Jeremy Clarkson bashes UK PM Brown...lulz...

[MinionZombie]

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/21/20090206...t-6323e80.html According to The Australian newspaper, he said: "It`s the first time I`ve ever seen a world leader admit we really are in deep s***. He genuinely looked terrified. The poor man, he`s actually seen the books. "(In the UK) we`ve got this one-eyed Scottish idiot, he keeps telling us everything's fine and he`s saved the world and we know he`s lying, but he`s smooth at telling us." And it's true too - for months Brown has been saying "we're the best placed economy" - when multiple economists globally, as well as the IMF categorically state that that is complete and utter bullshit. We're NOT well placed in the slightest and we WILL have the deepest recession of ALL the developed countries. Brown, and a hell of a lot of Labour (and all the front bench), seem to be the sort of politician who live by the theory of 'say it often enough, and it becomes true' - as well as 'say we'll do something, and then it'll be done' - they announce shit practically every day - but does ANY of it get done? If only there were stats out there telling us how many announced ideas have gone no further, and how many times particular ideas have been announced (multiple times quite often, without anything concrete getting done about them). As a Scot, I'm not in the least bit offended by Clarkson's comments - the Scots, like all people across the globe, have good and bad people to offer unto the world - and Brown's one of the worst Scots to exit the country and shames the entire nation. On the other side, folk like Billy Connoly - he's one of the good Scots offered unto the world. What we've got here in the UK it seems, is a case of "lies, damn lies, statistics, and Labour" - the party who've wrapped themselves in a hurricane of political spin doctors (more than any other party in UK history). Well done Clarkson for speaking his mind I say. I wouldn't expect Labourites to like the comment at all - but they have to learn that this IS NOT a one party state, and there's a fuckload of people out there who are either totally anti-Labour, or at least incredibly disappointed. Although I don't agree that Brown is "smooth" at lying to us, let alone anything else - he just blunders forward with his fist of 'facts' and his Mandleson-induced "do nothing party" swings-and-misses (this coming from the PM who has stolen a bunch of Tory Party policies ... and then mangled them through the Labour machine, however). Personally speaking at least, I've yet to meet a Labour voter who hasn't been sorely disappointed by this crowd over the last 12 years. Okay - rant over - just thought the Clarkson comment was funny, but no doubt there's a bit of a fuss being kicked up because he works for the BBC and the Beeb are getting nothing but grumpies moaning at them all the time (while avoiding the REAL problems with the BBC, I might add). Although a publicly spoken, anti-Labour & Brown comment, coming from someone who works for the BBC is a rare thing indeed. Okay - now the rant is over.

[fartpants]

Spot on again M.Z, are we gonna get the banners out again

[Tricky]

Clarkson is a legend & he's spot on with his comments (apart from the smooth bit),i just wish brown would fuck off & take his entire cabinet with him,he seems determined to run this country into the ground & take us all down with him.I cant believe he's promised £20 million to rebuild palestine after Israels latest scrap with Hamas,when people all over this country are being made redundant in droves,and thats not including all the billions we pump into the sinister & unwanted EU,the banks who are just using the cash to keep paying themselves huge bonuses,and all those labour "social experiments" which are a complete waste of time! The sight of his haggard,dull & arrogant face in the papers & on the TV is enough to trigger clinical depression! Stick it to 'em jezza!

[MinionZombie]

