“No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were; any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.” John Donne “Meditations“

On the whole, I think John Donne had it more or less spot-on.

From Uberwald way?

Makes friends easily? 😎

This is terribly sad news, as untimely deaths always are, but how many of us can say that we were entirely surprised to hear it?

Having said that, I can’t believe some of the comments on this thread.

Some of you must think that ’empathy’ means ‘the big building where the ampathador workth’.

I am having a good laugh at this Lance, simply, because I have turned the tables, and using your very well tutored way of putting people in a corner.

You keep on telling yourself that, Jim, and everything will be all right….. :rolleyes:

What your stating is hypothetical, and even you can’t say what would happen, go on, prove your theory.

Hardly hypothetical.

Look at what has happened, and continues to happen, to rail ticket prices – despite huge public subsidy to the operating companies.

The same process would take place.

And as for Johnny Foreigner, he can get stuffed as far as I am concerned, because it’s they who provide our gas or most of it.

Curses! Even the geology of planet Earth conspires against plucky Little England! :rolleyes:

Your always going on at others, now you have your chance to prove your theory.about what would happen.

You’re starting to take this personally, Jim.

Calm down, mate.

I don’t see the linkage between a thread on gas and electricity prices – which you started, by the way – and the ‘charity begins at home, it’s all Johnny Foreigner’s fault’ guff that you’ve been spouting in your last couple of postings.

I’ll tell you exactly what would happen if the Government went all “Little Britain” and then subsided gas and electricity prices in the way that (I think…) you’re suggesting.

The energy companies would raise prices higher and faster, increasing their share value, profits and shareholder dividends.

Go on. Tell me they’d do otherwise.

Are you saying that the energy suppliers would reduce their prices if we allowed Greece to go to the wall and cut off all overseas aid, Jim? :confused:

Personally, I think he’s got an Arts Council grant to do what he does.

Let’s face it, they’ve been handed out for stranger things.