HMS Margaret Thatcher
Guido can not bring himself to even publicise the name of the non-entity MP calling for Maggie's new statue to be removed from the Members Lobby. At the unveiling ceremony even the speaker, Gorbals Martin, graciously eulogised the woman who saved Britain from socialist decline. For Guido, bronze is not enough.
The Hitch has come up with a brilliant proposal to honour the woman who sent the Royal Navy half way round the world to defeat a fascist junta and unshackled Britain's economy, in doing so she restored the nation's pride and international reputation. Name a warship after her.
Guido has done some research, and discovered that the Navy's newest and most advanced Type 45 Destroyers come into service in 2009. Costing a billion each they will be the pride of the Navy and the most powerful warships ever to fly the naval ensign. Can there be a more fitting tribute to the lady? God willing she will still be with us to launch her ship in 2009.
Britons never shall be slaves - HMS Margaret Thatcher
Britons never shall be slaves - HMS Margaret Thatcher
139 comments:
There are still plenty of idiots who think that Thatcher "destroyed" the country and the Blair is "rebuilding" it. It might be too soon to honour her in that way.
I don't think we need to campaign for her to be remembered - history will be her judge.
Presumably the helter-skelter planted in the middle of the boat would be for Mark's personal and exclusive use.
Something like this?
http://www.reagan.navy.mil/
Given their penchant for apologising for everything, if this fucking shower is still in power in 2009, our frigate is more likely to be named "The General Belgrano".
How about Hackney hosting the Margaret Thatcher Olympic Stadium?
Yes this is a very good move.
Even better would be to get that bastion (advisedly) of honour, dignity and integrity Cherie Blair to name the ship at its launching.
Why don't you name the Labour MP? A urinal in Westminster could be named after him.
£1 billion for a destroyer?
Who are we going to fight with?
The Russians?
Even Mrs T would imo have recognised it as an extravagance - typical of a Navy which is about 20 years behind in its planning.
No.. bad idea.. and after all boats sink or get broken up.. A far more lasting monument consists of ideas and history (legacy).
Mrs T will always be remembered for the recovery of the UK under her stewardship , a poxy overpriced destroyer is, I suggest, more suitable to Tony Blair: overpriced, no doubt late .. and not fit for current purpose...
Cracking idea from the Hitch...has he actually started a petition?
Surely e-petition would be the best place. Then Tony can email everyone again. The more we give him to do, the less he can f8ck up the country.
Don't you see the danger? Tone will want one named after him too. On the other hand we could find a rotting, sunken hulk somewhere......
It would be cheaper to rename one of the existing ships. The following in-service submarines would be appropriate.
HMS Vengeance
HMS Trenchant
HMS Turbulent
Yes, Ed, history will be her judge. I recommend "Military Intelligence Blunders and Cover-ups" by John Hughes-Wilson. ISBN-13: 978-1841198712.
Should we get an online petition going, see what the PM will email back?
To Anonymous at 2:38 - pick any ship in the RN if you're looking for a rotting, sunken hulk - the entire fleet is totally knackered thanks to Bruuns various spending reviews and cut backs.
Hmmmm, we did have an HMS Iron Duke during WW1, a battlecruiser, which was laid up for WW2.
So not too many problems naming a vessel HMS Iron Lady.
Perhaps we should start a petition on the No 10 site, and call it the Hepburn Hope.
Thanks for the recommendation. I'm no military expert but I suggest that Blair's interventions might be regarded as more damaging than Thatchers in years to come. Plus Thatcher got the country moving in lots of other aspects while Blair has just been prevaricating and wasting money for ten years.
Could the MP be this poster to the Grauniad's Simon Jenkins column today:-
"trencherman
February 28, 2007 8:18 AM
Thatcher was an unmitigated disaster and the legacy of her tiny-minded, cretinous stupidity is all around us in the shape of rotten railways, overloaded roads, homelessness, an overloaded NHS, poor educational achievement, over-crowded prisons, kids being shot dead in their beds, low productivity and all that flows from it.
As for the railways - invite SNCF to run them."
Bearing in mind that the proposed HMS Thatcher is likely to come into service 10 years late, enormously over budget and then turn out to be totally unsuitable for requirements when launched is this necessarily a good idea? How about HMS Olympic?
