Vote Conservative

[montmorencyt2w]

I agree with all of this MM. It's nice to see someone who knows about the history of it, instead of the usual blinkered view you get from both sides (so to speak).

Also, your point about the Tories is spot on. Again, I'd put it down to just not knowing the history, but a lot of the things that people blame "The Left" / Labour / insert-bogeyman-of-choice for were brought in under the Tories.

The National Curriculum was possibly not an unmitigated success. And certainly rigidity will tend to creep in. It's because the politicians know best - surely you realise that ?

Thanks, well I know some of the history at least. Don't claim to know all of it -)

But one other piece of history is that it was Callaghan who initiated the reviews of standards in education that in some ways prefigured the National Curriculum. What I mean is that by the mid to late 70s, there was a feeling about that the relaxations of the 1960s (which I remember very directly) had gone a bit too far and standards had slipped.

There was almost certainly a need for "something to be done". It's a pity it had to be a top-down, one size fits all approach, rather than a more experimental, try this, see what works, maybe different things in different areas, easier to reverse if not working, sort of thing. We used to mock the French system, by which (allegedly), in every French school, the teacher would be turning to the same page in the same book on the same day. We didn't get quite to that stage, but it felt like it a bit sometimes.

 

[Pat494]

The Tories have really returned to form with the budget today !!

Lower taxes on the rich and less for pensioners !!

Dipstick has really annoyed the majority. He has though perhaps earned himself a nice holiday by crawling to the small rich minority.

The rich get even richer under both Tory and Socialism. Something stinks in Westminster !!

 

[counter_violent]

The Tories have really returned to form with the budget today !!

Lower taxes on the rich and less for pensioners !!

Dipstick has really annoyed the majority. He has though perhaps earned himself a nice holiday by crawling to the small rich minority.

The rich get even richer under both Tory and Socialism. Something stinks in Westminster !!

Good, i'm glad we are all in agreement then. ALL OF THEM ARE USELESS.

So, what next?

 

[Lord Flasheart]

wasnt it absolutely brilliant when Milliband asked the bench to raise their hands of they would benefit from the tax cuts. They sat there like a puupy next to a pile of pooh

 

[scose-no-doubt]

So, what next?

Tis what always is and always will be.

Hopefully Dubai before before I'm 30 for a nice little tax free earner with a finger up at Parliament throughout the plane ride...

Some good lulz there too. A girl I work with says she say one of the ninja ladies fully garbed in the pool. Epic.

 

[counter_violent]

wasnt it absolutely brilliant when Milliband asked the bench to raise their hands of they would benefit from the tax cuts. They sat there like a puupy next to a pile of pooh

Milliband, thankfully he won't even get to see the light of day !

 

[bbmac]

I thought it was Ed Miliband's best commons performance since becoming Leader. Neither he or Osborne are natural orators or commins performers but he wiped the floor with Osborne, and Clegg, and returned the only funny line of Osborne's re Wallace and Grommit with his retort re Downton Abbey. Cameron and the front bench looked migfhty uncomfortable when he asked the question 3 times, and the repition of the phrasing of ' Calamity Clegg' will stick with the voters.

Up the workers !

G/L

 

[counter_violent]

I thought it was Ed Miliband's best commons performance since becoming Leader. Neither he or Osborne are natural orators or commins performers but he wiped the floor with Osborne, and Clegg, and returned the only funny line of Osborne's re Wallace and Grommit with his retort re Downton Abbey. Cameron and the front bench looked migfhty uncomfortable when he asked the question 3 times, and the repition of the phrasing of ' Calamity Clegg' will stick with the voters.

Up the workers !

G/L

It's alright going around saying "up the workers" as it almost certainly will be up the workers !

I think the real thing that has to be learned here is that if the people want to do something about their situation, then they need to get a grip on themselves and make things happen. The days of relying on govt (either persuasion) and large corporations are over, and if they are not over, then the people will get exactly what they deserve ! innit !

