Mordack wrote:Mrs Thatcher is, without a doubt, the single most influential figure in British politics. She wasn't a person, she was a one woman hurricane. The most memorable leaders are those who change the way we think, and Maggie changed the thinking of a generation. The mere mention of her name is enough to polarize people. Even today, 62 years after she became an MP, 32 years after she became Prime Minister and 21 years after she left office, the mere mention of her name continues to provoke the strongest of emotions amongst the politically inclined.
To those on the left, she's a bogeyman. They hate her. Nothing inspires greater venom than the mention of Lady T. They've written songs about dancing on her grave, they've promised to hold street parties the day she dies, and they remain adamant that she was the single worst thing to happen to the United Kingdom in its entire history.
To those in the right, she is a goddess. They think she brought this country back from the brink. They think she made Britain great again. In the Conservative Party, she isn't called Maggie, or Mrs Thatcher, she's simply called 'Mother.' They don't think they'll ever be anybody like her. They're probably right.
In both instances, she has became mythological. They say this film isn't political, and I hope so. Whatever you may think of her, Margaret Thatcher was a remarkable woman. She didn't so much pass barriers, as smash them through with her handbag. I hope this film isn't a political statement, which I'm confident it won't be. I'd be more interested in a character study.
^ I think Mordacks in lurveeee ^
As someone who grew up in the 80s I would say Maggie was the only UK political leader in my lifetime who ever made me proud to be British. Politics is a dirty word these days, all liers and cheats, Id say Maggie ( and her opponents of the time ) were the last generation of politicians who actually believed in something, not like the middle of the road 'promise whatever the media says the people want' types of today. She stood strong on the world stage alongside Gorbi & Ronnie, and she made the tough unpopular decisions at home that were needed at the time.
Made me laugh a few years back when the US thought they were being sooo 'progressive' choosing between a Woman and a Black candidate, in the UK we had a woman head of state and woman head of government for over a decade 30 years ago lol
That said, Maggie in hindsight was far from perfect,
Yes she had to kill the unions that held the country to ransom, but killing manufacturing and mining industries at the same time was a mistake.
Yes selling of council homes was needed, but the money from the sales should have gone into building new homes and we are today paying the price for that.
Yes the utilities were badly run and uneconomical and privatization fixed that, but this gave those able to buy shares at the time a nice windfall and now all the utilities have been bought up there is no competitive pricing, just price fixing and profiteering. The Utilities should have been profit capped at a couple of %, a fair small profit for providing an essential service.
Deregulating banks gave a huge boost to the UK economy but there should have been safe guards in place to keep investment banks and high street banks separate.
The Poll Tax, the idea that ended the Iron Lady's reign was very fair in some ways and closed many loopholes in shared housing but was doomed to fail since in most cases it increased the tax burden on the poor and lowered it on the wealthy. This was obviously a suicide policy and I never understood why she tried to do it.
Personally I believe Maggie saved the country from the loony lefties, but Im not blind to the many mistakes she made that we are still paying for today.