UPDATE: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/4/20090206/...e-ea4616c.html He has appologised - but only for dissing Brown's appearance. The article probably doesn't put the right inflection on it, but after all that fuss over Carol Thatcher a couple of days ago, and with the BBC floundering like a half-dead fish seemingly every other week of yet another cock up, I can't blame Jezza for cutting this fuss down ... no doubt he'll comment about it in his Times column (also online). Still though, I'm Scottish and I'm not in the least bit offended by it - and I tell you what also, there's far worse things being said in primary schools, which is far more worrying as kids that young have minds like sponges. Iain Dale blogged about this too: http://www.iaindale.blogspot.com/ Scroll down to "Does Jeremy Clarkson Have the Right to Offend?" - a good article which rightly points out that he should have the right to offend, and Dale also comments about the worrying state of the present day BBC where nobody wants to take a chance on an idea in case it offends someone ... deary me. Further up, relating to this Jezza issue, there's this one "Remember the Insults to Margaret Thatcher on the BBC?" - and again, damn straight. There's been a shedload of shit flung Thatcher's way (the first and only female Prime Minister ever) - no doubt by a lot of people who are now blowing thick, ropey loads all over themselves due to Obama being the first black president ... which is a bit odd, really. Far worse has been consistently said about Thatcher than Brown in the past, it's kind of like "Bush Bashing", it's too one-sided. If you can bash Thatcher, you can bash Brown too - it's fair and square. I was a tad disappointed that Jezza appologised, but I can understand it totally as well from a business point of view, as well as not wanting something so small escalate into a preposterously large nonsense, especially after Ross-and-Brand-gate last year. And only recently were there people protesting against giving Thatcher a state funeral (which all Prime Minsters are entitled to, if I'm not mistaken), purely because some people don't like her/hate her. I despise Brown, but I'd not deny him a state funeral - he's done a shit job (badly, but shit nonetheless), so even though I hate him, he deserves a state funeral when the time comes. Likewise, Thatcher had a lot of shit to deal with, and was crucified for it ... it'd be interesting to see what state Britain would be in if Thatcher hadn't done the things she had to do (like with one of those Futurama "what if" machines)...mainly just to say "shut it, the country was in a bloody mess and something needed doing - somebody had to make the horrible decisions and take the responsibility and blame". Gotten off on a rant there, and even though the last bit sounds a bit "Dark Knight" (not intended), it's true.

[MinionZombie]

ANOTHER UPDATE: Clarkson clarifies his apology: http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com...for.4958462.jp

[Chic Freak]

There's been a shedload of shit flung Thatcher's way (the first and only female Prime Minister ever) - no doubt by a lot of people who are now blowing thick, ropey loads all over themselves due to Obama being the first black president ... which is a bit odd, really. Huh? I may just not be understanding because I just woke up, but are you suggesting Thatcher was unpopular because she was female?! And did you just compare her to Batman?!

[MinionZombie]

Huh? I may just not be understanding because I just woke up, but are you suggesting Thatcher was unpopular because she was female?! And did you just compare her to Batman?! lol - where does the Batman thing come into it? ... I guess what I was saying is - there's a bunch of folk out there who make such a big deal out of Obama because he's black (meanwhile it's really only important if he's good or not, that's what it comes down to - and no doubt a lot of people think just that) ... what I was trying to say is, I wonder how many people that harp on about Obamarama because he's the first black president (in 2009), bitch about Thatcher even though she was the first female Prime Minister - in 1979. A follow up to this thought of course, would be how those numbers would change - i.e. how many people who got on the Obamarama bandwagon, will soon do nothing but bitch about him. This of course does NOT mean that all Obama-fans are just into him because of his skin colour - but it's undeniable that there's a certain type of chattering champagne socialist sort out there who read The Guardian in their rather plush houses stocked to the gills with "South African peace crisps" (to quote Jezza ), who bang on about Obama because of his skin colour ... these sort of people are likely to be the sort of person to bitch about Thatcher incessantly, even though she was the first female Prime Minister way back in '79 when society was a lot less fair to women and black people than it is now ... ... and out of those sorts, how many will end up dissing Obama, and how many will (if heaven forbid he stuffs it up) just let him off because of his skin colour - - in which case, why would that portion not let off Thatcher because she was the first (and still only) female PM? The size of these "sorts" as a group is another issue entirely, but you see what I'm trying to get at? Hence the end line of "which is a bit odd, really". Just some thoughts in my noggin' ... Speaking of Obama - I saw a video posted on here recently where he went 'off autocue', and just spoke completely honestly - some here didn't like that at all, I actually quite liked that, because I've always wanted to see a politician just go "you know what - this is how I feel about this shit" and just drop science on some mofos. ... But circling back to Jezza and the BBC - of course he should be allowed to bash Brown, because Thatcher has been relentlessly bashed for basically three decades by the BBC - so if you can bash Thatcher, you can bloody well bash the shit out of Brown too. The "one eyed" bit wasn't needed - but Jezza said sorry for that bit, and the use of "Scottish" in his mini-rant - but as a Scot myself, I couldn't give a thrupny-toss if he used "Scottish" to describe Brown - I'm more concerned about Brown being a prime example of the worst that Scotland has to offer (meanwhile the likes of Billy Connoly and many others are examples of the best the nation has to offer). And in his clarification of his apology, it's funny that Jezza made sure to point out he wasn't saying sorry for calling Brown a lying idiot.

