People filing by Reagan's coffin .. what's that all about?

[goldstone]

Well, that's certainly got a bit of a debate going hasn't it!

On the respect thing, I've certainly got no disagreement with anyone wishing to respect a person, but in the case of Reagan for example, what's the link between respecting the bloke and filing past his coffin?? The latter is a total and pointless waste of time. No-one with half a brain would bother ...... ah, unless they wanted to be seen. No, surely not??

 

[Eddie the Seagull]

Are they as tasteless as say, financially backing military dictatorships against democratically elected governments in South America or turning a blind eye when a minibus of AMERICAN nuns gets brutally raped by a government backed deathsquad or wasting billions on a dumb anti missile pipedream at the expense of a sceptical taxpayer?

Nowhere near. But two wrongs don't make a right & some guys & (Girlies!) seem to forget that he did a lot of good & I am sure his family wouldn't be to happy reading some of this?

 

[SM BHAFC]

Or Good Caz99

 

[fatbadger]

nuclear disarmament

Sorry, you'll have to help me there. It seems something happened while I wasn't looking.

 

[caz99]

politices always gets a debate going

what do you mean good sm? yes we have done good things but also we have done bad eg iraq

i agree with eddie seagull my dad died when i was 13 and if people wanted to file past his coffin to pay respects i would be dead chuffed. i don't think reagans family would be that bothered about what other people think but it appears that most americans are positive about him anyhow

 

[Brovion]

I was never more ashamed to be British than when Diana died, that outpouring of grief was a complete embarrassment. On the day of the funeral we went for a walk and tried to find a pub for lunch. All the ones we tried were closed as a 'mark of respect', when we did find one that was open it was absolutely packed.

Unsurprisingly I tend more to agree with fatbadger. American presidential elections are little more than popularity contests for rich white men. Reagan, being an actor, was a little bit better at wrapping himself up in the flag and shouting 'God Bless America!' then say Walter Mondale was. I didn't 'respect' Reagan for what he did, the Soviet Union was so corrupt and ineffecient that it would have collapsed if the president had been Ronald Reagan or Ronald MacDonald.

Having said that I don't think he was the Devil Incarnate, all politicians who achieve high office in major countries are hated and admired in equal measure due to the policies they enact. You ask people to name a politician they most admire and the chances are they'll name some backbench rebel who can say what they like because they'll never get a sniff of power.

 

[SM BHAFC]

No caz99 Iraq was a good thing surely

 

[caz99]

it was a good thing for getting rid of saddam but it should have been done in the gulf war. also why go straight for saddam when he was quiet but bin laden was operative. like someone earlier said to me, where was the evidence for saddams wearpons.


plus look at the mess in iraq now we can't assume just cos we remove the baddy everyone will fall into place.

 

[Jambo Seagull]

The end of the cold war and nuclear disarmament were assisted by reagan.

didn't know i had to have evidence to back up my opinions anyhow as that was what i thought they were opinions!

by the way i am a girly

sorry caz. I wasn't sure of your sex! It's all very well having opinions but to say that Reagan stopped us from being nuked by the Russians is a pretty sweeping statement! I can remember when Reagan was elected. The Russians weren't exactly camped on our doorstep about to press the red button. If anything Regan with his jingoistic policies actually made a nuclear war more likely rather then less, although I suspect unlike the Americans, the Russians never at any time seriously thought about starting the nuclear war.

If you're talking about nuclear disarmament, when did the Americans disarm themselves? Gorbachev is the person most responsible for bringing down the Berlin wall. I think this happened inspite of rather than because of Reagan.

 

[caz99]

it was meant to be a sweeping statement the same as the person who started this debate. each to their own but i was just generalising.

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

caz

You'll realise very very quickly that NSC has a massive campaign against the USA and all things American. 99% of NSC is rascist against the USA. Don't question this or you will get a history lesson for the last 50 years.

