Comments on: Hanafin’s facts make me sick to my stomach http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/ An Irish woman's social, political and domestic commentary Sat, 19 Mar 2011 23:50:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: geist_reid http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-2/#comment-12102 geist_reid Wed, 17 May 2006 11:23:42 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-12102 >And I hate to break it to folks but ‘registration fees' in the colleges now >are over the €1000 mark, so we have fees by the back door. Ya. If you dont qualify for the grant (didnt pay my rent but lowered the reg fees to around e50-70) you are in deep trouble with the registration fees. Thats why people kept protesting through my years in college. Saying that I wouldnt have made it through the last year without help from my boyfriend. I could barely afford rent never mind books or food, the stress was huge and working while studying would have resulted in me failing. Also mature students who used to qualify for a very good back to education program, were very angry when that was made useless by ff. Many of them had just started or where half way through theire degrees. I personally like my taxes going to education, I'm happy paying for other people to get the chances I did. Now Im earning more than minium wage and reaching middle class. I didnt have much chance of that without these scheme coming from a lower class background (rural-poor). If we want to complain about money not going to a good cause we should look more closely at all the tax dodges available to the upper-middle and upper classes, who end up paying >And I hate to break it to folks but ‘registration fees’ in the colleges now >are over the €1000 mark, so we have fees by the back door.

Ya. If you dont qualify for the grant (didnt pay my rent but lowered the reg fees to around e50-70) you are in deep trouble with the registration fees. Thats why people kept protesting through my years in college. Saying that I wouldnt have made it through the last year without help from my boyfriend. I could barely afford rent never mind books or food, the stress was huge and working while studying would have resulted in me failing.

Also mature students who used to qualify for a very good back to education program, were very angry when that was made useless by ff. Many of them had just started or where half way through theire degrees.

I personally like my taxes going to education, I’m happy paying for other people to get the chances I did. Now Im earning more than minium wage and reaching middle class. I didnt have much chance of that without these scheme coming from a lower class background (rural-poor).

If we want to complain about money not going to a good cause we should look more closely at all the tax dodges available to the upper-middle and upper classes, who end up paying

]]> By: geist_reid http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-2/#comment-12101 geist_reid Wed, 17 May 2006 11:13:31 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-12101 I disagree. I got to go to college because of free fees. My parents wouldnt be able to afford to send me otherwise. My secondary school and primary had a cheap school books scheme which helped a lot too. I disagree. I got to go to college because of free fees. My parents wouldnt be able to afford to send me otherwise. My secondary school and primary had a cheap school books scheme which helped a lot too.

]]> By: Hanafin rumbles at Gavin’s Blog http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-2/#comment-11770 Hanafin rumbles at Gavin’s Blog Sun, 14 May 2006 13:34:02 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-11770 [...] Sarah gets a reply from Mary Hanafin in relation to last week’s article in the Sunday Times. She seems a tad miffed. Sarah replies on her blog. Her other very carefully chosen phrase is that "in the coming school year" the pupil:teacher ratio will be 10:1. The Principal explained how the Minister is able to say this. Since the school is closing, they are not taking in a new class of pupils in September as it would normally do. Furthermore some of the parents have found schools for the pupils and want to move them now to get in ahead of the main pack when the school does close in 2007. Therefore, as a result of the decision to close, they have less pupils, which has brought the ratio down from 15:1 to 10:1. But Hanafin allows you to believe that the teacher loss in itself would have meant a 10:1 ratio. Very sneaky. [...] [...] Sarah gets a reply from Mary Hanafin in relation to last week’s article in the Sunday Times. She seems a tad miffed. Sarah replies on her blog. Her other very carefully chosen phrase is that “in the coming school year” the pupil:teacher ratio will be 10:1. The Principal explained how the Minister is able to say this. Since the school is closing, they are not taking in a new class of pupils in September as it would normally do. Furthermore some of the parents have found schools for the pupils and want to move them now to get in ahead of the main pack when the school does close in 2007. Therefore, as a result of the decision to close, they have less pupils, which has brought the ratio down from 15:1 to 10:1. But Hanafin allows you to believe that the teacher loss in itself would have meant a 10:1 ratio. Very sneaky. [...]

]]> By: Sarah http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-2/#comment-11480 Sarah Thu, 11 May 2006 13:25:50 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-11480 fnar fnar.... fnar fnar….

]]> By: Ray http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-1/#comment-11473 Ray Thu, 11 May 2006 13:03:50 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-11473 I think Gerry despaired of finding a final solution to this problem. I think Gerry despaired of finding a final solution to this problem.

]]> By: Sarah http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-1/#comment-11465 Sarah Thu, 11 May 2006 11:47:45 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-11465 i thought Gerry was begging for the debate to put out of its misery? i thought Gerry was begging for the debate to put out of its misery?

]]> By: tom http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-1/#comment-11464 tom Thu, 11 May 2006 10:41:46 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-11464 Sarah. Your unilateral decision to close down this discussion is worthy of Stalin himself. I should point out that Gerry started it by the way. Sarah. Your unilateral decision to close down this discussion is worthy of Stalin himself.

I should point out that Gerry started it by the way.

]]> By: Daniel K. http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-1/#comment-11463 Daniel K. Thu, 11 May 2006 10:17:14 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-11463 I'm not going to get further into this one, in part because we are all (I'm including myself here) raising related but not core issues. Anyway, look at it this way, Sarah, there has to be another column in all this somewhere! I’m not going to get further into this one, in part because we are all (I’m including myself here) raising related but not core issues. Anyway, look at it this way, Sarah, there has to be another column in all this somewhere!

]]> By: Sarah http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-1/#comment-11462 Sarah Thu, 11 May 2006 09:48:32 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-11462 Now that Tom has invoked Godwin's Law...let's call it a day! Now that Tom has invoked Godwin’s Law…let’s call it a day!

]]> By: Ray http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/comment-page-1/#comment-11461 Ray Thu, 11 May 2006 08:28:10 +0000 http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2006/05/07/hanafin%e2%80%99s-facts-make-me-sick-to-my-stomach/#comment-11461 Sure, that would keep opportunities the same at third-level, and increase them at primary level (and so at third-level 20 years down the line). I'd add another caveat - I'd have to be sure that the level of funding would remain the same, that the money going to grants wouldn't start dropping as the middle-class started benefitting less. I agree completely that that would be a more equitable way of spending the money, but I seriously doubt that's how things would work. Sure, that would keep opportunities the same at third-level, and increase them at primary level (and so at third-level 20 years down the line). I’d add another caveat – I’d have to be sure that the level of funding would remain the same, that the money going to grants wouldn’t start dropping as the middle-class started benefitting less.
I agree completely that that would be a more equitable way of spending the money, but I seriously doubt that’s how things would work.

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