saintfully

Ah you bugger beat me to it!

Cate le Bon. She's Welsh and has a nice voice. I like her. She's a bit weird and if I did some 'shrooms in a wood I'd say she'd probably calm me down whilst getting me high.

Yep. Person in 'Things arn't black and white' shock!!!

I'd say (b) - but thats not really the point is it. And I would argue that, far from encouraging people to take responsibility for themselves, she fostered a nation of spivs desperately trying to make an easy buck rather than applying themselves to hard graft to earn a living. As for 'evil', among the many reasons I hate Thatch is the sinking of the Belgrano, the assassinating of the three terrorists in the back on Gibraltar and the refusal to back sanctions vs South Africa. It was the complete disregard for the sanctity of human life that I found most disgusting. And no, ****.ing on someones grave isn't evil - petty, pathetic and unpleasant certainly, but I'd have thought you'd recognise a distasteful joke when you saw one Trousers ? Must have got that wrong.

I'm looking forward to the moment when I can finally pi.ss on her grave. If there is such a thing as evil, she is it.

I wish there was a Golden threads section to move this too.

Kirstie Allsop and Phil whatever his name is - just the thought of them makes me want to kill

I agree the world needs banking - what the world dosn't need is financial engineering for financial engineerings sake - with all the institutional risk carried by the state. Banking contributes approx 7% to GDP - this is a relatively small contribution when the risk of it going wrong is that we turn into Iceland. As an aside... I find it ironic that the same people who defend casino banking (and Im not saying thats what you're doing - I think the points you make are certainly worth raising and discussing) are often found saying that joining the Euro would be disasterous. The recent Greek bailout shows the benefit of strength in numbers (albeit a bit late in the day). In contrast, I would argue that the greatest risk to the pound lies in maintaining the uk as a global banking hub.

Its what happens in a bad year that worries me. If the banks fail again there is no more money in the pot to bail them out. What we used last time was borrowed against our future pensions in the form of bonds - the interest on which is currently being gambled by the city as it assess the likelihood of us going bust. What would all those talented people in teh city be doing if they weren't in banking ? Maybe designing and creating solutions/things which solve real problems???

I personally would have preferred a more left-leaning government, and in particular one focussed more strongly at real wealth creation rather than phoney money generated by banking products. However, above all Im a democrat and Im at least glad that (given the choices) this government can be said to broadly represent the will of the majority. Next stop electoral reform and then utopia presumably.

Yeah, its great isn't it. Here in Brighton we're all sitting around in a leaking daisy-chain, smoking dope in a hot-tub powered by the sun. Thanks Caroline for turning my dream into reality.

All this talk about waste in the public sector ignores the fact that the financial problems that we face now are primarily due to the waste of money by the PRIVATE sector. The credit crisis was begun by the issuing of sub-prime mortgages in the US - which over-valued assets. When an asset is over-valued and bought for too much money, the excess is waste. Our economy is now fu.cked because the private sector was awash with waste - money which was not invested effectively (just as in the public sector, an inefficient workforce is not good value). For an analogy, think about how money football clubs have wasted on over-priced players over the years - anyone think that the 4 million (I think) we spent on Delgado was the best use of that money.... or was it wasted? My point is that for every efficient company in the private sector, there is another failing cause its wasted its money. Poor productivity is everywhere. (I have worked in both sectors by the way... the only one I havn't tried is not-for-profit/charity/co-ops. Wonder what they're like?)

What can I say, lifes complicated and so am I.