The BBC tend to assume that everyone is anti-Thatcher with the likes of Paul Merton and the pisspoor Mark Steele repeatedly making sick jokes regretting that her stroke hadn't killed her. She rescued this country from being the sick man of Europe
2.58: Whoever posted that fails to realise that exactly the opposite is the cause of all the problems we face. We are still reeling from the post-war socialist consensus.
Funny how Japan and Germany which were more utterly destroyed by the war than Britain have coped rather better than us in the intervening years. They spent their American loans on rebuilding their economies while we spent the money on building poor quality housing and designing a welfare system which would keep people poor.
madasafish,
you are right over the scandal of mod navy procurement, which unfortunately pales into insignificance compared to the RAF and their latest toys for the boys disaster with the euro fighter - meanwhile the poor bloody infantry bugger about in Afghanistan with no chopper support and no decent armoured fighting vehicles.
Those £1,000.00 per throw chairs for the new Whitehall hq will really improve our field effectiveness though !
Still trying to figure out the damage to this country that she didnt do.
Guido, I can't be bothered to look up the armaments planned for these destroyers, but, allowing for weapons-capability inflation, this little destroyer would look like the admiral's launch compared to HMS Hood. I doubt these destroyers are going to be "the most powerful warships ever to fly the naval ensign".
But I support the Hitch proposal, of course.
Guido - you are, as a Catholic, presumably aware of the sin of Onan?
I'm not sure any son of the free state should be singing that tune.
Margaret Thatcher did agree to send a taskforce to re-take the Falklands, and it was undoubtedly the right decision.
It's probably worth noting that until the Argentine invasion HMS Invincible was up for sale to the Australians, and HM Ships Fearless and Intrepid, which landed most of the troops on the islands were in mothballs.
If the Navy named a ship to commemorate her it should be for that fact that the Falklands taught her the folly of running down the Royal Navy and denying the UK the ability to project power overseas- a lesson this Government clearly has not and refuses to learn.
Incidentally HMS Iron Lady would bea good name for a sister ship to HMS Iron Duke.
Brer Fawkes.
I really think that a more suitable name would be "The Iron Lady". Far more relevant for a fighting ship of the Realm.
There could be no doubt of who the name referred to. Unless of course someone like Mandelson saw a strange inference
Just the mention of the name would strike fear into our enemies.
In fact, the very thought of it brings a tear to my one remaining eye.
The left's virulent hatred for Margaret Thatcher can only be explained in psychiatric terms. They trot out the same old phrases, "she destroyed the economy" etc. when all the evidence is directly to the contrary. With them, it's a question of tribal faith rather than rational analysis.
Whilst we were fighting to save this country those traitors were colluding with their Soviet controllers to sell this country down the river.
Therefore nothing would please me more than to see HMS Margaret Thatcher sail up river to put a round straight through NuLab HQ.
Release the files! Release the files! Lets see who should be more worried about their past!
We are and were a lot of things, but we never batted for the other side!
I thought you were proud to be Irish?
Sadly, these days "The Ironing Lady" would be more appropriate
Battleship instead of battleaxe, eh? Clever...
Just a thought, but I can only see one gun in the photo. In the spirit of diversity shouldn't there be:
One for the wimmen - likely to go off unexpectedly at that difficult time of the month.
One for the gays - rather limp barrel painted pink.
One for the lesbians - only to be fired at ships with all male crews.
One for trans-sexuals - barrel removed & fires blanks.
One for the bruthas - great big barrel & f'kin enormous shells but likely to be fired into the ceilings of nightclubs.
One for the Muslims - not to be fired on Fridays or during Rammadan.
Or are they supposed to take turns?
I've just twigged the eileen critchley reference. She was Michael Murray's schoolgirl nemesis in the glorious drama GBH.
It's running again on satellite again. Watch it and be reminded of why we should hate the Left. Bullying, vindictive and underhand.
Considering the Left's behaviour all over the country in the 60s, 70s and 80s, why has it been so easily forgotten and Mrs T so vilified?
There's something very wrong with this country...
