Where were you........when Maggie Thatcher resigned?

[Safeway]

I was in a classroom at school when someone popped their 'round the door and told everyone. Think it was 1990 so would have only been 12 or 13, but for some reason the whole class went bonkers, shouting and clapping.

Bastard teachers, poisoning our young minds with left-wing thoughts. Grrr.

 

[bigc]

i dunno, probably watching kids tv seeing as i was 3

 

[Shizuoka Dolphin]

I don't know.

 

[Raphael Meade]

no idea.

 

[Hamilton]

I was dancing in the street outside the house I shared with 2 fellow student up in Yorkshire.

Dancing, dancing, dancing.....

....until I realised that the old witch is like Doctor Who and that her spirit had invaded the body of a young up and coming labour MP named Tony Blair.

 

[Braders]

i was 5 so ... i dunno !

 

[Mad Gerald]

I was at Portsmouth University. The Poll Tax wasn't popular amongst us poverty-stricken students, so there was much celebration.

 

[looney]

But now you all realise she was right? Yea?

 

[Herne Hill Seagull]

Didn't find out 'til I came home from college, and my dad told me. Was delighted.

Even now I think the woman was an android who let dogma overcome any sense of moderation or social responsibility. She went too far with everything, and turned us into a country that votes and thinks with its wallet.

 

[Gritt23]

I'd just got off the train at Worthing to meet a mate for a game of snooker.

I was sad to see her go. I know it's a bit unfashionable to say so, but I thought she did one helluva job actually.

 

[fatbadger]

Don't know where I was when it happenend, but I know where I was when I heard about it - in a customs office in Ouazazate in Morocco, sorting out a parcel of presents to send home for Christmas. The Customs officer kept saying 'Margaret Thatcher - aujord'hui - dismisser' which got me and my mate all excited. 'Dismisser'?? However, it turned out that dismisser is French for 'to resign' rather than 'to dismiss', which took some of the excitement away.

As we hadn't seen any news from home for about 2 months, we had had none of the build-up, so it came as a bolt out of the blue.

Needless to say we spent the evening celebrating.

Thatcher was scum - if the sign of good government is bringing together the people of a state and helping them feel part of a single entity who should strive together for the good of each other and the good of the nation (as surely it is), then Thatcher was the worst Prime Minister since Lord Liverpool. She ripped apart the UK (devolution for Scotland and Wales, and growing nationalism is both is a direct result of her policies), she ripped apart England (dividing north from south), she ripped apart society (causing class hatred to be at its highest since the 1930s, and deepening the suspicions between rural, urban and suburban people), she elongated the Northern Irish war (through her policy of opposing the bigotry of one side in the war only), she took us into a war which had a diplomatic solution (the Falklands), she handed over the independence of British foreign policy to the Yanks, destroyed our relationship with Europe, wasted the oil revenues that should have come from the North sea, and begat the bastard Blair.

 

[Gwylan]

That's a fair summary Fatbadger.

I was in bar in London, getting completely pissed. I think there was dancing in the street, but am not sure.

 

[Yorkie]

I have absolutely no idea. If it was 1990 then I had a lot more serious issues going on in my life than to worry over one politician

 

[looney]

retoric and BS.

For starters its the left that played up nationalism in scot/wales (its no suprise theres allied to the SDLP in Ulster),

It was also the left that developed devolution, Charter 88.

if the sign of good government is bringing together the people of a state and helping them feel part of a single entity who should strive together for the good of each other and the good of the nation (as surely it is),

No it isn't. "Bringing together" usually involves coersion or worse.

she ripped apart society (causing class hatred to be at its highest since the 1930s, and deepening the suspicions between rural, urban and suburban people),

Class hatred is actuall a manifestation of the left, probbably cos they didn't get there own way, boo-hoo get over it. "Society" infact has become more mobile which is a sign of social mobility.

Oh christ, Your pidgeon wholing needs an overhall.
The rural/town division emerged after labours election with over 90% of there Urban seats.

she elongated the Northern Irish war (through her policy of opposing the bigotry of one side in the war only), she took us into a war which had a diplomatic solution (the Falklands), she handed over the independence of British foreign policy to the Yanks, destroyed our relationship with Europe, wasted the oil revenues that should have come from the North sea, and begat the bastard Blair.

