Are we going back to the '70's?

[Cobra]

It seems like it with all the strikes
This month,
Ambulance strikes
Train strikes
Postal strikes
The possibility of power cuts ...

 

[Boots]

Oh yes, our Winter of Discontent.

Even Slade on the radio, oh wait, that's every Christmas.

 

[Dale.]

It feels like it sometimes, we even have a Cold War, of sorts.

Despite the discontent, I had a great childhood, my dad used to work in the steelworks and earned good money. I get nostalgic when I think back, especially the toys of the day, my Raleigh Chopper, TCR racing etc. Probably best I don't start on that.

I remember the power cuts, strikes and using candles. Later on, I remember the Miner's strike very well (mid 80s though), coming from a mining community, which itself was set amongst numerous other mining communities. An old girlfriend of mine had a striking dad and I recall very well the hardships they faced.

Life was a lot simpler then, I have fond memories of back in the day, despite the problems faced by many, as kids, we were somehow shielded from it.

I don't envy kids growing up nowadays, especially with the pressures of social media.

I think the current problems we are seeing regarding strikes now, the cost of living etc are caused by the knock on of the pandemic as well as the war in Ukraine and some other mitigating factors. Will the current strikes have the desired effect? Maybe but it will always come to a compromise, these things tend to.

 

[Cobra]

I remember the Miner's strike very well (mid 80s though),

The recent ones were 1969, then again in 1972 & 1974 (During the 3-day week)
But then you are probably too young to remember those

And of course the '84-'85 one.

 

[Dale.]

The recent ones were 1969, then again in 1972 & 1974 (During the 3-day week)
But then you are probably too young to remember those

And of course the '84-'85 one.

I can't remember 69, though I do remember 72 and/or 74 with the blackkouts. I turned 5 in 72 and I remember how struck I was (and probably a little scared) by how dark it was without street lights.

84-85, yes, remember that well, it was pretty dismal in the mining valleys.

I do remember as well, that strikes in the early 70s just seemed normal to a young lad, growing up.

 

[KIPAX]

and no Maggie to put them in there place

 

[beyond the blue]

I hope so.

 

[Mr Bump]

oh the train strikes are certainly an utter joke, just back to the miners strike a failing industry losing millions each year
terms being dictated by an old man in a badly fitting suit just like Arthur Scargill
just wants more money but refuses to modernize archaic working practices.
they can just jog on the lot of them

 

[cambsno]

And the problem is...

- Much better music, from Slade, T-Rex, Led Zepplin, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, ELO and the rest of Glam Rock
- Great TV from the BBC and others - Some Mothers, Fawlty Towers, Persuaders, Professionals, Sweeney...

 

[Gav.]

What was the '70's???..

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

We have the same problems as in the 1970s: corrupt politicians kowtowing to their rich paymasters; failing public services due to lack of investment; idiots pushing daft theories and international instability caused by lunatic dictators.
Apart from that, everything's just fine...

 

[tijuana taxi]

.

And the problem is...

- Much better music, from Slade, T-Rex, Led Zepplin, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, ELO and the rest of Glam Rock
- Great TV from the BBC and others - Some Mothers, Fawlty Towers, Persuaders, Professionals, Sweeney...

Remember it well, longest hot summer ever in 76, my lot losing in the cup semi final and missing out on promotion to div 1 on goal average.
Scorpions playing a blinding set at Reading as the replacements for Thin Lizzy and seeing Rainbow at The Rainbow.

 

[gman]

A couple of other things spring to mind, some of which I don't know much about but they've crossed my path in the news:

• Vast amounts of money being printed?
• Big Corporate Greed?
• Mismanagement of Energy (the link between Electricity prices with Gas?)
• Energy not being nationalised and providing the population first at cost, before being sold on world markets?
• Saudi doubling the amount they are buying fuel oil cheap from Russia to free up crude exports at inflated prices?

 

[woof woof]

The country seems set on self destruction.

Without being too political or at least without taking sides I think we need a change and a big one. I think we need a new party and to stop voting for the same old same olds although there is a part of me that thinks that if people vote for this shower (and by shower I mean Con/Labour and Lib Dems, all of them) maybe they deserve what they'll get but then again we have to vote for someone as not bothering at all seems worse.

Other than that I remember a long hot summer, 76 or 77?

We used to have a fair on the local Rec back then with various fairground rides and there used to be a big parade with lot of Jaz and military bands marching down the road to open the whole thing. I wish we could have that again. I couldn't believe it when the council said that that years was the last. I wonder why?

