Maggie Thatcher Is Dead.

[Jockstar]

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/margaret-thatcher-dies-age-87-1818018

Britain's first female prime minister Margaret Thatcher dies at age of 87
8 Apr 2013 12:52


HER children Mark and Carol Thatcher announced that their mother Baroness Thatcher died peacefully following a stroke this morning.


Margaret Thatcher.
REUTERS/Andrew Winning

FORMER prime minister Margaret Thatcher has died today following a stroke.

Lord Bell said: "It is with great sadness that Mark and Carol Thatcher announced that their mother Baroness Thatcher died peacefully following a stroke this morning.

"A further statement will be made later."

[Jockstar]

BREAKING NEWS: Former prime minister Baroness Thatcher dies peacefully at the age of 87 after suffering a massive stroke

By Martin Robinson

PUBLISHED: 11:52 GMT, 8 April 2013 | UPDATED: 12:04 GMT, 8 April 2013
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Death: Former Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has died today after a massive stroke

Former Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has died of a stroke today aged 87.

Her spokesman Lord Bell revealed the news that the former politician had passed away peacefully after a long battle with poor health.

Lord Bell said: 'It is with great sadness that Mark and Carol Thatcher announced that their mother Baroness Thatcher died peacefully following a stroke this morning.

'A further statement will be made later.'

Britain’s first and only woman prime minister, who won three consecutive general elections, has been in fragile health since she suffered a series of minor strokes more than a decade ago.

She suffered acute short-term memory loss and had a series of strokes over a decade.

She spent 11 years in Downing Street, the longest run by any 20th century prime minister.

In 1990, a leadership challenge forced her to leave No 10 and two years later she was made a life peer, as Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven.

In recent years she has led a quiet life cared for by her loyal housekeeper Kate. She suffered a minor stroke in 2002 which left her with short-term memory loss.

Her beloved husband Denis died in 2003 and her children Mark and Carol both live abroad.

Her health was thrust into the global spotlight this year with the release of a Hollywood film about her with Meryl Streep in the lead role.


Death: Former Prime minister Margaret Thatcher leaves Number 10 Downing Street for the last time after she was defeated by John Major in the Conservative Party leadership election of 1990

The Iron Lady drew criticism from David Cameron and others for concentrating on the dementia she has suffered. Miss Streep won an Oscar for the role.

Lady Thatcher was not well enough to join the Queen for a lunch with former and serving prime ministers as part of the Diamond Jubilee this summer. And two years ago she missed an 85th birthday party thrown in her honour by Mr Cameron at 10 Downing Street.

In October she was sufficiently well, however, to mark her 87th birthday with lunch at a restaurant in London’s St James’s district with Mark and his wife.

Iron Lady Baroness Thatcher, the grocer's daughter, who became the longest serving British prime minister of the 20th century, is expected to be honoured with a full state funeral at Wesminster Abbey.

Not since Winston Churchill has a politician been granted such a tribute. During her 11 years at Number 10 she changed not only the face of Britain but the entire world.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2305751/BREAKING-NEWS-Iron-Lady-Margaret-Thatcher-dead.html#ixzz2PsBpOsbp
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[Gonzo the Face]

Maggie R I P

Just would like to say that this is one American that thought you were quite the lady and an excellent PM

RIP

[7by7]

Like all Prime Ministers she had her good points and her bad; policies I agreed with and ones I didn't.

One thing is sure, though; she was better than the alternative at the time; Kinnock. Had Labour been able to put up a credible alternative she may very well not have been the longest serving PM of the 20th century.

[Scott]

My condolences to her friends and family. A very interesting lady.

[steve down under]

Having been around during the Thatcher yrs and suffered under her regime 8yrs out of work I can't say that I am sorry to read that she has passed away and I dont doubt that a lot of other people in my age bracket 50+ will feel the same way . !

[SantiSuk]

The inevitable sad day has arrived. Completely shaped my life and reshaped Britain, rescuing it from a socialist hell. I advised her Government on privatisation in my thirties and the middle part of her period in office (the Spitting Images years). I had a lot of contact with her ministers but only met her once - incredible aura about her and like her nemesis in the Tory party, Heseltine, who I had a lot of time for, she was a genuine thinker and an independent actor; most unusual for Tory politicians who are usually too rooted in tradition and sycophantic as <deleted>.

Regrettably in the second half of her reign she went bonkers and lost all contact with her previous common touch. Poll tax was a disaster, but based on the success of her earlier autocracy (like disbanding democracy in London, which I could not have forgiven her for if she had not resurrected Britains economy) she thought she was untouchable. Absolute power eventually breeds its own destruction.

I'm gonna get pi$$ed tonight. A great world icon just passed on.

