Whitey Grandad

You should have painted a go-faster stripe on the side.

After a bit of thought I have decided not to vote for a man of the match because I feel that they all played their part to some extent or other and I don't want to single out any individuals.

Funny, that's what I thought of the main text.

The figures are clearly flawed, as is pointed out in the comments.

I agree with you in the case of British Rail, you can't have competition on the railways, if only because one train can't overtake another. BT is a vast improvement but has a long way to go. British Airways no longer soak up our money and when they are working do a pretty good job, if only they could get rid of the old ingrained public-sector working practices. In order to serve the interests of the shareholder then you must first serve the interests of the customers. But these are only a tiny fraction of the Public Sector Monster. Health and Social Services are where it's all draining away.

Stupid pr1ck.

Indeed, those bonuses really stick in the throat, don't they?

That is indeed what they all are, but if you look at the relative costs of defence, police, fire service you'll find that the Health Service far outweighs all of them put together, even if you throw in education.

You're quite right, the collapse was rooted in the US but this last lot had put us all in a very parlous position with their frivolous overspending.

They may be subject to a pay freeze but there are an awful lot of them. Of course these people work hard but just ask yourself where the money comes from. Spending on the Health Service has doubled but 'output/productivity' has only gone up by 30%.

But they buy these things with money that has been legally stolen from the pbws in the private sector. The public sector is an overhead which is far too costly.

Oh yes. We have got to stop pouring money down the gullets of the public sector so that we can be allowed to spend it for ourselves. Where do you think this money has to come from? It's from the poor bloody workers.

Teeth are classified as 'medical waste' and a dentist should really dispose of them in a responsible manner. That said, I had a one with a gold crown extracted recently and he let me keep it. Might be worth something?

I'd be pleased with that.

What about out-of-contract players? I thought you could sign those at any time?

Not expecting an invite then, Phil?

Cheapskate. Couldn't he afford a new one?

It's even quieter when it's closed!

When I bought my ticket there were very few seats available - and this with a crowd of 10,000 in a 32,000 seater stadium - because of course the directors' and Press seats take up a large area and no matter how much effort you make the number of seats there is limited. Just please try the view from M302. Call it excuses, call them poor supporters, it makes no difference. The club is a business and not a charity and needs all the income that it can get. We cannot afford to be fussy about who comes through the turnstiles. In my opinion, closing the Kingsland is a very misguided policy and results in reduced net income for both clubs. Next time, why not open the Kingsland and close the Northam?

I only offer the suggestion because in a couple of years time when I scale down my work I might be looking for a new challenge. You know the sort of thing... 'I have never sought public office but if my country were to call for my assistance I might find it difficult to refuse....'. I'm ok with a monarchy in itself, it's a lot cheaper than a republic what with all those elections and campaigning. Just think of the words 'President John Prescott, or 'President Boris Johnson' and see how you feel. It's all the royal hangers-on that annoy me.

Did she ever come back?

Not an excuse at all. The Shrewsbury game was an awful matchday experience and a few days before the game the only seats available were in the corners of the Itchen whilst the whole of the Kingsland was empty. You cannot blame people for not wanting to go to a game where they can't see what's happening. I feel very sorry for those young kids who were taken along.

But those 20,000 seats are not in the corner, they are always the last to sell out and for good reason. You might very well think it 'strange', but that is one of the reasons why these early-round cup games have smaller crowds, and I am not one for telling other people what to think or do. It's not a very complicated situation, if you close the best stand in the ground then you will get a smaller crowd. It was a similar situation when Rupert closed blocks 1 & 2 in the Itchen expecting that those sat there would be happy to move elsewhere. I know of several fanatical Saints fans who were so p!ssed off by the decision that they cancelled their tickets and haven't come back. The money from those tickets would have paid for the bounced cheque that put us into administration. Block 5's not too bad. Try block 11, row M seat 302. Then see if you ever want to do that again.

Absence of a monarch does not necessarily mean a republic. What's wrong with Benevolent Dictatorship?

That's nothing. I once met a chap who couldn't stop talking about the time he took his wife up the Amazon.