Guido, the Navy will be a decommissioned floating scrapyard if it contiunes to be slashed by Broon and the loonies in Nulab. There won't be a ship to name at all.
Maybe the next Mars explorer - the last one crash-landed - could be named after and piloted by T Bliar.
Rumour has it that's where Saddam stashed his WMD....
aah...T Bliar...the military genius who evovled light armoured warfare to the point where the troops don't actually get any armour and the concept that an island nation in a world where 95% of global commerce still relies on the sea, no longer needs a Navy.....
He is a complete idiot.
I know this is going to sound controversial, but I think Margaret Thatcher did some quite good things for our country along with some quite bad things.
"THE IRON LADY" It must be !
For reasons I cannot go into somebody else will have to kick off the petition, Mr Fawkes ?
Pass it on to ARSSE and send it viral.
This magnificent woman does indeed deserve a more fitting tribute than a mere statue.
And Guido , shame this piece of crap who said lady T's statue should be removed from the commons , and then lets try and get him/her removed from Parliament
Sorry to burst your bubble Master Fawkes, but the Royal Navy isn't French or American - they don't as a rule name ships after politicals for precisely the reason stated above: once you do it once every useless bugger will want to have one named after him can you imagine an HMS Ted Heath?
The only ship to be named after a living primeminister was HMS Churchill, on of the old four stacker destroyers we got from the septics in exchange for Bermuda during the war. And even then the name could have been in honour of John Churchill, 1st Dule of Marlborough. We quickly passed her on to the Sovs anyway.
Remember as well, before the Falklands unpleasantness Maggie and her crew were also going to eviscerate the navy, just like Gordon and Tony have done.
Nah. There will be far better and more appropriate opportunities to Mrs T. Leave the Navy alone.
By the way, ARRSE is an army site. Try www.rumration.com instead, I think you'll get a similar response to the above.
Speaker Martin to his great credit behaved like a gentleman (unlike Blair)
The Hitch has a sneaking regard for old labourites, they tend to be both patriotic and decent.
Kate Hoey
Frank Field
Peter kilfoyle etc . etc.
Independently minded decent people who stand up for what they think is right for the country rather than right for their party.
God Bless em.
For reasons I cannot go into somebody else will have to kick off the petition
Reason being you won't "out" yourself Mr Hitch?
Warship Thatcher!
Will Admiral Horthy command it?
If the Navy named a ship to commemorate her it should be for that fact that the Falklands taught her the folly of running down the Royal Navy and denying the UK the ability to project power overseas- a lesson this Government clearly has not and refuses to learn.
At the time the Royal Navy was being regraded to a frigate subhunting role - which is what we excelled at, and still do. With the massive US Atlantic carrier fleets at the time the cost and point of having our own Fleet Air Arm carriers would have been pointless in a NATO/Warsaw Pact confrontation anyway and Maggie saw this. Quite rightly those minor support carriers were intended for export only and they are certainly not 'power projection' ships in the way that battleships of old were or the modern US carrier fleets are. As for overseas power projection where on earth do we need to project maritime power? Afghanistan (a totally landlocked country) perhaps? France maybe - but that's why we have Trident ... for those who remember their Yes Prime Minister.
Having said that I suppose we could name the second, as yet unnamed, of the 2 new CVF Blair-class carriers (the back of the model apparently looks remarkably similar to the shape of Cherie's mouth) to HMS Thatcher.
Hear, Hear! I like the Iron Lady theme. I have to say, the mass hatred of Thatcher I find entirely irrational, she did more for this country than the spineless sycophantic lefties who shout off about her could ever do in their wildest fantasies. They can continue to kiss Blair's posterior all they like, but I'll remember that when it came to the Crunch Thatcher looked out for our interests, while Blair sold them down the river.
Julian - "for those who remember their Yes Prime Minister." I was watching that very episode just last week. Every time I watch Yes Prime, I think how close to the knuckle it runs on some of today's issues. Not bad for an old show!
Great idea assuming we have any navy left by 2009, given the current government.
Can I also suggest a conciliatory gesture to Tony Blair, who should be honored by having a building named after him.
I would suggest the rather seedy bogs on Hove seafront which act as a mecca to both Brighton's finest drug users and cottagers.
