Talking Allowed In Leeds

Diary of meetings March 2012 - May 2012

2011-08-19T23:09:00.013+01:00

Meetings will be on Friday afternoons in Veritas at 1400 (2 o'clock), one a month. PLEASE NOTE THE CHANGED TIME. Places, times and topics:

9 March 2012:
"Common Sense" - what is its meaning? (led by Ian)

27 April 2012:
Did Ned Ludd Have a Point? (led by Pam)

25 May 2012:
Writing Memoirs - why do it? (led By Sara)

The above are provisional: comments here or in the meetings will be welcome.

VENUE:
Veritas, 43 Great George Street, Leeds LS2 3BB. Great George Street is behind the Town Hall. Veritas is at the far end, very near to the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI). See the location map for details.

Unless otherwise notified, meetings will be in the room at the back of Veritas, less noisy than the main area! Ask at the bar if you cannot locate us.
Railway Station: 0.8 miles on foot (does not appear that a bus service will get you much closer!).

Thinkford - new group in Bradford

2011-05-30T00:29:00.009+01:00

Bradford's new discussion group was launched on September 12th 2011. If you are in the area please support this and help to make it a successful group.

The first meeting was held in The Sparrow Bier Bar, on North Parade, from 5.30 p.m. onwards. The opening topic was be "Are all our friendships imaginary?"

Diary - meetings May, June and July 2011

2011-03-11T20:07:00.005Z

Meetings will be on Thursday evenings (but please note that a new venue is being sought for North Leeds) and on the next Friday afternoons (Veritas) at 1430 (half-past 2), one a month. Places, times and topics:

13 May 2011: FRIDAY AFTERNOON at Veritas, Great George Street.
Superstitions?
(Well, this is on Friday the 13th..........)

17 June 2011: FRIDAY AFTERNOON at Veritas, Great George Street.
"Something Completely Different" - participants will be shown a drawing which should inspire discussion

8 July 2011: FRIDAY AFTERNOON at Veritas, Great George Street.
TBC
(Watch this space..)

The general pattern is the second week in the month, but this MAY vary.

The above are provisional: comments here or in the meetings will be welcome.

VENUES:
Veritas, 43 Great George Street, Leeds LS2 3BB. Great George Street is behind the Town Hall. Veritas is at the far end, very near to the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI). See the location map for details.

Unless otherwise notified, meetings will be in the room at the back of Veritas, less noisy than the main area! Ask at the bar if you cannot locate us.
Railway Station: 0.8 miles on foot (does not appear that a bus service will get you much closer!).

New groups in Bradford and Accrington (Lancs) starting soon

2011-03-11T19:53:00.001Z

Advance notice that a new group may well be starting in Bradford city centre, and another, over the Pennines, in Accrington. The first meeting of the latter is likely to be in July.

No news yet about the planned Huddersfield group.

Further details will be added.

Diary - meetings March and April 2011

2011-02-28T00:45:00.001Z

Meetings will be on Thursday evenings (The Mustard Pot) at 7 p.m., but please note that this group is experimental and will discontinue without sufficient interest.

and on the next Friday afternoons (Veritas) at 1430 (half-past 2), one a month. Places, times and topics:

10 March 2011: THURSDAY EVENING at The Mustard Pot, Chapel Allerton.
Celebrity - do we need heroes?

11 March 2011: FRIDAY AFTERNOON at Veritas, Great George Street.
What is fairness?
8 April 2011: FRIDAY AFTERNOON at Veritas, Great George Street.
TO BE FINALISED

WARNING: There is now only a short gap until the March meeting. The general pattern is the second week in the month, but this MAY vary.

The above are provisional: comments here or in the meetings will be welcome.

VENUES:
Veritas, 43 Great George Street, Leeds LS2 3BB. Great George Street is behind the Town Hall. Veritas is at the far end, very near to the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI). See the location map for details.

Unless otherwise notified, meetings will be in the room at the back of Veritas, less noisy than the main area! Ask at the bar if you cannot locate us.
Railway Station: 0.8 miles on foot (does not appear that a bus service will get you much closer!).

