God damn, this country makes me angry....

[RFChris]

I know, I know, everyone is upset with the current 'climate' but this really is getting stupid now. I've just read the news story on the BBC's website regarding the fuel protests and all it has done has gone to show just how detached from the real world our 'leaders' really are.

 

Here's what I mean....

 

People will have to stop working sooner or later because there's no point working for a loss.

 

Pretty much sums it up Arthur, people are going to run out of money and not be able to live. Pretty simple conclusion given the current state of things. That's not him saying "ooh, it's a bit hard", this is almost an admision of defeat; unless things change families will suffer.

 

So, what are the responses from the cretins in charge? Well....

 

Ministers should acknowledge widespread concerns over soaring fuel costs but not be forced into policy decisions by protests. Everybody is feeling the impact of the increased cost of living. That's something the government will have to think about.

 

No, Louise, it's not something that they are going to have to think about, nor is it something that we, and more specifically the hauliers are "feeling". This is a situation that has to reacted to, not fooking "thought about". How much of an utterly un-educated and brainless response is that? Clearly she, just like the others, has no idea or perception of the severity of what is happening. But then again, she's probably on £45k a year so why should she?

 

It gets better....

 

The government understands businesses and families are "feeling the pressure from high fuel prices. The "immediate priority" is to encourage oil-producing countries to increase output, a 2p-per-litre fuel duty increase has been put back from April to October and fuel duty is "still 11% below its 1999 level in real terms.

 

My God...what an utter load of bullshit. I'm sorry Mr Spokesman, but coould you attempt to fit a few more scapegoats into that response? The issue here does not lie with AMOUNT of oil being produced, it lies with you idiots and the amount of tax being put on it. What has the production got to do with anything? And even if it increased ten-fold, it sure as shite doesn't mean the price will go down. And as for the 11% remark, well, that just makes my blood boil. I'm willing to bet that not one person from the government office could explain, in terms that wouldn;t make me want to puch them, what "real terms" are. I suspect "real terms" are simply based around a mythincal world in which no one with any common sense resides.

 

Basically, instead of finding excuses, they need to find solutions, but that would mean actually doing some work so I'm not holding my breath.

 

There's still more....this time in regards to the proposed TAX hike on all cars built after 2000.

 

The chancellor is listening to what people are saying about vehicle excise duty.

 

Oh, that's good to hear...until Jack Straw said this, which I'm sure you'll agree sums up the attitude of the UK government. In fact, it could go down in history as one of the most stupid confessions in the history UK politics....sit down, it's a good one.....

 

I fully understood the hauliers' concerns, but government revenues have to come from somewhere.

 

Rule Britannia, eh?

 

Sorry about that, rant over.

[antz]

bend over britannia more like

[badchild]

Here here! you've been through the thatcher era, hence the brown era's going to down in history too

[surfingturnip]

I'd be tempted to pour petrol over numerous government officials and then throw a match in their general direction, but thanks to these new taxes that are paying for their new tv I cant afford the petrol in teh first King place

[ratman]

haulage frim owner on the radio this morning said his fule bill has gone up £35.000 for april/ may 2008 compaired to april /may 2007 no wonder the truckers are fighting

 

good luck i say

[sporty-corty16v]

my old man runs 4 trucks, they fill up every over day at a cost of aprox 7-800 quid a shot, and he has to find that before any other payouts and takes any money him self

[Vista]

Agree with all your displeasure Chris, but in fairness one of the reasons the price is so high globally is lack of supply. Ok our government is creaming more off the top than others in terms of tax (and tax on tax ) but the price of a barrel of oil has more than doubled in the last 18 months (making them even more tax), the oil price increase itself though is mainly due to new demand from India and China as their economies take off.

[RFChris]

Agree with all your displeasure Chris, but in fairness one of the reasons the price is so high globally is lack of supply. Ok our government is creaming more off the top than others in terms of tax (and tax on tax ) but the price of a barrel of oil has more than doubled in the last 18 months (making them even more tax), the oil price increase itself though is mainly due to new demand from India and China as their economies take off.

 

I know, i didn't really make myself clear there. Yes, more would be good, but fuel doesn't need to be priced the way it is because of the decreasing amounts available. Sadly, the cost of a barrel will always be the first line of retreat for the government as, technically, it's point that cannot be argued.

 

But, for them to say 1.30p/l is both down to and justified by this is wrong. Thats not a solution, it's merely a constant act of procrastination, just to avoid the problem at hand.