You are engaging in a bit of good old fashion revisionist history Guido. Margaret Thatcher following John Notts 1982 review of the Royal Navy proposed to scrap HMS Endurance to save some money. This was seen as weakness by the Argies and led to the 'fascist junta'(formerly valued allies and buisness partner when they were chucking lefties out of helicopters) to invade the Falklands. Maggie's penny pinching cost 258 British servicemen their lives. Moreover, I am surprised that an avowed Irish republican, like your self, would advocate naming Her Majesty's Ship in any circumstance. However, I am sure any one of those 258 dead men have a better claim to having a vessel named after them than her.
Funny how you libertarians have faith in Maggie and Thatcherism just like the Marxists used have faith in Lenin and Bolshevism. I just wonder if you are planning to have her stuffed and exhibited?
Ghost of Jacob Marley: Yes we are planning a Thatcher mausoleum where thousands can queue to catch a glimpse of the departed and preserved great one! All attendees will listen to recordings of Keith Joseph and Thatch's finest moments, and a memorial copy of "The Constitution of Liberty".
A small glimpse of a stuffed Thatcher is far preferable to having to watch Blair or Brown lie and decieve day-in-day-out in Parliament.
The Labour MP for Jarrow Stephen Hepburn has tabled the following motion.
That this House recalls the cruel and divisive reign of Margaret Thatcher and demands that the statue be removed from the Members' Lobby until such time as its erection has been approved by a vote in the House.
Dat norman - 3:22 PM, capt. skidmark vd. (forcibly retired) - has got it right, it should be named De Iron Lady.
If dat fails, down in de suburbs we go for HMS Spliff - de irony will not be lost on ours enemies in Afghanhound.
4:37 PM I agree with you ,is it memories or rose tinted glasses that this lot have on.
Labour got in with the lowest percentage of the electorate voting for a government?That sounds more to me a 'reign' than a democratic government.If it wasn't for your friends in the BBC and print media your game would have been up in the first term.he trouble is by the time people realise (are permitted to know) what a mess we're in it will take another 20 years of right thinking people to put us back on track.Socialism Lite is just as useless for governing a nation than the real thing.--Madasafish,make much shorting the DAX yesterday?
What a hilarious notion!! Evil fascist junta hear that Britain are planning a defence review and then decide to attack the Falklands.
Ed Clarke
"the Hitch" Dies today.
As to all you fuckers moaning on about this and criticising the lady, I bet not one of you served under her watch.
Apart from the odd underpant washer or leg iron uniform carrier Lady T was and still is held in the highest respect.
Navy, Airforce, Army and those odd buggers that join the Marines just about everybody puts her on the same level as Her Maj. repectwise.
I wouldnt name a toilet after Blair , it would be an insult to crappers everywhere.
Oh, it would be a local MP, wouldn't it?
I want to move a motion for inbred locals to stop electing muppets merely because their minds are stuck in the Trade Union era.
Rotting Sunken Hulk
John Presscott!
Naming a ship after a person is not the pactice in the British Socialist State.
As we will only keep one ship, may I suggest that "BSS Navy" would be more suitable?
Didn't think that Navy ships were named after people let alone living ones - for the very obvious reason that they do sometimes have to kill people - an number of contributors (including Guido?) do not appear to have got beyond the stupid little boy stage of glorifying war.
Look at all that unused sponsor space - brings a tear to my eye. What a waste. I wonder...
Re: Anonymous 5:22 PM
Dyslexia can be interesting sometimes.
I read: "Rotten Hulking Sulk" and immediately thought of Gordon Brown!
Guido-
Exactly how do you claim to be a partisan/independent/non-partisan blog again?
anonymous 5.26
"didn't think that Navy ships were named after people.."
I'm not a Former Naval Person, but ISTR battleships called King George V and Prince of Wales - the latter sunk off the coast of Malaya.
Others, better educated in these matters than me, may be able recall other examples.
James,
What are you on about?
"Exactly how do you claim to be a partisan/independent/non-partisan blog again?"
What claim was that again?
The Hood, named after Amiral Hood .. sunk by the Bismarck.
