jefm Some way back on this thread you said it would be unimaginable for CEOs of ANY company being appointed in the way that Corbyn has - and suggested that those who voted for him did so on the crest of a wave of hysteria rather than basing their decisions on his proven capability. I find that quite insulting to many people (including myself) who voted for Corbyn. I have almost unfailingly voted Labour even when I was very unhappy about the direction the party was taking. It was not hysteria but hope that led me to vote for Corbyn - a hope that in our so-called democracy someone can actually offer policies that reflected the principles on which the Labour party was built. Corbyn has spent over 30 years as an MP, has increased his majority at every election and has the lowest expenses claims of all the MPs. He is not a fly-by-night politician who, when things aren't going his way, moves on to more comfortable - and fertile - pastures.
On the CEO point, though, it appears that not all is rosy in the business world because there have recently been several shareholder revolts, including Sports Direct, Aviva, Barclays and HSBC, often because shareholders have been very dissatisfied with the way companies have been run and, in particular, with the huge pay increases that CEOs have been awarded even when their performance has been abysmal.
Corbyn's strong opposition to the proposed trades union legislation that the government is pushing for will be portrayed as the sort of "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" deal that Labour and the unions are always accused of. Much was made on Corbyn thanking various unions for their support during the leadership campaign. It is no secret that Labour receives support from various unions. It is also no secret that Conservatives receive support from financial institutions and multinational corporations. Did Cameron have the honesty to openly identify and thank all the hedge funds and other financial institutions that bankrolled the Conservative campaigns?
Of course, Corbyn will get it in the neck for opposing the new proposals to regulate trades unions even further. It might be worth noting though that there is some disquiet outside of the Labour Party regarding the strict new controls that are being put forward. The Conservative MP David Davis has attacked parts of the government??s trade union bill, suggesting proposed restrictions on pickets were like something out of Franco??s dictatorship in Spain.
Ceesnan Who exactly are the "best friends" of Britain? It seems to me that there is very little "friendship" between countries - just pragmatic relationships between those whose interests are deemed to merge at any one time - and those interests can very quickly change. An example is the "special relationship" which the UK is supposed to have with the USA but which seems to me - and to many others - to be a rather one-sided and on/off affair. The USA did not support Britain in the Falklands War and in the 80's made a unilateral decision to invade Grenada - a British Overseas Territory - in order to bring down an elected government and replace it with one that was pro-American. Britain was, by all accounts, not even consulted.
My husband's first language is a variation of French and he is unable to pronounce "th". For Londoners who have grown up pronouncing "th" as "f" it is actually quite difficult for them to change this in later years. Of course, this sort of accent snobbery is just one way of belittling people when there is no other way to discredit them.
