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ECML
Sept 30, 2013 11:25:06 GMT
Post by GentlemanJim on Sept 30, 2013 11:25:06 GMT
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ECML
Oct 1, 2013 9:19:32 GMT
Post by Nortube on Oct 1, 2013 9:19:32 GMT
Is there anything in the UK that is owned by the UK?
Successive governments have given it all away. As the RATP (the Paris equivalent of TfL) is already running some of the London buses, perhaps they should be given the opportunity to take over the Underground, or even sell out the whole of TfL to them!
It seems that foreign firms are effectively running this country in one form or another. The UK is gradually being sucked dry of everything. The governments are quite happy for this to happen, many of those in government are multi millionaires and so have no interest in what happens as long as they get their share.
In the days of the british empire, Britain took everything it could from the so-called third world countries that it "conquered", I suppose it's poetic justice that others are now doing the same to us.
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ECML
Oct 1, 2013 13:32:24 GMT
Post by railtechnician on Oct 1, 2013 13:32:24 GMT
Is there anything in the UK that is owned by the UK? Successive governments have given it all away. As the RATP (the Paris equivalent of TfL) is already running some of the London buses, perhaps they should be given the opportunity to take over the Underground, or even sell out the whole of TfL to them! It seems that foreign firms are effectively running this country in one form or another. The UK is gradually being sucked dry of everything. The governments are quite happy for this to happen, many of those in government are multi millionaires and so have no interest in what happens as long as they get their share. In the days of the British empire, Britain took everything it could from the so-called third world countries that it "conquered", I suppose it's poetic justice that others are now doing the same to us.
Britain gave much to the empire too, never forget that! One notable legacy is that residents of former colonies in Asia and Africa are better educated and write and speak better Queen's English than most UK residents appear to these days!As far as giving everything away, that began with our entry into the EEC, a very retrograde step because our politicians are simply incompetent in so many ways.
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ECML
Oct 2, 2013 9:46:42 GMT
Post by Nortube on Oct 2, 2013 9:46:42 GMT
It's true that the British did give the conquered people some things, but at a price. In most countries, the native peoples were treated like second class people, even almost like slaves in some cases, in their own country under British rule - the Aborigines in Australia, the Indians in India, the Africans in Africa. I wonder how many of them would have preferred to have remained as they were, for better or worse, but at least in control of themselves.
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ECML
Oct 2, 2013 18:13:51 GMT
Post by railtechnician on Oct 2, 2013 18:13:51 GMT
It's true that the British did give the conquered people some things, but at a price. In most countries, the native peoples were treated like second class people, even almost like slaves in some cases, in their own country under British rule - the Aborigines in Australia, the Indians in India, the Africans in Africa. I wonder how many of them would have preferred to have remained as they were, for better or worse, but at least in control of themselves. Funny you should mention that, yes it was so but as a native Briton in Britain I feel we are treated just as badly by our governments today! We have very little say in what goes on, our government does exactly what it wants and there is nothing to choose between the parties as they all tell porkies to get elected and then demonstrate their weakness and incompetence when in office. Career politicians are in parliament to make their own fortunes and care little for the people who vote them into office. British democracy is a myth more so today than ever before and like it or not we are all slaves to a system that we did not vote for, it being riddled with inequality and unfairness from any and all angles for all but a small minority. This is of course not the place for a political discussion but from an industrial viewpoint Britain gave so much to the world, not just to the colonies but to most countries in every continent not least of which was the vast amount of railway infrastructure installed not only in the colonies but manufactured and sold to the rest of the world. All that was truly great about Britain is long gone and we are now slaves to the world!
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ECML
Oct 3, 2013 11:33:05 GMT
Post by Nortube on Oct 3, 2013 11:33:05 GMT
I think that the railways were possibly the greatest achievement that Britain had, or certainly at least one of the greatest, and have left a lasting legacy throughout the world. That is certainly something to be proud of. Steam engines were manufactured and shipped off, and no doubt much of the other infrastructure was made and exported as well, at least initially. I'm not sure if we actually build any engines etc. these days. Like the 95 stock - import them in kit form and just put them together in the UK!
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ECML
Oct 5, 2013 15:28:29 GMT
Post by railtechnician on Oct 5, 2013 15:28:29 GMT
I think that the railways were possibly the greatest achievement that Britain had, or certainly at least one of the greatest, and have left a lasting legacy throughout the world. That is certainly something to be proud of. Steam engines were manufactured and shipped off, and no doubt much of the other infrastructure was made and exported as well, at least initially. I'm not sure if we actually build any engines etc. these days. Like the 95 stock - import them in kit form and just put them together in the UK! If you really want to know just how poor Britain is today when compared to its truly great industrial past you have only to read the Engineer from its earliest edition. World railways are particularly well covered but that is just one facet of the fantastic industrial revolution which began a hundred years earlier in Britain. Britain was for example the biggest shipbuilder in the world prior to WW1. IMHO those living in Queen Victoria's reign saw the very best of British engineering in all its contemporary disciplines but two world wars took their toll as did the greed of businessmen through the decades who sold British manufacturing technology and invention for a song and the scientists who simply 'played the game' (unlike scientists in many other countries) and shared their work allowing other countries to make fortunes at our expense! Just imagine how great in financial terms Britain would be today if it had licensed all (instead of just a fraction) that technology to the rest of the world! I'm not sure if Britain actually manufactures anything at all these days, things may be made in Britain but probably by foreign owned companies and as you say we have factories assembling parts made in other countries while many British businesses are now having goods manufactured in China, India, Malaysia and South America as it is simply cheaper and increases the profit margins despite having to ship goods around the world. Britain has sold its soul for economic 'growth', i.e. UK wages are far too high and so is the cost of living. 'Growth' is simply a euphemism for devaluation, hardly anyone is much better off now than they were say four decades ago even though average wages have increased some 2000+ % in that time. Of course these days many people tend to live in debt most of their lives and will never actually own a car or a house as they spend fortunes on holidays, socialising, mobile phone charges etc and pay for it all with endless loans but they think they are well off!
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