She opposed bigotry on both sides but if you want peace you have to attack the aggressor.
NI and Argentina.

Hence She helped overthrow a real facist General GAltiari and let The people of the Falklands decide their
own fate.

She stopped us being exploited by Europe as Ted Heath decided to grovel for admition, its an issue still not honestly addressed.
Foreign policy has been influenced by the Yanks since WW2, its a super power thing you wouldn't understand.

Oil TAX revenues were eaten in the early 80's after the discredited Callahagn gov agreed inflation busting pay rises for the Unions. Something they would not have done if they thought they would seek re-election.

Thatcher was the right person at the right time to fight the Unions and reverse the collapse of the UK economy, which long term she did.

 

[Dandyman]

retoric and BS.

For starters its the left that played up nationalism in scot/wales (its no suprise theres allied to the SDLP in Ulster),

It was also the left that developed devolution, Charter 88.




No it isn't. "Bringing together" usually involves coersion or worse.




Class hatred is actuall a manifestation of the left, probbably cos they didn't get there own way, boo-hoo get over it. "Society" infact has become more mobile which is a sign of social mobility.

Oh christ, Your pidgeon wholing needs an overhall.
The rural/town division emerged after labours election with over 90% of there Urban seats.




She opposed bigotry on both sides but if you want peace you have to attack the aggressor.
NI and Argentina.

Hence She helped overthrow a real facist General GAltiari and let The people of the Falklands decide their
own fate.

She stopped us being exploited by Europe as Ted Heath decided to grovel for admition, its an issue still not honestly addressed.
Foreign policy has been influenced by the Yanks since WW2, its a super power thing you wouldn't understand.

Oil TAX revenues were eaten in the early 80's after the discredited Callahagn gov agreed inflation busting pay rises for the Unions. Something they would not have done if they thought they would seek re-election.

Thatcher was the right person at the right time to fight the Unions and reverse the collapse of the UK economy, which long term she did.

I was a civil servant in 1990 and I can promise you that there were more smiles in central London that day than any other I can remember.

Looney - I'm not sure how old you are but IMHO you are talking bollocks.

The "Winter of Discontent" happened because Callaghan imposed an arbitary and stupidly harsh pay limit on public servants.

Thatcher withdrew the patrol ship from the Falklands, changed nationality rules to deny full citizenship to the islanders and chummed up to the Argies - no wonder they thought they get away with an invasion.

She increased poverty, destroyed manufacturing, gave us 15% interest rates in the late 80's, sanctioned seriel abuses of civil liberties, handed our foreign policy over to the yanks (if it's just superpower politics explain Gaullism to me), directly lead to massive house price inflation by selling off council housing and making it impossible for more social housing to be built, undermined local democracy, stole in MacMillan's words "the family silver", etc,etc.

You may choose to have her as a pin-up most of the country will always remember her as an evil, destructive, dishonest stain on our history.

 

[Gwylan]

Originally posted by looney
For starters its the left that played up nationalism in scot/wales (its no suprise theres allied to the SDLP in Ulster),

What nonsense. The re-emergence of the SNP was a direct result of the Tory government's attitude to Scotland. Have you ever spoken to a Scot? There's far more hatred of Thatcher in scotland than anywhere else.

And there's no formal alliance between SDLP and the SNP and PC - don't know where you've got that id


No it isn't. "Bringing together" usually involves coersion or worse.

No it doesn't. There are plenty of examples of countries coming together that hasn't involved coercion - the unification of Italy and Germany spring immediately to mind.


Oh christ, Your pidgeon wholing needs an overhall.
The rural/town division emerged after labours election with over 90% of there Urban seats.

You're mixing up cause and effect here. The reason that Labour won in 1997 was because of the 'them and us' society that Thatcher/Major engineered - it wasn't the Labour party that had caused that split.

The Tories fought that election without a single seat in Scotland or Wales - doesn't that tell you something about the sort of split that Thatcher had created?


....if you want peace you have to attack the aggressor.
NI and Argentina.