[HeavyDrinker]

Maggie R I P

Just would like to say that this is one American that thought you were quite the lady and an excellent PM

RIP

You didn't have to grow up in 'Maggie's Britain" nor the Industrial Wasteland she left behind...

Still, a sad day. Love her or hate her she was a political Icon who helped shape the modern world.

[keemapoot]

Maggie R I P

Just would like to say that this is one American that thought you were quite the lady and an excellent PM

RIP

Many considered her Britain's Ronald Reagan. In fact, Reagan and Thatcher were political soul mates. Reagan called her the "best man in England" and she called him "the second most important man in my life." The two shared a hatred of communism and a passion for small government. What America knew as "Reaganomics" is still called "Thatcherism" in Britain.

Like Reagan, Thatcher was an outsider in the old boys' club. Just as it was unlikely for an actor to lead the Republicans, the party of Lincoln, it was unthinkable that a grocer's daughter could lead the Conservatives, the party of Churchill and William Pitt -- that is, until Thatcher. She led the Conservatives from 1975 to 1990, the only woman ever to do so.

http://gma.yahoo.com/margaret-thatcher--britain-s--iron-lady--prime-minister--dies-120034251.html

[Jingthing]

There is no need to be a political ally of her or Reagan (both among my LEAST favorite politicians) to say: RIP.

Edited April 8, 2013 by Jingthing

[Chicog]

Great news, I will celebrate with a few beers tonight.

[Bluespunk]

no tears shed here. not going to say i'm going to celebrate but no sorrow either. she ruined too many lives for that. created a me first and profits at all cost mentality that led to the banking crisis that is still ruining lives today.

[Jingthing]

Will Yingluck attend the funeral?

[keemapoot]

Will Yingluck attend the funeral?

I assume she's busy googling who Thatcher was....

[thenervoussurgeon]

She was at least a leader who cared about Britain ,she did not roll over to the E.U but fought for us against them and against the unions who were hell bent on destroying our great country(i remember the 3 day week ,working with no electricity and having to get around the mounds of rubbish in the street ,because the public sector were striking as usuall) she was not like Blair and co who were just in it for the money and so his wife could make a fortune out of the uman rights laws.(he also gave up our rebate that Maggie won from the E.U .we wont see her like again ,she may not have been perfect ,but at least she loved our country ,she didn't just use it,R.I.P

[Bronzepickup]

Yep.

MT epitomises why Thailand is amazing by comparison with Great Britain.

Grocer's daughter from Lincolnshire knew what she knew.

This is not an invitation for posters to start having a go about Thailand by the way.

Dangerous Lady.

[chiang mai]

A great leader who will be missed, if only we had more of the same, but it seems we've had nothing as great or good since, sad.

[smokie36]

She polarised opinion.

For me I will celebrate with Chicog.

As a Scot she did nothing for me or my communty.

Most north of the Watford gap will feel the same I suspect.

Edited April 8, 2013 by smokie36

[jamhar]

I am truly sorry to hear that. I was a partial liberal at the time she was PM, but i still liked her and admired her. Most Americans i believe felt that way.

I recall one story from a former SAS. Apparently one of the scenarios they ran was one involving some captives holding Maggy (if a yank can call her that). She was touring the SAS facility including the mockup of the building that they were using to run Maggies scenarios. She asked to step in for her dummy so she could see SAS work in real time. (SAS only uses live ammo for their drills. They want NO lapses of concentration at any time). Anyhow all her assistants strongly objected, but she said, "nonsense!" or to that effect. well the exercise went off without a hitch (this is the SAS) and when asked how she felt about it, she said "Delighted!". Live ammo, shooting in the same room with the PM of the UK, and she thought it was fun!

Thats Maggie. Thats the way i want to remember her.

[thenervoussurgeon]

Time to celebrate. Good riddance, the damage to the working classes has been irreparable and is evident in all the troubles in UK society today.

I've been waiting for this good news for too long.

When she was around they were the shirking classes ,not the working classes ,they were always on strike ,we were the lame duck of Europe ,she gave us back our pride.

[smokie36]

You clearly know nothing of Gordon Brown's constituency.

Thankfully I can reassure you that it is impoverished....in a worse state than most places I have lived in the South East. I've lived all over England in the last 20 years....the south has nothing to whinge about.

[keemapoot]

I enjoyed the film The Iron Lady, and Meryl Streep was exceptional. It was high controversial for many reasons, and Thatcher's family hated the portrayal reportedly.

