I'm not going to make any comment on this link. Just that is the funniest news article he has read..... ever!
Monday 24 January 2022
Wednesday 19 January 2022
Sir Tony Blair
As is now
well known the recent new years honours list included a knighthood for former
prime minister Tony Blair. This has caused offence to quite a number of British
Citizens, who feel that his record in office was less than glittering. A petition
on change.org calls for this honour to be rescinded, and to date has 1,120,148
signatures, including mine. The petition in particular draws attention to the
actions of Mr Blair in involving the UK in a number of bloody conflicts,
particularly in Iraq.
Mr Blair has
obviously been stung by this objection and is insisting that his legacy is more than just the Iraq war.
It certainly
is! Perhaps he thinks the electorate has forgotten what else Mr Blair achieved while
in office. Let’s just highlight a few of his achievements.
Prior to
2005 it was illegal in the UK to advertise gambling. It is hard to imagine an
activity that contributes less to the nation’s well being than gambling. It
produces nothing, and it’s harms are well documented. There is no good reason
why this ban should ever have been lifted. But it was, by Tony Blair’s
government. One can only speculate as to why this was thought to be a good
idea. The gambling industry now spends 1.5 billion pounds a year on advertising
and is one of the most profitable industries in Britain. Salaries of 3-4
million pounds a year are not uncommon in CEOs of gambling companies. The
supposed protections in the Gambling Act 2005 are totally ineffective. Problem
gamblers are known as “VIPs” in gambling companies and are treated as cash
cows. A recent case where a gambling addict took his own life has resulted in
his widow calling for gambling advertising to be banned.
Yes Tony,
quite some legacy.
Prior to 1998
higher education was essentially free. University fees were paid on behalf of
students by local education authorities, and students were provided with a
small but adequate grant to live on. Although wealthier families were expected
to make a contribution many students from working class backgrounds were funded in full. Pre WW2 poorer
youngsters had little chance of affording a university education, but by the
1970s, when DZ was a medical student this barrier was lifted. And then Tony
Blair’s government passed the “Teaching and Higher Education act 1998”. This
brought in payment of university fees and living expenses by means of loans.
The costs involved were initially low enough to justify, but have rocketed, now
being 1000% higher than when introduced. This has saddled modern graduates with
enormous debts that will affect their living standards for years. Students have
become regarded as cash cows, rents and other expenses have soared and higher
education is now totally commoditised.
Your legacy
Tony.
In 2005 Tony
Blair, a committed Europhile, promised the people of the UK a referendum on
entry into the EU under the Treaty of Maastricht. It is often forgotten that there
was considerable opposition throughout Europe to this idea. Referenda in France
and Belgium resulted in rejection, and polls in the UK showed overwhelming
antipathy towards the European superstate. Blair’s response was to ignore the
polls, renege on his promise of a referendum, and take the UK into the EU under
the treaty of Lisbon, knowing full well that the UK population was opposed. Ultimately
this objection persisted right up to the Brexit referendum. The chaos that is
now Brexit is thus also part of Blair’s legacy.
But not
everyone has done badly out of the Blair years. He himself has a net worth
estimated at £45,000,000. Not a bad legacy Tony. Funded by problem gamblers,
poor students, and anyone who loses out over Brexit. Parasite!