I assure you, class hatred swings both ways, it just manifests itself differently. You have the death celebrations that are partaken by those of little political voice in the UK who are unhappy with the legacy of Thaterism. But you also have policies enacted by those currently in power (the coalition cabinet in the UK is made up of 23 millionaires out of 29 ministerial posts) that are negatively affecting the poorest in society, another form of class hatred (to rattle off the first statistic that comes to mind, some 200,000 children are now below the poverty line due directly to their policies since 2010, something the government freely admits). I don't recall the right wing press anywhere lamenting osama bin laden's death parties as macabre, by the way.
'When Thatcher assumed the position of Prime Minister, she privatized much of the inefficient and unproductive state sector and, as a result, it became more efficient and productive.'
what...like the trains? and the energy sector? for reals? What we have now closely resembles cartels....
After industry fell by 24% by 1983 and manufacturing was decimated, the spoils from the north sea oil reserves were used to bank roll welfare for the newly unemployed, topping 3 million. the 'big bang' of financial deregulation led to a growth in the economy in the late 80s, which fueled a bubble which then threw Britain back in recession by the early 90s. This legacy and the political power of the city (the financial hub of London, similar to Wall Street) has cast an ugly shadow in lieu of the financial meltdown of 2008. I'm not sure that's something to be proud of. Yes, she won three elections, which was primarily the result (in the 2nd and 3rd elections) of the Labour party splitting to form the SDP . And her electoral victories each garnered her a decreasing percentage of the vote - less than all preceding post war Tory victories - and getting about only a third of registered voters. Call me cynical, but I also recall the Falkland war as a means to boost dismal poll ratings: it shot up nearly 20% by the end of the conflict. The social housing crisis is another legacy of Thatcherism, as new social housing has never been built to replace those homes that were sold off, resulting in the massive (5 million, give or take) waiting list.
It's this type of glossy historical revisionism that is winding people, a lot of people, up. Juan's statement doesn't 'vastly overstate the case'. . . Many, many towns just simply have never recovered from the effects of her policies... and her death is opening some old wounds.
Not to mention she was pals with Pinochet...and gave her approval to her son's involvement with the failed coup attempt in Equatorial Guinea... and sided with the apartheid regime in south africa and called Mandela a terrorist. . . and supported the Khmer Rouge... I could go on. The police have just given their 'approval' (read: won't be arrested) for people lining the streets during her casket's short jaunt, via gun carriage, to turn their backs on her as she passes: a gesture even the tory government can't ignore.
Another thing that has deeply divided public opinion, even amongst the right wing commentariat, is Thatcher's being afforded a state funeral in all but name next Wednesday, with full military honors, estimated to cost the public purse between 8 & 10 million pounds (the government are refusing to release the full cost till after the funeral). This, in a time of deep austerity here, where hundreds of thousands of households are being adversely affected by very recent (April 1st) changes to the tax and welfare system, is a real sore spot with many.
Hi Juan
I can't rememeber if it was listed in Informed Comment on an earlier post, but last week McClatchy obtained an Israeli document, due to a lawsuit by the Israeli human rights group Gisha, stating that the blockade isn't about security, but about 'economic warfare'.
And went so far to say that this 'economic warfare' had a political goal:
USAID are also responsible for the building of settler roads in the occupied territories:
"Khalilieh said the PA was being effectively bullied into conceding the road infrastructure wanted by Israel.
'What happens is that USAID presents a package deal of donations for infrastructure projects in the West Bank and the Palestinians are faced with a choice of take it or leave it. That way the PA is cornered into accepting roads it does not want. ' "
Not only that, but a small flotilla of private Israeli boats have vowed to assist the Israeli navy in preventing the flotilla to reaching the Gazan port, with one spokesperson saying something to the effect that these activists care nothing for the Palestinians, that not only are they supporting Hamas, something Mark Regev regurgitates ad nauseum, but that if they really care about the plight of Gazans, they would hand over the tonnes of cement, water purification systems, crayons, chocolate, medical supplies and all the rest to the Israeli authorities - to let them distribute these materials to Gaza! Seriously, the bloody cheek of some people. Also lending their support of the freedom flotilla are a group of Polish MPs, saying that:
''This flotilla represents no threat to Israel', they said in a statement released today. 'And that is why we are outraged and greatly concerned to hear that the Israeli government is threatening to use force against the flotilla and prevent the delivery of humanitarian aid'.
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I just re-read my comment, I think you'll find it does actually address and refute quite a few things you said...
