclear exactly what Sir Philip was offering to pay, but the sum is believed to be around the £250 million mark, while the regulator is said to want at least £50 million more than that.
How the deal is to be structured is also key. Sir Philip is believed to have said he would buy out pensioners with small savings pots before setting up a new fund.
His proposal did not include the security of a sponsoring company, a move which would have been against Pension Protection Fund guidelines.
Mr Ralfe said he believed the industry regulator was correct in beginning enforcement action.
He said that Sir Philip was making a nonsense of the situation by trying to “make things up on the hoof”.
Former pensions minister Ros Altmann said Sir Philip needed to realise that: “You don’t tell regulators what you believe is the right amount – they tell you.”

Jeremy Corbyn Need to Take His Foot Out of His Mouth

Jeremy Corbyn is for the Labour party what Boris Johnson is to the Tories. An absolute joke. Granted, Boris isn’t THAT bad. He’s a likeable guy who is always game for a joke, even at his own expense. Jeremy however is dangerous in his ideology.

He’s recently spoken at the Edinburgh Fringe and sensationally said ‘people aren’t interested in the core subjects’. Core subjects, Maths, English and Science are the very foundation of nearly every trade and profession in the world.

A hairdresser has to use Maths, Science and English for everything they do.

That colour they specially mix up for you? That’s Maths and Science and a vast knowledge of the colour wheel. The fact they can also translate;

‘I want it dark, but not too dark, and I want it to have some gold in it, but not too orange. I want it cutting long but not too short, a few layer to frame my face and I want to be able to style it or leave it to dry naturally at home’

Into;

‘Six parts 5/0 with 1 part 7/3 and 2.5g 0/44 per 80ml with 6% peroxide. A natural inversion with 2 inches off the length, choppy layers following the concave bob pattern and possibly a sale of sculpting foam’

That takes maths, English, and science. Maths for the colour and the cut, science for the advanced side of the colouring process and what the outcome will be and weighing up what to use to counteract other undertones bleeding through, and of course, English, because translating that request into hairdresser terms is not easy.

To tell us not to trust in Gove’s education system is absurd. I may not like Gove, but the system has worked for hundreds of years. The materials could do with being updated, why read Macbeth when Harry Potter is far more exciting? But the core basics should remain the same.

In school I hated Maths with a passion. I only enjoyed Science because we got to learn about things we really weren’t meant to be taught (by the way, making Vodka out of potatoes is REALLY easy!), and I was very good at English because I was into Dramatic Arts and thus, had to be able to read and comprehend to read a script.

This is also a stupid statement to come from Luvvie Leftie Corby after the disastrous interviews Dianne Abbot has done, where she thinks a full time police officer will work for 10 grand a year, and she randomly pulls big words out of her head despite not knowing the meaning. It’s absolutely incredulous.

She has single handidly done more damage to the Labour party in 3 or 4 interviews than Tony Blair did in 10 years. They are a laughing stock. In Abbots defence (this is only an if) if she is dyslexic or isn’t a bright spark with numbers and words, we can cut her some slack. If she isn’t however, I feel for her constituents.

The thing with education is, it’s not meant to be fun and games all day. It’s to help you progress in life.

Would you want a doctor who didn’t understand you, or who couldn’t work out how much anesthetic you require using the A-BMI ratio (anesthetic to Body Mass Index ratio). Or how about you have a peanut allergy and need hospital treatment, and they don’t know to give Epinephrine and just give you a standard antihystemine. That requires Maths, English, Science and also Latin as most medical terms are Latin.

When Corbyn gets his plush pad renovated, the builders, plumbers, electricians, decorators, tilers, carpet fitters, carpenters, kitchen fitters and every other labourer on site needs to have an understanding of Maths, English and Science.

No pun intended here. But it’s hardly rocket science.

Could a Simple Video Game Help People with Autism?

It’s over 20 years since The Sims was released. It went on to be the best selling game of all time. Essentially a dolls house. The First generation (The Sims) was essentially being able to see reactions. A lot of them funny, some of them dark. It allowed our inner megalomaniac to play to our hearts content. We controlled their lives.

How could something so pure, yet so interesting get over 20 million sales worldwide?

Initially Will Wright, the creator of Sim City and the Sims, set out to create a simple tool that would help him rebuild his house after it caught fire and was destroyed. He then added characters to make is more ‘real’ and found that the people were more interesting than the architecture.

He then set about making them have ‘feelings’. Love, Friendship, Enemies. It was like having your own director’s seat on a Soap Opera.

Not only were they in 3D, they actually had real feelings. If they were rejected for a kiss, they’d fall into a depression. If they were well liked, they’d feel happy. Something that a lot of people feel. They were like Tamagochis. They constantly needed attention, and constantly needed needs fulfilling.