[_liam_]

Clarkson lets himself down by inferring that being blind in one eye is somehow relevant to being a shit prime minister grow the fuck up, it DOES matter Also if you're wondering why Labour deals in spin & the Tories didn't, it's because the Tories had more effective methods of dealing with dissent

[MinionZombie]

Jezza already apologised for the Scot part and the one-eye part. But I do remember a joke on Mock The Week a couple of years back by Andy Parsons (if memory serves), where he jokes about Brown, Blunkett and Straw - Brown's got one crap eye, Blunkett's entirely blind, and Straw has buggered hearing ... can't remember the punchline at the moment, but it was essentially saying that Labour are useless and incompetent because of those three guys' disabilities - so is there a difference? Hmmm...*pondering cap on* Honestly though, I do think the BBC have double-standards, and they're not politically neutral in general, despite their claims to the contrary. ... The rozzers have got to keep protests orderly and safe somehow, and if you've got somebody lobbing bricks or molotovs at you, you're not going to ask him to sit down and share a bag of peace crisps with you while you discuss a peace accord, you're going to get stuck in and quell any violence or potential violence so the proper and informed protest can take place and not be ignored because some people have decided to smash up some stuff. It's not like we're China here in the UK, they know how to crush dissent. But then again: Shout one word of dissent, and two gigantic blubber-ball 'bouncers' wrestle an OAP out of the Labour Party 2005 conference. These days protesters get detained under the "terrorism" act, same goes for train spotters and anyone with a camera in a public place who gets spied by a rozzer ... or they're banished from protesting outside Parliament completely unless they're lucky enough to be afforded a piece of paper that allows them to do so. But then I could just as easily cobble some images together and tag "scum" and "enemy" on it in the exact same way and be equally valid in making a point, or just Google some up ... so for balance's sake: ... And here's a random image I found, just for poops and chuckles... *Tom Waits mode on* What's he doing under there?

[_liam_]

Er I didn't say it was ok for Panel shows to mock the disabled did I? And someone doing something bad obviously doesn't make it ok for everyone else, so that example is fairly irrelevant. Anyway, mate listen to what you are suggesting - that police brutality under Blair/Brown is as bad as it was under Thatcher/Major? Madness Comparing that old man getting dragged out to the bloody beatings of the mining protests & the beanfield incident is to trivialise the latter incidents. Yeah you can just get an image and stick other images to further your agenda, indeed. And one should be wary of these things. But does that change the fact that Thatcher fucked hundreds of thousands of people out of work & the police under her charge beat protestors to a pulp? Nope, it's an established & well known fact, so why even attempt to bring it into disrepute? Are you saying that those people deserved to be beaten? That is actually monstrous, this isn't a game. You actually think all these people turned up with petrol bombs? Some of them hadn't worked for months and months, they could barely afford to feed their families, let alone nip down Esso for some pyro. Fact of the matter (ever been to a protest or got caught up in a riot?) is that the police these days are a LOT safer to crazy masses of people than they were in the day, because the public's disgust over incidents in the 80s and 90s has forced them tread carefully. Look I don't like or vote Labour, but sometimes I think with your insistent Labour hate mongering you are unaware that you are pushing us towards a Conservative govt. by spreading such sentiments, which of course is your right, but often I get the impression you haven't researched either side well enough to warrant such vitriol. Most likely said this before, but your whole anti labour crusade started in 1998 (I recall the exact post), when you said that you and your mates got together at lunch and decided you hated Blair & would vote Tory. Now, I am perhaps jumping to a conclusion, but I bet at 14 years old or whatever you knew pretty much nothing about government policy, and you just decided you hated him for whatever reason. I see all your constant anti labour fluff as just an extension of that, you decided a long long time ago that you hated them, and have decided to find reasons for it after the fact. This is made all the more evident by your criticisms of labour policies & actions that are shadowed by Tory actions in the past (Although I am presuming you vote Tory here when perhaps you don't. You blatantly do though ) It just winds me up a weeee bit, and I know you don't like these Essay Wars & we are all men of online peace these days, but some conflict is to be expected when you carry on the way you do

