And again comrade, edit MR.

The unions which became legalised in or around the 1820s did a great deal of good regarding workers rights etc and there is no doubt that many of todays workers rights and benefits are down to those union ancestors.
However, where it all started to go wrong in my opinion was during the 1970s and In particular the winter of discontent 1978/79 when there were widespread strikes as a result of the Labour government's attempt to control inflation by a forced departure from their social contract with the unions by imposing rules on the public sector that pay rises be kept below 5%.
I was a public sector worker myself in those days and I can say as a result of my own experience that that winter of discontent did more harm than good for the unions reputation, people lying in morgues because of gravediggers been on strike, piles of rubbish piling up on rat infested streets as a result of binmen striking, flying pickets blockading hospital entrances which meant only emergency admissions were allowed, were just some of the consequences of the union led strikes of that period .
These type of actions sickened most fair minded people of this country and that's when people started to question the power of the unions, many thought they had become to powerful and political.
There is still an important role for unions to play in todays society and the workplace would be a poorer place without them for sure, but in my opinion, the trade union movement must choose between complete reinvention of itself or an accelerating slide into irrelevance, dragging the Labour party down with it.

With regards to the person who said ...tube drivers risk their lives every day because of the terror alert, yes they do run the risk every day, but so do the thousands of passengers who ride on those very same trains every day, most of whom can only dream of the type of wages and conditions those drivers are on.
in any case, this particular debate will be inconsequential before very long when driverless tube trains become operational.

Listen here BF mate.

I started this thread to provide what I hoped would be some helpful advice to warn my fellow fans to be aware of being caught up in possible travel disruption.

No problem for me that the thread has been hijacked by several of you to talk about the pros and cons of strikes and this one in particular, but by getting personal, hurling insults, going along the superior intelligence line on a couple of occasions and using colourful language, I think you have ramped up your nob factor tenfold IMO.

Not the result you wanted and certainly not what I expected from someone who generally posts very insightfully. Suggest you reread all your posts here and let us know if you agree.

This is a very well written and accurate post.

There is no better example of the consequences of the action of union excess and needless confrontational tactics by union action in the 70s than the decline of Hull. When Hull Dockers went on strike with excessive regularity back then, they gave no heed to the ships waiting to dock and stuck day after day in the Humber. Cue the growth of Europort in Rotterdam and then Immingham and Felixstowe. The knock on effect was the steep decline of port-dependent support industry within Hull as suppliers sought out alternative ports with less potential union disruption.

The growth of the alternative supplier was born. I suspect that the unions involved in the TFL Tube strike are flexing their muscles because there is no direct alternative like for like supplier in London.

I hope that Cup final weekend is a treasured memory that you and your daughter will take to the grave .....sincerely, I meant no harm! .....Enjoy this fantastic unique moment in time with your daughter and the rest of your family and treat the trivial bulls**t of day to day life as exactly what it is .....bulls**t! ...... We are at Wembley, my friend! .....How great is that?! .....Haha!

Here, here! .....We are at Wembley, my friends!!!!

I absolutely stand by everything I posted.
It's a public forum. If people post opinions then expect replies. Some of the opinions posted we're by people who were clearly parroting media lines drawn by interested political parties. They are then open to question or ridicule dependent on content. Some of the posts were clearly idiotic and they pressed the submit button so they're open to reply.
If I then point out their idiocy on that topic don't cry about it.
Of all the issues raised you and Dreary get upset about swearing......all the moral and ethical issues and swearing brings you to post...not the loss of human rights not the media control not the use of humans as a cog in the economy etc etc........it's a bloomin' word on a page...gas out your gob.....nothing more unlike people's right to protect themselves and their livelihood.
Regarding unions it's 2015 folks not 1978.
Your a decent fellow and the forum is better having decent fellows on it but please 're arrange your moral compass a bit.

Less heat, more light and all that. And swearing is discouraged on here. Please desist. Ta, MR.

So it's ok to post as long as they agree with you got it well like you I stand by what I said and think some of the things you said are so outdated like you said at the end it's 2015 not 1978 were you still seem to be

Full stops are a useful sometimes. They can help make statements decipherable.

So in one post you point out about someone going on about a swear word and make a big deal about it then you point out about my grammar mistakes priceless

The sin bin offers a place to discuss political issues and other controversies. Maybe take that bit there and use this thread for discussing how to avoid or mitigate any travel problems around the Cup final. Cheers.

You cheeky lairy little f***er. 10/10 for chutzpah. You need to get into the Rovers dressing room and give the team talks at half time as we need someone with your kind of passion. Occasionally your kind of passion needs to be channelled effectively or it will spill over into soapboxing and confrontation.

I've reread all your posts. You've gassed out a curious mix of pragmatism and total .

FWIW, here's my take.

The real world has historically been and still remains a harsh place, where generally speaking fairness and the bigger picture is the best path to follow, but sadly is not followed by or achieved by many.

Trade unions have achieved a lot in the past, but there was a time when their behaviour became too destructive for our wellbeing as a nation and Maggie sorted this out. Fast forward to 2015 and their are several trade union leaders whose behaviour is becoming undemocratic and whose rhetoric is sounding depressingly familiar to me. McCluskey, Serwotka and Ms Blower and Mrs Boustead running 2 of the largest teaching unions spring to mind.

The tube drivers have achieved a fair overall package to date by collective union bargaining and I feel that there are many in the public sector who have a more deserving case for improved remuneration and working practices, especially in London. I don't subscribe to the pathetic attempt by Boris and TFL management to impose an arbitrary start date and changes to working practices without effective prior consultation and dialogue, which would appear to be the case here.

Language PR!!!

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