Thatch

OK
I'm going to blog this instead of putting it on FB.
Today I had a hospital appointment to see a consultant, I got bugger all sleep last night though worrying about it. While I was in the Hospital I checked my News Feed and found out the news that Maggie Thatcher had died.
Personally I'm cheered more by the news that the Consultant signed me off, than by her passing.
But seeing as FB and Twitter have exploded I though I would try and put my thoughts down.
First of all, the whole celebration about her death, the calls for street party’s. I'm curious about this one. I'll watch the news to see if they get reported on. But If people an get motivated off their arses to go and dance in the fountains at Trafalgar Square. Then she same people should be motivated to make this country a better place through their actions, be it actually bothering to Vote, or to stand up for something they believe in, instead of being keyboard warriors about topics.

Second the whole 'Maggie single handedly destroyed the country.' Some people have short memories. I'm a child of the 1970's and I remember the 3 day week., Petrol rationing, I vaguely remember unemployment in the 70's under the Heath government.
The trade unions played their part in bringing the country to its knees. I remember my father telling stories of the Birmingham Car factories in the 60's and 70's, where the workforce would turn up for work with their fishing rods, because they had no intention of working that day, call a lightning strike and have the day off....Well guess what? Stunts like that have repercussions...BL cars were a joke, people brought Datsun cars because they started first thing in the morning and rusted about as much as Austin Princess did. And as a child of the Midlands I know that heavy engineering started to decline in the 1970's, firms like Vickers, Rolls Royce Aero. The trade unions were not innocent, they played their part too.
Liverpool....I grew up close to Liverpool but not in it, So I've just done a little google research on Derek Hatton, well opinion is divided over him isn't it? Man of the People or Quasi Mafia boss according to one website I looked at...stories of lots of building equipment going missing, stories about Militant demanding extra subs. Hatton was acquitted of all charges and has made a big show about how the Police spent so much time and energy trying to dig up some dirt on him. Then there is Kinnock..Well he is well respected in the Valleys isn't he? Yes I'm being ironic here, Stories about Kinnock’s 'Minders' acting in a heavy handed manner seem to be more commonplace. Just like Thatchers use of the Police force in the miners strike.

The point I'm trying to make is, its not clear cut to Vilify Thatcher and Sanctify her domestic opponents. Politics seems to me to be a dirty game where no one comes out unscathed by the whiff of corruption. Look at Politics and Politicians now. All of them Millionaires, playing at Politics for a few years, playing with ordinary peoples lives before taking on Directorships .Thatcher came from a middle class background not a privileged Bullingdon club background, she may not have been the daughter of a miner or steelworker, but the working classes used her fathers shop (Hmm a shop that wouldn’t have survived under today’s and the previous Governments I think)...What I'm saying is she had a closer knowledge of the common man than today’s lot. I think if she had been compus mentus she would have been secretly horrified at the behaviour of today’s Tory Party. (OK that’s just my opinion, I can't back it up in any way)

So the selling off of National Industries like Gas, The idea was for anyone....ANYONE to be able to buy shares in the companies. Not just the privileged few. The price of shares may have been out of reach for the unemployed, I'm not saying its right to sell of nationalised industry’s that’s a whole other argument...But what I will say is I am not a Socialist. My political leanings are Liberal..actually they are Thelemite, but that’s not to say I support the current Liberal limp dicks.

The Falklands War. Going to war to defend a British Territory, that’s a novel idea in this day and age. When you join the armed forces there is a risk of injury and death, one of the reasons I didn't sign up and one of the reasons I respect those who do. If you sign up not expecting those things then you shouldn't have signed up in the first place. We don't have conscription and National Service had been done away with a long time ago. You join knowing there is a chance you may have to take a life or pay with your own.

The sheer outpouring of glee at her death, She was suffering from Dementia, I watched my Grandfather suffer from Dementia. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.
I think people have got confused, People wanted a public apology, for her to sit there on national TV and say sorry to the Miners...Come on that was never going to happen, Thatcher had too much strength in her own convictions to ever do that. You will never get a apology off people like that..if they were in the habit of apologising then they would not be a strong leader in the first place. The Dementia issue is complex. If she had remained well and retired from Politics, done the talk show circuit then she might have had a greater opportunity to explain the reasoning behind her actions, Not to gain 'forgiveness' but maybe people may have understood her a little more. I think people feel cheated because she developed Dementia and they didn't get to have their say. So now all they can do is metaphorically dance on her Grave. Well if you are then shame on you.