[MinionZombie]

Er I didn't say it was ok for Panel shows to mock the disabled did I? I wasn't saying you were saying that. I was just saying that in general, as a thought that sprung to mind that I figured was pertinent to the over all discussion, relating back to the BBC having double-standards. ... Well bugger this for a game of soldiers - I can't be arsed with all this brick wall versus brick wall to-and-fro. You think the Tories are shit, I think Labour are shit, let's leave this hoo-hah and do something more constructive. As a general sign off, I've never maintained that the Tories are golden angels who've never done anything wrong - but politics in general is a corrupt and/or tough-as-carbon-fibre world - and in that world, the Tories get my vote. In my view Labour are rubbish and have done a lot of bad, or extreme bad, in their history - and it's a view shared by folks who don't vote Labour ... ... folks who don't vote Tory have their views, to which they're entitled, because that in the end is part of the point in a democracy. Although it's interesting, from what's being said anyway, that Labour are dragging their feet as much as possible over postal vote reform because if it was reformed, it'd cost Labour more votes than any other party. Not looking to get into another dialogue, nor 'get in the last punch' ... it was just a thought that came to mind while my fingers were hammering across the keys. If there was the Ideal For MinionZombie And Anyone Remotely Awesome Party - then they'd get my vote, but until then ... go Team Blue. ... But let's not get into yet another back-and-forth, as we've done it all before, and it takes the thread away from Jezza Clarkson, which is the original intention of the thread after all.

[Tricky]

You really think the police whacking the miners was purely down to thatcher?you just wait & watch this recession,you will see exactly the same kind of thing happen under the labour government when all these disgruntled workers take to the streets.Whats wrong with a conservative government anyway?you basically have two choices in this country whether you like it or not,labour or tory,all other parties have no chance of getting in,labour have completely fucked this country over since '97 so its time for things to swing back the other way.The liberal democrats will never,ever get into power,its a well known fact,they are just a pure waste of oxygen!Anyway you cant compare todays tory party with the one from back then,seen as most of the people involved at that time are long past retired or dead!the only other choice is the EU,which is rapidly trying to become "oceania" from 1984

[Chic Freak]

