maryportfuncity 10,655 Posted April 11, 2013 Still, Thatcher's funeral will be a great opportunity for deadpoolers to spot the frail and not-so frail as well as noting any absentees, so keep 'em peeled... And so it begins ! Mikhail Gorbachev to miss Thatcher's funeral due to health problems http://www.bbc.co.uk...litics-22103866 And Nancy Reagan. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dr. Zorders 1,271 Posted April 11, 2013 Daily Mail has the latest guest-list gossip on what is shaping up to be the hottest social event of the season: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2307374/Margaret-Thatcher-funeral-Dame-Shirley-Bassey-Jeremy-Clarkson-attend-Neil-Kinnock-to.html Guests include Jeremy Clarkson and Dame Shirley Bassey but no Neil Kinnock. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gunjaman5000 30 Posted April 11, 2013 I'd be about as neutral as any you'd find on poor old Maggie. There's a few things worth considering though; how progressive Britain looked by being the first old world power to have a woman running the place, and for such a long time. Apart from the odd spot in the colonies no other country has come close. If it weren't her it would have been someone else. Britian was dying on its arse in the seventies, the reforms brought in under her leadership have been a model for many countries and those who haven't, ie most of Europe, would regret not having made those difficult choices earlier. Manufacturing in the western world, with a few exceptions, is fucked. Having the foresight to realise this twenty years before the rest of the world and change the focus of the economy was either visionary or blind luck. Imagine that sort of social upheaval now, would it be any worse? Probably not, but who ever instigated, or was the figurehead for similiar policies would be equally demonised. I've had a couple of thoughts over the last day or two; firstly, if the status quo remained in Britian how many English plummers would be in Eastern Europe now undercutting the locals? And secondly, the twentieth century's 'greatest' prime minister having to do the same thing; "We shall sack them in the dock yards, we shall sack in them in the mines, we shall lay them off in the factories and in the railways..." Rejoice? Seems a bit harsh doesn't it? If manufacturing is such an irrelevance, how come China's done so well? The blind luck was North Sea Oil, without it she would never have got away with it. Shares in utilities and council houses were sold on the cheap. Now we have nothing left in the cupboard to flog... Not sure how many Western manufacturing workers would be happy with China's rates of pay. To quote New Zealand's 'seventh most popular folk/paordy duo' The Flight of the Conchords "They're turning children into slaves just to make people sneakers, what's the real deal cos the sneakers don't seem that much cheaper, what are your overheads."One of the reasons China's doing well I believe. Of course Thatcher was all for the worker's being well paid, wasn't she? Interesting she didn't fight the Chinese whatsoever over Hong Kong... My original point was that manufacturing in the western world is fucked. The western world. Western. I'm not sure this includes China. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
themaninblack 2,112 Posted April 11, 2013 I'd be about as neutral as any you'd find on poor old Maggie. There's a few things worth considering though; how progressive Britain looked by being the first old world power to have a woman running the place, and for such a long time. Apart from the odd spot in the colonies no other country has come close. If it weren't her it would have been someone else. Britian was dying on its arse in the seventies, the reforms brought in under her leadership have been a model for many countries and those who haven't, ie most of Europe, would regret not having made those difficult choices earlier. Manufacturing in the western world, with a few exceptions, is fucked. Having the foresight to realise this twenty years before the rest of the world and change the focus of the economy was either visionary or blind luck. Imagine that sort of social upheaval now, would it be any worse? Probably not, but who ever instigated, or was the figurehead for similiar policies would be equally demonised. I've had a couple of thoughts over the last day or two; firstly, if the status quo remained in Britian how many English plummers would be in Eastern Europe now undercutting the locals? And secondly, the twentieth century's 'greatest' prime minister having to do the same thing; "We shall sack them in the dock yards, we shall sack in them in the mines, we shall lay them off in the factories and in the railways..." Rejoice? Seems a bit harsh doesn't it? If manufacturing is such an irrelevance, how come China's done so well? The blind luck was North Sea Oil, without it she would never have got away with it. Shares in utilities and council houses were sold on the cheap. Now we have nothing left in the cupboard to flog... Not sure how many Western manufacturing workers would be happy with China's rates of pay. To quote New Zealand's 'seventh most popular folk/paordy duo' The Flight of the Conchords "They're turning children into slaves just to make people sneakers, what's the real deal cos the sneakers don't seem that much cheaper, what are your overheads."One of the reasons China's doing well I believe. Of course Thatcher was all for the worker's being