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Politics : American Presidential Politics and foreign affairs -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Wayners who wrote (64318)	4/17/2013 9:26:23 PM
From: greatplains_guy	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 71588

Socialism does in fact make a group of people who would otherwise be complete failures quite rich. However it takes a lot of people who never become beneficiaries of the sudden wealth and power to put those handful of sociopaths into power.

To: Wayners who wrote (64318)	4/21/2013 10:08:33 PM
From: greatplains_guy	2 Recommendations Respond to of 71588

An American savors the language of Margaret Thatcher's funeral By Andrew Malcolm Posted 09:06 AM ET Britain staged the funeral of former British Prime Minister and staunch American ally Margaret Thatcher the other day. It contained almost all the pomp and circumstance you'd expect from the Brits. They skipped the RAF flyover at the request of Thatcher, a conservative thrift even in death. We wrote here about that impressive day, including its regrettably classless dismissal by America's highest-ranking South Sider. It's as if Obama already knows and resents how much more she accomplished as a leader from the front than he can ever dream of from his chosen position behind. You can watch the entire Thatcher funeral video here. And we have another one below too. As the baroness' remains were being cremated Wednesday, the Marathon Finish Line bombings in Boston were completely distracting this country. Now that the threat of these lethal culprits is over, we wanted to devote a few quiet minutes on this Sunday to ruminate over something that struck us about the Thatcher funeral. British pageantry aside, we were quite taken by the language in general of the service--the music, hymns and gospel--in the exquisite 17th-century St. Paul's Cathedral of Sir Christopher Wren. And more specifically by the sermon of Bishop Richard Chartres. He has a richly-deserved reputation for elocution, diction and simplicity/clarity of presentation. Perhaps you recall his address on marriage to William and Kate at their royal wedding almost exactly two years ago. He offered such insights and lessons about this lasting and recently controversial institution in just a few short minutes. And then there's his British accent. With Chartres peering over his Santa Claus spectacles from the ancient pulpit, we could listen long to this gentleman read the fine print on grocery coupons, so rich, rapturous and precise is his voice, vocabulary, thinking and timing. He certainly exceeds any of the American political blabber you can find by clicking on "Text" in the word cloud to the right here. Baroness Thatcher is fondly, even gauzily, remembered by many Americans. But in Britain she was a polarizing figure, so distinct were her goals and driven were the methods of Thatcherism. She had requested that her friend the bishop give the sermon. He chose to combine history, honesty, affection, pain, conflict and humor. Or humour, if you're reading this in British. Bishop Chartres certainly lived up to his charge. Here's Chartres' very first sentence: "After the storm of a life lived in the heat of political controversy, there is a great calm." And there was in his ensuing pause, a great calm in that historic church at that moment. Chartres continued: "The storm of conflicting opinions centres on the Mrs Thatcher who became a symbolic figure—even an 'ism'. Today the remains of the real Margaret Hilda Thatcher are here at her funeral service. Lying here, she is one of us, subject to the common destiny of all human beings. "There is an important place for debating policies and legacy; for assessing the impact of political decisions on the everyday lives of individuals and communities. Parliament held a frank debate last week—but here and today is neither the time nor the place. "This, at Lady Thatcher’s personal request, is a funeral service, not a Memorial Service with the customary eulogies. "At such a time, the parson should not aspire to the judgments which are proper to the politician; instead, this is a place for ordinary human compassion of the kind that is reconciling. It is also the place for the simple truths which transcend political debate. Above all it is the place for hope." Americans have become accustomed to the spoken political word as mere sound effects for the mundane photo op. Not so on this grey day in London. Scroll down for a complete transcript of the bishop's sermon. And within those paragraphs below you shall find a complete video of his remarks. Turn up the volume. And never mind the politics. Just enjoy the richness of the sonorous spoken sounds. ... more ... with multiple links: news.investors.com