You are now the Prime Minister...

[s2k7]

s2k7, I won't bother responding other than to say read some history books.

Yep, the last time I read the history

By my count the total number of US servicemen buried in Europe is 75,166 for the Second World War and a further 30,921 from the Great War. That's American arrogant for you.

Thread like this is fine except when you try to poke me.

[lippydave]

Yep, the last time I read the history

By my count the total number of US servicemen buried in Europe is 75,166 for the Second World War and a further 30,921 from the Great War. That's American arrogant for you.

Thread like this is fine except when you try to poke me.

From an American website American History

The real event that changed America into a nation actively at war was the attack on Pearl Harbor This was precipitated in July 1939 when Franklin Roosevelt announced that the US would no longer trade items such as gasoline and iron to Japan who needed it for their war with China. In July 1941, the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis was created. The Japanese began occupying French Indo-China and the Philippines. All Japanese assets were frozen in the US. On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor killing over 2,000 people and damaging or destroying eight battleships greatly harming the Pacific fleet. America officially entered the war."

Hopefully a little historical clarity for you.....

[Norman Verona]

Dave, that's only part of it. I won't go into all the evidence because it's a waste of time and energy to try and convince those who won't listen.

Jeff, some of your items are good others not so good. However the final comment says it all. "The French put France first we should do the same for Britain.".

Only problem is that France is a very poor country mainly because their businesses don't flourish. We, however have expanding business with no shortage of labour because we have plenty of immigrants.

[carpetstu]

Don't start me on the Tesco philosophy and there position and intensions to destroy the UK high street!

They are leaches sucking the economy dry and pushing prices up on a daily basis!

Grrrrrrrrr ... it's one ompany that I really do not like , if you haven't gathered that already  

[lippydave]

Don't start me on the Tesco philosophy and there position and intensions to destroy the UK high street!

They are leaches sucking the economy dry and pushing prices up on a daily basis!

Grrrrrrrrr ... it's one ompany that I really do not like , if you haven't gathered that already  

Stu,

the trouble is we're all helping propogate globilisation.

Sheer b****y convenience aside from cost is the reason most of us use the multi-nationals who are making nations dire faceles facimiles of North American shopping culture.

The rise of the shopping mall is the death of the high street, and a great big eraser of local and national character and charcteristics IMNSFHO...

What's quite ironically hysterical is that given the American view of communism, that ultimately globalised capitalisation has led boring homogenised housing developments, identikit shopping centres, and hordes of non_North American kids who dress like Yank teenagers and mimic them in the most crass ways possible..      

ie Everything is becoming homogenised and identical, a form of communism via capitalism....    

Encourage your kids to rebel, think for themselves and embrace their local and national cultures...  

As Norm points out the French are a little (but only a lttle) more resistant to the dumbing down of their own culture and traditions....

I'm not anti American, far from it, but I am fervently Pro-English, Pro British, and Pro European before any other nationalistic allegiances.....

[Norman Verona]

Dave & Stu, I think it's too late to stop the Tesco's of this world. However the Government could create the environment which allowed small shops to complete on a more even playing field. It's called tax breaks.

The French are very resistant to change. I was in Paris in 1968 when the students were rioting. One of their gripes was the introduction into the French language of English words such as "Stop" &  "Weekend".

Dave, I am very anti-American in that I'm against anyone who will do harm to my country and therefore to me mine. Every action the USA is aimed at them getting more at the expense of others. It's a different subject.  

However doesn't our US cousin here understand that the 76,000 US soldiers who died in two world wars pales into insignificance (if a life can ever be insignificant) when we count the European dead. Having read most of the heavyweight histories of the first half of the 20th century I would put the estimate at 30 to 40 million. Some put it much higher.

[s2k7]

All my cousins appreciate the sacrifices we were able to contribute to to the world. We are not perfect but so as the rest of the world.

Refrain calling us

cousin if you don't appreciate our  effort.

[Captain Colonial]

I'm not anti American, far from it...

And after all the hard work I've put in on the boards over the years to be annoying...    

I won't see it in my lifetime, but the sooner the world is one, the sooner everyone is from Earth rather than a country, the sooner we are all one colour only interested in doing each other more good than harm, the better.

Oh, and s2k7... you don't half make my life on these boards hard sometimes with that attitude.  Each time you write something that has a subtext of "U-S-A! U-S-A!", I cringe and die a little inside.  There are so many wonderful, kind, giving, friendly people in the USA, but sadly, not all of them get on the Internet.  If you lived over here for any length of time, you'd know just what a wonderful bunch the Brits are, and what a great place to live this is.  Sadly, since you seem to think no one is better than a Yank and no place better than America, you may never find out.  The world is a small place, but I sure as hell wouldn't want to paint it - you seem hell bent on painting, but only yourself into a corner.

