Lack of joined-up thinking!

So, in Garland, Texas someone had the bright idea to hold a competition to see who could draw the best cartoon of the prophet Mohammed. Is it even possible to pretend that this was somehow artistic? The organiser didn't come from the town but someone in the place agreed to let her hold it there. Did no-one do the joined-up thinking that tells you that such an event was bound to be provocative? There's nothing quite like publicly insulting someone and then being surprised when they react. The organiser had the effrontery to claim that her exhibition was meant to be in defence of free speech. 

Not that people in the UK are necessarily much better at joined-up thinking. According to reports into the investigation of the child abuse cases in Rotherham, police didn't follow up the first reports they had because they didn't understand what was going on. They thought it was a case of young people out of control, running wild. They thought child abuse was child prostitution and that the young girls concerned were involved voluntarily. Really? When did child prostitution became acceptable? Surely young people out of control and running wild need some kind of attention. I didn't know we just ignored bad behaviour in this country, 

Both of these cases just leave me totally astonished. They never should have been allowed to happen. I wonder once again what our modern world is coming to. 

Then there are the food banks. It seems as though every day we read more about people queuing for food because they cannot afford to feed their families. And, in similar vein, there are teachers who are subsidising their places of work. The cycle course our grandson is attending at school is paid for by parental contribution. Judging by the cars that turn up to collect the children at the end of the afternoon I don't think they have many who need assistance. But it appears that in many school through the country that is not so. 

Reports tell of school spending huge amounts of money to provide food, clothing, funding for day trips and much more for the children in their care. I can remember working in school which had "uniform banks"; parents were encouraged to donate items of school uniform that their children had grown out of and then children from poorer children were given this clothing so that they had a decent school uniform. Nowadays this kind of thing extends to underwear as well. Haircuts, laundry, head lice treatments are all paid for out of school funds in some places. It is estimated that up to £43.5 million of support is being provided. In some cases, teachers are paying for some of this out of their own pockets. 

There have always been teachers who paid for stuff in this way. Often it was only extra bits of equipment for lessons but sometimes much more. I knew teachers who scrupulously kept accounts of whatever they spent and claimed everything back from petty cash. Once, on a trip to Paris the organiser carefully kept receipts for every cent he spent: meals, snacks, beers. Then he submitted his accounts and claimed all of it back when we returned home. It struck me as vaguely immoral. Had we been in college, surely he would have paid for his own food. It left me with a bad taste in my mouth. 

But mostly, people like him were in the minority. Teachers have always subsidised the education service one way or another. But how did we reach the present situation where head teachers are siphoning funds off to ensure that the children in their schools are not too hungry to learn? Something in the system is broken. 

Okay, that's enough pessimism for today. Here is a link to pictures of the wardrobe of the artist Frida Kahlo. It thought it might give a little light relief.