 

The notion of oil being expensive is of no comfort to hauliers and drivers alike. It's a fact that they and we, as drivers, are well aware of. But that doesn't justify the tax. In my eyes the government are making up for their shortcomings by taxing the one faucet of our lives that they know we will never give up and that, weather we like it or not or more importantly weather they will admit it or not, is bullying.

 

Chris

[MEXY867M]

I think the haulage companies are doing it all wrong instead off driveing through london and other places etc they should shut there companies down for aweek or so no deliveries to tesco,or any other stores,yes I know it would hit us all but thats the way it hurts most,everyone would lose money,and the goverment well thats another kettle of fish"fooking arsewipe"

[Jimbob-Squarepants ©]

I couldn't agree more with you Chris

 

Maggie Thatchers 'final nail in the coffin' was the introduction of Poll Tax... that showed her the door. I think the rising fuel costs (read that as duty and VAT on fuel) is Brown's. I tell you what, for someone who wants to be a prime-minister, he is doing a teriffic job of losing his priviledge... I mean, you don't piss off the massive majority of your voters do you? Livingstone did that and look where it got him

 

This country should be run by sensible, down to earth and normal people. That would be us then - the VOTERS! A good leader will listen and act on their voters words, not totally ignore them like they aren't there. Well guess what, we are here, WE voted for you, and WE can vote you straight back out.

 

In response to one of Chris's quotes (Jack Straw)... government revenue needs to come from somewhere does it??? Stop lining your own back pockets with it... simple! Now that is a King 'light bulb moment' if you ask me

 

We desperatley need some sort of revolution in this country.

[Vista]

I'm going to stick my head above the parapet here and go on record as saying that I approved of Maggies poll tax (ducks to avoid volley of bullets )

 

Think about it, at the moment the home owner is being crippled by the fact that our extortionately expensive council tax is funding almost all of local taxation whereas most local council services are used by all. Why shouldn't all that use those services help contribute to their funding?

[X FLOW EDDY]

Well i hope that the truckers of this fair isle bring this whole country to a standstill like they did in 2000, with out trucks this country is fu*ked. Every thing in our shops and supermarkets is deleverd in a truck and if the price of fuel gets much higher then they wont delever it because the compenyes that run the trucks carnt afford the fuel. I have worked for haulage firms for the last 12 years as a fitter and the amount of small lorry firms that have gone to the wall just lateley is staggering it just carnt go on like this the price of fuel has to drop or people like me and a lot more besides will louse there jobs and end up on the dole soaking up more state money. Gorden brown and his band of nuggits have fu*ked this country over.

[Jimbob-Squarepants ©]

I'm going to stick my head above the parapet here and go on record as saying that I approved of Maggies poll tax (ducks to avoid volley of bullets )

 

Think about it, at the moment the home owner is being crippled by the fact that our extortionately expensive council tax is funding almost all of local taxation whereas most local council services are used by all. Why shouldn't all that use those services help contribute to their funding?

 

A point well made mate

[badchild]

I say we at osf make a coup!! we'll march on downing street, take it by force and because posse is leader of this site, we'll elect him for prime minister!! could you imagine, instead of 2 jags prezza, 2 tinas posse lol!!

[Mr Sam]

voice your anger here....

 

[razersedge]

don't forget about esso and bp announcing record profits in April just gone so the fuel company's are doing there share to this imminent catastrophe

[Mr Sam]

don't forget about esso and bp announcing record profits in April just gone so the fuel company's are doing there share to this imminent catastrophe

 

i remeber years ago on the money programe they recconed BP made over £300 a second,,,,,,,Profit and that was some years ago

[jimbo]

Agree with all your displeasure Chris, but in fairness one of the reasons the price is so high globally is lack of supply. OK our government is creaming more off the top than others in terms of tax (and tax on tax ) but the price of a barrel of oil has more than doubled in the last 18 months (making them even more tax), the oil price increase itself though is mainly due to new demand from India and China as their economies take off.

 

Agreed. Not only the increase in demand from Asia, but also a weak trading dollar and large amount of speculative investment in oil stocks, and interruptions to supply in Iraq and Nigeria.

 

I know that hauliers say that their business isn't sustainable at these prices, and I assume from that companies whose operations rely on road-haulage for their operation cannot be sustainable either. But neither is the supply of oil. So surely the only sustainable way forward is to move away from our current situation, where logistics are centralised, or regionalised, and food and goods travel hundreds of miles up and down the country before they get to the shelf. The alternative is to move to an economy where logistics take on a more localised approach, and we end up buying locally sourced products from locally run business. Putting money into the local economy, rather than a Chinese manufacturer, or fat-cat shareholders and investors.

