Winner presented with certificate.

[Passing Time]

2 hours ago, A fool and his money..... said:

Well I wouldn't swap with him for all the tea in China. Simply pointing out that his position is an extremely expensive colonial anarchism which we could certainly do without - especially in such straightened times.

Stop talking shite. His role is to keep an eye on this island. I for one is very happy that he is. At least he is involving himself in island life 

[Passing Time]

2 hours ago, A fool and his money..... said:

I agree, he's the best one we've had in a long time, probably ever. He's personable, interested and engaged in what's going on in the island. I have nothing against him, in fact you can't help but like the man.

It doesn't change the fact though, that the position he occupies is completely mental, extremely expensive and equally unnecessary in our 21st century democracy.

Very necessary given the clowns we have in power at the moment 

[Passing Time]

2 hours ago, A fool and his money..... said:

Work ethic!? Don't get me wrong he seems like a nice fella, but he's shaking a few hands and quoffing tax-payer funded champagne, not getting up at six in the morning to dig up the roads in the rain like some of the people who are paying for him to live in the lap of luxury on five times their salary. He doesn't even pay income tax FFS, what's all that about?

You really are a grade A+++ balloon knot

[Jarndyce]

1 hour ago, Passing Time said:

At least he is involving himself in island life 

How far did he get in the chilli-eating contest, anyway?

[2112]

11 hours ago, Omobono said:

but he will get his gong one day  even if its only for holding the office  speaker ,  thats as long as he does not disgrace himself 

You would then know that the bottom of the barrel has been scrapped. It was disgusting that Professor Ashford was gonged for his supposed services to COVID, and ‘Leadership’. 

[La Colombe]

19 minutes ago, 2112 said:

You would then know that the bottom of the barrel has been scrapped.

Not much use then. You know, as a barrel. 

[A fool and his money.....]

19 hours ago, Fred the shred said:

 We are a Crown Dependency and we have to have someone to represent the King. 

As I have said, I don't dispute that he is a likeable, and gracious man. I haven't met him but know lots of people who have, they all speak positively of him without exception.

I do find it strange though that you choose to justify his archaic position by claiming we need someone to represent the King. Neither position is vaguely democratic and neither position has any place in a 21st century democracy. There was a time when hereditary kings and queens were relevant, there was a time when colonial rulers sending a figure head to keep an eye on the locals was relevant. Both times have long since past.

I get that people love the monarchy, and are very fond of our present governor. I get that. But it takes a very short sighted view of history to believe that all British monarchs are sweet little old ladies and not brutal mass murdering lunatics, or indeed that all governors are smiley members of the orange army with the best interests of the island at heart.

The point is that our recent good fortune on both counts has been more down to good luck than good judgement. We have no political influence whatsoever over who either of them are or over what they do with their power. How can you rationalise that within our highly prized democracy? Simple answer, you can't.

Our democracy is something to be extremely grateful for. It's not perfect, no political system ever is, but it's a privilege not afforded to everyone in the world and one in which our opinion can be counted. Greater democracy is something we should strive towards and aspire to. An obvious place to start would be dispensing with these type of completely undemocratic and very costly positions.

I get that they're mainly ceremonial, and that the power they hold is actually more limited than it would seem. IMHO I think that makes things even worse. The role of governor, and lord of man are both costly and condescending to the Manx people. The idea that they're only really for show makes an even bigger nonsense out of an already completely nonsensical situation.

I can just about see a UK argument for keeping some form of monarchy in the UK, with the tourism it may or may not create. I don't see hoardes of tourists taking selfies at government House though, despite the astronomical cost of the whole debacle. The time is long overdue to consign this archaic role to the history books where it belongs. We need to be progressive and not stuck in colonial times, which are not something we should be celebrating or perpetuating. I think we just need to grow up as an island, the world has moved on and rightly so, perhaps we need to stop lagging hundreds of years behind.

[La Colombe]

On 9/24/2023 at 6:54 AM, GD4ELI said:

Lightweights! I'm growing reapers here, along with Dorset Naga.

Yer big cissy. Appropriately named Ed Currie's Pepper X.

[GD4ELI]

7 minutes ago, La Colombe said:

Yer big cissy. Appropriately named Ed Currie's Pepper X.

I saw that, think I'll pass.

Must say, the Dorset NAGA taste is wonderful, just be sensible.