THEN came The Sims 3, complete with all of its add-ons and store purchases.

Even more advanced AI came into play, not only were you able to physically change your Sim to suit your ideal, but you could choose their traits. Long gone are the days where you had 30 points to give to 5 different traits. You could chose 5 traits and your Sim would behave in that way.

In the Sims 3, they have Teenage mood swings (and acne), Toddler Tantrums, Midlife Crises, Ambitions and Regrets. They interact like we would. But for an Autistic person, the world isn’t like that. For an Autistic person, they are essentially learning about what they should and shouldn’t do without any repercussions.

The AI learns what it should and shouldn’t do, such as not sending a ‘Woo Hoo’ text to your sister. Or sending a love letter to your ex. Granted it does take a lot of time to load, but when it does, it’s somewhat therapeutic.

The building bit is obviously still there, as is the customization of your Sim. But I honestly believe, as The Sims behave like ‘normal’ people, it could provide a type of therapy and also give a sense of socialization without having to go out and be in the big bad world where everyone seems to be out to get everyone else.

Hopefully for those who are struggling with being ‘awkward’ or ‘don’t fit in’ The Sims series may actually give them a little look into how their behaviour effects others.

Not in a patronizing way, but from someone who knows how hard it is to be different.

Malignaggi Believes McGregor Can Last 12 Rounds Against Mayweather

Conor McGregor is sparring with former two time boxing champion Paulie Malignaggi as he prepares to take on Floyd Mayweather on August 26 and hand Mayweather his first defeat in the ring. When the ‘money fight’ was announced, the betting odds were hugely in favor of Mayweather who has a 49-0 record.

Odds Keep Changing For Money Fight
Oddsshark.com show that back in November 2016, which was before the fight was officially announced, Mayweather was the overwhelming favorite with a -2250 to McGregor’s +950. Those odds narrowed down with Mayweather getting a rating of -1200 to McGregor’s +650 in March 2016.

There were many ex-boxing greats and boxing analysts who did not give McGregor any chance at all because he is an MMA fighter and has no professional boxing experience. However as the weeks have gone by and the world promotional tour showcased the mind-games that the Notorious one has played with Mayweather, the odds have continued to reduce. Oddshark.com had Floyd Mayweather at -800 on June 14 and McGregor at +500 and then changed that to Mayweather -550 to McGregor’s +375 on June 26.

While Mayweather will still be the favorite, the odds are continuing to improve for McGregor as he continues to release details on his training camp. Former UFC Champion Dominic Cruz believes that McGregor could win against Mayweather but it would have to be during the first 6 rounds. Cruz believes that it will take Mayweather a few rounds to work out McGregor’s style and find his timing which will give McGregor a chance to go for a knock-out in the early rounds.

Malignaggi Believes McGregor Can Go The Distance
Paulie Malignaggi who is sparring with McGregor has done 12 rounds with the Notorious one and does not support Cruz’s theory entirely. Malignaggi said that he believes McGregor can go 12 rounds with Mayweather if he had to and while it is true that McGregor’s best chance is in the early rounds, it does not mean that he has no chance in rounds 6-12.

Malignaggi stated that what was important was to see what happened to Mayweather during those first 6 rounds. If McGregor managed to hurt Mayweather during the first six rounds, it could slow him down during the final rounds and give McGregor another opportunity to finish during rounds 8 -12. Mayweather is 40 years old and could slow down especially if he takes shots to the body.

Oddshark had the odds on July 12 at -500 for Mayweather and +350 for McGregor and those odds will continue to change as we get close to the ‘money fight’.

Race Meetings Scheduled for the 23rd of July 2017

Sunday is one of those days when you may fancy doing something different, and if that is the case then how about placing a few bets and wagers on several horse races that are being held today? If that is something you are interested in doing there are quite a number of racecourses, all over the world, that do have a packed card of races scheduled today.

Be aware that you will not necessarily have to visit a land based sportsbook or betting office to place a bet on any of the races being held at the following racecourses an racetracks today, for you can sign up to and make use of several different online and mobile betting sites and apps.

At Fairyhouse today, which is a racecourse over in Ireland there are 7 races being held there, with the first race scheduled to start at 1.55pm and the last race of the day is being held at 4.55pm, and there are 7 races in total at that racecourse all being flat races.

Redcar is another racecourse that is holding a flat meeting today and there are in fact 8 races scheduled today at Redcar with the very first one starting at 2.00pm, they remaining races will be running every 30 minutes and as such the last race of the day will start at 5.30pm.

If you much prefer watching horses running over a jumps tack then consider betting on some of the 7 races that are being held at Tipperary today, the first race is off and running at 2.05pm and the last race of the day is scheduled to start at 5.05pm however if you can make it to that racecourse it is certainly one worth visiting.

