Boys and girls

There was an article in the Sydney Morning Herald the other day regarding Same Sex classes at school and how both boys and girls are more likely to excel academically if they are taught in sex segregated classes. This may be so (due to lack of distraction by members of the opposite sex), but I think this development is not a good one.

For mine, boys and girls need to be bought into contact a lot earlier than the University or workforce years. Now I am not talking about sexual relations (most boys and girls have that covered during the mid to late teens). I am talking about non-sexual relationships. Viewing girls as collaborators, competitors and friends.

Schools aren’t just for academic performance. The ability to think, time management skills, team building skills and communication with both authority and peers are skills that are taught, often sub consciencely in the school yard. How to make friends and influence people if you will. These are skills that are useful in workplaces. Now as workforces are co-ed, I think the skills taught should be experienced in a similar environment.

For a lot of boys born without a sister, the only exposure they have had with the opposite sex before uni or the workforce is through their mothers, teachers or girlfriends. These three personas of women are important in a male’s life, but for quality relations with women, more variety and exposure to females should be required before they hit adulthood. They need female role models and empathy to the female condition. The only places to pick up these things are in the classroom.

And on the reverse side of things, girls need exposure to boys. They need to be comfortable around men, respond to the verbal jargon.They need to learn how to be competitive without using intimidation. They need to work out why men do the things they do.

If you want to break down barriers to women in the workforce, or lower the rates of sexual harassment, you need adult males who see women as more than sexual objects or mothers.

Understanding women is a life long endeavour, and probably one that I never accomplish, but the goat thinks that the boys get a head start the first time a girl gives you a weird look at school.

The Goat Vs the Elderly

I always find other peoples perceptions to be quite funny. One perception that particularly confuses me is the common views of old people.

From my perspective, it seems they get a pretty free ride in society. Concession cards that give them cheap travel. Pensions if they have squandered their savings. Cheap medicine, cheap doctors, cheap everything. But every time you point this out to someone, they say, "Hey, they deserve it". My answer, "Why".

As far as I am concerned, the elderly are the leeches of society. They take up the hospital beds; they are a menace on our roads. They seem to believe that they are God’s gift to the world, worthy of political handouts and tax cuts. These old people live in their million dollar houses yet write letters to the editor saying raise pensions should be raised because they are cash poor.

But for mine, the dream is over. I have seen through the looking glass and will not be deceived.

I have seen the elderly do hundreds of things wrong. One of my pet hates is they fact that they don’t cross at the lights. I’ve seen an old guy who could barely walk cross the Pacific Highway almost causing accidents as cars serve to miss the old bugger. I’ve seen an old woman shoplift apples from a fruit store.

And yet still we try to help them, the goat included. I’ve tried to help an old guy get his trolley over the curb only to see the guy turn on me and gave me verbal abuse. Just say "thank you" you old codger.

To be fair there are a lot of elderly people (maybe even the majority) who are worthy of our love and affection. Who give their time to help their families and society. But lets not sugar coat it. Like every other segment of society there are nice old people, but there are an awful lot of dodgy ones as well. I’ve decided that not every old woman is your nana. Not every old guy is a digger who fought in the war.

Some of them are just pests who have survived.

Let the free ride end.