It is more likely to be named "HMS reserved for someone who coughs up a few million quid and wants a ship instead of an honour".
Anon 5:26
According to Wiki there was a tradition of naming the first battleship launched in a monarch's reign after said monarch. HMS KGV you mention was to be called KGVI until said King insisted it be named after his father. Since then we haven't built any battleships so the tradition kind of fell out of use.
Other ships were named after people, either other royals or long dead naval heroes (the destroyer HMS Hardy)
Never has a member of the political class been deemed sufficiently worthy to have his or her name put on one of her Maj's war canoes (except perhaps Churchill, and even then it wasn't the HMS Winston S Churchill, so there was still some ambiguity). I would say that to start down that road would be a bad idea because once you start you would never be able to stop and I for one would not wish for men and women to serve and possibly die for the country on a ship named after some party hack.
HMS Blair, anyone? Or in this day of eu harmony HMS Chirac? Thought not.
Besides, given what I have read about Mrs T she'd probably be as horrified at the thought as any member of HM Forces. Leave the naming of ships after politicos to the septics and the crapauds.
May I humbly suggest...
HMS Anonymous
I couldent agree more!
I realise that in the New Britain no-one knows anything about the military unless they are at the "stupid little boy stage of glorifying war", but really the ignorance displayed by some here is astonishing.
The following are to report to my office at 0530hrs tomorrow for an interview without coffee:
madasafish: you obviously know who our enemies are going to be for the entire service life of Type 45. Presumably in 1952 you would have predicted the need for a Falklands Task Force.
penfold: there is an HMS Iron Duke in service now (though obviously a different one to the one you mention)
john prescott's buttocks etc: Type 45 is not going to be "10 years late", the first two have already been launched
backwoodsman: by "euro fighter" you presumably mean Typhoon and, like madasafish, you not only know exactly the enemies we will be fighing for the next few decades but also the capabilities they will have. A pity then that you are both commenting on blogs instead of managing defence procurement.
idle: at least you are honest about your ignorance. Type 45 is the largest escort ship ever built for the Royal Navy and will have all manner of missiles, torpedos, guns and a flight deck. Not to be messed with at all.
julian: take a look at the Royal Navy website. If they're irrelevant to Afghanistan what are 2,500 of their personnel doing there?
anonymong 5:17: there is plenty of evidence that the Argentines misread many signals emanating from British defence policy at the time regarding our resolve and decided to attack accordingly.
anonymong 5:26: read Col Jessop's speech from A Few Good Men. Presumably you enjoy your freedom protected by the men with guns guarding our walls do you? You need them on that wall, and I'd prefer it if you just said "thank you" to them and went on your way.
Excellent comments from others though on defence underfunding, particularly with regards to the Navy. Thanks Broon for trying to reduce the finest Navy in the world to a coastal defence force.
regretably, and due to Royal naming convention, all of the Daring class deestryers will have names beginning with "D"
Whilst there appears to be some mild objection to the name "The Iron Lady", I believe that the name still has great relevance as it perfectly describes these Sceptered Isles and may serve to remind our enemies of our national fortitude in the face of danger.
We ARE the Iron Lady.
While we are about it, let's order a new Royal Yacht.
Churchill wanted to name one of the dreadnoughts 'HMS Pitt' but was dissuaded by the First Sea Lord who explained to him the Lower Deck's penchant for rhyming slang. He wanted to name another 'HMS Cromwell' but this was vetoed by KGV.
Hitch - you sound more and more like Bunbury, p'raps that shsould be your new handle:
Algernon: My dear Aunt Augusta. I mean he was found out! The doctors found out that Bunbury could not live, that is what I mean so Bunbury died.
Anon 6.12pm - what about calling it the good ship Denis, then?
I have come across many a young, virile Tory who would want Maggie full of se(a)men - it seems that you are one of them, Guido?
It's a great shame that the radar tower on the Type 45 prevents it from sailing up the Thames. Imagine the spectacle as it released a full volley of munitions on the Desk Warriors and Socialist vermin infesting Whitehall.
Still, I suppose a night time stand off attack from further down the Thames estuary would be just as good, though less likely to take out the vermin.