Another racecourse that is holding a jumps meeting today is Stratford in the UK, there are going to be 7 aces in total being run at that racecourse and the first one will be starting at 2.10pm, and the lasts race of the day at Stratford is scheduled to start at 5.10pm.

If it is races running over in the USA that you much prefer watching and betting on then Del Mar is holding a dirt meeting today and as such you will be best advised to take a look at the runners and riders that will be taking part in each of those races as there will certainly be plenty of them running today!

As is usually the case there is also one race meeting being held in France today and that race meeting is over at the Maisons-Laffitte racecourse, it will be flat races you will be watching and betting on at that racecourse and plenty of thrills and spills are as always guaranteed!

Another USA racetrack that has a meeting scheduled today is Saratoga, that is of course another dirt track and as such there will be no fences to jump!

Today’s Most Popular Betting Opportunities

There are always going to be a range of betting opportunities that do attract a lot of money each day of the week, and if you are thinking of placing a bet today, then you may be interested in following the money and placing some cash on some of those popular bets and wagers.

With that in mind below you will find an overview of just which sporting events and the betting opportunist available in them are the ones that many people are betting on today. So read on and make sure you shop around and compare the odds available if you do end up having a bet on any of them!

Golf is of course a popular spectator sport and many people are currently placing their money on Jordan Spieth as the person they think will win the Open Championship, having taken a look around the best odds currently available on him doing so are 6/4.

Another golfer whose odds are slightly higher than the one named above is Rory Mcilroy and he too is having a lot of wagers placed on him to win the Open Championship, however his odds are much more appealing to spots bettor being currently 7/1.

Conor McGregor is the outside in the scheduled boxing match in which he is taking on Floyd Mayweather Junior, but there are many people who do think he is going to win that boxing match and are happily taking the general available odds on him doing so of 11/2!

If you are a fan of the TV reality show Love Island then you just be interested in having a bet on the couple who you think will win that show. If so then you should consider following the money and putting your bets on Jamie and Camilla whose odds of doing so are quite generous considering they are the current favourites to win at 7/4!

Desert Encounter is scheduled to line up and take part in the King George VI Stakes race next weekend, and even though that horses odds are currently huge in size at 33/1, there are a lot of people who are convinced it is going to put up a good show and are placing a flurry of each way bets on it winning!

Master the World is hopefully going to be running at Newmarket today in the 15:50 race, and if you do enjoy watching and also betting on horse then that is a horse that for reference is attracting a lot of bets and wagers and the odds you can grab are 6/1!

The World Series Of Poker is of course one poker tournament any poker player will want to win, and you will also find plenty of betting sites offering odds on that poker event, and it is the poker player Scott Blumstein that many people are convinced is going to win the World Series Of Poker and they are snapping up the current win odds of him doing so which are 9/5!

Horse Racing Punters Celebrate Two Amazing 999 to 1 Winners

Anyone who has an interest in betting on horses knows that half of the battle of having a profitable days racing is picking out at least one horse that hopefully will romp home at huge odds.

However, for the first time in racing history on Sunday, two horses that were available on the BetFair in-running betting platform at odds of 999 to 1 managed to defy the odds and win two back to back races!

BetFair offers something known as a betting exchange, on which punters can place bets in the standard way by picking out the horses they want to win a race and they can then take the odds currently available.

But those odds are actually being offered by other BetFair users, and as such any customer of that betting exchange is also able to lay odds, that being they offer the odds they are prepared to give any other user of the betting exchange and as such a punter can for all intents and purposes become a bookmaker or sportsbook themselves.

One aspect of a betting exchange is that as soon as a race has begin it will then switch over to an in-running or in-play betting market and as such odds can be offered on that race right up until the point in time a horse passes the winning post and is declared the winner.

What you usually find is that as the race is nearly the final few furlongs, those horses that are deemed to have no possible chance of winning the race will have enormous odds attached to them as the layers often quite rightly think there is no way those horses can win, so by offering huge odds on them winning they will tempt some punters to lay bets on them.

However, in amazing scenes at two racecourses on Sunday, two horses that were deemed to have no possible chance of winning a race on those in-running betting markets managed to sprout wings so to speak, and managed to overtake every other horse in their respective races, and were available at odds of 999 to 1 during the race!

Those two horses were Penny Pepper who was running in a race at the Curragh over in Ireland, whilst the other one was Best of My Love at the racecourse in Nottingham.

What made the race that Bets of My Love won a tad more amazing, was that before the off the horse was available at 50 to 1 and as such was deemed to be the outsider of that race, however it made all of the running in that race and was never in any other position that first as the race unfolded!

If you do enjoy betting on sports then it may just be about time for you to learn more about betting exchanges if you have never made use of them before, for as proven yesterday there really is the chance you could secure some huge odds on outcomes that you never thought were possible!