Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

Stan

Could be could be , or not to be that is the question or is it the answer ?

A Poem Worth Reading
>
> He was getting old and paunchy
> And his hair was falling fast,
> And he sat around the RSL,
> Telling stories of the past.
>
> Of a war that he once fought in
> And the deeds that he had done,
> In his exploits with his buddies;
> They were heroes, every one.
>
> And 'tho sometimes to his neighbours
> His tales became a joke,
> All his buddies listened quietly
> For they knew where of he spoke.
>
> But we'll hear his tales no longer,
> For ol' Bob has passed away,
> And the world's a little poorer
> For a Soldier died today.
>
> He won't be mourned by many,
> Just his children and his wife..
> For he lived an ordinary,
> Very quiet sort of life.
> He held a job and raised a family,
> Going quietly on his way;
> And the world won't note his passing,
> 'Tho a Soldier died today.
>
> When politicians leave this earth,
> Their bodies lie in state,
> While thousands note their passing,
> And proclaim that they were great.
> Papers tell of their life stories
> From the time that they were young.
> But the passing of a Soldier
> Goes unnoticed, and unsung.
>
> Is the greatest contribution
> To the welfare of our land,
> Some jerk who breaks his promise
> And cons his fellow man?
>
> Or the ordinary fellow
> Who in times of war and strife,
> Goes off to serve his country
> And offers up his life?
>
> The politician's stipend
> And the style in which he lives,
> Are often disproportionate,
> To the service that he gives.
>
> While the ordinary Soldier,
> Who offered up his all,
> Is paid off with a medal
> And perhaps a pension, small.
> It's so easy to forget them,
> For it is so many times
> That our Bobs and Jims and Johnnys,
> Went to battle, but we know,
>
> It is not the politicians
> With their compromise and ploys,
> Who won for us the freedom
> That our country now enjoys.
> Should you find yourself in danger,
> With your enemies at hand,
> Would you really want some cop-out,
> With his ever waffling stand?
>
> Or would you want a Soldier--
> His home, his country, his kin,
> Just a common Soldier,
> Who would fight until the end.
>
> He was just a common Soldier,
> And his ranks are growing thin,
> But his presence should remind us
> We may need his like again.
> For when countries are in conflict,
> We find the Soldier's part
> Is to clean up all the troubles
> That the politicians start.
>
> If we cannot do him honour
> While he's here to hear the praise,
> Then at least let's give him homage
> At the ending of his days..
>
> Perhaps just a simple headline
> In the paper that might say:
> "OUR COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING,
> A SOLDIER DIED TODAY."

aldwick
That is what we last voted for, but at that time if we had listened the anti vote was telling us that by voting yes to a common market we were opening the doors to much more and the Heath knew this was the outcome.
I believe we are too deep in the matket to revert back to the original concept

stable

We won't know for sure unless we do , but the best we could hope for if we stay in the EU is for it to be more weighted towards the common trade part of it without the money wasting , time wasting corrupt set up we have now.

Hi Stable,

You are quite right about Enoch Powell.
As to Nigel Farage, I agree that at the moment he is a one horse pony, but there is no incentive as yet for him to be anything else.
If it ever looks like he may get into power in the UK via UKIP, then that will be the time when he has to look at a manifesto of policies.
As to any UKIP manifesto quality of content, I don't have a clue.
The main reason he would have my vote, is that at present or in the near future, UKIP have not a chance in hell, of getting into power at Westminster, but if he carried a decent proportion of seats, then his 100% anti stance on Europe (in its present form) would force the other parties to sit up and take notice.
As to my comment re plain speaker, I also agree that to be anti EEC is not that difficult, but he could make life far easier for himself as an MEP by treading the line a bit more, you know like all the others who just sit back, nod their heads at just about everything, content to take their wages and expenses without making waves.
He has few friends in the EEC, which to me is also a very strong point.

As to him not having any answer except to leave the Common Market, what other option is there, in it's present form.
He is not against the idea of an open agreement trading body, which is what the original concept was all about, something I am in full agreement with.

Regards Greek.