 

Ultimately, we need to move away from our reliance on oil and, as Plato said "necessity is the mother of invention". I hope that a buffer of high fuel duties gets the UK thinking now about how we are to live life without oil. As far as I see it, that it the underlying problem at the heart of this issue. Cutting fuel duty now just delays the inevitable pain of change, and will simply mean we pay more tax somewhere else.....

[toad650]

don't forget about esso and bp announcing record profits in April just gone so the fuel company's are doing there share to this imminent catastrophe

 

i remeber years ago on the money programe they recconed BP made over £300 a second,,,,,,,Profit and that was some years ago

 

If BP are making that much money how much are the government making? If they didn't get 20grand a year to spend on there second homes, along with all there expenses etc, i'm sure there'd be a bit more money in the pot. They earn a fat wedge anyway then get all the extras and a nice fat pension once they've fooked everything up and have got 2 nicely decorated houses.

 

There prob loving all the ho har about fuel cos its taken the focus off there dodgy doings of a couple of weeks ago!

 

Hmmm ranting n i'm not even out of bed yet, gonna be a good day

[ratman]

Just filled up my jerry cans for the weekend £4.00 dearer than last month

[sambo]

Agree with all your displeasure Chris, but in fairness one of the reasons the price is so high globally is lack of supply. OK our government is creaming more off the top than others in terms of tax (and tax on tax ) but the price of a barrel of oil has more than doubled in the last 18 months (making them even more tax), the oil price increase itself though is mainly due to new demand from India and China as their economies take off.

 

Agreed. Not only the increase in demand from Asia, but also a weak trading dollar and large amount of speculative investment in oil stocks, and interruptions to supply in Iraq and Nigeria.

 

I know that hauliers say that their business isn't sustainable at these prices, and I assume from that companies whose operations rely on road-haulage for their operation cannot be sustainable either. But neither is the supply of oil. So surely the only sustainable way forward is to move away from our current situation, where logistics are centralised, or regionalised, and food and goods travel hundreds of miles up and down the country before they get to the shelf. The alternative is to move to an economy where logistics take on a more localised approach, and we end up buying locally sourced products from locally run business. Putting money into the local economy, rather than a Chinese manufacturer, or fat-cat shareholders and investors.

 

Ultimately, we need to move away from our reliance on oil and, as Plato said "necessity is the mother of invention". I hope that a buffer of high fuel duties gets the UK thinking now about how we are to live life without oil. As far as I see it, that it the underlying problem at the heart of this issue. Cutting fuel duty now just delays the inevitable pain of change, and will simply mean we pay more tax somewhere else.....

 

I fully agree with you mate.

[cisco24uk]

This country needs to start flexing its muscles a bit. I agree with all th epoints made however lets face it until we either, get someone voted in who is going to make some 'real ' changes in the finance department like putting a stop to people who could work but feel it necessary to scrounge off the country, stop making the tax payer have to fund murderers and pedofiles to live in jail and then pay for them to be relocated, and get these illegal imagrents chucked out of the country so we can have an even playing field again, nothing but a good revolution is going to sort the country out.

[sambo]

Trouble is, is that there are no jobs.

A friend of mine, got fired a while back, yes it was his own stupidity but we all make mistakes, anyway he could not get a job atall. He asked job centers and factories etc, and every single unskilled job is taken up by immigrants. Absolutly no jobs enywhere. Now he is doing odds and sods through agencies but nothing secure and permanent. This country sucks that we employers dont even look after its own and would rather pay cheap labour rates to foreigners. Our doors were too wide open and now there are just simply too many here.

[Rick]

im sick of being fed bullshite all the time. anyone with half a brain knows why this country is going down the pan.

 

theres too many people on the breadline without bringing more from abroad.

 

I think taxation is getting out of hand especially now all these green taxes are being added without any hard evidence.... it will take more than a few bad storms to convince me that MAN is responsible for global warming and just cuz a toff and some high earning scientist tells me every day, doesnt make it so

 

im starting to wonder whether theres something bigger in mind for this country that we just havent been told yet.... im no conspiracy theorist but it does make you wonder sometimes

[razersedge]

If there is such a thing as global warming WHY THE HELL DOES IT KEEP BLOODY RAINING ALL THE TIME!! AND WERE IS THIS NICE WEATHER I HAVE BEEN DOING MY BIT FOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!