Kitchen Garden Forum

Hello Alan

Are you sure that you are not letting the green eyed monster influence your thoughts.

There are many people in the rural poor parts of Europe, Asia and Africa that could accuse us all of hypocrisy, the fact that the Prince has more wealth than most of us does not make him a hypocrite for encouraging us, from whatever background to recycle.

My youngest son lets his house to rural Sri Lankans who are over here to study agriculture and believe me we are all filthy rich compared to them.

Barney

He is coming to the Garden of Wales tomorrow for his Project Start. For my sins I shall be on duty as a car park marshall and I am also involved with the web site, tweaking certain things, amongst other things.

I think there are certainly aspects of the Prince's character which come across as a little strange to us lowly mortals, but this project has certainly had a beneficial effect at the Garden, not least by galvanising people to do things that they should have done ages ago. And the number of exhibitors is quite staggering. It will be interesting to see and hear the general reactions of people. Pity about the electric car costing more to run than a normal one - he's arriving from Carmarthen station in one.

http://www.gardenofwales.org.uk/news/pr ... esh-start/

Please don't be put off by his worried look!

According to the lunchtime news he is travelling by the royal train at a cost of £50,000. There's sustainable!

Oh, but it runs on biofuel. There's questionable!

In agreement with Primrose, well said. I am not a royalist but have enough imagination to see that we all are usually doing our best whatever our situation.

Whatever you think about the monarchy and so on the thought of an alternative system is just too awful to contemplate - an elected president from our present or past political mafia?

John

Apparently people who might be in sympathy find this jaunt as ridiculously hypocritical as I do.

http://www.thegwpf.org/energy-news/1495 ... crisy.html

at least having a monarchy means we dont have the 4 yearly presidential election circus....the thought of having blair as president ... makes charlie seem like a good deal

Alan, whilst I think your sentiments are right, don't you think that anyone who lives his entire life in a 'goldfish bowl' would end up pretty strange and probably entitled to be a bit of a hypocrite?

Hi Colin, John and Richard,
You all seem to fear a Presidential System but I ask you to actually pause for a while and think what we actually do have.
We have an elected Lower Chamber and an Upper Chamber which is totally unelected and those sitting in that chamber are either there by fortune of birth or selected as a political tool in order to fight a political party's hand.
It is my firm belief that this is a breach of democracy and is long out of date. We already have the furor of electing the lower chamber and I feel that a clean sweep and clear all those in the upper house, should they wish to remain should pass through an election process of some form which would make them publicly accountable. As it is they can hold up legislation and make a mockery of yours and my vote. This is never correct and it should be changed.
To me the monarchy should have most of their wealth, which is really yours and mine, taken away. The whole royal entourage is in the main exceedingly rich and most of their land should be sold to the public benefit. If they want the land then they should have to buy it from the state.Things would then be on an equal footing and no more dobs from the public purse would save us a small fortune. For what they do they are not simple Worth the money. Lets face it the Queen cannot refuse to sign an act of parliament without abdicating. Really the system that we operate is a farce!
JB.

I concur, JB

In an ideal world you may be right Johnboy. Unfortunately we don't live in one, or anywhere near it. To tinker with the current system would probably cost an awful and what would we end up with? Something like the EU? And yet more jobs for a different set of 'boys'? Would an elected president like Bliar really be better than HRH? Bliar and his entourage will soon be costing us more than the Royal Family!

Or am I merely being too cynical?

Do we need Parliament after all 80% of the laws are made in Brussels.

Hi Colin,
I am sure that there are a great many people who think that in this country we need a complete reform. A fresh start. We have had so called reforms throughout history but none of them have gone far enough.
It has never worked out to a level playing field because the land owners always have the upper hand. Do you know that the PoW actually owns the sea bed of Lyme Bay and has just upset the local fishermen because he has sanctioned the making of a Mussel Farm in the bay. I am afraid that I do not think he should have that right and that the entire coastland and seabed should be owned by us all through the state.
You worry about the cost of a government but I would suggest that if the Royal Lands were sold to sitting tenants and if not sold but leased to then the money would benefit the entire nation and not just one family.
I know that to many I must be coming over as an out and out Communist but I am truly not. I am a Democrat and believe in democracy and the way it all stands at present that there is very little democracy in this country. The first step to democracy is to get rid of the method of government that allows such things as the Royal anomaly and get the land into the hands of those who live by it. Now I know that I have suggested that the land owners have the upper hand but if you have a farm of 1000 acres you will have to work very hard to make a good living and he is no threat to anybody.The land owners I mean are those who own whole counties, such as Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, and grow fat from doing nothing!
JB.

Our system has lots of inequalities and is of course unfair.

Show me a system which is fair and works..
and is democratic...

Hi Madasafish,
Democracy is but a veneer in this country and the sooner that the changes are brought about the better.
We have such anomalies where fines can be levied by companies and I would suggest to you that the Law should be the only authority to actually fine somebody.
Uniformity of Law should be the rule not the exception.
We have god knows how many counties throughout this country and every one has a different set of rules and a different interpretation of what the government have deemed Law. If a Law is passed and becomes statue, then there should be a set of rules governing that Law and any transgression should be allowed to be easily challenged by anybody who it affects if they suspect that they have been unfairly treated in accordance with the set of rules. At present in this country you have to take out litigation and as soon that occurs most people simply cannot afford the legal fees. This is British Democracy as it is today. So what it means is that those who wish to impose their will over others can do so without much fear of reprisal. That is the Democratic veneer!
We strangle ourselves with legislation which in the end means very little to the normal person on the street. That is British Democracy as it stands.
JB.