 

[Cobra]

And the problem is...

- Much better music, from Slade, T-Rex, Led Zepplin, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, ELO and the rest of Glam Rock
- Great TV from the BBC and others - Some Mothers, Fawlty Towers, Persuaders, Professionals, Sweeney...

That's why the kids of today are so angry, their music sucks

What was the '70's???..

Probably the "best days of our lives"

 

[Box Brownie]

I certainly remember the Summer of 76 but mainly because I was working mainly in the blood crossmatching lab and that had air conditioning that worked oh so well It had to be kept to a specific temperature to protect the stock being handled out of the fridges. The senior tech there had to tell the regular visitors to stop visiting to much
NB amongst other things the hospital did regular Open Heart Surgery and that was 24 units of blood allocated per surgery!

The haemotology lab on the other hand, the AC failed big time and the hospital facilities team kept putting off repairing/replacing the units. It got to the point that Consultant in charge of the Pathology Department intervened and told the facilities department that if they did not get it sorted all the path lab staff in that section would be told to go home as the conditions were unsafe to work.

PS most of the female staff, I was told, had stripped to their underwear and donned their white coats over that layer

 

[tarric]

oh the train strikes are certainly an utter joke, just back to the miners strike a failing industry losing millions each year
terms being dictated by an old man in a badly fitting suit just like Arthur Scargill
just wants more money but refuses to modernize archaic working practices.
they can just jog on the lot of them

The rail companies are not losing millions last year they paid out hundreds of millions of pounds to their shareholders.
Pre pandemic we had the highest rail cost in Europe and things are not getting any better.


Most workers have seen their salaries drop in real terms over the last decade while companies and investors have made billions.
And that's what the government and the bosses want the workers fighting amongst themselves and each blaming the other for the problems while the real culprits get richer and richer.

 

[imattersuk]

The rail companies are not losing millions last year they paid out hundreds of millions of pounds to their shareholders.
Pre pandemic we had the highest rail cost in Europe and things are not getting any better.

View attachment 375415
Most workers have seen their salaries drop in real terms over the last decade while companies and investors have made billions.
And that's what the government and the bosses want the workers fighting amongst themselves and each blaming the other for the problems while the real culprits get richer and richer.

Culprits ? Shouldn't investors expect a return after risking their cash and helping to fund improvements and provide jobs ?

Mick Lynch is a poundland Arthur Scargill, i've spoken to several rail workers that say they've been forced into this without having a proper say.

 

[Baloo]

And the problem is...

- Much better music, from Slade, T-Rex, Led Zepplin, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, ELO and the rest of Glam Rock
- Great TV from the BBC and others - Some Mothers, Fawlty Towers, Persuaders, Professionals, Sweeney...

You forgot Kate Bush at Number 1!

 

[Cobra]

You forgot Kate Bush at Number 1!

Ah yes, every adolescents favorite goth

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

Culprits ? Shouldn't investors expect a return after risking their cash and helping to fund improvements and provide jobs ?

Perhaps we first need to ask where the investors got their wealth?

 

[lindsay]

It's exceedingly rare that I agree with @imattersuk but on the question of investors' returns, he is correct. All of us with non-state pensions are investors who need a return on our money to fund our income in retirement. The investors who are less deserving of ROI are the hedge funds who short-sell and manipulate markets to make excessive returns. But joe public's pension fund with Legal and General (for example) needs dividends and share price growth from eg Stagecoach in order to pay his pension.

 

[imattersuk]

Perhaps we first need to ask where the investors got their wealth?

You don't have to be wealthy to invest, plenty of small funds that ordinary people can invest in and how do you think private pension funds grow ? There seems to be a really dark undertone with certain sections of society who see anything successful as evil. There are millions of "ordinary" people who benefit from the stock market in one way or another.

 

[tijuana taxi]

Ah yes, every adolescents favorite goth

I think that is Amy Lee albeit a bit later on decades wise

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

But joe public's pension fund with Legal and General (for example) needs dividends and share price growth from eg Stagecoach in order to pay his pension.

This is true.

I think that there is a clear line to be drawn between social investment and capitalist investment.

 

[Cobra]

I think that is Amy Lee albeit a bit later on decades wise

I'd no idea who that was / googled / I was right first time

 

[tijuana taxi]

I'd no idea who that was / googled / I was right first time

I met Kate Bush when she was 17 and so was I, very pretty and actually used words like wow.
Also spoke to her again a few years later when I had a job at the Dance Centre in Floral St.
Very nice lady, but definitely a bit unusual in a good way.

