England's Forests under attack from the Tories

Mexicola · Post by **Mexicola** » Mon Jan 24, 2011 8:12 pm

Really surprised this hasn't been mentioned here already???

In a nutshell, our glorious government are at it again. Maggie Thatcher had a go at this in the 1980's and it seems old Spamface Cameron would very much like to sell off great swathes of Forestry Commission land. Not too surprisingly, many right-wing toffs are very much behind the idea, no doubt happy to keep the great unwashed 'OFF MOI LAND!!'.

If you've ever enjoyed wandering around some of our (increasingly small) forests, PLEASE take a read and consider signing up.

BBC Article here.

SIGN THE PETITION @ The Woodland Trust here.

Thank you.

The Friendly Stranger · Mon Jan 24, 2011 8:51 pm

When will they learn that selling our state assets is plunging us deeper and deeper in the shit? So many resources and industries have been sold off when they should have been supported financially by the government if only to keep people in employment and keep the benefits bill down. And now this! Do we not even own our own soil any more?

A_Northern_Soul · Post by **A_Northern_Soul** » Mon Jan 24, 2011 9:49 pm

Signed and shared the link with pretty much everyone, thanks Mexicola.

Is it me are this government - like MT's in the 80's - just deliberately being utter bastards?!

Numerator · Post by **Numerator** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 7:39 am

signed this and supported it, I live nearby the New Forest in hampshire and to see something happen to it would be fucking terrible

bleak. · Post by **bleak.** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 8:17 am

Numerator wrote:signed this and supported it, I live nearby the New Forest in hampshire and to see something happen to it would be fucking terrible

i feel very much the same, the woodlands in the aeron valley are very personal to me. its a place where i can escape for hours on end. its a place where i truly feel alive and immersed in overwhelming, ever changing beauty. to see it go would be like loosing a piece of myself.

Quillian · Post by **Quillian** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 8:18 am

Signed and I'll throw the link to friends.

Not that it will make any difference... but hey, it's worth a shot.

So... serious question: how long do we let governments and corporations fuck things up for us before we start fighting back?

Xurbatronic · Post by **Xurbatronic** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 1:10 pm

A_Northern_Soul wrote:Signed and shared the link with pretty much everyone, thanks Mexicola.

Is it me are this government - like MT's in the 80's - just deliberately being utter bastards?!

I'm always a little tentative when replying about politics. If you take any stance which aligns itself with any of the parties, you risk being perceived as a supporter of whichever party that is. I lived through the Margaret Thatcher years, the poll tax, persecution of the new age travellers and finally massive recession. It wasn't good, I thoroughly agree. Then I did the 'tactical vote' to oust what I considered to be a very destructive political administration; I voted in the grinning vacuous Tony Blair. Oh boy, did I come to regret that; abolition of affordable education, pathetic unworkable policies towards crime, and to give them their credit they achieved the unachievable - managing to make the Tory years look squeaky clean by their utterly corrupt behaviour. And then to top it off, they created a financial deficit so big that I'm surprised the capitalist system here hasn't totally collapsed. I'm not saying that I trust this new coalition, or as Mixmaster Morris put it on facebook "ConDemNation", but it has to be said that the legacy left by the previous government is SO bad that I'm not surprised by the cuts and rise in VAT, what else are they supposed to do? I will sign the petition about the deforestation though, this is always a bad idea, people moan about Co2 production and suggest having crap lightbulbs which don't come on for an ice age as if this will solve the problem when actually, just using renewable energy resources instead of fossil fuels would make a bigger difference. But overall, Co2 is a necessary part of photosynthesis, plants and trees need it, so the Co2 isn't the problem, the lack of trees is (and the burgeoning population explosion!) Only my opinion, and I don't suppose I can change very much in the scheme of things, but I will sign that petition for sure!

Mexicola · Post by **Mexicola** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 5:38 pm

Have been chatting to a good friend of mine over in Bristol about this. Here's his take. I think it's quite succinct:

'Uttering 'terrorism' in the Labour years was the way to get any legislation through, backed by idiots who claimed 'if you've got nothing to hide...'

It now seems it's 'deficit', still backed by idiots who realise the price of everything and the value of nothing.

Same tricks, different idiots....

Sorry, but the forestry sell-off and Murdoch business has really pissed me off...'

Word.

Xurbatronic · Post by **Xurbatronic** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 7:09 pm

It now seems it's 'deficit', still backed by idiots who realise the price of everything and the value of nothing

A very appropriate quote from Oscar Wilde there, because it truly is an age of cynicism in which we are living. I agree with your friend's points, the big irony of those 'anti-terror' policies is that they failed to defuse any racial tension or divert any terror attacks to boot. But that's another very, very charged debate.

Soulthriller · Post by **Soulthriller** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 5:38 pm

What happens when there's nothing left to sell?

Mexicola · Post by **Mexicola** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 9:57 pm

The bankers move to Switzerland to count their gold?

fujee · Post by **fujee** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 11:29 pm

I signed on 38 degrees a few weeks ago. I simply cannot allow this to happen.

fujee · Post by **fujee** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 1:13 am

I am really just so tired of politics now, nothing is honest, barely anyone is doing anything to make things genuinely better - just a short term fix. Parliament is painted green.

Just for once i wish people in power would stop being so fucking selfish and commit to quickly tackling climate change with a reasonable strategy. What use is anything if we don't have a planet to live on? The absurd selfishness of politics makes me so angry.

Selling these forests would be an absolute travesty.

Things must change.

Mexicola · Post by **Mexicola** » Sat Jan 29, 2011 7:46 pm

Good to see The National Trust stepping up to the plate. Fantastic organisation and well worth joining incidentally.

fujee · Post by **fujee** » Thu Feb 17, 2011 5:03 pm

Looks like we won this one, thank you to everyone who joined the opposition, the forests are ours...for now!

Thanks to Mexicola for raising the attention

Mexicola · Post by **Mexicola** » Thu Feb 17, 2011 5:14 pm

fujee wrote:Looks like we won this one, thank you to everyone who joined the opposition, the forests are ours...for now!

Couldn't have said it better myself.

However, for all those you believe the Tories 'listened to the public', think again. This just means they realised they've had their hands forced. A good start today, but next it's the stealth privatisation of the NHS, and don't even get me started on things like the tax breaks they've sneaked under the radar for overseas income, or their refusal to ban the practice of naked short-selling - despite the fact it's fucking the economy over (again) for the man in the street while the top 5% claw away even more of our money.

Seriously, they should replace that tree logo with a middle finger.

Numerator · Post by **Numerator** » Thu Feb 17, 2011 5:53 pm

Mexicola wrote:
fujee wrote:Looks like we won this one, thank you to everyone who joined the opposition, the forests are ours...for now!
Couldn't have said it better myself.

However, for all those you believe the Tories 'listened to the public', think again. This just means they realised they've had their hands forced. A good start today, but next it's the stealth privatisation of the NHS, and don't even get me started on things like the tax breaks they've sneaked under the radar for overseas income, or their refusal to ban the practice of naked short-selling - despite the fact it's fucking the economy over (again) for the man in the street while the top 5% claw away even more of our money.

Seriously, they should replace that tree logo with a middle finger.

eugh. couldn't agree more.
vote for mexicola!

Mexicola · Post by **Mexicola** » Thu Feb 17, 2011 11:42 pm

Lol - yowser, don't vote me in. I can't decide what to have for breakfast most mornings.

fujee · Post by **fujee** » Thu Feb 17, 2011 11:50 pm

Mexicola wrote:Lol - yowser, don't vote me in. I can't decide what to have for breakfast most mornings.

Far more competent than our current leader!