... what I was trying to say is, I wonder how many people that harp on about Obamarama because he's the first black president (in 2009), bitch about Thatcher even though she was the first female Prime Minister - in 1979. A follow up to this thought of course, would be how those numbers would change - i.e. how many people who got on the Obamarama bandwagon, will soon do nothing but bitch about him. This of course does NOT mean that all Obama-fans are just into him because of his skin colour - but it's undeniable that there's a certain type of chattering champagne socialist sort out there who read The Guardian in their rather plush houses stocked to the gills with "South African peace crisps" (to quote Jezza ), who bang on about Obama because of his skin colour ... these sort of people are likely to be the sort of person to bitch about Thatcher incessantly, even though she was the first female Prime Minister way back in '79 when society was a lot less fair to women and black people than it is now ... ... and out of those sorts, how many will end up dissing Obama, and how many will (if heaven forbid he stuffs it up) just let him off because of his skin colour - - in which case, why would that portion not let off Thatcher because she was the first (and still only) female PM? Wtf?! People who dislike Thatcher and like Obama are more likely to do so because of they prefer liberal and progressive to conservative and backward politics. Do you honestly think that deep down, the miners were striking because they were upset about their PM being female? That's mental. you basically have two choices in this country whether you like it or not,labour or tory,all other parties have no chance of getting in,labour have completely fucked this country over since '97 so its time for things to swing back the other way.The liberal democrats will never,ever get into power,its a well known fact,they are just a pure waste of oxygen! It's not a well-known fact unless you're psychic But no, they probably won't get in for a while. However, I will not be voting Labour or Tory. I would prefer to use my vote to try and get a party whose manifesto I actually like a few more seats. I'd rather eat live maggots than vote for a party I didn't approve of, there's really no justification for that. I think it's a message that the two big parties naturally like to push, though!

[MinionZombie]

Wtf?! People who dislike Thatcher and like Obama are more likely to do so because of they prefer liberal and progressive to conservative and backward politics. Do you honestly think that deep down, the miners were striking because they were upset about their PM being female? That's mental. Woah, so not what I was saying at all. Although yes, there is a political difference there - but taking that out of the equation, I was meaning people who only dig on Obama because of his skin colour - again, the amount of such people is a whole other issue, but there is no doubt some people who think like that. My point being - with those "some people", if they're purely going to base a leader being awesome because they're not white and/or male, why bitch-out the only ever female prime minister? Most likely the number of people in this bizarre theory of mine that fell out of my brain as a mere thought is quite small, but still - just thinking 'out loud'. I wonder how many people, regardless of politics, would be fine with Obama regardless of what he did because he's black, while at the same time bitching-out Thatcher even though she's a woman ... it's just a thought that came to mind, figured I'd share it, but I'm clearly not explaining it very well. So maybe just forget about it and never mind. And no I wasn't meaning they were striking because she was female (that miner stuff Liam brought up hadn't even been said yet when I was writing what I was writing in response to you - and am still trying to explain, but have clearly done a rubbish job of it - so ergo, just forget about it). ... prefer liberal and progressive to conservative and backward politics I find that waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too black & white, and nor is it 100% true...is it even half true? As Tricky said - the Tories aren't the same as they were in the 80s - and likewise - Labour aren't the same as they were in the 70s. ... I also find it rather odd/alarming/fascinating/confusing when you get folk who were hardcore Labour voters doing a total 180 and turning to the far right (and sodding racist) BNP. That's a gigantic swing in political ground ... ... but perhaps it says more about the individuals who do so, rather than anything else. Hmmm... Any words of Clarkson?

[_liam_]

You really think the police whacking the miners was purely down to thatcher?you just wait & watch this recession,you will see exactly the same kind of thing happen under the labour government when all these disgruntled workers take to the streets. Labour will be out in 3 months, so I guess we will once again see how the Tories deal with it! We already know that The Tories will not do pay increases for public services for the next two years, (during a recession! haha), so it's handy that they are going to be creating disgruntled workers with which to show us how they deal with protests and riots. I wasn't saying you were saying that. I was just saying that in general, as a thought that sprung to mind that I figured was pertinent to the over all discussion, relating back to the BBC having double-standards. Ah I see, sorry Look closer though It's not a case of double standards, it's the result of a transition from one set of standards to another Yep both UK neocon table tennis teams are awful, but seriously the Tories are worse, but now it has reached the point where you will find out for yourself. The day you walk to work & notice the rubbish piling up in the streets, you will hear my obi wan kenobi like voice softly whispering "pwnnnnnnnnnnd" If you don't like brick wall vs brick wall, bear in mind you throw a lot of bricks around