Think of it as a Royal Tournament for the 21st Century (another fine institution wiped out by Prudence)
>astroturf said "madasafish: you obviously know who our enemies are going to be for the entire service life of Type 45. Presumably in 1952 you would have predicted the need for a Falklands Task Force."
Hmm My comments refer to the Cold War which this destroyer was designed for. IIRC the Berlin Wall fell in 1991 or 1992 so it's 15 years since the fall of Russia as a world power.
Now we are launching an un-named ship designed for that era..
If that's not 100% out of touch with reality I'm not a Scotsman..
But then judging by this thread you would think Mrs Thatcher left office in a blaze of glory with the Poll Tax a great success...rather than being booted out after a series of policy disasters...
Revisionism rules OK...
PS the Dax:-), the Dow:-)) the FTSE:_)))
The bottom line is that all right thinking people are disgusted with the way this government has used the armed forces for political nonsense and it is important, although in no doubt, that the public support and respect all who serve.
Over the road (NuLabour, liberal , ex-communist, vegetarian, spineless scum et al) you get wnakers like Hain on the daily politics show today pontificating about the missile defence scheme, this from a cnut who sent people to war to keep his job.
He overtakes Bliar, Roy Keane and Alex Ferguson in my "if you saw them in a pub you'd have to deck them" top 3.
Peter Hain - Are you David Dickenson? Orange, two-bob, with form, who appears on TV surrounded by bric-a-brac and chavs, trying to make a tenner by pretending some rubbish has value.
If they dont like HMS Thatcher how about HMS Geoff (buff) Hoon?
I think a destroyer strangely appropriate. Will it be fitted with handbag based weaponry?
Dear Senor Guido
British Battleships named after Individuals :
Queen Elizabeth
Iron Duke
Duke of York 1943-sank Scharnhorst
Barham (whoever he was)
Anson (whoever he was)
Hood - sunk by Bismarck, but damaged its fuel tanks
Prince of Wales
King George V } improved the
Rodney } Bismarck
Nelson
Suggested Name to inflict fear on Swimming Dalmatians - HMS Cruella de Blair
Madasafish
So if you are not Scotish then what are you? A citizen of Mars maybe?
You so obviously dont have a clue how many different roles a Type 45 destroyer can perform. That perhaps your 2 cents worth would have been better spent on some bubble gumm.
>gary
Please tell me then. In words of under 4 syllables cos I'm simple:-)
It could protect the University Boat Race, for a start. An obvious target in these days of assymetric warfare.
Sambo another great idea, and lets fit the new one with 30mm gatling guns and missiles, its high time these foreign fuckers were reminded of just who they are dealing with.
I also think that we should re form an alliance with our Irish Cousins, have a chat with the sulking Jocks and Welsh, tell the Napoleonic European union to go fuck themselves and resume our role as world leader.
America my arse!
Brits built America and wrote its constitution.
And who is always first in for a fight?
Brits ,
not some twat from Idaho
*flicks vees* at French
Unfortunately, I've have to agree with those who've suggested that warships are just a bit obsolete these days. In fact, while they look impressive, they've always been rather too prone to being sunk. And anyway, only an aircraft carrier is really of a suitable scale for the Iron Lady.
We just need some F-22 Raptors to go on it.
If only Maggie had been at the helm during the War on Terror negotiations we might have them too.
I remember, before Maggie got to No 10, the news was full of stories of patients desperate for cancer treatment (even the BBC reported this surprisingly), because the unionised porters and their ‘minions’ got a sniff of power.
One man had blood dripping from his nose while he begged the union bastard on the hospital gate to be let in for treatment.
How many more reasons for ditching this administration does one have to consider, when such a disgraceful government such as Callaghan’s was making a mockery of democracy, because this mob is now just as bad.
Could anyone see Brown dealing with a situation like that?
No, neither can I.
Guido, can I ask; why "Gorbals" Martin? The guy does not come from the Gorbals, has never lived there and as far as I know he no connection with there.
Is this just a slipshod little bit of stereotyping snobbery against a guy with a working class background and accent?
