10 January 2010
15:5037076Another good point well made, Colin. I would always encourage peop,e to use their vote - actually I feel passionately about it - but you are right to point out the deep rift between the politicians and the electorate. I hope to goodness we don't forget the deep anger and resentment we all felt and feel about the expenses abuse. We should hold that feeling and vote accordingly - which is why I think a Monster Raving Loony candidate woud be a good message to send!!!!!!!
Guest 674- Registered: 25 Jun 2008
- Posts: 3,391
10 January 2010
15:5737077BERN
Voting for vic wont help lol
seriously it is correct only by voting is the way to change things,
Colin you make a very good point on railways one that politics does change, so by not voting you will get much of the same and probably worse.
i could tell you locally who you cllrs are if you give the road you live in
the vote was hard fought for, please use it
Guest 690- Registered: 10 Oct 2009
- Posts: 4,150
10 January 2010
16:0137078You`re right Bern, but I`ll just add that that expenses row came as no surprise to me whatsoever, and didn`t bother me in the least. Bored the pants off me. Probably been going on for year`s undetected, but in another guise. I`ve read more politics on here than the whole of my life, and have found some bits interesting even if I didn`t understand it. BarryW, I do read all your posts along with Vic`s and the rest.
Tell them that I came, and no one answered.
Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 14,118
10 January 2010
16:0437081Thank you for that Colin that is all i aske for just to read them and comment,because it does help.
Guest 690- Registered: 10 Oct 2009
- Posts: 4,150
10 January 2010
16:1337085That`s what I said to Bern in another post Keith, the vote was hard fought for, but who do I vote for? There all the same to me. What they say means nothing to me. Years ago, it was Labour for the working man, and conservatives for the rich. I don`t know if there`s truth in that, but it was passed down to me. Regarding the railways, one party could say they`re ripping the fast lanes of the motorways up and making high speed railways out of them. I wouldn`t believe them. A point I have to make here is, family and workmates, many I know as a fact don`t vote, they have no interest. With foreigner`s pouring in on an already crowded island, getting money in the process, while I have to find money for my daughter at university, and seeing Japanese trains, U.S., Canadian and Spanish diesel locomotives on our railways, do you not wonder that I have no interest?
Tell them that I came, and no one answered.
Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 14,118
10 January 2010
16:5137093Colin by not voting you are helping that to happen so just pick the party that you think will help stop it and vote.
10 January 2010
17:4137100Colin has made a good point, and although I encourage the use of our votes I fully understand where he is coming from. It makes me sad, though, that our democracy has left people feeling so disempowered. I am still confident that the best way to improve things is to use our vote - but the choices are admittedly dire.
Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
10 January 2010
17:4437101the question is do we all vote for some silly party or do we all withhold our voting rights and dont vote at all.
Guest 690- Registered: 10 Oct 2009
- Posts: 4,150
10 January 2010
17:4637102No, I`m not helping it to happen Vic, it has happened because of all the parties which have ever been elected. All they`re interested in is short term gain. If politicians looked ahead, we`d be leading the world in many traditional and new industries. In 1982(?), the Serpell report was published on railway`s, and what about Serpell`s bum chum Sherman, a former communist, one of Mrs T`s adviser`s, who wanted the railways converted into roads. What a scumbag to have in government. And with the whole world now investing in high speed railways for the future, (including us), how stupid and costly it would be to have replaced the network at today`s prices, which of course would have been prohibitive. Many lines not in the Beeching plan also closed, some in the 70s under Labour, and which are now recommended for re-opening, and with great cost! I will not vote for any of them.
Tell them that I came, and no one answered.
Guest 660- Registered: 14 Mar 2008
- Posts: 3,205
10 January 2010
18:4737107Colin I am a railwayman and a Councillor,what has happened to the railway good and bad is down to privatisation,we have been strangled and cut and all of a sudden they find more people are going on the train,and they are opening more stations.But these same companies are cutting staff so much there is little to cut,so now they are into stop.
There is some talk about cutting the Permanant Way teams because Railtrack want to privatise it,well I worked for B.R. and it wasn't perfect,but was a huge company Hotels,ships,trains,property and the track.Because everything was sold off seperately it is a complete mess.The main stations are owned by Railtrack,and the trains by Train Companies,yes people see new trains,but they can't see the problems we have.Do you know we do not get infomation from any other train company say about the weather and we don't get too much info from Southeastern.
It makes me laugh when Sarah Boundy from Southeastern says something that she has just made up to convince people everything is going to be ok.for instance the other day she said 'There will be extra managers out at every main station.eerr No there wasn't Dover Priory manager was at Ashford and when the manager did turn up at 09.30 we had been operating not for 5 hours.
