Assembled readers, fellow bloggers, distinguished friends …First, let me say what a great honour it is to have been asked to write this blogpost about commencement speeches. Where I come from, there isn't really any equivalent to this quintessentially American phenomenon; and as a result, every year, thousands of young British people collect their degrees and head into the world in a dangerously uninspired state – not knowing, for example, whether or not they should say "yes" to life, or follow their hearts, or dare to be different.With these lost souls in mind above all, let's review what we've learned from 2012's speeches so far. By now, you'll have seen Barack Obama's, and maybe Mitt Romney's, and perhaps even Neil Gaiman's, which went justifiably viral.But ... Continue reading →
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Foreclosure: how have you coped, and how has the financial stress affected your family and friends? Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images Norman Rousseau battled the wrongful foreclosure of his home for several tortured years. In May, he killed himself. His widow, Oriane, says that Norman "saw no way out." Sheila Ramos, a small business owner from Florida, now lives with her grandchildren in a tent in Hawaii. "In America the foreclosure crisis roils on, devastating lives via a banking industry marked by such fraud and incompetence that five major banks – including Wells Fargo – earlier this year agreed a $25bn compensation settlement. The numbers tell a story of ongoing pain. In the first quarter of 2012 the foreclosure rate jumped in 26 out of the ... Continue reading →
Amelia Gentleman Social affairs writer, The Guardian Amelia Gentleman writes on social affairs for The Guardian. Previously she was New Delhi correspondent for the International Herald Tribune. Formerly Paris and Moscow correspondent for The Guardian.Taken from The Guardian Submitted articles Benefit fraud: spies in the welfare war ‘The medical was an absolute joke’ Someone to lean on Behind the scenes at a school for troubled youngsters Life in a young offenders’ institution England riots: the personal cost Other links Amelia Gentleman on TwitterAmelia Gentleman on Journalisted Continue reading →