I suppose these are worth a watch...any right thinking people will be able to identify with the message.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfwJ06hc0_8&feature=player_embedded#!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ITxDjOiSm0&NR=1&feature=endscreen

 

[Pat494]

It's not Dipstick's fault he has been born with little common sense but he could at least delegate to somebody with a bit and not stick with Osbourne the idiot.
He is stuck with Cloggy too, poor fellow.

Their policies aren't getting Britain out of the mess left by Labour. One looks around in vain for some decent alternative. Less New rubbish and more old faithfuls maybe.

A team in trouble had much better pull togethor rather than fall apart at the seams as at present.

 

[montmorencyt2w]

What to do?

Well, I would do one or both of the following:

Abolish the Whips in the Commons, or rather, their power to force/bully votes through. Every vote would be a free vote. Maybe even secret ballots (although no doubt traditionalists would claim this would transgress some great Commons tradition or something).

So then MPs would get back to what people thought they were doing and represent their constituents, and not just be lobby fodder. Admittedly, a few of them would be wandering around in a daze for a couple of weeks, not being accustomed to thinking for themselves, but hopefully, they would eventually catch on.

2. Reform the House of Lords to be an elected house of independents.

As a later enhancement, get the elected members to co-opt a small number of expert members, e.g. scientists, doctors, philosophers, engineers, etc. This would try to to preserve some of the expertise that exists in the current Lords (although more or less by random chance). Bishops could stand for election if they wanted, or they might be co-opted, but otherwise would have no special place in the upper house. (And ideally, the CofE should be disestablished).

A stronger system of select committees (including both houses) would probably emerge, or should be encouraged. Select committee membership should probably carry some financial reward without going over the top. Membership to be determined by the house as a whole, and not by government.

And number 3 of my 2 things would be to reform the money system (having been watching some of those Positive Money vids that Darktone posted - interesting stuff.


Quite a few loose ends to tie up, but it couldn't be worse than what we have.

 

[forker]

i would vote a couple of our own forum members into office.... not naming though...

 

[forker]

jokes aside, i would vote conservative back in. they not the best this country can offer. the days of fair politics are gone. its all a corporate agenda nowadays. that being said, conservatives at least have the balls to do something about the hole labour put us in.. i will never forget mr browns sale of gold at half the price it is today.

 

[the hare]

the only way to sort this out is to make the position of MP equivelent to jury service.

pick a bunch of people at random, compensate them for their efforts, and give em a substantial bonus for meeting targets. After 5 years thank them, and send them back to where they came from.

that would ensure a reasonable cross section of political views, backgrounds and experience. the bonus would be an incentive to work together in the best interests of the country. the 5 year cap would ensure that noone prostitutes their ass for personal gain within a party heirarchy.

it would probably work better if you could replace people with chimps, or even rats. it would be cheaper to run, and slightly more effective, similar entertainment / lulz value

 

[counter_violent]

i would vote a couple of our own forum members into office.... not naming though...

Why not ! , all they may need is a little encouragement

 

[Pat494]

the only way to sort this out is to make the position of MP equivelent to jury service.

pick a bunch of people at random, compensate them for their efforts, and give em a substantial bonus for meeting targets. After 5 years thank them, and send them back to where they came from.

that would ensure a reasonable cross section of political views, backgrounds and experience. the bonus would be an incentive to work together in the best interests of the country. the 5 year cap would ensure that noone prostitutes their ass for personal gain within a party heirarchy.

it would probably work better if you could replace people with chimps, or even rats. it would be cheaper to run, and slightly more effective, similar entertainment / lulz value

How about employing foreigners only to make unbiased decisions. The crazy situation at the moment of 2 parties fighting over which is going to steer "The Ship", is leading to a zigzag course. Even a circular course !

 

[the hare]

How about employing foreigners only to make unbiased decisions.

Its the unbiased decisions bit thats important, which was why I thought chimps or rats would be more effective than humans.