Good riddance James Murdoch quits executive boards of Sun and Times

Greekman
The point to be made is that is very easy to be anti eec and u will find a tremendous support, but u must have answers to what is going to be the result of us leaving.
I spent many many years in the grain trade and we were telling all that the eec was not good for us or long term for the majority of farmers(I believe NewZealand agriculture did perfom well after they wirhdrew all subsidies), because of subsidies.
I still support a common market, I cannot see the European federalists doing anything to help us withdraw from the mess they have created.

Stable,

Thats what I sort of said in my last post.
The only answer to us leaving the EEC is to reform with those other countries that will either follow us out of the club immediately or within a short time and create an open trade agreement.
You mention the farm subsidies and their negative effect on countries such as ours due to the encouraging effect of supporting those none productive farmers of many EU countries, that is just one of the many reasons why I feel that if we do leave the union, things won't after a while, be as bad as many people believe, after all we import more from the union than we export to it.
I have read many reports over the last few months that suggest that after an initial period of deeper depression on leaving, things would soon start to improve.
Its a big world outside the union with many trading opportunities which the UK for many years has neglected.
Trade outside the EU is probably less restricted than trade within the EU due to all the extra red tape that the EU was designed to do away with, but didn't.
The EU as we know it is dead, the powers that be just won't let it lie down, so yet more money will continue to be poured into the never ending pot (that has a great big hole in the bottom) until they all wake up and realise that the 'Emperor really has no clothes', none so blind than those in power who can not see!

Aids,.

Apologies,

I was thinking you problems stem from your brains being scrambled in the boxing ring.

By the way. what did you do to improve the image of your "Crap School"?

===============

Anybody view the "Leveson Inquiry"?

Listened to the experiences of the McCanns'.

I think there is a stench around the practices of the Express, Star, Daily Mail and other rags which pass for News Papers.

I would like to see the editorship, "journalists" and CEO s of the various "papers" in the dock and if found guilty, fined and imprisoned for a 3 months.

Mind judging by previous threads, many would prefer an unregulated press.

Just received this as an email.

Pee-ers of the Realm

Dear Connoisseur,

This week, my report is on the House of Lards. The inhabitants of this shockingly urine-poor institution fall into the following categories:

Thieves and Criminals:

-Baroness Uddin falsely claimed expenses on a house she rarely visited. Having been disgraced and suspended from the Lards, she now plans to sit (sitting is a special term used in the House of Ludos to describe their work most of us actually have to do something to earn a living; they merely sit) in the chamber, claiming 300 per day tax-free allowance, and using this money to repay her ill-gotten gains effectively using tax-payers' money to pay off money she had swindled from the tax-payer - a real woman of the people.

When the Queen comes to the House of Cards to make one of her Queer Speeches, I am sure she will recognise Lords Taylor, Hanningfield and Archer, as they have all spent time in Her Majesty's prisons, for various crimes.


Shameless Hypocrites:

-Working class man of principle, Baron Prescott of Kingston-upon-Hull in the County of East Yorkshire (John to his friends) said that he would never sit in the House of Loons, as it went against everything he stood for. He did, however, "to retain influence and hold the government to account. What a selfless man, putting others first.
Even though he hates being a Lord and that, he is doing his bit to help us, the common people, in our lives.

-The humbly-named Baroness Scotland broke her own employment law that she, as minister, had been responsible for fashioning. She got away with it by dismissing her breach as a technicality and by being utterly spineless. A person we can all look up to.

-Baron Kinnock. Diabolical rider of EU gravy trains and system milker.


Pompous Bores/Boors/Boars:

-Lord Mandelson. A real shocker.

-Baroness Williams of Crosby (Shirley). Sanctimonious busybody.


Total Failures:

-Baroness Morris of Yardley (Estelle) is a failed education secretary who resigned because she was not up to the job.

-At least she admitted her own failures, unlike Baron Martin of Springburn, aka failed speaker of the house Michael Martin, who brought the House of Commons into such disrepute and was so terrible at his job.

These are just two examples of unfortunates; The Lards contains countless other disastrous humans.


