"Once again, ruling class stirs revolt in Britain as legislators abuse funds" by Alan Cowell, International Herald Tribune | May 31, 2009
PARIS - It happened again in 2003 when more than a of London to tell the then-prime minister, Tony Blair, that they million people took to the streetsdid not want their soldiers to fight in the American-led invasion of Iraq.
And it is happening again in 2009.... legislators are caught out in tawdry manipulation of their expense accounts. The instances of straight cheating and more ambiguous rule-bending are now legend.
The public purse, it seems, financed the cost of cleaning a moat, of purchasing a home for pet ducks, of paying off nonexistent mortgages, of buying manure, crackers, and dog food. Legislators have been caught using public funds to sponsor relatives' accommodations, renovate homes, hire unauthorized spin doctors, and evade taxes. By the standards of chief executives' or investment bankers' bonuses, the amounts were generally modest.
Look at the ELITE CORPORATE PRESS DEFEND the LOOTING!!
Aaaaaaaarrrrgggghhh!
Members of Parliament earn 64,766 pounds - about $104,000 - and are permitted expenses including office costs and an extra 24,000 pounds for running a second home - to be near their constituents or near their colleagues on the green benches of Westminster.
Good thing the British citizens do not have any economic problems or anything, 'eh? I mean, it's not like they are baling out banks like we are, rig.... oh.
Never mind.
But day after day for more than three weeks, The Daily Telegraph has mined a trove of legislators' expense accounts, stoking its readers' revulsion. Legislators from both main parties have been forced to quit, some in the face of angry public encounters with constituents whose sense of betrayal is personal....
I can think of worse things:
And look WHAT ELSE makes an APPEARANCE in my "NEWS" SECTION:
"A woman previously unused to the limelight. She lost her cool during a confrontation with two reporters, and the police intervened."
Are you effin' s***ting me?
"In blow to Brown, British minister quits" by David Stringer, Associated Press | June 5, 2009
LONDON - Prime Minister Gordon Brown's chief whip Nick Brown - in charge of party discipline - said dissidents were actively working to topple Brown, including veterans loyal to former Prime Minister Tony Blair and some maverick lawmakers.
An e-mail by rebel legislators that was leaked to British media tells Brown: "You can best serve the Labour Party and the country by stepping down." Opposition legislators and analysts say a scandal over lawmakers' allowances has exposed Brown's failings - revealing a lack of command over his party and an inability to deliver promised political reforms.
Sounds like my state's guverner.
Lawmakers from all parties have been seen as greedy for charging the public for such things as large-screen TVs, a mole catcher, and repairs to a swimming pool....
Even though members of the opposition Conservatives have been responsible for some of the most outrageous claims, the party has surged ahead in opinion polls. Leader David Cameron is considered all but certain to win the next election....
Certainty? In politics?
Yeah, NOT EVEN a FALSE-FLAG "terror" attack will help Gordo now!
"Britain's Brown refuses to resign as prime minister" by David Stringer, Associated Press | June 6, 2009
LONDON - Prime Minister Gordon Brown of Britain battled desperately yesterday to keep his job, ignoring demands to quit amid a flurry of Cabinet resignations and a swelling rebellion in the ranks of his Labor Party.
Brown, who waited impatiently for a decade to inherit his job from Tony Blair, promoted loyalists to Cabinet posts in a shake-up of his team aimed at restoring his credibility. It follows a scandal over lawmakers' expenses and catastrophic results in local elections. His actions failed to quell a mood of dissent among rank-and-file legislators, or stem a procession of walkouts by once-loyal colleagues....
Brown spent much of yesterday huddled in a basement office in his Downing Street residence, shuffling Post-it notes bearing the names of lawmakers as he finalized his Cabinet shake-up.
Pffft! Shuffling papers, how appropriate the analogy!
Outside, results of British local elections showed a collapse in support for his party, which has held power in Britain since 1997. Brown's Labor looked likely to be pushed into third place behind the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, according to initial results....
Translation: The British public just said WE DON'T LIKE YOU and are FED UP with the LIES and the LOOTINGS!!!!!
"He looks like a wounded animal at the moment," said consultant Lance Doughty. "I think it's really tough for him to stay."
RED FLAG!!! BEWARE!!
FALSE-FLAG TERROR ALERT!!!
Wounded animals are DANGEROUS!
Alan Johnson - often mentioned as a replacement for Brown and promoted Thursday to Home secretary - urged colleagues to unite behind the leader despite the latest election results. "It is vital now, more than ever, that we unite for the sake of the party and the government," he said.
I think "AL-CIA-Duh" -- or rather, "Al-MI5-Duh" is getting ready, don't you?
--more--"
Still wouldn't help, Gordo!
Related: Gordon Brown Puts Israel Lobbyist in Charge of Britian's Middle East Policy