Obama is a smoker - when I found that out my respect for him went up in direct proportion to the amount my respect for you went down having read your most recent posts. I smoke and I fu.ckin luv it (although, yes, tbh Im planning to stop and yes it is a horrible corrupting habit - I do like the general gesture of 'fu.ck u' that it offers to all non-smokers though)

I think that it would be difficult to argue that Lambeth council are representative of the Labour Party, just as arguing that Nicholas Winterton (people who don't travel 1st class on trains are a different sort of person to those travelling standard class) is representative of the Tory party would be inaccurate. I think Entrepreneurship is definately worth encouraging too - but I don't understand why higher taxes inevitably mean it is discouraged. In my experience entrepreneurs are motivated as much by the freedom and challenge of the business they are engaged in, as the rewards. I don't know Doug Richards manifesto - but I would certainly support the removal of excessive regulation of small businesses, state provision of support (ie. cheap loans) for start-up companies, deferred tax incentives for start-ups etc. Is this the kind of thing he is advocating.... or does he go along the old 'more tax breaks for the risk-takers' road ?

And ? Did you not read what I posted or did you just not understand it ? Who are you voting for by the way - have you made your mind up yet ?

Ha-ha - since when was the modern Labour Party left wing? As for the policy - I don't object to parents opeing their own schools -providing standards are monitored in the same way as state schools, accountability is maintained and they don't suck money away from the state sector. I suspect this policy is much more about the Tory ideological desire to shrink the state rather than actually raising standards. As for my kids - I don't want them taught in a school organised by an amateur (parent), I want them taught by professionals. When I heard Camerons optimistic/idealistic' NAIVE we're all in it together' ****** yesterday, all I could think of was the similarly naive and ridiculous Poortvliet/Wotte experiment inflicted on us by Lowe. It just stinks of Toff-amateur-hour. In some ways its Victorian thinking - quite weird. (I'll be voting Libdem by the way - how about yourself?)

I think its called 'widening the debate by broadening its perspective'. HTH.

I thought being leader of the Conservatives when faced with Gordon Brown and a knackered economy was the easiest job in politics. And yet Cameron is still managing to make it look difficult. He should have a 20 point lead by now - which shows how much of a fraud he really is - lightweight.

Erm yeah - you forgot to mention that they are democratically accountable, so you can vote them out when they get it wrong. Precisely what is happening at this election. How are you gonna vote a kids parent off the board when they own the school but are making a mess of it ? Presumably, in this case, your best option is to move the kid from the school - I guess the choice then is whether you move your kid to another 'privately' run school, or play safe and move your kid to a state school - where if it goes wrong you at least have the ability to apply pressure to the elected officials supervising its administration.

Absolutely agree that in 12 months the country will be up sh.it creek and that most people don't have a clue how bad its gonna be. Don't agree that benefits system is the best place to start cutting - I'd prefer tax dodging/avoidance. Easier to do, less socially destructive and would raise more cash. Tories and Labour chose not to this because of the effect it would have on Establishment wealth.

Ha-ha, thanks for posting. Its a nice vid until it strangely fails to show the moment, presumably seconds later, when the aircraft and ufo are in the same frame. I guess the trucker had to go for a vital burger or something.

Brilliant. Thanks for that. I have no idea what it was you saw, but I can't exclude aliens, so your account definately makes the day more exciting. Perhaps the most bonkers thing about the account is that it actually was saucer-shaped! Personally I'd love it if real old-skool flying saucers started buzzing around... it'd be f.uckin' mental! Does/did your mate reckon it was aliens? Do you ever talk about it with him/know what he thinks happened now ? Cheers.

Hey. Can you describe what happened again/what it looked like ? I find personal accounts (from the horses mouth) the most convincing - mainly because I can't imagine why otherwise rational 'normal' people would make stuff like this up. I havn't seen a UFO and I don't want to accept that I think its possible that aliens have visited... BUT, I can't explain some of the accounts I've heard/read (other than some kind of mass hallucination?). Maybe this is a failure of my imagination but it often seems to leave aliens as a reasonable explanation. (I've tried to find your previous posts but I think only your most recent 500 are available). Cheers.

With inflation at 7% or higher? Anyway, if you want good interest rates try lending through Zopa - it screws the banks and you can get about 10% if youre willing to take a little risk. HTH.