The Mustard Pot, Stainbeck Lane, Chapel Allerton, Leeds LS7 3BB. This is set back from Stainbeck Lane, near its junction with Harrogate Road. There is a "pay and display" car park if you travel by car, but charges are refundable at the bar.

DIary - meetings February and March 2011

2011-01-15T00:21:00.001Z

Meetings will be on Thursday evenings (The Mustard Pot) at 7 p.m., and on the next Friday afternoons (Veritas) at 1430 (half-past 2), one a month. Places, times and topics:

24 February 2011: THURSDAY EVENING at The Mustard Pot, Chapel Allerton.
What is the purpose of literature?

25 February 2011: FRIDAY AFTERNOON at Veritas, Great George Street.
What is real friendship: people for whom you would sacrifice your own life, or lists on Facebook?

10 March 2011: THURSDAY EVENING at The Mustard Pot, Chapel Allerton.
Celebrity - do we need heroes?

11 March 2011: FRIDAY AFTERNOON at Veritas, Great George Street.
What is fairness?

7 April 2011: THURSDAY EVENING at The Mustard Pot, Chapel Allerton.
Are we automata? What is the mind?

WARNING: February meetings have been scheduled later; the rest follow the general pattern.

The above are provisional: comments here or in the meetings will be welcome.

VENUES:
Veritas, 43 Great George Street, Leeds LS2 3BB. Great George Street is behind the Town Hall. Veritas is at the far end, very near to the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI). See the location map for details.

Unless otherwise notified, meetings will be in the room at the back of Veritas, less noisy than the main area! Ask at the bar if you cannot locate us.
Railway Station: 0.8 miles on foot (does not appear that a bus service will get you much closer!).

The Mustard Pot, Stainbeck Lane, Chapel Allerton, Leeds LS7 3BB. This is set back from Stainbeck Lane, near its junction with Harrogate Road. There is a "pay and display" car park if you travel by car, but charges are refundable at the bar.

New evening group starting on Thursday 24 February

2011-01-15T00:08:00.000Z

In response to popular demand, we have started a second group. This will meet at The Mustard Pot, Stainbeck Lane, Chapel Allerton(see details in column on right). An indication of whether you would be interested would be helpful; please email the site on leedspips@yahoo.com.

The meetings will be from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on one Thursday each month. Usually this will be before the daytime meeting on the next Friday.

Diary - next three meetings - in 2011

2010-12-10T20:14:00.000Z

Meeting times will remain at 1430 (half-past 2) on Friday afternoons, one a month. Times and topics:

14 January 2011: A better Leeds (or Bradford...)? Urban environments - should we care?

25 February 2011: What is real friendship: people for whom you would sacrifice your own life, or lists on Facebook?

11 March 2011: What is fairness?

WARNING: The February meeting has had to be scheduled later; the rest follow the general pattern

The above are provisional: comments here or in the meetings will be welcome.
Venue: Veritas, 43 Great George Street, Leeds LS2 3BB. Great George Street is behind the Town Hall. Veritas is at the far end, very near to the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI). See the location map for details.

Unless otherwise notified, meetings will be in the room at the back of Veritas, less noisy than the main area! Ask at the bar if you cannot locate us.
Railway Station: 0.8 miles on foot (does not appear that a bus service will get you much closer!).

Art in Public Places - outline for Friday

2010-12-10T00:48:00.001Z

Some examples of public art

But what is public art?
What isn’t public art?
What should count as public art – but doesn’t?

What purposes does public art serve?
What purposes should it serve?

Local radio

2010-11-21T12:20:00.003Z

Paul Doran from Liverpool was interviewed last week by Rony Robinson on BBC Radio Sheffield.

Paul, Rob Lewis from Liverpool and Joseph of Leeds were interviewed for BBC Radio York by Jeremy Buxton on 20th November. The latter interview involved three of us going into a recording booth at Radio Merseyside in Liverpool! It's difficult to convey what a TAIL or PiPs meeting is like "on the air", but we did comment on the topic of "friendship", and this will be discussed in Leeds in February.