Irrelevant Fools:

-Bishops of London, Durham, et cetera + assorted hangers-on, e.g. The Archbishop of Canterbury

-Peter St. Clair-Erskine, 7th Earl of Rosslyn (deceased)* et al.

Why any of these people are having a say in the laws of our land is anyone's guess.


*he is not actually deceased, though he might as well be.


Note: For legal reasons I would like to point out that just because a particular lard is in the Irrelevant Fools category, for example, that does not preclude him/her/it from also being a criminal/thief etc. Similarly, there is no suggestion, for instance, that a Shamless Hypocrite in the Hearse of Lords is anything other than totally useless.

:-)

delete

It is nice to know our PM is squeaky clean and has put the expense scandal behind him.

Pity about his past pruning.

http://www.channel4.com/news/pm-s-private-land-deal-with-lobbyist-raises-questions

Is he claiming his "unemployment or sickness benefit" to pay for the below?

Now, I know where my Taxes are going.

In 2001, Mr Cameron paid 650,000 for his constituency home - a purchase aided by around 150,000 in parliamentary expenses. When Mr Cameron bought this home, he also acquired a patch of land up the lane. This was separated from the main house by a driveway and garages belonging to a cottage opposite.

From inspection of Land Registry documents, Channel 4 News found that in November last year, Conservative peer and Tory donor Lord Chadlington, who owns a large manor house nearby, bought the cottage for 715,000, thereby taking ownership of the driveway and garages which ran across the prime minister's land.

==========

Am I mistaken, or it it "hands back in the tills"?

--------

Not fit for purpose comes to mind.

PS.

It is good to see the tories are led by such an upright pillock and a man who believes in the NHS, "family values" and the "Big Society".

Mind as such a successful international leader and statesman we should ignore his little "weaknesses".

Fred1new-----------The fact that you were an ex miner may lead people to think that there is a certain amount of bias in your postings/rantings regarding the Tories.
2517

The whole point of the UKIP is to get us out of The Evil Empire; many of its members would be happy if it was disolved after that aim had been achieved. It seems that the UKIP now has a higher rating in the polls than the Lib Dems.

Merkel has called for the EU to "complete economic and monetary union and build political union" My father killed Germans to prevent that happening.

She has already replaced the Greek prime minister with a former vice-president of the european central bank and stopped them having a referendum and she also replaced the Italian prime minister with a former European commissioner. These two Merkel appointments were two of the eurocrats that caused the disaster in the first place. They prioritised the survival of the euro and deliberately overlooked the debt criteria to admit Greece and Italy.

I am only surprised that Cameron didn't return from his recent meeting with her waving a piece of paper saying she had promised not to stage another coup d'etat and promised not to install any more Vichy governments.

.

Fred, Big Society!, thought the dick head had ditched that?.

Was doomed to failure anyway.

What person in their right mind is going to be made redundant by the council and lose thier job and then take up what they were previously paid for on a voulantry basis.

Cameron is a bloody fantasy merchant. Hes way out of touch, but then again I suppose If I was given everything from birth and had no money worries id be the same.

Get Mick Portilo and Ken Clarke running the economy or put in a labour government I say. The conservatives have lost the female vote and the student vote, that will spell disaster at the next elections if we get that far.

I reckon this coalition have at best another 18 months and the wet liberals will bring it down.

The rank and file libs are already up in arms about their 7% share of the vote.

Seething is the word at my local Lib club, ales rank aswel.

Mnamreh,

I for one believe that this nonsense plan, is being seriously considered by Germany, with perhaps shared power with their new found friends the French.

I have read several reports that state that the only way to save the Euro and the Eu as it stands is by a Dictatorial fiscal plan, whereby budgets, tax plans and all other fiscal bodies are dictated and run by a central body, with countries loosing their own sovereignty in these matters.

I for one am certain that this policy will never get of the ground due to the general populace not standing for it, but that does not mean these proposals are not being proposed.

Remember the pen is mightier than the sword.

I must remember that the next time I get inside a boxing ring, left jab, right hook, No hit him with my Parker.