Carrier Bag Crisis Of 2008?

[Revolver]

Lowering petrol taxes is for the good of the nation, but it has a negative effect on certain people. Just as a topical example.

It has a negative effect on Gordon Brown: He can't have as many houses.

[Tomm]

As people have pointed out, carrier bags don't contribute too much to landfills, it's something like 0.1% of all the landfill waste. Getting rid of them is a bit symbolic but it's also because pretty much nobody needs to use these bags, so it's needless waste.

I pretty much never pick up plastic bags at the supermarket, and I survive just fine. At my local one, they've started asking 'would you like a bag?' which I think is good

It has a negative effect on Gordon Brown: He can't have as many houses.

How many houses does Gordon Brown have? The salary for MPs is actually quite low, I think Brown earns something like £70k. Obviously that's still a lot, but compared to top businessmen, lawyers, doctors etc it's less.

[Mark W]

People always say at work, like others, "no I won't have a bag i'll save the planet"

It's like....they've already been made? If you don't take it, somebody else will.

Yes, but if people use less and less, production drops, which is the whole point.

the first plastic bag ever made still won't have roted away...

If everyone did a bit then nothing will be fixed, but the speed at which we have been destroying the earth over the last 100 years could slow. Very very small amount maybe, but something is better than nothing, no matter how small.

That's the thing though, is that everything needs to change from something small happening. Like everyone changing to energy saving light bulbs, not leaving shit on standby, etc. - small, easy to make changes for the individual, but when you realise that if 60,000,000 people in the UK (Or whatever the population is now) did it, there'd be a big difference overall.

Yeah, but if the figures are correct that we use 13 billion bags a year, I bet there are a surprising number of industries and associated people who will be adversely effected by everyone going anti-bag. Just pointing out that there's always another side to all this 'green' propaganda.

I wouldn't really have thought so. If they're like the typical commodity items made in Taiwan or China, the factories get ripped down and rebuilt almost straight away. There was a feature in the Times about it a while back - this one factory made a killing making little tiny metal hooks for bra straps. The industry suddenly got saturated by people doing it, so they completely converted the factory into a different setup in no time at all, then just started making that stuff. There's always random shit that needs to be made, so I doubt anyone would be out of a job for long?

If they really want everyone to use the reusable bags then why ban the making of bags wouldnt that stop anymore from being made, then once there gone their gone. But then wouldn't that put people out of business? Impacting somewhere else in the business community .

Because it'd be hard to ban the production of bags in a different country? I doubt many of them are actually made in the UK. In Ireland, the government put a levy on plastic bags, and usage dropped by something like 90% in a year. That's all the government need to do here, but they won't.

How many houses does Gordon Brown have? The salary for MPs is actually quite low, I think Brown earns something like £70k. Obviously that's still a lot, but compared to top businessmen, lawyers, doctors etc it's less.

The salary is something like that, but the expenses they get more than make up for a 'meagre' salary (For what appears to be largely taking the piss out of other people in the Commons in a fancy way?). One MP got in the shit recently for getting his son £40K in expenses in a year...

[BONGO]

the original OBM is BACK!!!!!

[Gavyn.]

As people have pointed out, carrier bags don't contribute too much to landfills, it's something like 0.1% of all the landfill waste. Getting rid of them is a bit symbolic but it's also because pretty much nobody needs to use these bags, so it's needless waste.

I pretty much never pick up plastic bags at the supermarket, and I survive just fine. At my local one, they've started asking 'would you like a bag?' which I think is good

How many houses does Gordon Brown have? The salary for MPs is actually quite low, I think Brown earns something like £70k. Obviously that's still a lot, but compared to top businessmen, lawyers, doctors etc it's less.

gordon brown apparently only has 1 house that he uses. I don't think he agrees with other MPs having more than one house.

a normal MP gets £61,820 per year but also gets £200,000+ in allowances for staff, computers, housing, living in/commuting to london, 40p per mile in the car and 20p on a bike, 10k for communications, 25k for additional allowances (whatever they are) and 40k for a winding up allowance (what the hell is that?) .

a top lawyer will be lucky to make that.

[Tomm]

To be honest, I don't care. You pay peanuts, you get monkeys. I'd like to think that the people running the country were some of the most intelligent people around. And the salaries of ~300 MPs is basically nothing taken out of the big pot of cash from the millions of taxpayers. And if they're also paying for an office full of staff, it's not like they're just pocketing the dorrah?

[Fish-Finger-er]

To be honest, I don't care. You pay peanuts, you get monkeys. I'd like to think that the people running the country were some of the most intelligent people around. And the salaries of ~300 MPs is basically nothing taken out of the big pot of cash from the millions of taxpayers. And if they're also paying for an office full of staff, it's not like they're just pocketing the dorrah?

yea but your wrong, the people who should be running this country, the real intelligent people, who know how to fix this country. are all working as barbers and taxi drivers.