First meeting - very brief report

2010-11-21T12:13:00.001Z

Well, the first meeting duly took place, with about 12 people there. Rather a squeeze onto two tables in a corner of Veritas, but we did have guests there. Paul and Mike from Liverpool came along, and were interviewed, along with myself, by Chris Bond of the Yorkshire Post. Chris stayed on and took part in the discussion - very welcome. Here's a link to the article:

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/features/I-drink-therefore-I-am.6626937.jp

The meeting itself seemed to run satisfactorily, with everyone having, and most taking, the opportunity to take part. Many points were aired. One of the most interesting, which raises a topic in its own right, was that question of what it means to "deserve". One contributor asserted simply, that we are born into circumstances not of our choosing and that the matter of whether or not we "deserve" what we get simply does not arise. Others added that we needed to clarify what "deserve" might mean. This might read like semantic objections about language and wording, but the discussion was not as dry as this reads!

4-30 is a good time to end, as Veritas starts to fill up at that point. Chris got a good idea of how PiP, and specifically TAIL discussions will run in future.

How about North Leeds, Huddersfield, Bradford, evenings?

2010-11-12T21:44:00.001Z

At the first meeting on 12 November, it emerged that there is interest in forming further PiPs groups in West Yorkshire. Afternoon meetings are a problem for some, while evening meetings may get too late for people to get home!

If you are interested in taking part in, or even organising, a group in Huddersfield, Bradford or (evenings) North Leeds, please email us via leedspips@yahoo.com.

The Very First Meeting - Friday 12 November at 1430 hours

2010-11-04T16:05:00.002Z

The first meeting of the new Talking Allowed In Leeds group will be on Friday 12 November at 1430 (half-past 2 in the afternoon). It will last for about 2 hours, with a break for refreshment in the middle.

We will discuss the approach generally taken by Philosophy in Pubs groups, before the first discussion. Afterwards, possible future discussion topics will be considered.

Venue: Veritas, 43 Great George Street, Leeds LS2 3BB. Great George Street is behind the Town Hall. Veritas is at the far end, very near to the Leeds General Infirmary (LGI). See the location map for details.
Railway Station: 0.8 miles on foot (does not appear that a bus service will get you much closer!).

Queries - please email leedspips@yahoo.com

Notes for the first meeting - Do we get the Politicians we deserve?

2010-11-04T16:03:00.000Z

Here are the discussion notes produced for a discussion by this title by the group at the Lazy Trout in Staffordshire - now one of the PiPs groups. We will not be following this agenda slavishly but it is posted to inspire interest.

Do we get the Politicians we deserve?
[[originally discussed at Lazy Trout ,Meerbrook 30th March 2009]]

How important is politics?

Respondents were given a list of seven professions to rank in the order in which they trusted them, with a score of seven being most trusted and one the least trusted.
The Which? findings were as follows:
• Doctors 6.4
• Teachers 5.4
• Surveyors 4.3
• Solicitors 4.3
• Financial advisors 3.6
• Estate agents 2.2
• Politicians 1.6

Politicians from the past or other countries seem to rate higher - for
example, Churchill, Gorbachev, Mandela, Obama.... Why?

There was the Sleaze of the 90’s and the Spin of the naughties. How untrustworthy are politicians?
The blame culture – “to err is human, to forgive divine”. What are the good points and bad points of a blame culture?
Most politicians are career politicians these days why? Is it a good thing?

Are there any good politicians?

How do we form opinions of our politicians?

Is spin a new phenomenon?
Why do politicians spin?
Should we distinguish between local, national and international politicians?
What other professions have been vilified over the last 30 years? What were the consequences?

Diary - first three meetings

2010-10-29T14:46:00.004+01:00

Our meeting times will be 1430 (half-past 2) on Friday afternoons, one a month. Times and topics:

12 November 2010: Do we get the polticians we deserve?
10 December 2010: Art in public spaces - what for?
14 January 2011: A better Leeds (or Bradford...)? Urban environments - should we care?