If you put 'Yid', 'Packi' or 'Coon' against other MPs of various other backgrounds, it would equally betray a similar inadaquacy on your part... let yourself down there man.
ted harvey...fuck off you sanctimonious little twat and take your politically correct shite with you
madasafish,
Type 45s are for providing air defence for the rest of the fleet and also land forces. They can also be used for shore bombardment, anti-submarine warfare, anti-torpedo defence, land attack (using cruise missiles), electronic warfare (surveillance, jamming, tracking etc) and for embarking land forces (e.g. Royal Marines). That enough?
One thing though, it couldn't take F-22 Raptors as suggested (I assume with tongue firmly in cheek) by steven_l
Inspired idea Guido. The Americans have a USS Winston Churchill (see http://www.churchill.navy.mil/); an HMS Margaret Thatcher would make a splendid British foil for the American vessel. Both Prime Ministers fought tirelessly in the cause of liberty. Churchill stood his ground against Fascism and Nazism, and Margaret did not budge an inch against Communism.
Lets say Bin Larden or whoever found a rather smart way to attack oil tankers. After the first attack what would the British government do?
Would lefties prefer us to ask the American tax payer to protect the whole worlds merchant fleet all out of their pockets?. Perhaps we could get them to beg the USA to save our oil supplies and our backon again, instead of Churchill?
With a vaste vaste magority of world trade traveling by sea any interference in it would be a globle economic calamity.
Maybe thats why a lot of loony lefties would prefer the western world had no naval defence at all.
Economic calamities have a habit of throwing up fascist socialist dictators to sort out the mess those evil capitalist pigs have created.
Ive got it thats why Gordon Brown is driving the British econemy into a Gulag.
He is hoping that people start to think that as he got us into it, he must be the only person who has any idear how to get us out of it. Keep a keen eye on any dark shadows appearing on Gordons upper lip. Come to think about it Hitler was also by-sexual and had a twitch.
Next he will be wanting to bring back national service probely starting with immigrants and then crimminals then the rest.
Oh sorry it seems he already does.
Thats Gordons secret plan. Get into power and have a compleat U turn on the EU give us the Euro and the next unreadable written Euro constitution. Then ride high into the Euro presidency after getting MI6 to assasinate Blair.
It might seem a bit fancifull but its an easier way then Hitler tried it and anything and I do meen anything is possible with this lot.
garyp...
Brown will abolish sterling and join the euro as quick as a rat up a drainpipe when his debt-fuelled hollowed-out Ponzi economy goes bust within the next couple of years.
If we christened you Ted "the arse" Harvey, would that be stereotyping a pompous boring fecker who cannot spell 'inadequacy'?
garypowell said...
Lets say Bin Larden or whoever found a rather smart way to attack oil tankers. After the first attack what would the British government do?
They would do what they did during the entire Iran-Iraq war when the Iranians regularly slammed silkworm missiles into the back end (crew quarters and engine room) of supertankers passing down the Gulf about at a rate of about one a week.
NOTHING AT ALL.
Mrs T. only winds up socialists and assorted lefty losers. She should be very proud of that fact, and merely illustrates her
success and what she achieved.
Her reputation may have been shamefully tarnished by that bunch of trots and ner'-do-wells at the Beeb, but history will judge her differently, especially when compared to what came after her.
Naval ships should retain the old names - Rodney, Hood, Howe, Renown, Revenge, Royal Oak, Queen Eizabeth, Prince of Wales, Ark Royal, Duke of York, Iron Duke, Victorious, Invincible, and not be named after politicians........
Margaret Thatcher following John Notts 1982 review of the Royal Navy proposed to scrap HMS Endurance to save some money.
You don't think there was possibly a purpose in that at all, maybe .. huh? Kind of like that awfully nice Mr Major attempting to scrap the Belize garrison just as Guatemala was spinning up for a neighbour confrontation. As for 2,500 RN troops in Afghanistan, those are Royal Marine Commando, NOT repeat NOT Royal Navy. RMC are go anywhere, do anything troops, albeit under FSL command who can allocate them to Army control as or when required, as I recall did occur in the Falklands much to the Navy's chagrin.
All that yomping turns you into a cabbagehead - stick to tabbing instead like real men do.