[Mark W]

To be fair though, MPs have shown time and time again that the position of power and authority they've been put in has been abused. That case of the guy getting his son thousands of pound for one, people using their family members as 'secretaries' so they can get additional salaries going into their household, etc. - stuff as well like how up until very recently (And I think they're still allowed to do it), MPs were allowed to claim up to £250 on expenses with no receipts or proof they'd bought anything at all. They're reducing that to £25 or something like that (can't remember the exact figure), and unsurprisingly a bunch of MPs are complaining, but if they can just get £250 that easily, then it suggests that there are probably numerous ways of abusing the system. Owning two houses, one in London and one out of London, then claiming that the out of London one is your main house meaning you get more money for expenses is also another popular choice.

[Gavyn.]

To be honest, I don't care. You pay peanuts, you get monkeys. I'd like to think that the people running the country were some of the most intelligent people around. And the salaries of ~300 MPs is basically nothing taken out of the big pot of cash from the millions of taxpayers. And if they're also paying for an office full of staff, it's not like they're just pocketing the dorrah?

but 300k is quite a lot to waste on bellends like Prescott who never really did anything ever (except eat).

I too would like to think that they were some of the most intelligent people in the country too. but it really makes me wonder when i see some of the decisions they make. all we've heard about for the last however many months is this 10p tax rate. who writes in the manifesto that they want to try and eradicate poverty in the UK then decides they'll scrap the 10p tax rate and tax some of the poorest people more and the richest less? doesn't take the most intelligent person to work out what a crap idea that is.

[Revolver]

bellends like Prescott who never really did anything ever (except eat).

And f**k his secretary, which is miraculous considering:

• he's a fat b*****d
  
• he's an ugly b*****d
  
• he's a fat b*****d
  
• he's just an all round (round? geddit ) b*****d
  

[Mark W]

but 300k is quite a lot to waste on bellends like Prescott who never really did anything ever (except eat).

...and then throw up.

[Tomm]

I don't understand the 10p tax thing, but I'm pretty sure most of the people complaining about it don't understand it, either. As far as I understand, the people who stand to lose out are child-less couples who are low earning, because they don't qualify for tax credits in the same way as people with children. Fair enough it sucks to be them, but it's a pretty small group, but everyone seems to up in arms about it when they don't really know the whole story - they just see it as a rich vs poor thing. Which it obviously isn't because that's not what Labour are about.

And I don't know what Prescott did, but I know he did more than just eat. He also punched people. Ithankyou.

[Revolver]

...and then throw up.

Shame

[Mark W]

And I don't know what Prescott did, but I know he did more than just eat. He also punched people. Ithankyou.

That was pretty epic. I love how he tried claiming it was an instinctive reaction, despite the way he clearly stopped, looked around, looked at the guy, clenched his fist, then gave him the good news. I've been hit in the head with stuff from randomers before, and I can't recall my first instinct being 'kill'. That came later

[Tomm]

That was pretty epic.

Thanks, it was a good joke.

[Mark W]

Oh you

[Guest]

Oh you

Get a room you two. Christ.

[Simpson]

The salary is something like that, but the expenses they get more than make up for a 'meagre' salary (For what appears to be largely taking the piss out of other people in the Commons in a fancy way?). One MP got in the shit recently for getting his son £40K in expenses in a year...

I don't get people bitching about MP's wages. Sure there a bunch of wankers, especially if you read all the papers which was they get X ammount of money a year, to do a small job such as run a country... yet people forget that if they were in it for the money then they could go and work as a business representitive, (like board room people) earning milions to have a "celebrity" on the board of their company.

As for carrier bags, just use recyclable ones... not that ard' surley

[Mark W]

The former MPs who've gone on to be 'celebrity' people like that generally haven't really done all that well. Can you honestly imagine anyone actually wanting to meet Gordon Brown, or to pay him to spend time with them? EEEEEExactly

The issue I have with it is that basically, we are paying them to do a job, they're then taking more money through easily manipulated loopholes, yet a lot of people would argue they're not doing their job very well. The Government and Opposition in our government are in pretty poor shape at the moment, yet I don't see their salaries going down any time soon. Maybe we need to enforce performance related pay on them like they've tried to do to countless other professions in their time?

[Sam Ward]

The former MPs who've gone on to be 'celebrity' people like that generally haven't really done all that well. Can you honestly imagine anyone actually wanting to meet Gordon Brown, or to pay him to spend time with them? EEEEEExactly

what about boris

or is he just the excption??

[Mark W]

Oh, and by the way:

"When Gordon Brown takes over as Prime Minister, he will receive a pay rise close to £51,000. His wage will be £187,611– a 37% increase on his £136,677 salary as Chancellor."

That's before expenses, which means his salary could easily top £250,000. I'm assuming that Number 10 comes rent-free too?

[BONGO]

what about boris

or is he just the excption??

Mark said Former MP's...

You are technically correct, but Boris resigned as an MP only 2 days ago, so you're not having that one

[Mark W]

Plus he's effectively in office as the Mayor Of London.

It still upsets me to say that. Having said that, fair play to him for banning drinking on public transport so quickly.

[anzo]

Did you attend the par-tay?

[Mark W]

Nope. Went out riding. Saw the inevitable fall-out though, they had to close Embankment tube station. Being on the tube is shit at the best of times, being stuck there with drunk city-types would be whole new worlds of crapola.