well paid, wasn't she? Interesting she didn't fight the Chinese whatsoever over Hong Kong... My original point was that manufacturing in the western world is fucked. The western world. Western. I'm not sure this includes China. In what way is manufacturing different than it is in China? Did it involve magic or something? Making things is making things, that's what's manufacturing is all about. If it's "fucked" you try to improve it. Often through technology or through management of labour. Which is where the problem lies. Increased efficiency in technology leads to less labour required. But less labour means more demand for it, hence the price of labour rises. This is a problem Thatcher and her cronies approached with a sledgehammer. "it was necessary" you will crow, but did if have to be so harsh on those who missed out? Thatcher assumed that the magical market forces would come and take up the slack, it didn't, it concentrated on finance and services instead. Making stuff in a factory may not be massively better than flipping burgers but it paid more and sometimes you got things like pensions and job security out of it... 2 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Paul Bearer 6,102 Posted April 11, 2013 I got my invitation 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Toast 16,150 Posted April 11, 2013 Didn't realise Mrs T's daughter runs Germany. At least that's what the Mail seems to think. Germany’s premier Angela Merkel will decide within the next 48 hours whether to attend but if not, her place will be taken instead by President Joachim Gauck. Yesterday her twin brother Sir Mark Thatcher today said Baroness Thatcher would have been 'honoured and humbled' by the presence of the Queen at her funeral. Speaking outside his mother’s home in Belgravia, central London, Sir Mark said his mother's death was 'without doubt a very sad moment'. Mark seems to got over it quite quickly, then. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the_engineer 1,415 Posted April 11, 2013 Has Rod Stewart been asked to sing at her funeral ..'Wake up Maggie' Maggie may but she probably . I Robbed that joke from somewhere. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lord Fellatio Nelson 6,219 Posted April 11, 2013 I'd be about as neutral as any you'd find on poor old Maggie. There's a few things worth considering though; how progressive Britain looked by being the first old world power to have a woman running the place, and for such a long time. Apart from the odd spot in the colonies no other country has come close. If it weren't her it would have been someone else. Britian was dying on its arse in the seventies, the reforms brought in under her leadership have been a model for many countries and those who haven't, ie most of Europe, would regret not having made those difficult choices earlier. Manufacturing in the western world, with a few exceptions, is fucked. Having the foresight to realise this twenty years before the rest of the world and change the focus of the economy was either visionary or blind luck. Imagine that sort of social upheaval now, would it be any worse? Probably not, but who ever instigated, or was the figurehead for similiar policies would be equally demonised. I've had a couple of thoughts over the last day or two; firstly, if the status quo remained in Britian how many English plummers would be in Eastern Europe now undercutting the locals? And secondly, the twentieth century's 'greatest' prime minister having to do the same thing; "We shall sack them in the dock yards, we shall sack in them in the mines, we shall lay them off in the factories and in the railways..." Rejoice? Seems a bit harsh doesn't it? If manufacturing is such an irrelevance, how come China's done so well? The blind luck was North Sea Oil, without it she would never have got away with it. Shares in utilities and council houses were sold on the cheap. Now we have nothing left in the cupboard to flog... Not sure how many Western manufacturing workers would be happy with China's rates of pay. To quote New Zealand's 'seventh most popular folk/paordy duo' The Flight of the Conchords "They're turning children into slaves just to make people sneakers, what's the real deal cos the sneakers don't seem that much cheaper, what are your overheads."One of the reasons China's doing well I believe. Of course Thatcher was all for the worker's being well paid, wasn't she? Interesting she didn't fight the Chinese whatsoever over Hong Kong... Why should she? It never "belonged to us" and the agreement to lease it from the Chinese was made before she was born. Fucking hell, what is she going to be blamed for next? We have had TWENTY THREE years of Government after her resignation, with a shit load of Labour in charge, and she is still getting blamed for absolutely everything. The funniest thing was listening to Radio 2s Jeremy Vine show when some lickle boy ( 26 ) is going into detail as to why he was celebrating her death, like he actually remembered fuck all. He even blamed her for the Gulf war. Says it all really. Here, have a cup of tea and a slice of toast..