Despite mixed reviews, Streep's performance in the title role garnered near universal acclaim. The Times Kevin Maher said: "Streep has found the woman within the caricature."^[21] David Gritten at The Telegraph commented; "Awards should be coming Streep's way; yet her brilliance rather overshadows the film itself."^[22] Xan Brooks of The Guardian said Streep's performance "is astonishing and all but flawless".^[23] Critic Baz Bamigboye of the Daily Mail wrote: "Only an actress of Streep's stature could possibly capture Thatcher's essence and bring it to the screen. It's a performance of towering proportions that sets a new benchmark for acting."^[24] Richard Corliss of Time named Meryl Streep's performance one of the Top 10 Movie Performances of 2011.^[25]

Becoming her most lauded performance since Sophie's Choice, Streep's portrayal ultimately garnered her the Academy Award for Best Actress (her 17th nomination and third award overall), as well as several other awards, including the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama.^[26][27] The film also won the Academy Award for Best Makeup.

Margaret Thatcher herself did not watch the film, nor did her children.^[28]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Iron_Lady_(film)#Reception

[7by7]

It seems that many here either have short memories or were too young (or not even born) to remember what the UK was like before Thatcher.

Unions always on strike; usually for no reason other than the ego of their 'leaders'; Scargill's strike being a prime example.

Strikes which their members didn't want, but had to go along with from fear of the bully boy pickets and other intimidation.

Strikes which destroyed industries in which Britain used to be world leaders; car making, ship building etc. as customers took their custom to countries where they knew their orders would be filled on time and within budget.

It was the unions which destroyed the UK's industries; if governments prior to Thatcher's had had her balls and stood up to the power hungry union leaders who cared little for their members but a lot about their own power and egos, then this country might still have a manufacturing base to be proud of.

[Scott]

Off-topic posts deleted, as well as replies.

Stay on the topic.

[Mosha]

Having been around during the Thatcher yrs and suffered under her regime 8yrs out of work I can't say that I am sorry to read that she has passed away and I dont doubt that a lot of other people in my age bracket 50+ will feel the same way . !

I'm from that age group, and felt the miners nearly put me out of work at the age of 16. Also not forgetting, she was the PM who paid off the massive war debt our allies incurred upon us.

RIP

[7by7]

Disagreeing with someone's politics is a right, one which thatcher bleived in.

But comments like "Rest in hell, Maggie" are totally uncalled for and say much more about those making them then they do about Lady Thatcher.

When those making such comments time comes, I wish them eternal rest.

[Totster]

She polarised opinion.

For me I will celebrate with Chicog.

As a Scot she did nothing for me or my communty.

Most north of the Watford gap will feel the same I suspect.

I was going to say... we will find out who are the northerners and southerners in this topic..

I thought she was a great PM, represented us well on the world stage.. like others have said she wasn't perfect.. but then none of them are.

totster

[SteeleJoe]

I am truly sorry to hear that. I was a partial liberal at the time she was PM, but i still liked her and admired her. Most Americans i believe felt that way.I recall one story from a former SAS. Apparently one of the scenarios they ran was one involving some captives holding Maggy (if a yank can call her that). She was touring the SAS facility including the mockup of the building that they were using to run Maggies scenarios. She asked to step in for her dummy so she could see SAS work in real time. (SAS only uses live ammo for their drills. They want NO lapses of concentration at any time). Anyhow all her assistants strongly objected, but she said, "nonsense!" or to that effect. well the exercise went off without a hitch (this is the SAS) and when asked how she felt about it, she said "Delighted!". Live ammo, shooting in the same room with the PM of the UK, and she thought it was fun! Thats Maggie. Thats the way i want to remember her.

Not quite right. She visited the "Killing House" which is a permanent facility for close quarters combat training that can be configured for different scenarios (1st SFOD-D -the public calls them "Delta Force" - used their idea to make an even better one), it was not set up to rehearse for a specific set of scenarios including an abduction of the PM, and it's sole purpose is for live fire exercises (I don't believe it's true that the SAS/SBS only use live fire for every exercise but certainly in the Killing House they do).

Others have done the same thing that Mrs Thatcher did but perhaps none so important - mind you Prince Charles and Diana watched participated in exercises including in the KH and Diana's hair got singed by a flash bang.

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa ap

[7by7]

You clearly know nothing of Gordon Brown's constituency.

Thankfully I can reassure you that it is impoverished....in a worse state than most places I have lived in the South East. I've lived all over England in the last 20 years....the south has nothing to whinge about.

And you clearly know nothing of the South East, even though you claim to have lived here.

Some of the UK's most deprived areas and areas of highest unemployment are in London and the South East.

We don't all live in big mansions with uniformed lackeys catering to our every whim!

(I assume you mean the South East of England; if you mean the South East of Scotland I'll take you at your word as I have never lived there.)

[Jingthing]

She advanced feminism.