If you knew what I know,we would both be in trouble!
Guest 690- Registered: 10 Oct 2009
- Posts: 4,150
10 January 2010
19:1837109John, we led the world with railways, from Victorian times, to the post WW1 period when the war had taken it`s toll. Between the wars, the big four private railway companies were crying out for the `SQUARE DEAL`, which they never got. The all round depression never helped, but in traditional British style, we had some very able railwaymen, both in management and locomotive building. The Southern Railway had the most extensive electric railway in the world. All this was private enterprise. WW2 came along, after which, the railways were very run down, and of course with the Labour government, they were nationalised in 1948. Since that time of nationalisation, there`s been billions of pounds wasted in the railways, by non railway people,(politicians), acting on (non railway) advisers in where to invest the money. A fleet of 999 brand new standard class steam locomotives, introduced in 1951, which should never have been built, and just 4 years later, in 1955, a one and a half billion pound modernisation programme to get the railways up to date, including, the elimination of steam power. Money was wasted on poor investment in diesel locomotives, in a blind panic to replace steam. This is fact, as it all came out later that there was NO CONCIEVED PLAN for the modernisation of our railways. Then of course the early 60s, steam finishing, dirty loco`s and stock, infrastructure falling apart, and then along comes Beeching with closure of over half the network. Apathy sets in, and so it`s continued all through nationalisation. Privatisation has bought modernisation to the railways, and there has been much investment. BUT, with what you say John, this should all have been done during nationalisation by ALL parties. I`m not into politics but I understand alot of people want the railways re-nationalised, so I can`t comment, but at work, there are a number of jobs going in the freight sector. With the recession, it`s hard to decide whether any of it`s justified. I understand all you say John. Incidently, it`s Network rail now not Railtrack.
Tell them that I came, and no one answered.
Guest 673- Registered: 16 Jun 2008
- Posts: 1,388
10 January 2010
19:2337112Very interesting to hear from somebody in a position to know, John. Amazed that there is talk of cutting the permanent way teams with a view to privatisation. The very reason that Network Rail took over from Railtrack was that the latter was completely unable to maintain the track as they could not organise the two hundred odd private contractors that had taken over from British Rail. Railtrack was taken back into public ownership as Network Rail, a company with one shareholder, the British government.
Edit: posted as the same time as Colin. Agree with everything he says.
Guest 690- Registered: 10 Oct 2009
- Posts: 4,150
10 January 2010
19:2837113This has been one of the big problems of privatisation, too many contractors involved. It might have worked better as the `Big Four`did, but we`ll never know.
Tell them that I came, and no one answered.
Guest 690- Registered: 10 Oct 2009
- Posts: 4,150
10 January 2010
19:3337114I know you like steam Vic, so hope you don`t mind all this drifting on here. At least it`s putting your rating`s up.
The railways at Dover had boundries as well.
Tell them that I came, and no one answered.
Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 14,118
10 January 2010
19:4137115I worked at the Asford railways work+the permeanent way and I must say that the Ashford works had a very good and skilled work force all had done their 5years/app and also the same could be said for the permanent way workers.I then went onto working for a contractor and was working on the railway off and on till about two years ago,again the workforce was skilled and work was done well but most of us had worked for the rail before they went private,but I do think they should go back to public ownership with its own workforce.
Guest 674- Registered: 25 Jun 2008
- Posts: 3,391
10 January 2010
21:0637128I think railways should be run in the interest of its customers and not its share holders, thats the problem with privatisation, D Shaw when an MP i met him at the house and he said it was evetonery one wanted, yet everyone i spoke to was against it.
Went to a meeting in westminster hall packed with j prescott, ken livingstone, roger bickerstaff(unison) remember prescott saying to a packed audiencenswer , if the tories(then in govt)privatise the railways when labour get in they will re nationalise it, i wrote to prescott when he got in govt and he said govt couldnt afford to buy out the companies and iv lobbied since.
nationalised rail is not the answer either we need summat in between.
i couldnt believe it when i watched the tory party conference when they were in govt the first company they wanted to privatise was the one i worked for
do you reckon baz had a word with them?
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
10 January 2010
22:3137154sounds right about johnny prescott breaking his word, wasn't he the one that would support the sacked dover dock workers, then when in power lost interest?
Guest 649- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 14,118
11 January 2010
17:2837200There might be new boundaries lines later on in the year,this what it might look then.
Sholden Parish into DOVER.
Goodnestone Parish into South Thanet.
Middle Deal and Shoulden ward into Dover.
Little Stour and Ashstone into South Thanet.
Be fore the Election? I can not tell you that I do not know.