Reagan is just one more in a long long list of terrible things those nasty " Yanks " have inflicted on us !.

 

[Easy 10]

I always struggle to understand the people who feel the need to attend funerals and pay their respects when a public figure dies. Outside of my own friends and family (ie the people I really care about) there is simply nobody else's funeral who I would feel moved or compelled to attend.

The floods of tears at Diana's death was cringeworthy. These people didn't know her. She wasn't their friend. They didn't know her personally. Of course her death was sad and tragic, but the sheer scale of tabloid-driven emotional incontinance which poured out was just ridiculous.

I don't wish any ill feeling towards Reagan. But if he were lying in state at the back of my garden, I wouldn't bother going over and "paying my respects"...whats he got to do with me ? I didn't know him. (I'd probably have to answer some tricky questions, mind).

 

[fatbadger]

caz

You'll realise very very quickly that NSC has a massive campaign against the USA and all things American. 99% of NSC is rascist against the USA. Don't question this or you will get a history lesson for the last 50 years.

Reagan is just one more in a long long list of terrible things those nasty " Yanks " have inflicted on us !.

caz,

you will soon realise, whether or not you agree with this (and perhaps you do) that there are a very many people on this board too simple-minded to understand that there is a distinct difference between criticising US Presidents because of their policies and actions, and racism.

 

[SM BHAFC]

Easy 10 I went to the Queen mother funeral, at first I was not sure then I thought about my grandparents and the amount of respect they had for her and about their generation and what they went through, i realised if my grandparents were alive they would have certainly attended so I went on their behalf i suppose and as a sort of paying of respects to all those people who went through the second world war, a bit cheesy and probably stupid but there it is. I am very glad I went.

 

[goldstone]

caz

You'll realise very very quickly that NSC has a massive campaign against the USA and all things American. 99% of NSC is rascist against the USA. Don't question this or you will get a history lesson for the last 50 years.

I started the thread and as a matter of interest I spent 12 years living and working in the USA, my kids have dual UK/US citizenship, and I like the place.

However:
1. They need to stop believing they can own the world.
2. They need to get over their crazy religious hang-ups.
3. They should maybe do a bit of navel-gazing and figure out why Al Quaeda targetted them on 9/11 and not the UK, France or Canada.
4. They should stay out of places and situations where they have no business to be e.g. Iraq.
5. They should end their support for Israel.

 

[SM BHAFC]

Hmm very strange that first point goldstone as the US is mostly a very insular country they have never had any ambitions to Empire,

as for the second point well I suppose we all have hang ups and being religious is as good as any i reckon,

number three well a bit obvious really the good ole US of A stand for everything al quaeda hate, freedom democracy free speech and all that baloney,

four, well they could have done that 60 years ago and then where would we be (yes I know they only came in late but they came in ok)

Five,Israel agree could be a little less supportive but hard for any US president to do because such a powerfull Jewish lobby in the US

 

[Simster]

caz,

you will soon realise, whether or not you agree with this (and perhaps you do) that there are a very many people on this board too simple-minded to understand that there is a distinct difference between criticising US Presidents because of their policies and actions, and racism.

Indeed. Gareth always has this same old moan when anyone criticises American foreign policy.

Personlly, I can only think of one American of the many I have met that I don't like. But even amongst my American friends and aquaintances, as soon as you get down the pub and one of them opens their trap about politics, the bullshit they spout often beggars belief.

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

Crap

The anti USA feeling on NSC is unrelenting, all emcompasing and cover every aspect of the USA, it country, policies and people.

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

 

[Simster]

Crap

The anti USA feeling on NSC is unrelenting, all emcompasing and cover every aspect of the USA, it country, policies and people.

Whatever.
I guess that's why the REMF has so far raised £30,000 for an American charidee.

I can't really remember a single moan regarding the Americans that doesn't directly affect the rest of the world. Some people on here even seem to embrace their sports. I think you're being a tad sensitive to be honest.