In the spirit of what you suggested, Mr Fawkes, I have just submitted a request to Number 10 to set up a petition to "honour the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven, by naming a ship in Her Majesty's Royal Navy "HMS Iron Lady"".
The supporting text (which had to be less than 1000 characters including spaces reads): "As Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher protected the interests of the UK on the world stage. She ensured that the Falklands were defended when invaded by a foreign power. During the ensuing conflict, the Royal Navy fought valiantly and were distinguished by their actions. The Baroness's determination to stand up to Communism, in particular by maintaining our Armed Forces and nuclear capability, contributed greatly to the fall of Communism, and the liberation of millions. The US have honoured Sir Winston Churchill, who stood up against the
tyranny of fascism, through naming one of its vessels "USS Winston Churchill"; we should accord a similar honour to a woman who struggled against the tyranny of dictatorship. The Royal Navy is currently commissioning Type 45 Destroyers. One such ship could be named "HMS Iron Lady" in reference to Baroness Thatcher, echoing the designation of the vessel "HMS
Iron Duke", named in honour of the Duke of Wellington, who also stood firm against a tyrant."
The Number 10 Team have to "approve" this before it is officially put up (I dare them not to!). Once the URL is up, I shall let you know, Mr Fawkes. All credit for this inspired idea will, of course, be given to you Sir. (I hope this is not treading on the toes of a petition of a similar nature which you yourself have submitted)
'One thing though, it couldn't take F-22 Raptors as suggested (I assume with tongue firmly in cheek) by steven_l'
It was more a case of wine in gullet actually, it looked like an aircraft carrier at first glance.
I just feel strongly we were played along like fools. First they float the idea of ditching the F-35 we've sunk $2billion into, then tempt us with the possibility of F-22's and the thought we might not get technology transfer on the F-35 if we didn't suck up enough.
At the end of it all we get what we paid for at the start, the F-35 project stays on track.
A better leader would have negotiated F-22's before the IRaq invasion.
Julian, the Royal Marines are part of the Royal Navy, end of. No ifs, no buts (you should have noticed by now that I do know what I'm talking about on defence). Here are a couple of quotes from the official RN website:
"The Royal Navy's own amphibious infantry are the Royal Marines"
"Question: Are the Royal Marines part of the Army?
Answer: No. The Royal Marines are part of the Royal Navy"
Steven_l, have you any idea just how much Raptors cost??? It's not a case of negotiating them, they are just far too expensive ($120m each, very roughly twice the cost of Typhoon)
All this bluster about boys toys how about she was the first lady PM
Good idea. They should tie her to the keel. They say old witches float. We will then find out.
Name a cruise carrier the Iron Lady as a tribute to Maggie and her role in ending the cold war.
Only problem is that we might not have a navy left or an RAF. Hang on we might not even have a bloody army by the time this lot is finished.
After 10 years of being run by Blair Air Tours and despite being sent all over the world to fight in the name of this grubby cowardly discredited government our boys don't have enough ships , planes , helicopters, decent protective armoured snatch vehicles or a combat rifle that works.
And when they get home their families are suffering under the strain of shorter gaps between deployments, substandard housing and a bare minimum wage which Brown has still managed to shaft them on!
If they are injured they don't even get a military hospital with relevant support or a visit from Blair, in fact they are hidden from view. He won't even meet the families of those who have died, and colludes with the Americans to cover both governments arse's rather than allow closure for a widow.
No matter what this government do I think their shameful treatment of the armed forces should be top of the list.
Our boys seemed proud to serve under the last tory goverment, but then they did not abuse them in this way and recognised their sacrifice.
I think that the two huge new carriers the government is meant to be ordering should be called the HMS Winston Churchill and the HMS Margaret Thatcher. It is absurd that the Americans can name a major warship after our greatest Prime Minister and we don't (though he was of course half-American and the first honorary US cititzen ever).
Both cut the military significantly as it happens, Churchill with his Ten Year Rule in the 20s and Mrs Thatcher with her naval review in the early 80's. But both saw the error of their ways and learned from their mistakes, something the current government doesn't do at all.
Maybe we could name the entire 45 series Iron class ships; HMS Iron Duke, HMS Iron Lady, HMS Iron Chancellor?