I have no problem with political parties coming up with whatever bizarre and extreme policies they wish, as long as voting on those policies is unbiased. Ideally you want to take an evidence based approach, but you cant do that currently as the data is generally spun and manipulated to such an extent as to be meaningless.

Another fundemental flaw is that anyone who would actively seek out political power is by defination probably the wrong sort of person to be trusted with that power anyway.

I watched the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy a couple of weeks ago on i-player. There's a great line in the film where ford prefect asks his cousin zaphod beeblebrox who has recently been voted as president of the galaxy ,why people would be crazy enough to trust such an outrageous, untrustworthy and unorganised a character with the job as president. Zaphod answers that his role as president is not to run the galaxy, but to direct the publics attention away from those that actually do. Thats probably closer to the truth than a lot of us would care to admit

 

[Persson121]

My goverment says that they are conservative. But does conservative partys have very high taxes and hate freedom of speech and vote aginst the people?

The people vote for low taxes, but the goverment rise the tax rib.

 

[Ambrose Ackroyd]

I really struggle to understand you people sometimes.

David Cameron is by far and away the greatest Prime Minister we have had since Gordon Brown.

 

[Atilla]

How about employing foreigners only to make unbiased decisions. The crazy situation at the moment of 2 parties fighting over which is going to steer "The Ship", is leading to a zigzag course. Even a circular course !

The yanks and European policies already run this country. Which foreigners did you have in mind?


Gordon Brown for all his mistakes saved this country by recognising the magnitude of the crises and I think did more than any Conservative policy as they always compound the issue looking after the few and bashing the many.

I'm also a little surprised and dissapointed after badgering poor Greece with severe austerity measures - in particular Holland, Europeans aren't prepared to digest the medicine they prescribe on others. So where is their government now and what do they prescribe next.

Be interesting to see what happens to the special relationship with Germany and France. Spain and Italy have not even played out yet.

I reckon the only and last reasonable solution is a European Bond if Germany and France are serious about keeping the Euro. But it is now looking like the Euro will fail into a game of two halves eventually. Germany and perhaps two other countries will maintain it and the rest leave the Euro. They really know their business the Germans. I admire them.


As for what's next looks like everyone is talking about more money and infrastructure projects. We've got to get people working again. Don't mention the dead Keynessian economics...


Choices are clear imho.

1. Cut taxes and spend less - balanced budget
2. Cut taxes, spend more - borrow more debt
3. Raise taxes and spend more - balanced budget
4. Raise taxes and spend less - pay back debt

Let interest rates be taken care of by BoE based on inflation.


Choose your bed and lie in it.

 

[Pat494]

The yanks and European policies already run this country. Which foreigners did you have in mind?

Top people but limited to not more than 1 per country. In this country we are used to being run by:-
Saxons
Normans
Welsh
Scots
Hanoverians

so we should be used to it by now



I'm also a little surprised and dissapointed after badgering poor Greece with severe austerity measures - in particular Holland, Europeans aren't prepared to digest the medicine they prescribe on others. So where is their government now and what do they prescribe next.


Now paying for lying about their true position.

I reckon the only and last reasonable solution is a European Bond if Germany and France are serious about keeping the Euro. But it is now looking like the Euro will fail into a game of two halves eventually. Germany and perhaps two other countries will maintain it and the rest leave the Euro.

The alternatives are it seems to me to scrap national parliaments and only have those clots in Brussells or go back to national currencies and break up the EU.


They really know their business the Germans. I admire them.

Do you mean they are now able to treat others properly ? Dominance is still hard wired into their philosophy imho


As for what's next looks like everyone is talking about more money and infrastructure projects. We've got to get people working again. Don't mention the dead Keynessian economics...



There is a rumour going around that the real Lord Keynes was replaced by an escapee from Bedlam and nobody noticed !


Choose your bed and lie in it.

Perhaps the Social will supply bed partners if pressed ?