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Subject: Taxes

Author:
Ed Harris (London)

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Date Posted: 00:37:16 11/13/04 Sat
In reply to: Roberdin 's message, "Privatatisation..." on 23:39:41 11/12/04 Fri

1) Transportation is not an industry, it is a public service, and

2) in any case, the Labour Party has proved that increased spending on public services does not necessarily make them any better! Every single public service has had more and more money thrown at it under this Government, and every one of them has got worse... except for the military, which has had more and more money taken away from it and still performs at a level of which we can all be proud.

Increased taxation and more spending is almost never the answer; indeed, often it just serves to mask the root causes of the inefficiencies in the services, and perpetuates institutional corruption.

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[> [> [> [> [> [> [> Subject: Quite so.

Author:
Ed Harris (London)
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Date Posted: 12:28:27 11/14/04 Sun

I understand that the privately-run bullet trains in Japan are posted "delayed" even if their arrival is LESS than a minute late. Moreover, they have had one accident in forty years.

By contrast, we are only refunded if the train is more than an hour late, and virtually every other train is involved in some hideous accident.

A Frenchman told me a joke a few months ago... "How do you find a train in Britain? Follow an ambulance." I remember being very cross at the time, but, frankly, given recent events, I'm inclined to consider the 'joke' as sad rather than irritating. After all, we invented the bloody things, and now the French - whose ability to organise public services has a tradition which makes Yugoslavia look civilised - are making fun of our ability to run a train service.

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