De Omnibus Dubitandum Est.

So the teacher Jeremy Forrest, who abducted/ eloped (?) with a 15 year old student of his is sentenced today.

I have to say, my mind ran immediately to the old Police hit 'Don't Stand So Close To Me', remember it?



The song deals with the mixed feelings of lust, fear and guilt that a female student has for a school teacher and vice versa, as well as inappropriateness leading to confrontation. The music and lyrics of the song were written by the lead singer of The Police, Sting, who had previously worked as an English teacher.

In a 2001 interview for the concert DVD ...All This Time, Sting denied that the song is autobiographical. The line "Just like the old man in that book by Nabokov" alludes to Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita which covers somewhat similar issues.
Like Sting, Forrest has a musical side to his character which some, like the BBC reporter Duncan Kennedy have suggested, added to his appeal for the student who has ended up embroiled in this affai…

I for one am not shocked or surprised that the House of Commons approved the bill for Same Sex Marriage, it seemed inevitable to me in a society that has such high divorce rates and so many co-habiting couples. Many couples today ask why they need the piece of paper to prove that they love each other. Indeed the fact that society simultaneously seems to reject the conformity of marriage whilst asserting with such authority that anyone in love should be able to get married seems slightly schizophrenic. With such a poor understanding of what marriage is and what it is about, can we really be shocked that legislation that seeks to define the institution to mere sentiment is supported?

Historically Marriage has seldom involved sentiment, and has been more about security, social progress, and a framework for the birthing and rearing of children. It is usually defined as the legitimate union between husband and wife. Love is undoubtedly part of a good marriage, but I always think that love…