I assure you, class hatred swings both ways, it just manifests itself differently. You have the death celebrations that are partaken by those of little political voice in the UK who are unhappy with the legacy of Thaterism. But you also have policies enacted by those currently in power (the coalition cabinet in the UK is made up of 23 millionaires out of 29 ministerial posts) that are negatively affecting the poorest in society, another form of class hatred (to rattle off the first statistic that comes to mind, some 200,000 children are now below the poverty line due directly to their policies since 2010, something the government freely admits). I don't recall the right wing press anywhere lamenting osama bin laden's death parties as macabre, by the way.
'When Thatcher assumed the position of Prime Minister, she privatized much of the inefficient and unproductive state sector and, as a result, it became more efficient and productive.'
what...like the trains? and the energy sector? for reals? What we have now closely resembles cartels....
After industry fell by 24% by 1983 and manufacturing was decimated, the spoils from the north sea oil reserves were used to bank roll welfare for the newly unemployed, topping 3 million. the 'big bang' of financial deregulation led to a growth in the economy in the late 80s, which fueled a bubble which then threw Britain back in recession by the early 90s. This legacy and the political power of the city (the financial hub of London, similar to Wall Street) has cast an ugly shadow in lieu of the financial meltdown of 2008. I'm not sure that's something to be proud of. Yes, she won three elections, which was primarily the result (in the 2nd and 3rd elections) of the Labour party splitting to form the SDP . And her electoral victories each garnered her a decreasing percentage of the vote - less than all preceding post war Tory victories - and getting about only a third of registered voters. Call me cynical, but I also recall the Falkland war as a means to boost dismal poll ratings: it shot up nearly 20% by the end of the conflict. The social housing crisis is another legacy of Thatcherism, as new social housing has never been built to replace those homes that were sold off, resulting in the massive (5 million, give or take) waiting list.
It's this type of glossy historical revisionism that is winding people, a lot of people, up. Juan's statement doesn't 'vastly overstate the case'. . . Many, many towns just simply have never recovered from the effects of her policies... and her death is opening some old wounds.
Not to mention she was pals with Pinochet...and gave her approval to her son's involvement with the failed coup attempt in Equatorial Guinea... and sided with the apartheid regime in south africa and called Mandela a terrorist. . . and supported the Khmer Rouge... I could go on. The police have just given their 'approval' (read: won't be arrested) for people lining the streets during her casket's short jaunt, via gun carriage, to turn their backs on her as she passes: a gesture even the tory government can't ignore.
Hi Juan,
Another thing that has deeply divided public opinion, even amongst the right wing commentariat, is Thatcher's being afforded a state funeral in all but name next Wednesday, with full military honors, estimated to cost the public purse between 8 & 10 million pounds (the government are refusing to release the full cost till after the funeral). This, in a time of deep austerity here, where hundreds of thousands of households are being adversely affected by very recent (April 1st) changes to the tax and welfare system, is a real sore spot with many.
Hi Juan,
if you're looking for a way to find wikileaks online after efforts to boot it off the net, use these IP addresses:
88.80.13.160
or
213.251.145.96
Just cut and paste into your address bar (forget all the http and www stuff; just post those codes).
Hi Juan
I can't rememeber if it was listed in Informed Comment on an earlier post, but last week McClatchy obtained an Israeli document, due to a lawsuit by the Israeli human rights group Gisha, stating that the blockade isn't about security, but about 'economic warfare'.
And went so far to say that this 'economic warfare' had a political goal:
link to mcclatchydc.com
Israelis Threaten to Block it with War Ships
USAID are also responsible for the building of settler roads in the occupied territories:
"Khalilieh said the PA was being effectively bullied into conceding the road infrastructure wanted by Israel.
'What happens is that USAID presents a package deal of donations for infrastructure projects in the West Bank and the Palestinians are faced with a choice of take it or leave it. That way the PA is cornered into accepting roads it does not want. ' "
link to electronicintifada.net
Not only that, but a small flotilla of private Israeli boats have vowed to assist the Israeli navy in preventing the flotilla to reaching the Gazan port, with one spokesperson saying something to the effect that these activists care nothing for the Palestinians, that not only are they supporting Hamas, something Mark Regev regurgitates ad nauseum, but that if they really care about the plight of Gazans, they would hand over the tonnes of cement, water purification systems, crayons, chocolate, medical supplies and all the rest to the Israeli authorities - to let them distribute these materials to Gaza! Seriously, the bloody cheek of some people. Also lending their support of the freedom flotilla are a group of Polish MPs, saying that:
''This flotilla represents no threat to Israel', they said in a statement released today. 'And that is why we are outraged and greatly concerned to hear that the Israeli government is threatening to use force against the flotilla and prevent the delivery of humanitarian aid'.