Mrs T

[WillPS]

Other opponents of political ideologies get to celebrate the falling of their figureheads. I imagine a fair few people celebrated the death of Ceaușescu. And Mussolini. And a fair few US-based anti-Chavez Venezuelans were reported to have partied recently. And, when Blair's time comes, there will be widespread champagne parties on the streets of Kensington and the Home Counties.

So why can't we?

Also, when have I ever been classy? And since when have you cared?

I think the tone of the thread (as you set it in the OP) is low and I'd like to have thought Metropol was somewhat above it.

So Mrs Thatcher (in some circles) has praise heaped upon her for her "iron" dogmatism, "balls of steel", ability to "crush" unionised workers - yet those who protest her lack of compassion and show equal disdain for her humanity as she showed for theirs are criticised?

You would hold us to a higher standard than you hold Mrs Thatcher?

Why?

Because none of what you mentioned has anything to do with the passing of a lady in her late 80s. If my Nana (who for the last few years of her working life, during Thatcher's premiership, was the senior union person for hundreds of Raleigh/Sturmey Archer workers in Nottingham) is able to separate the emotions she felt then from the event of an old lady dying, then it strikes me as entirely unnecessary for somebody who would have been barely out of nappies by the time of her resignation to start parading it as a wonderful event.

[adamcobb55]

Because none of what you mentioned has anything to do with the passing of a lady in her late 80s. If my Nana (who for the last few years of her working life, during Thatcher's premiership, was the senior union person for hundreds of Raleigh/Sturmey Archer workers in Nottingham) is able to separate the emotions she felt then from the event of an old lady dying, then it strikes me as entirely unnecessary for somebody who would have been barely out of nappies by the time of her resignation to start parading it as a wonderful event.

But there's a difference between 'celebrating' her death and the censorship of any suggestion that she wasn't the greatest person in the history of the whole wide world which is what the Mail seems to be suggesting. If the Tories are going to eulogise her to the extent that they are then there at least needs to be the space for a reasoned right of reply from those who don't think she was the bee's knees.

[WillPS]

Because none of what you mentioned has anything to do with the passing of a lady in her late 80s. If my Nana (who for the last few years of her working life, during Thatcher's premiership, was the senior union person for hundreds of Raleigh/Sturmey Archer workers in Nottingham) is able to separate the emotions she felt then from the event of an old lady dying, then it strikes me as entirely unnecessary for somebody who would have been barely out of nappies by the time of her resignation to start parading it as a wonderful event.

But there's a difference between 'celebrating' her death and the censorship of any suggestion that she wasn't the greatest person in the history of the whole wide world which is what the Mail seems to be suggesting. If the Tories are going to eulogise her to the extent that they are then there at least needs to be the space for a reasoned right of reply from those who don't think she was the bee's knees.

I agree entirely.

[cdd]

Of all the (crap) reporting I read on the subject, I thought this was a good piece:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree ... -etiquette

Most places (including the rest of the Guardian) are feeling too polite to criticise her, which is totally twisted - if you'd insult someone while they're alive, why that should change when they die?

But the media is refusing to actually run stories about "hated by everyone because she fucked over the country with x, y, z" - the closest anywhere comes to acknowledging the vitriol her decisions evoked is something along the lines of "a divisive figure but admired by all for the strength of her convictions".

I'm not saying the praise SHOULDN'T be there, it's that the criticism should be there as well to provide a balance - political figures are always divisive after all.

That said, I suspect it won't be long before allegations start cropping up from various contemporaries with claims of things she has said or done that she wasn't accused of when she was alive.

So unless there is a genuine reason why it couldn't have been discovered before (i.e. not like Jimmy Savile) I think making accusations without giving her the opportunity to defend herself would be... well, just stupid.

(Oh, and I'm also sickened by the poor quality of the jokes people are coming out with - seriously, I'm a fan of bad-taste jokes about famous dead people, but hardly any of them are any good!)

[adamcobb55]

I know everybody hated the poll tax because for many people it meant they had to pay more tax - but isn't it a fairer proposition?

Regardless of the size of a house, a home with 8 people will use more public services than an apartment with 1 person in it - so why should the single male in the penthouse flat pay more council tax than a family of 8?

But the tax system isn't (generally) designed on that basis. We don't have a flat rate of income tax, which is what we would have under your suggested system. It's generally agreed that those who have the ability to pay more should pay a higher rate of tax, a man living alone in a penthouse flat probably has the ability to pay a fairly large amount.

[Sput]

I've got a question: Where are people getting the £10 million figure from for her funeral? It seems to consist mostly of police and soldiers who already work full-time for the government. Is this actually extra cost or is it just redeployment of existing staff who were already working?

[WillPS]

I've got a question: Where are people getting the £10 million figure from for her funeral? It seems to consist mostly of police and soldiers who already work full-time for the government. Is this actually extra cost or is it just redeployment of existing staff who were already working?

And I suppose those people have no regular duties which will require cover of some sort?

[Sput]

Well maybe, but there's often some contingency for this sort of thing. I just have a suspicion this isn't new money.

[Gavin Scott]

Its very difficult to say quite how much its costing because they're not directly answering the question in the House.

The Guardian have attempted to quantify it all.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog ... neral-cost

Whether its £7M or £10M - its still too much. After all - if there's "no such thing as society", why are society paying for her funeral?

[marksi]

The numbers of complaints to the BBC are fairly evenly split between those who say the BBC has been biased in favour of her, and those who say the BBC has been biased against her, proving people see what they think they see.

[barcode]

Have I got news for you, claims it between £10M - £40M