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPSzPGrazPo If I heard "under the last Labour government once" in the 1980s, I heard it a billion fucking times. The blame game was invented by the Tories and they're still at it (see Gideon Osbourne). Besides, it's not that there's this little cult of no influence that can barely be heard pleading the Thatcher case before the ravenous dogs, if you took your head out of your arse for a couple of seconds you'll see that Thatcher is being praised as a peacemaker, an environmentalist and saviour of Nelson Mandela. On the BBC. The very organisation her hubby Denis thought were a bunch of pinkos and she set out to destroy. Talk about fucking over-egging the pudding. Thatcher was a fucking cow. That's just not my point of view, it's the point of millions. Deal with it... There is nothing for me to deal with fella. My opinion is no less valid than yours, irrespective, of how you percieve the disccusion to be going. I dont give a rats arse about how they are portraying her to be fair, not a fuck. All Im hearing is a load of fucking bollocks from people that were either too young to remember her as Prime Minister or those that feel that they were sufficiently "aggrieved" to hate her and piss on her grave. I dont like her, never did and never will. There, thats the top and bottom of it. She was an arrogant bitch who was utterly dismissive of people. Mind you, I dont fucking like spinach either but, Im sure, Its good for you or summat. It wasnt just the Miners and those in Manufacturing Industries that lost out. My Dad lost his business and we lost our house under her Government. No Manufacturing industry? No Fork lifts to shift goods around, no need for engineers to service and repair them. That fucked my dad good and proper, I can tell ya. Two years on the dole and two years of pain ( yeah, some will have had it worse no doubt) and maybe longer before he got his self esteem back. All the reason in the World to hate the cow, right? The reality is,and its fact,the country was a total basket case pre 1979. Unproductive, uneconomic, uncompetitive and a whole plethora of state owned industry that was bleeding the country dry with handouts that were not even making them break even. British Leyland was the jewel in that crown. Run by unions, cars built that nobody wanted, shocking build quality, totally uncompetitive. Whole swathes of or industries were in the same situation and nobody could do anything about it because of union domination. She changed it all. Yes, people suffered, my Dad and my family suffered, millions suffered. Maybe things could have been done better but I wouldnt know, im not a Politician anymore than you are and we can only speculate. Im no Tory, although it would be fair to say that I detest Labour like I detest dog shit. I dont do socialism, communism or lesbianism, I do what i think is right for my family, as most of us do and those that say they dont are fucking liars. Under this current excrement of a Government, they want to slash the welfare bill by zillions etc, etc. Hopefully that cut wont come down on the benefits afforded to my handicapped brother who, thanks to the welfare state, is able to live in sheltered housing and live a full life, not as we know it, but a full life. Protect the welfare state for those that need it and those that dont and abuse it, stab the fuckers in the face, eh. Clearly, she didnt bollocks up the welfare system that much, thats something she wont get blamed for then.... Dont assume, because millions detest what she did, that they have somesort of moral high ground. Its all morality by degree, I may hate her, my family may hate her but if she had not been around, what would have happened to this Country? You have your own opinions, I have mine. Im happy to respect yours if you respect mine.....and the millions that agree with me. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Godot 149 Posted April 11, 2013 I had two cars written off under Thatcher, one during the miner's strike. A grandma and two aunties died and our cat got run over - all under Thatcher. I got crap A-levels too, but that was under labour after they turned my grammar school in to a comprehensive. The Tories could have reversed that but they didn't - under Thatcher. 3 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lord Fellatio Nelson 6,219 Posted April 11, 2013 I had two cars written off under Thatcher, one during the miner's strike. A grandma and two aunties died and our cat got run over - all under Thatcher. I got crap A-levels too, but that was under labour after they turned my grammar school in to a comprehensive. The Tories could have reversed that but they didn't - under Thatcher. Amen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
time 8,618 Posted April 11, 2013 Apparently, Ding Dong the Witch is Dead has reached No.1 in the Amazon download charts, and is currently at No.6!! I'm sure I'll be able to find a link somewhere. Found one Tune in to the BBC this weekend ... corporation executives are understood to believe there is little reason not to play the song. A spokesman said that the decision would not be made on the grounds of politics or taste because the chart show is a "factual account" of what the public have bought Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Der Stadt 6 Posted April 11, 2013 Apparently, Ding Dong the Witch is Dead has reached No.1 in the Amazon download charts, and is currently at No.6!! I'm sure I'll be able to find a link somewhere. Found one They will fix it and not jimmy* old Rod will be number 1 again .See jimmy just jumped in there behind old Rod ,not like him eh . Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Davey Jones' Locker 1,324 Posted April 11, 2013 John Howard to represent Australia at Thatcher's funeral. Maybe they can bury him with her while they're at it. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