 

[lindsay]

This is true.

I think that there is a clear line to be drawn between social investment and capitalist investment.

There is, and people do have that choice, but most go for the total return rather than ethical investments - most ethicals return less than non-ethical. Capitalist investment per se is not "bad", but it could maybe be policed better. But why should I not invest in eg Rolls Royce as an engine maker and mini-nuclear power station maker, if I think it will be good for my pension fund? I do have an investment in wind farms so I'm not entirely dirty-handed.

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

Capitalist investment per se is not "bad", but it could maybe be policed better.

I agree.

Under the socialist model, which I think you are embracing, it is good for ordinary people to invest small amounts in businesses and projects, which create employment and add wealth to our society. The trick is to prevent greedy people damaging our society and harming others.

 

[lindsay]

Nothing socialist about my investing! I may have a left-leaning moral philosophy, but as an investor I want the best return I can get!

 

[tarric]

It's exceedingly rare that I agree with @imattersuk but on the question of investors' returns, he is correct. All of us with non-state pensions are investors who need a return on our money to fund our income in retirement. The investors who are less deserving of ROI are the hedge funds who short-sell and manipulate markets to make excessive returns. But joe public's pension fund with Legal and General (for example) needs dividends and share price growth from eg Stagecoach in order to pay his pension.

The problem is that the vast majority is not going to the likes of pension funds the investors in UK rail are other countries governments, and it used to be a lot worse before the pandemic but since 2020 Northern, Transport for Wales and Scotrail have been nationalised.

 

[imattersuk]

South Western are 70% owned by Firstgroup who are a FTSE 250 company and 30% by MTR a Chinese listed company and are losing hundreds of millions of pounds so how are shareholders benefiting?

 

[mex]

The problem is that the vast majority is not going to the likes of pension funds the investors in UK rail are other countries governments, and it used to be a lot worse before the pandemic but since 2020 Northern, Transport for Wales and Scotrail have been nationalised.

The rail system in the UK is in tatters, my daughter was yesterday trying to get to Cardiff from Hull. Left Hull 10;00ish on a trans-Penine to Manchester Piccadilly, all went fine until she got to Piccadilly.....the Manchester to Cardiff train cancelled, she asked at the desk her options," get to Wilmslow and get to Crewe, change at Crewe to Cardiff" , great she thinks, "what platform to Wilmslow please?".."I'll check....it's cancelled" her next option...get a train to Reading ( who ever the carrier was would honour her ticket ) then Reading to Cardiff....oh and by the way it'll cost you £72 from Reading to Cardiff as it wasn't the same carrier!!!. Yet they pay a dividend to their share holders. WTAF?

 

[Plain Nev]

Where are my platform shoes when I need them? ;-)

 

[imattersuk]

The rail system in the UK is in tatters, my daughter was yesterday trying to get to Cardiff from Hull. Left Hull 10;00ish on a trans-Penine to Manchester Piccadilly, all went fine until she got to Piccadilly.....the Manchester to Cardiff train cancelled, she asked at the desk her options," get to Wilmslow and get to Crewe, change at Crewe to Cardiff" , great she thinks, "what platform to Wilmslow please?".."I'll check....it's cancelled" her next option...get a train to Reading ( who ever the carrier was would honour her ticket ) then Reading to Cardiff....oh and by the way it'll cost you £72 from Reading to Cardiff as it wasn't the same carrier!!!. Yet they pay a dividend to their share holders. WTAF?

Yes a franchise awarded by the then labour government in 2006, shocking that they felt the need to outsource this vital service, seems the tories plan for taking back franchises from under performing companies is a positive step.

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

One reason not to go back to the '70s: the Hillman Avenger!

 

[Cobra]

One reason not to go back to the '70s: the Hillman Avenger!

Oi ! I had one of those, my first nearly new car

 

[Cockney]

One reason not to go back to the '70s: the Hillman Avenger!

I had a white Avenger estate.
Company car with 3M.
I much preferred it to the Escorts some had.

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

Oi ! I had one of those, my first nearly new car

I may have mentioned this before...

We picked up ten of those awful things from the factory: only six of the batch made it back to the office. I was immediately behind the one that had its prop shaft disconnect from the clutch housing!

 

[imattersuk]

Nothing wrong with this 1970's Avenger