Posted by greeny9 on 4/9/2013 6:05:00 PM (view original):
England is doing so well (not) much because of the Iron Ladies policies. Im not saying she screwed everything up. But enough things. And Im not saying she did nothing right. London is arguably the worlds most powerful capital city. And in no small part due to her influence. But soon as you go outside of London its a somewhat different story. Im not claiming to be an expert here. Mostly from what I have read and heard since her death. The CBC has top notch news.
Bottom line is, she delayed by a whole generation the slipping of the UK into a bloated, over-bureaucratic, government controlled craphole that it was. A Nationalized mining, steel, transportation, communications, ship-building, trade regulating pit, controlled by boards full of the same people, and beholden to nobody but themselves, which was the union, who regularly went on strike to it's leaders could raise their own wages, round and round. Garbage pickup, burial, fuel transport, food production, shipping, buying, selling, and a hundred other things could not be counted on to be available tomorrow. Living like that was only getting board-members rich, union workers bribed to continue on, and lowering all opportunities for improvement. It was inefficiency times 100, at the people's expense. That's why she got elected. And like Nixon in '72, no one will ever admit they voted for her.
London in the 70's was a gritty, smelly, run-down place, with the haves, and the have-nots worlds apart. Protest songs were already hating and complaining, before she had any influence. (see Sex-Pistols, or even better, listen to Hazel O'Connor and Breaking Glass. Even the Who, Quadrophenia)
She also made it so people could buy their homes, rather than rent them from the locality, which made them able to have their own property for the first time ever.
Taxes could be as high as 80% and investment earning taxed at 90+ %. Just check how many rock-stars and actors were moving out, or taking their money elsewhere. Much like 70's Sweden.
Faults? sure, just like any leader. And she had to fight against her own board-member party people. It was costly, and some suffered. Just as they will here when the well runs dry.
As far as the hatred, she has always acknowledged it, expected it, and wouldn't care about it. To be honest, I had a few celebratory drinks myself when Ted Kennedy finally kicked it, and I'll do the same for Biden, for their enabling of Pol Pot, the killing fields, and the boat people. And so it goes. Just my opinion.
(Mini-rant brought to you by Bushmills single malt Irish whiskey..est.1608)
4/13/2013 5:05 PM (edited)