tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-717764352812681670.post6680225640460556941..comments2023-10-21T14:30:15.714+01:00Comments on Helena Halme Author: A view from the terracesAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02658858373848443540noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-717764352812681670.post-4590897838729528242010-05-09T03:09:33.673+01:002010-05-09T03:09:33.673+01:00I'm a poor one to comment on this discussion. ...I'm a poor one to comment on this discussion. First of all, I haven't seen a newspaper for over three weeks. (I was in Texas for a wedding and we pretty much were only interested in our own reunions and lives) But I know I would never like to not be able to vote or express my own opinions about my country. I think we here in America are very disillusioned by our government and feel very betrayed by the political powers. We all had high hopes for Obama and still do, but he was left with 8 messes to clean up and cannot do it all himself so soon. To change the way things are done in Washington politics was his goal but I believe he has found that is nigh unto impossible. The big amount of money given to Goldman Sachs and AIG and then they turn around and give their CEO's millions in bonuses makes people furious but nothing seems to be able to be done about it. And it is not getting distributed to help the unemployment situation in the right manner.<br /><br />Politics seem to be more important to our representatives and senators than what is good for the people and the party comes first.<br /><br />Sorry, I got carried away. I came to your site because I was looking at some old ones of mine and realized I hadn't heard from you for a long time. So I was wondering what you were up to.Berniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10189300487828240620noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-717764352812681670.post-88704330741942405322010-05-08T13:57:06.984+01:002010-05-08T13:57:06.984+01:00Helen, I learned a lot from this post and thank yo...Helen, I learned a lot from this post and thank you for being so candid. Here in the States -- and especially on the East Coast -- there is great respect for England as our Mother Country. The news tends to be basic without taking political sides. However, one aspect of England's recent election bothers. Toward the end of the Bush Administration, the British Museum requested a return of Churchill's bust, the one that had stood on the President's desk for so many years. The British Museum said the condition of the bust had to be evaluated. Okay. No problem. Prior to the transition to President Obama, articles in the paper lamented the situation but time takes its toll and everyone understood that the Museum had a right to evaluate the bust. So, photos of President Obama's desk didn't show Churchill's bust. When the newspapers reported that the English people thought President Obama had returned the bust, everyone thought PM Brown would say otherwise, that the British Museum had requested the bust's return. But PM Brown said nothing, let the brouhaha grow until the bust turned into somewhat of an anti-American situation. On this side of the Pond, we don't understand why "Mummy" did this.Kittie Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07756250649095903317noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-717764352812681670.post-46327264091559718412010-05-08T12:04:15.175+01:002010-05-08T12:04:15.175+01:00I'd hate it if I couldn't vote. This Thurs...I'd hate it if I couldn't vote. This Thursday, I marched myself and my daughter up the road before 7am to be the very first people in our village to place our crosses. My admonishment of 'women died for this' ringing in her ears s she complained bitterly about being dragged out of bed.<br />As for PR - I hope we get it one day, and I'm anxiously keeping my fingers crossed that Clegg can resist the Cameron overtures and make the most of the current opportunity.Sharon Longworthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18120227975152565893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-717764352812681670.post-83372380009100179022010-05-08T11:02:49.396+01:002010-05-08T11:02:49.396+01:00Um I have always wanted to live on the Costa Del S...Um I have always wanted to live on the Costa Del Sol, I never thought about it like that. I get the right hump about all the Eastern Europeans who seem to have appeared where I live. There are groups of men who buy loads of drink in the co-op then sit down the beach drinking it and shouting at women passers by, which is quite upsetting when you don't know what they are saying and yet another reason I can't enjoy the beach at the end of my road, along with horses and Staffordshire Bull Terriers without leads. It also got my back up when an advert for a job at the local dockyard in the local paper stressed it was looking for someone who could speak Fluent Polish - WTF?Style At Every Agehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08651040515126111051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-717764352812681670.post-22591915166027608872010-05-07T15:10:22.979+01:002010-05-07T15:10:22.979+01:00Rose, I think countries get the system they deserv...Rose, I think countries get the system they deserve. The UK in my opinion is very conservative, hence the 1st past the post system suits us (you/them). Brits like to have a GP they know and an MP they can vote for as much as they like to own their own houses.<br /><br />In Finland we vote for the party first, then the candidate. We don't have GP's, we have separate specialists in health centres and you don't often get to choose who treats you. Many Finns rent their homes in apartments with central district heating. So it's a completely different society, one that suits PR.<br /><br />Don't let me get into the merits of coalition governments....<br /><br />Helena xxAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02658858373848443540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-717764352812681670.post-9102185217896212392010-05-07T12:16:02.170+01:002010-05-07T12:16:02.170+01:00Helen this is excellent. I think there is a great ...Helen this is excellent. I think there is a great deal to admire about all the Scandanavian country's politics and wish I was knowledgeable about your systems/ solutions to problems and that we would look north more and west and over the sea less.<br /><br />I am sad to say that I still think a great deal of the country don't understand about PR, or indeed quite how first past the post works. I think you are very kind but the mass vote is not always as well informed as you might give it credit for. <br /><br />Perhaps this will change that and people will push for real one person one vote in this country. It would be so wonderful.Rosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08459305021803770946noreply@blogger.com