time 8,618 Posted April 11, 2013 I'm surprised we haven't seen an up to date interview with Scargill. I wonder if he's not too well? I bet there were a few of the old guard on all sides only hanging on to outlive her. Let's face it, whatever you think, she was one of a kind. I thought she did a good job for motorway service stations. Before Thatcher they were shit, stank of piss and served up cardboard egg sandwiches. OK, they've regressed again, but for a while underThatcher you had some pretty outstanding motorway bog cleaners while egg and cress in granary wasn't half bad. A very divisive figure and one who has clearly outlived any serious support he once enjoyed. He fought and lost a case about the use of flat that belongs to the NUM not too long ago. I was struck by his absence from the discussion. In fact, a lot of coverage tended to act as if he was dead. They've dug up a few old enemies (like Ken Livingstone and Kinnock). The militants, Derek Hatton and Scargill, might just have been too incendiary for the last 24 hours. Here's Scargill's (reported) response. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the_engineer 1,415 Posted April 12, 2013 The top ten People who won't be attending Maggie's funereal. http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/margaret-thatcher-funeral-top-10-1824671 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Body Snatcher 44 107 Posted April 12, 2013 John Howard to represent Australia at Thatcher's funeral. Maybe they can bury him with her while they're at it. I'm sure he'd love that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bibliogryphon 9,588 Posted April 12, 2013 I got my invitation I'll pack your rucksack Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Magere Hein 1,400 Posted April 12, 2013 I got my invitation I'll pack your rucksack Do you expect a booming business? regards, Hein Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
the_engineer 1,415 Posted April 12, 2013 I got my invitation I'll pack your rucksack Don't forget the semtex. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rotten Ali 600 Posted April 13, 2013 How very strange. I wonder how many people will be bringing out the bunting when Scargill dies? If ever there was a man who fucked his own members up the arse, it was him, wasnt it. A man on a mission, a man who wanted to take on Thatcher but was too fucking stupid to do it by the book. There was only going to be one winner. Anybody who remembers the 70s, the three day week, power cuts, flying pickets, perpetual strikes and a labour Government owned by the unions wont be pissing on her grave. Sure, there is a multitude of things that i detest her for doing but there are many things im grateful for. Before she came to power we were a fucking joke of a country, skint, inept and dying on our arses. She changed the whole fucking landscape, not all for the better but a damn sight better than it was. Love her or hate her she was a Political giant that made this country relevant on the World stage and thats where we needed to be and still need to be unless you want to be Slovakia or summat. Look at what we have now, a massive bunch of wankers in charge, slightly less massive in the w***er department than the last Government. Its what happens when you have wishy washy Politics. You've read waaaaaaaaaaayyyyy too many editions of the Sun. Thing is LFN, you are looking at history from a southerner perspective. North of the Watford Gap services the picture was 180 degrees different to that. While London and the Home Counties boomed, the north just went backwards. Industries died, trades were lost for ever. What was left - ended up sold to foreign owners. Sorry, but I'm glad Thatcher is dead. I just hope that all of her ideology dies with her because of the harm it causes. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JR976evil 906 Posted April 13, 2013 Blimey this debate is just gonna run and run and run.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dr. Zorders 1,271 Posted April 13, 2013 I wonder how many of the people planning to protest her funeral are actually itching to get really violent. Who knows, it could get really ugly and make this "Ding-Dong The Witch is Dead" song debate look as silly as it is. We could have a week to remember (or forget depending on your POV). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JR976evil 906 Posted April 13, 2013 I wonder how many of the people planning to protest her funeral are actually itching to get really violent. Who knows, it could get really ugly and make this "Ding-Dong The Witch is Dead" song debate look as silly as it is. We could have a week to remember (or forget depending on your POV). There's a good chance it will I'd say, it pisses me off enough that taxpayers have to foot the bill for effectively safeguarding a corpse, can only imagine how these militant lefties feel... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Toast 16,150 Posted April 13, 2013 I don't understand why she's getting a fancy funeral. Is it because of the Falklands war? Very bad decision in my opinion. They can split hairs all they like, but the perception is that it's a state funeral. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
themaninblack 2,112 Posted April 13, 2013 The Queen of Heart(lessnes)s 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites