I'm sitting watching Barak Obama making his jobs speech - trying to keep the vandals from the crumbling walls of what passes for welfare here, while proposing to remove some of the privilges of the wealthy. The commentators observed that there was more passion in this address than has been seen from him in his Presidency. What is exceptional is not that he would argue this - and so strongly - but that half of his audience would sooner throw the poor, the sick and the unemployed to the wolves.

On a not disconnected theme, I have been observing the students on the campus at BC over the last couple of days. It struck me first yesterday as I saw a group of four or five students of colour (to use the local term) in the cafeteria. They were the first such students I had spotted all day. And they were gathered together. Having deliberately looked for other students of colour today, I can see why they were - they are in very small numbers. The only figures I could find on the web were that the Law school has a 25% enrolment of students of colour. Maybe they stayed home today. This started me thinking - and looking. I have seen no obviously Islamic students, none of sub-continental descent and few Hispanics. Hell, I think I've only spotted one or two students that could be considered overweight. It's like being in Beverley Hills 90210. By and large the student body epitomise the stereotypes of slim, coiffed and orthodonted American youth.

I then went to the web to check out BC tuition fees. At over $40,000 a year for undergrads and $8-10 thousand in accommodation (remembering that most students are in residence) plus several hundred in miscellaneous charges, its easy to see why some groups are under-represented. It would appear that the manicured lawns, pristine campus and wonderful efficiency come at a cost!

Oh, and ladies, the campus fashion footwear du jour is fancy wellies.

Hmmm.