Watched Sir Ken Robinson's lecture on TED: Schools Kill Creativity. Having recently discovered TED, am trying to watch more. Great site and seems like a welcome antidote to the banality of most broadcast television!

From TED profile:

Why don't we get the best out of people? Sir Ken Robinson argues that it's because we've been educated to become good workers, rather than creative thinkers. Students with restless minds and bodies -- far from being cultivated for their energy and curiosity -- are ignored or even stigmatized, with terrible consequences. "We are educating people out of their creativity," Robinson says. It's a message with deep resonance. Robinson's TEDTalk has been distributed widely around the Web since its release in June 2006. The most popular words framing blog posts on his talk? "Everyone should watch this."

A visionary cultural leader, Sir Ken led the British government's 1998 advisory committee on creative and cultural education, a massive inquiry into the significance of creativity in the educational system and the economy, and was knighted in 2003 for his achievements. His latest book, The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything, a deep look at human creativity and education, was published in January 2009.

"Ken's vision and expertise is sought by public and commercial organizations throughout the world."
BBC Radio 4

Wow! Amazing acting, great story, stunning camera work and such wonderful locations. I hope it won an Oscar...! (YouTube)

This appears to come from an Internet viral, but sounds reasonable! See the Peter Davies entry in Wikipedia.

A maverick mayor elected after promising to slash council spending, clear the streets of yobs and ditch politically correct services is the torchbearer for how towns should be run. On his first morning as mayor of Doncaster, Peter Davies cut his salary from £73,000 to £30,000 then closed the council's newspaper for "peddling politics on the rates".

Now three weeks into his job, Mr Davies is pressing ahead with plans to see the number of town councillors cut from 63 to just 21, saving taxpayers £800,000. Mr Davies said: "If 100 senators can run the United States of America, I can't see how 63 councillors are needed to run Doncaster."

He has withdrawn Doncaster from the Local Government Association and the Local Government Information Unit, saving another £200,000. Mr Davies said: "They are just talking shops."  Doncaster is in for some serious untwinning. We are twinned with probably nine other cities around the world and it is just for people to fly off and have a binge at the council's expense". The mayor's chauffeur-driven car has also been axed by Mr Davies and the driver given another job.

Mr Davies, born and bred in Doncaster, swept to power in the May election as a candidate for the English Democrats. He has promised to end council funding for Doncaster's International Women's Day, Black History Month and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender History Month.

He said: "Politicians have got completely out of touch with what people want. We need to cut costs."

When I was a councillor I proposed the same. When Voluntary Action Rutland wanted £10,000 for a worthwhile project they were refused. I said we could give it to them tomorrow, just get rid of the council newsletter that cost £10,000. I then asked if they needed more since we could give them another £20,000 by getting rid of the publicity officer who produced it!

I was totally opposed to spending £10,000 a year on the chairman's civic reception party; to increasing councillors from 20 to 26; to increasing the payment to councillors; to the increased salary of the chief executive; to continuing membership to the Local Government Association and many other ridiculous organisations. The list is endless and runs into millions of pounds.

Mr. Davies has received messages from well wishers across the country and abroad as news of his no-nonsense approach spreads.  Now it's your chance to spread this most sensible way to run a town council.

A couple of years ago I built this external drive using a standard 1Tb SATA drive and a separate enclosure. Having talked about it at work today, I'm tempted to build another - only it's getting cheaper.