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Thatcherism is dead - get over it.....
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
How can anybody now claim to be a Thatcherite?
In her eleven years as PM, what did she do of note?
In her eleven years as PM, what did she do of note?
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All in all, more people in the UK were better off in 1990 than they were 1979. So I think the old girl did a good job.
Sorry if I'm spoiling the thread or acting dense, but why is everyone who is 'anyone' male in the world of politics?
:eek:
Firstly Blair and IDS are both pretty much model Thatcherites.
As for your second question:
1)privatisation
2)reduced welfare
3) sold off council housing
4)cuts to public services
5)destroyed unions
6)lowered taxes
for starters
2)reduced welfare - and this, although bigger cuts are needed in some areas
3) sold off council housing - good for the reason in my first post.
4)cuts to public services - which ones are you thinking about?
5)destroyed unions - good, we now have very low unemployment
6)lowered taxes - good, but still need to be lower, especially for people on low wages.
You are acting dense, there are lots of prominent fems in politics.
2. Oversaw the creation of a growing underclass with the lack of investment to our towns and cities.
3. Destroyed the coal and steel industries and the communities they supported in South Yorkshire, South Wales and the North-East leaving despair and growing drugs and crime in her wake.
4. Reduced education, the NHS and the public sector to their knees through under-investment.
5. Sold off the family jewels of the power, telecommunications and public transport for less than they were worth ensuring maximum return for the corporations who now own them for a minimal service. (used a bus or train lately?)
6. Failed to curb the corrupt excesses of the Police Force at the time, one of the reasons for the massive amount of rioting and civil disorder in the 80s. While allowing them to use anti-terrorism legislation to curb legitimate protests.
7. Craeted the pensions problem, with the push for 'dodgy' private pensions, SERPS and linking state pensions to inflation not earnings.
8. Introduced a legacy of greed and self-interest and the loss of any community spirit and pride. Her most famous quote: 'There is no such thing as society' and there wasn't by the time she left.
9. Enabled public housing to be sold off and prevented their replacement by the councils.
10. The loss of the once great manufacturing base in this country, this once a nation that made things that sold all over the world. Now we are a nation of telesales factories selling things to each other.
I am now so totally depressed and angry, I shall not continue. :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:
There have been plenty of female cabinet ministers. And one female Prime Minister is better than none.
Stop with all the glass ceiling rubbish.
She is not acting dense, id rather see someone ask for help than pretend they know everything :rolleyes:
lets see now.
a thousand years worth of coal in the ground ...abandoned.
the biggest increase in unemployment and homelessness ever induced with intent.
more social unrest than ever before.
schools without books.
schools where the rain came in through the roofs.
schools with no heating.
hospitals with no medicines.
hospitals with drastic staff shortages.
biggest ever increase in crime ...and thats not counting her politicians.
roads and railways crumbling.
B.T the best telephone company in the world reduced to a loss maker.
privatisation of the railways with disastorous results ...
i could be here all night ...
Yes, indeed, plenty. And how come they all end up in the lesser posts? And one female prime minister is better than none. Yes I can agree with that, but, to be honest its a poor ratio in an "equal" society isnt it? Its only one more than black prime ministers, which is in itself a different argument. But you get the picture don't you.
In response to those points:
Privatisation - This was a tactic used by the Thatcher government to keep its economic head above water, rather than use the receipts from privatisation for investment in education or to build new technology bases or reduce the North/South divide it was squandered on tax cuts (see below). The end result of these privatisations were massive job losses, hugely deteriorated customer service, lack of investment (eg; the National Grid, BT, Water companies etc etc) and an increase in wealth for the rich shareholders while most people suffered.
Reduced welfare - When I was little I remember a lot more homeless people on the streets of London than there are now. Many people who were encouraged by Maggie to borrow to the hilt found that during the early 90s recession they were in stook and so lost everything they had. Incidentally, I'd also like to mention that under her government unemployment hit its highest levels went over three million and she was responsible through her economic mismanagement for the two worst recessions since the Depression in between which there was an uncontrollable boom let loose in order for her to win the 1987 general election. Also I'd like to mention the huge increases in child and pensioner poverty during the Thatcher years.
Sold off council housing - We see the effects of this now with the huge housing shortages we have in London and the South East as councils, who were responsible for most house building, were banned from building new houses to replace the ones that were sold off - this means today we have millions of key workers not to mention low income earners who cannot afford a home.
Cuts to public services - self-explanatory really, she created the NHS waiting lists, under-funded our schools meaning we have a disadvantage in the productivity stakes , crime tripled under the Tory government - mainly because of growing social inequality.
Destroyed the unions - which means today that two thirds of workers are on less than average wages because of the huge salaries of CEOs which are paid for by sacking workers lower down the chain to keep the pigs eating from their trough. It also means that British workers work the longest hours in Europe and is also responsible for the economic destruction of vast areas of the North as the unions wanted a slower, phased decrease in the old industries while she shattered them leaving these areas with nothing except crime and drugs. It also means British workers enjoy fewer rights than their European counterparts and so have a lower quality of life because of the domination of business.
Lowered taxes - Actually this is something of a myth, it only really applies to higher income earners who saw the huge income tax cuts under Thatcher. Most ordinary people saw increases in VAT, not only in percentage but what it was applied to, also increases on fuel, spirits and tobacco duties. As well as the Poll Tax which was an effective mugging of ordinary families to subsidise the rich.
I would suggest that you are wrong.
i'm too drunk at the moment to deal with your points in a rational way. Suffice to say - you are mad.
Thatcherism is simply the views and policies of Thatcher.
These involved a greater emphasis on laissez-faire economics, monetarism, meritocracy, rolling back the state and privatisation of state industry.
there is no such thing as society was one of her statements ...what she realy meant is that there wouldn't be once she'd had her way!
I simply can't believe some still buy the myth that people were better off after her premiership. A few certainly were... not the immense majority. In fact child poverty more than doubled under that woman.
And let's not forget her fascist and racist tendencies... An Apartheid apologist and friend to this day of evil murderers such as Augusto Pinochet... A man who had women raped by dogs and killed and tortured tens of thousands of his own people.
I always have a spare bottle of bubbly around and you can be sure champagne corks will fly in my household the day she pegs it.
When she dies, a nation will rejoice.
I'm pretty sure that if some of the people giving her the most flak here had lived through the late 70s, they'd have a different opinion.
If not, you're still benefitting from her legacy (including the current political climate, which was set by her) whether you like the fact that some people were made miserable or not.
Next time your train is delayed by 30 minutes or cancelled due to strikes, imagine what it would be like for that to happen to everything about your life, every day, 7 days a week, etc.
I hardly think you are in a position to argue. Your profile says you are 19. :rolleyes:
What relevance does his age have?