Maggie Thatcher has died

[Dave Tudor]

Here's an adaptation of what I posted on Facebook last night:

Margaret Thatcher was a powerful woman, possibly more powerful than her immediate predecessors, and certainly more so than any of her successors. She dominated an entire era and with her death, so too it seems is the eighties dead. However, her legacy remains: she reigned against a dark backdrop where nuclear war was a very real possibility, where soldiers were sent to their deaths for a questionable cause, where communities were destroyed by unemployment and poverty, where the rich got richer and the poor got poorer, where social, cultural and class divisions were created which have deeply damaged our country - sound familiar? Very little seems to have changed since the Thatcher years, really.

But the time to 'rejoice' at her passing was 23 years ago, when she left Downing Street for the last time. Despite the damages her regime caused during her time in office and in the years after, I can't help feeling that celebrating the death of a confused, ill, old woman leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Successive governments have failed to rectify Thatcher's mistakes, and if the rage directed against the longest-serving Prime Minister of our era may be justified, so too should that anger be equally targeted towards Major, Blair, Brown, Cameron and Clegg, for essentially carrying on where she left off. Only when a government has learned from the errors of the Thatcher era and made significant changes to our society can we truly 'raise a glass', as many have proposed: somehow I think that day is a long way off.

[MacNimon]

You've put into words many of my own thoughts there, Dave. Much as I disliked her manner and politics, I still find it rather distasteful to celebrate her death, or anyone else's for that matter. No, I won't miss her...she's long been gone from public life and her achievements - if you want to call them that - were already history. Once she was removed from office, she was no longer an important part of our lives despite the damage she had done to our communities. As you say, the time to celebrate was 23 years ago (and what celebrations there were where I worked!). I was happy when she was removed from office bringing an end to a turbulent era...but I can't honestly say that I'm happy she's dead. So, no, I won't miss her or regret her passing...but as it comes to us all eventually, I simply see no reason to rejoice or celebrate. I just accept it.

And Tim...sorry if I misled you with my post earlier regarding the Poll Tax. My fault, rushing a post, not thinking it out properly, before going out to work. Just to clarify...despite my wording, what I had actually been referring to (and agreeing with Ralph) was the disastrous way it was implemented...using Scotland as a guinea pig for a year before introducing it south of the border. Political suicide in Scotland! I wasn't meaning the actual reasoning behind the tax, that simply hadn't occurred to me while posting. I understand (and remember well) the difference, and I wasn't meaning to say that the Poll Tax was much the same as rates or Council Tax...it was just an idle comment that they're going to get money out of us one way or another! Lazy posting on my part, sorry!

[Jon Masters]

Britain in the late 1970s was bankrupt, crippled by the unions, hopelessly spending money it didn't have propping up industries that were falling apart. British industry was a money pit into which billions were pumped for the sole purpose of keeping the unions reasonably quiet.

Sorry, Lissa, but that's just as much of a spin as Thatcher was hated just because of the poll tax from the rentagobs celebrating her death.

Inflation was massively out of control in the early 70's , and Heath's government responded by putting a wage cap on public sector pay (sounds familiar...), resulting in the miners strike and the 3 day week.

When Labour got in the TUC bent over backwards to accept a limit to any further pay deals for the forseeible time, in return for a promise of going back to no-limit negotiations in the future. All pay deals had to be within 5% (with inflation running at over 25%). It worked - inflation fell to about 10%

Then in 1978 global economics caused inflation to start going up again. Callaghan delayed the election and instead of going back to free negotiations again limited public pay rises to less than 5%.

All fine and dandy, until private companies started negotiating much higher pay rises for their workers. Callaghan threatened to fine any firms that gave more than 5%, but private business complained that the Government shouldn't intervene, and the idea od sanctions was scuppered in Parliament by.....guess who

Unsurprisingly, all those who had had their wages frozen or below inflation for so long got a bit cheesed off, and so began the Winter of Discontent, the fall of Callaghan and the reign of Mrs T.

It always takes 2 sides to cause an argument, in the same way as the Miner's strike was triggered as much by Mrs T lying about having a plan to close down most of the UK mining industry on the quiet as by Scargill wanting to go for death and glory.

And far worse than the poll tax was her crime of changing politics to a system of personality (don't have cabinet members who might be as good as yourself, or get shot of them quickly) and bribing the middle classes to vote for you (by selling off anything you can to give them money), a system which every government since has tried to follow.

[Dirk Gently]

And Tim...sorry if I misled you with my post earlier regarding the Poll Tax.

No worries, my 'rant' was more in reaction to Ralph as yourself.

[Rob McCow]

Oh dear.

When are we getting our commemorative plate then?

[Nyder]

It's bad enough that Parliament was recalled (at extra expense) when they could have done this when they were due to meet anyway on Monday.

For a politician who introduced so many toxic and decisive policies to this country, a state funeral is highly inappropriate.

Gawd bless the Daily Mail - I wouldn't expect any less of them.

[SiHart]

The mad old Daily Mail has now even more insane than usual with this stunning headline:

[Stuart Wallis]

An early competitor for most irrelevant headline of the year...

[Llordllama]

"My breast implants have warped my fragile little mind" is clearly the subtext. Either that or it's designed to turn the reader even more against the peon who can't afford to have cosmetic surgery in a nice private clinic. Not our sort, don't you know!

[Jon Masters]

Well , clearly she couldn't be much more of a left-wing looney, being (a) a teacher (b) a DRAMA teacher (c) a woman and (d) the sort who'd sponge off the hardworking NHS to get her boobs done.

She'd be near the top of the Daily Fascists, I mean Mail's, "going up against the wall to be shot" list, only higher if she turned out to be a single mum from Lithuania .

[Mike Saville]

I personally think that her funeral should be privatised. Hopefully it'll be bought by the French. Or the Argentinians. That would be fitting.

[Nyder]

A sudden thought struck me this morning - Arthur Scargill! I'm assuming him with the Shredded Wheat hair is still with us? If so he's kept very quiet in the past week....

[Dino]

I find it weird that ever since I wrote a poem about her funeral (It was actually about how all future British leaders are going to get people celebrating their death) it's sucked everything out! My interest in the Download single, my interest in the funeral, and everything else!
Seriously, even if you'd never dream of posting them online, it just pays off in so many ways to write poetry!

[Mike Saville]

It was reported that someone sent Scargill a text message saying 'Thatcher dead." He replied with "Scargill alive." Other than that, yes, he's been quiet. Understandably. While the anti Maggie parties are in full swing, he can keep his head down and not offer the right a target of their own.

[Stuart Wallis]

(b) a DRAMA teacher

Drama queen... Rather like the Daily Mail, ironically...