Is Cameron that bad?

[titch juicy]

the typing police need to get a grip

what does it matter if someone makes a few mistakes?

[david_carnell]

Well, firstly, we were joking (hence the smiley to convey subtlety) as Piers knows.

But if you really need a reason, then unintelligible gumpf can hurt your eyes as much as your brain when trying to read it. Look up TonyLondonSuburbs in the archives for Evidence A.

It's just good etiquette, no?

[Brendan]

mockney piers Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> And as a newcomer I must ask you to forgive my

> English. I'm not an imbecile I just have a very

> small

> keyboard.

Or so he says.

On the wealth gap thing. I?ve always thought that it was widely accepted that the wealth gap was one of the major indicators of the 3rd world.

It is the wealth gap rather than the overall wealth of the country (taking examples like Brazil, South Africa and Chile) that causes social problems like crime and unequal education as well as political instability because you have a large part of the population who feel disenfranchised and will therefore support revolutionary politics.

[Magpie]

Well in my view the consideration is of of relative versus absolute poverty. It may be stating the obvious if you define poverty as below the median then 50% of the country will always be counted as poor. If you define what a reasonable person/family needs to have a good quality of life in the UK, then it would be more like c10% of the country, if you define poverty on a global basis then (in my view) it is less than 0.1%.

Clearly in the UK there has been lots of froth in the economy driven by cheap debt and house prices - this has pretty much been worked out of the system. Everyone excepts that a more balanced economy is necessary in the UK between exports/ imports and services/manufacturing. Finally shortages of fossil fuels and food represent opportunities as well as threats.

[mockney piers]

Oh I quite agree but we don't seem to be doing anything at all about turning them int opportnities, and I don't believe we've worked those kinks out of the economy at all, I think everyones waiting for things to get back to normal beofrehand funding their spending based upon their new found confidence in the future thanks to hosuing Market and the debt they'll secure off it. I agree that some of the insanity of the credt and housing booms has been ditched however.

Plus there are many more subtleties wham measuring poverty. If we deny a

family is in poverty, but the parent(s) are holding down 3 minimum wage jobs as they no longer qualify for some allowance and then we demonised their children for being out of control and go on about how encouraging marriage or some other simplistic nonsense will fix this broken society when actaully it's being tough on benefit cheats blah blah that's got so many families genuinely on he poverty line into this mess.

Give with one hand and take with the other wih a big dash of moralising.

I may sound like I'm having a pop at what's to co

e but his lot have done very little. I'd be well up for some genuine socialism, labour really ae neither here nor there.

[SteveT]

Mockney Piers wrote:- You do realise that we don't vote for a prime minister don't you. You vote for your own elected representative, the majority party(ies) form a government and choose a first minister, the electorate have never voted one in.

I know!

I do not approve of the way Brown obtained his position, and I never shall.

I have never agreed to "buggins turn" at any time in my life, I have always believed that the best man for the job, should get it.

This is vital for the long term running of businesses and the country.

[mockney piers]

It's a pretty good measure of the Labour Party that the best man for the job did get it!!!

[david_carnell]

Piers, do I detect a tongue in that cheek?