And what peace did she bring to NI? It's only now that there's some semblance of peace (although I'm aware that there's still some way to go). Successive governments spent years at 'war' with the IRA with little result.

It's an attitude still seen in Israel where the Israelis think there's a military solution to Palestinian terrorism... sooner or later, they'll learn

As for the Falklands, we were trying to give them away when the Argentinians invaded. In fact, it was the British indifference to the islands that encouraged them. Thatcher seized the opportunity, not to help the Falkland Islanders (she was willing to sell them down the river) but as means of distracting the electorate from her problems. It worked brilliantly, but doesn't reflect well on her.

She stopped us being exploited by Europe as Ted Heath decided to grovel for admition, its an issue still not honestly addressed.

Her stance on Europe was confused. On one hand she slagged the EU off, on the other, she signed the Single European Act and tied the pound to the ECU - a disaster (as we saw in Sept '92)

Oil TAX revenues were eaten in the early 80's after the discredited Callahagn gov agreed inflation busting pay rises for the Unions. Something they would not have done if they thought they would seek re-election.

What bollocks. The Callaghan government resisted pay clainms, having imposed wage restraints for three years (at the behest of the IMF). The unions mounted a campaign against the wage freeze - if the Callaghan government had given it, what were thet striking for.

I'd agree with you that there were some union excesses in the late 70s, but that wasn't an excuse for the vicious anti-union legislation that followed.

 

[fatbadger]

Top one, Gwylan.

Looney, your rant beggars belief - the bit about rural/town division being a Labour thing is hilarious...erm, if they got the 90% of the urban seats, who got 90% of the rural seats?

 

[looney]

QUOTE]The "Winter of Discontent" happened because Callaghan imposed an arbitary and stupidly harsh pay limit on public servants.[/QUOTE]

Let me fill in the gaps................

Because labour had screwed up to the exstent that Chancellor Healy was left on the runway groveling to borrow money of the IMF.........................The "Winter of Discontent" happened because Callaghan imposed an arbitary and stupidly harsh pay limit on public servants......................who then brow beat the government into paying the rediculous payrise in Spring 79.

There thats better

Thatcher withdrew the patrol ship from the Falklands, changed nationality rules to deny full citizenship to the islanders and chummed up to the Argies - no wonder they thought they get away with an invasion.

Pardon? Are you actually argueing here that some countries DESERVE to be invaded?

She increased poverty

No she didn't. One year the Rowntree Foundation even attempted to rig the stats but was found out, the poors income actually increased.
Want to put some money on it?

sanctioned seriel abuses of civil liberties

Such as?

handed our foreign policy over to the yanks (if it's just superpower politics explain Gaullism to me), directly lead to massive house price inflation by selling off council housing and making it impossible for more social housing to be built, undermined local democracy, stole in MacMillan's words "the family silver", etc,etc.

Gaulism means you lose, even most french now see opposition to the Iraq war as a serious miscalculation.

You dont raise house prices by increasing the number of houses on the market(Supply).
I'm not suprised your grasp of economics of zero after belting out that left wing fantasy list

House prices boom cos

Decrease in the supply of houses. (A)
Increase in the Demand for Houses.(B)

Hose prices boomed because.

The cap on the amount you could borrow was lift, Earnings to debt ratio. B
The rise of 2 earner households. B (Sexual equality)
Rising earnings.

Oh and the stock of social housing did rise in late 80's, the best way to reduce that stock is outdated/incompetant Immigratoin controlls.

The family silver?
Hehe, why do you think labours pro-privatisation if it was so bad? You need a history lesson.

 

[looney]

Top one, Gwylan.

Looney, your rant beggars belief - the bit about rural/town division being a Labour thing is hilarious...erm, if they got the 90% of the urban seats, who got 90% of the rural seats?

Tories? Well they would wouldn't they, that goes to proove my point.

 

[fatbadger]

No she didn't. One year the Rowntree Foundation even attempted to rig the stats but was found out, the poors income actually increased.
Want to put some money on it?

The income of the poor went up, the incomes of the rich went through the roof, and inflation (led by the rich's consumer spending) outstripped the income increases for the poor. Thus, in 1990, the poorer members of society could buy less than they could in 1979. In other words, they were poorer.