Sigh. Tube strike imminent
www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/media/newscentre/archive/11854.aspx

How about a thread for venting? Either against the frankly ridiculous demands of the unions, or the horrible tone of the TfL press release?
(Land of Green Ginger It's dreamy weather, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:31, 46 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

I think it's a factually accurate press release
The RMT union are fucking idiots.

I think unions are great. I wish everyone could be a member of a union, they really do some great things, but sadly they have mainly had their power removed.

But Bob Crow is a fucking tool of the highest order and doesn't deserve the right to breathe. I agree with the press release that they totally fail to engage in meaningful debate and, sadly, they are the only union with any real bargaining power these days, but they use it all to often and it really hurts peoples opinions of unions and will, ultimately, lead to them being scrapped. And then all the tube workers are royally fucked because the management will take great pleasure in raping very single person that works for the underground.

And they will have no-one to blame but themselves.

A tube driver earns more than me and gets more holiday than me. They have a fucking cushy job and they should recognise that.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:40, Reply)

Nicely put, Alice.
I want to be a tube driver so I can talk to the passengers.
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:42, Reply)

You can talk to them anyway
Get a megaphone. They'll love you.
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:45, Reply)

I talk to tube passengers all the time
And I wee on their shoes at the same time
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:46, Reply)

I love this idea!
*buys megaphone*
*drinks ten pints of lager*
*gets on tube*
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:47, Reply)

*drinks ten pints of lager*
*gets on tube collapses in ungainly heap showing her knickers*
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:48, Reply)

Oops!
*puts on knickers*
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:48, Reply)

I like how everybody refuses to look at one another on the tube
Admittedly, most people are too ugly to warrant my attention.
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:49, Reply)

But if someone sat and stared at you, smiling, would you prefer that?

( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:50, Reply)

Depends on the person and the smile
If it were you, of course I'd prefer it!
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:51, Reply)

Oh how lovely :)
The last time a stranger spoke to me on the tube, it was an old man who mumbled, 'Nice tits,' at me as I walked past.

I prefer the frowning silence.
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:52, Reply)

I prefer anything so long as it's not loud phone noise
I've never had an old man tell me I've got nice tits though.
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:54, Reply)

Your tits aren't as nice as Clendrix's though

(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:56, Reply)

This is true
*heavy sigh*
( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:59, Reply)

I shall feel his on Saturday and tell you if this is true.

( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:00, Reply)

I think some sort of independant assessment needs to be carried out
We should get TGB to motorboat both of you, and then measure the size of her resultant grin.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:03, Reply)

This is THE BEST PLAN EVER.
I might still feel Labs up though...
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:04, Reply)

I feel all tingly!

( Labia Majora You keep on talking but it makes no sense at all, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:07, Reply)

:D

( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:11, Reply)

Haha!
I like this.
I need to tell more women on the tube that they have nice tits.
It can only end well.
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:56, Reply)

In Sendai, an old Japanese man pointed at my tits and said, 'Sugoi!'
So I slapped him round the face, and a group of my high school students saw :(
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:59, Reply)

Hahaha!
And what does that mean?
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:00, Reply)

It means 'Great!'
My boys pissed themselves laughing and then chased him off.
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:01, Reply)

Hahaha!
Good work on the slap :p
( Cawl, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:01, Reply)

He was very surprised!
But I'd had three fucking years of random strangers commenting on my tits because the girls out there are practically concave.
Erm, and admittedly, I suppose I am very much not...
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:03, Reply)

No siree bob!!

(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:08, Reply)

*laughs*
My boobs and I are going to the pub to drown our sorrows.
Behave yourselves.
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:10, Reply)

Hear hear
5% pay rise across the board is just astonishing, even for a first bargaining position, when they're as well paid as they are.
(Land of Green Ginger It's dreamy weather, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:44, Reply)

^^ What Al said
He's spot on. The union's behaving badly and TfL's statement reflects this quite accurately.
( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:47, Reply)

I've not stepped on a tube train
since I was about 13.

I'm sorry it's going to make most of you Londoners have a lot of bad days, but London is like another planet to me.
( gareth_alien will be human again at, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:43, Reply)

What you? The alien?
No shit.
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:47, Reply)

Ha!
Yeah, didn't think of that.
( gareth_alien will be human again at, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:50, Reply)

Besides, it won't ruin my day.
b3ta from the comfort of the sofa Working from home FTW
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 16:51, Reply)

It lasts for two and a bit days
Tomorrow night to Thursday morning

EDIT: actually til Thursday night
(Land of Green Ginger It's dreamy weather, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:00, Reply)

How terrible :)
But I do agree that Bob Crow is a cunt and being used like this really pisses me off.
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:02, Reply)

Not many socialists
on b3ta then
(Land of Green Ginger It's dreamy weather, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:06, Reply)

I thought I made it clear in my post
I'm very much a socialist, I think unions are a great idea and the fact that they were systematically crushed or slyly stripped of their powers by Thatcher and her cronies makes me really angry.

But there is a responsibility with the unions to act in a way which benefits their members first, but also takes into account the wider framework in which they operate.

5% per year in a recession is fucking ridiculous and they know it, but they are total cunts and they will keep pushing for it.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:10, Reply)

Ooh, Al!
*feels all quivery*
( thealternativefact, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:11, Reply)

*fans clendrix*
Sorry, I know what effect HARDened debate can have on you.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:14, Reply)

Sorry, you did
No-one has come out to support the strike is what I meant.
(Land of Green Ginger It's dreamy weather, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:12, Reply)

There are two reasons for this
1) The strike is badly thought out and will ultimately lead to a loss of support for the union in general
2) Everyone has gone home as it's after 5.
(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:14, Reply)

Workshy bastards
Clearly THEY don't need unions.
(Land of Green Ginger It's dreamy weather, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:23, Reply)

Tru dat

(Bazongaloid, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 17:29, Reply)

Hmm
A bit late to the party here, but I've always thought that a public service such as transport operators striking is a bit of an own goal.

Operate the service as per normal, but just don't charge anyone for using it. The operator gets hit with loss of revenue whilst still incurring running costs, while the public are much more sympathetic to your cause and get to travel for free.

Probably a bit over-simplified, but you get the gist.
( Davros' Granddad a voice of calm reason in a world of spastics., Mon 8 Jun 2009, 19:09, Reply)

DG for king of the world.
You get my vote.
( girlinthehole, Mon 8 Jun 2009, 20:08, Reply)

Yay.
I think this is something that has ben done in some countries, so i can't lay claim to it. But it's a nice idea.
( Davros' Granddad a voice of calm reason in a world of spastics., Mon 8 Jun 2009, 22:05, Reply)