[lippydave]

All my cousins appreciate the sacrifices we were able to contribute to to the world. We are not perfect but so as the rest of the world.

Refrain calling us

cousin if you don't appreciate our  effort.

You're thinking of "sacrifices" yer "cousins" made in a hillbilly stylee no doubt.....    

I have plenty of American friends thanks but not many of them have the temerity to assume that they're the new Foreign Secretary.....

If you truly are speaking for the whole of the North American nations as official Foreign Secretary no wonder we're f*cked.....          

Just because you are American, it's not necessarily compulsory to be stupidly ignorant about international affairs y'know....      

[lippydave]

I won't see it in my lifetime, but the sooner the world is one, the sooner everyone is from Earth rather than a country, the sooner we are all one colour only interested in doing each other more good than harm, the better.

We are already Scott, it's just it's not in either political or religous leaders vested interests to let us think that way....          

[ibbo]

first i wouldnt be prime minister at present why take all the flack for sorting out the mess the champagne socialists blair and brown left us with like most i had a pension till they robbed it spend spend spend now we are all paying the price

[Mat Jackson]

It's not Tesco spoiling the high street it is the likes of us (consumers) who chose Tesco over the high street.  Its our choice where we shop.....

[Norman Verona]

Scott, many thanks for that contribution. I think you must have a microphone wired in my house. I've long said that the human race needs an invasion from aliens to understand we are one.

I sold a business to a US corporation with the name ADP. As the largest payroll bureau in the world S2K7 may well get paid via them. I made lots of lasting friends on my trips to Chicago and Portland.

I'm a very sad person who reads (serious) history books on the first half of the 20th century. My fascination stems from the fact that 90% of my family were murdered in gas chambers and I would like to understand why.

A recent reading is "The Squandered Peace" by Lord John Vaizey. If S2K7 would like to take the time to read it he may see why many in Europe despair over the USA foreign policies since 1945.. Whilst the US have the culture of "if you're not with us, you must be against us" we will never get world peace. Of course it's not solely their fault but they are the only world power and should be setting a better example.

By the way S2K7 if you don't want to be called cousin then I'll gladly refrain. No problem. I have 2 genuine cousins in the States, one in Florida and the other in Santa Fe.

Ibbo, I see your reservation as a golden opportunity to get back to making Britian great for the multitude who live here.

I forgot to mention Justice. Release all the debtors from prison and we have sufficient room to set examples to wrongdoers instead of handing out community service orders which are never carried out.

[Mike H]

As above, you're now the PM and you have a golden chance to run the country for the next 5 years.

What will you do?

If only to relieve MY frustration at what I see this is my programme.

...... blah blah .......

Phew  

ed to add that I would never forget that the people of this country have elected me as their leader and that my job is to manage their money for their benefit. Nothing else matters.

[carpetstu]

It's not Tesco spoiling the high street it is the likes of us (consumers) who chose Tesco over the high street.  Its our choice where we shop.....

Unfortunately it isn't!

I personally would use butchers for meat, or local farm shops (we have lots), greengrocers for veg, delicatessant for the special stuff, a bakers for fresh bread and a general store for everything else.

Unfortunately there are a lot more that won't and use the Supermarkets for convenience. This means the small retailer gets forced out due to bad trade.

We will all be sorry when our choice is gone for good and the larger supermarkets screw us to the wall for overpriced crap!

The only retailers not to suffer any loss and infact made horrendous profit in the economic decline are the food retailers! They have nudged prices up by a few pence on daily used groceries and made millions in extra profit! We don't notice the pennies going on but they do when all the consumer sheep shop in their thousands.

And then they get away with hiding the millions in Gorvenment loopholes and pay zero tax!

How much has this cost us as a consumer in the lost revenue the government could have had if they made these companies pay there dues?

Put it another way if Tesco and the others paid their tax there would not be a national defecit! That's a fact!  

In the meanwhile the small retailer( like me) gets to pay VAT at 20%, stupid amounts of council tax (that as a commercial company we don't even get a bin for supporting the economy), tax that as to be paid on time or they sue us and all the other stuff .

And to put a cherry on top we are fighting the increasing high street recession problems that are killing everyone's choice to shop local and putting more and more people through the doors of the convenient supermarket doors.

Empty shops in the high street are running at a national average of 14% , three years ago this was 6% next year the estimate is 25%.

That's 25% of the high street that have lost businesses, probably years of working to build up a shop that the owner cared about and in alot of cases homes and savings!

And the government say they care? What a total crock of  

Next time you visit a retail park or Tesco or Asda spare a thought for the Idiot that opened an independent shop because he / she liked retailing!