Hell in a handcart....

[perrykneeham]

Hang on though. They took on the franchise knowing this and have pissed the money away each time they've had it, on dividends.

Raising capital (whether through income, investment or loans) must be in order to run the functions of the business. Dividends are not an end in themselves.

Some folks want hanging here. All want flogging.

[perrykneeham]

Mar 28, 2024 10:10:35 GMT moggyonspeed said:

100% renationalise.

I felt a pang of sympathy for Chris Weston, since January this year the new Chief Executive of Thames Water, when interviewed on Radio 4 this morning. Clearly he's been dealt what we in the rugby fraternity deem "a hospital pass" in being offered the role, as it's odds-on that he's going to really p*ss off some people. Obviously too we have the situation where the shareholders won't stump up the cash to upgrade Thames's woeful infrastructure, their go-to response being that its customers should pay higher (much higher) bills - this at a time when most customers are feeling the financial pinch already.

Do I think the privatisation of Thames Water has failed? Largely yes as, whilst the promised ability of the organisation to raise capital on the open market has been achieved, this same capital has been used to bolster shareholder dividends at the expense of bringing its Victorian infrastructure into the 21st century.

The wanker wants a 40% hike in bills? How about piss off, you talentless bellend?

Okay, 40% and no dividends for 30 years. Does that work? No.

They've had this money, time and time again, but given it away. This is the very worst of capitalism. All management accountants must be put to death.

[voice]

Another failed Tory policy where a few of their rich mates get very much more richer and the public gets screwed over. Odd the hard of thinkers never join the dots.

[perrykneeham]

Bollocks. It's been 30 years. Labour were balls deep in this.

[perrykneeham]

I see that Starmer's got no answers, but looks a bit cross.

[flatandy]

Mar 28, 2024 8:41:14 GMT perrykneeham said:

Time to nationalise Thames Water, sue every director for the past 30 years, and bankrupt the shareholders.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68682198

Obviously an essential public good that is a monopoly by definition, such as clean water delivery to peoples' homes, should be in public hands. It's nonsensical and was always nonsensical to have water privatised and treated as a free market thing. And water companies should be the first thing renationalised, long before the trains that people make such a fuss about. Even before the private hospitals and private schools.

But if someone has to raise billions of quid for water infrastructure repairs, it has to eventually come from the people who use the service, whether from taxpayer or water bill payer. And I'm sure the money does have to be spent.

I fully endorse Baloo's proposal that if it stays private then they can't pay themselves any divvies and give themselves any returns until any money raised has worked through the system.

[flatandy]

Back to the earlier story

One teacher told BBC News behaviour was a "never-ending battle". Another said spitting, swearing and chair-throwing were among the things happening often.

I'm not sure that spitting and swearing qualify as being part of this. Teachers getting hit is a big problem. Chair throwing is a big problem. Spitting and swearing are not.

I do wonder how many "teachers getting hit" are getting hit by frustrated 5 year olds, and how many are getting attacked by burly teenagers who can actually cause real harm. If it's all the latter then it's a genuine worry. But if "swearing" is part of " a never-ending-battle" I do wonder if the teachers might be being a bit precious in their definitions.

[mids]

I bet no pupils swear, spit or hit teachers at Birbalsingh's school.

[flatandy]

Anyway, here's a proper "Hell In A Handcart" story. Apparently Britain is in terminal decline because the Sainsbury's meal deal hasn't gone up in price but now can include a yoghurt as the "main":

www.independent.co.uk/voices/sainsburys-meal-deal-tesco-sandwich-yoghurt-b2519428.html

[flatandy]

I'm pretty sure the Sainsbury's Meal Deal was 3 quid 50 back in the '90s. I can't believe it hasn't gone up.

Also, as always with these stories, the comparison is bollocks. The $1.50 hot dog/pizza slice at Costco is a thing of legend, but the point of that is that it's a sort-of-reward for going to Costco and buying a load of sh*t you don't need. It's a reward for buying boxes of cornflakes so big that they'll expire before you finish them. It's a loss-leader. The Sainsbos Meal Deal is for hungry office-drones who aren't also doing the rest of their grocery shopping at the same time. They don't have a deep freeze at their desk to store the ice cream they bought at lunchtime. It's a thing in itself, not a way of drawing shoppers in to spend money elsewhere.

[mids]

Ahahahaha!

"A Cadbury store has been criticised by a Christian campaign group for advertising chocolate Easter eggs as "gesture" eggs.

According to the Daily Telegraph, the shop in Springfields Outlet in Spalding, Lincolnshire, was offering a two for £10 deal on the "gesture" eggs."

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-68673505

[flatandy]

Surely they can compromise and sell "geese-ter" eggs?

[mids]

[flatandy]

Oh! Hahahahahahaha! This if f**k**g magnificent:

Tim Dieppe, the head of public policy at Christian Concern, said Easter eggs were a "clear symbol of the Easter story".

He added: "It seems very odd that someone would want to try and separate Easter from eggs. Once you do that, you lose the meaning of the eggs."

Mr Dieppe accused the store of trying to "erase the connection between Easter and eggs".

Hahahahahahahaha! Of course everyone knows that eggs are a symbol of Christan easter. Not that they're a pagan symbol of the return of the green shoots of spring. Oh no. It was the miracle of easter that Jesus didn't break his eggs while hammering nails through them onto the cross at Calvary.

Every year, we went to the church of St Frideswide On The Green and every year our rector of the church would give each of us 4 eggs and each time we'd try and nail them on to the big balsa-wood cross he made in the rectory garden - one in the position of each hand and foot - and each time we broke one we'd get taken inside and buggered by a member of the church clergy to teach us the lesson that God was great and that the miracle of the eggs on the cross showed his mighty power and how we should therefore kneel before him, and before the members of the clergy with their raised vestments.

[mids]

I thought Jesus's cave was blocked by an egg? St Frideswide is a great name for a saint. Never heard that one before.

[flatandy]

Patron saint of Oxford. Proper Saxon name.

Her "miracles" include god giving her a boat that sailed her to a small village in Oxfordshire that doesn't have a river going through it, in order to evade marriage, and then blinding her suitor for trying to get her out of her vow of celibacy. And god bringing up a well in Binsey (which is about 300m from the Thames) so she didn't have to fetch water from the river.

Utterly pathetic miracles.

[moggyonspeed]

Surely the only foods, as mentioned in the Bible, that are part of the Easter story are bread, wine and a sponge(*) dipped in vinegar. Anything else - hot cross buns, chocolates, bunny rabbits etc. - are all pure sophistry. Even so, Mr. Tim Dieppe can just go and "do the other thing" as far as I'm concerned.

Have a lovely Easter/gesture/continuing-Ramadan break, as I'm logging off now to go pick up my prescription (which, you cheeky sods, is NOT a euphemism for "something for the weekend, sir").

TTFN.

(*) NOT a Victoria sponge.

[flatandy]

Why wouldn't it be a Victoria sponge? Is there anything in the bible saying it's not? Is it a Battenburg?

[perrykneeham]

Blooooody hell. This really is degenerate stuff ....

"A council has apologised after parents were offered a choice of class photos with or without children with complex needs in them.

Parents at Aboyne Primary complained after being sent a link from a photography company offering them alternative pictures.

Aberdeenshire Council said the decision was not taken by the school and the link to the photos was immediately removed."

www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce5epgp2zdno

[perrykneeham]

Funny, mind. Life imitating art.