manshimajin

TBH I suspect your approach is driven by a rather academic leaning and aimed at an ideal world which simply does not exist. So like it or not whoever is the CM here will be a compromise. That does not mean that they would all be the same compromise. Even in politics it is very much about relationships and inter-personal skills. Not all pigs were born equal. As one can clearly observe not all political leaders have the same personal profile or upbringings for that matter. Not all political or other leaders lead in the same way - viz Blair and Brown - one could manage people better than the other. Not all leaders in politics are as good or as bad as others in the way they lead. It is a self-evident reality that leadership in politics is a different beast to leadership in business or in the PS ( nor in fact is it the same beast in company A versus company B). But in the real world some political leaders are a lot more successful at getting more out of their team than others. As stated, in my opinion (and you have yours too of course) Bell has just about the very worst personal profile you can have in the role at a time of major challenge and change for the reasons stated.

Seems its not just the UK that has chaos when it snows: http://www.swissinfo...ml?cid=31893124 And those poor Swiss seem to have real problems knowing how to drive in the snow - seem totally unprepared for the white stuff Germans can probably do it better though

That is why I commented above that there may not be massive change in leadership quality but that we might end up with someone who is: "...possibly more capable of listening to others, accepting views other than their own and with a lower ego" I think we all are in agreement that we have a far from perfect system. Sometimes though, as Voltaire said (to paraphrase) "You have to shoot an Admiral to encourage the others" IMO Bell is very dangerous for the future of the Island - not only for the ethical issues you and others have mentioned and the (IMO) disastrous policies he implemented as treasurer, but also because he is an entrenched, self-opinionated person who believes that loyalty is achieved through money and seemingly sees strong alternative views to his own as 'naysaying'. That is just about the very worst profile you can have in the role at a time of major challenge and change. By the way good leadership is not nebulous as you seem to think. It may be non-existent in Manx politics but we will never know if we make untested assumptions. manxvoter likes this Quote MultiQuote Edit

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What I'm trying to get at is that the real problem here isn't so much Bell, but the very system that affords a chief minister and his cronies, any chief minister, so much power in the first place. ...and there is no way, having been afforded so much power, that the current Chief Minister and his cronies will willingly give it up - which is why this thread is talking about the need for change I guess...change may not resolve the issue you raise but might bring in a better style of political leadership. "The devil you don't know may be better than the one you do"

That is why personally I favour compulsory voting! Politicians hate the idea because they rely on public apathy and low turnouts. But electing who represents us for the next 5 years should not be left to a smallish number of people. Once everyone has voted they cannot then play the blame game.

Woolley, isn't the fundamental point that the consumer feels strongly that they are seeing a benefit and that is the point behind good retailing concepts? Maybe something else that is worth thinking about is that if one is criticising the low tax structures of Amazon don't the IOM and other low tax legislatures operate businesses that benefit significantly from offering services to individuals and corporations to do something similar? I recall that until recently the CIs were doing big business helping online retailers to avoid paying UK VAT and have been caught out in a major way helping wealthy UK citizens to minimise income tax. Just imagine Bell's reaction if Bezos suggested locating a small percentage of Amazon's operations here - doubt that he would be saying that we should not shop online....He would be out there telling us all how much other benefits were being generated by having them here... The IOMG is facilitating people not supporting schools and hospitals in the UK and elsewhere. Now it is also happening to us. Should we be grumbling about some corporations paying 0% corporate tax or having complex tax structures when our corporate tax rate is 0% and we allow complex tax structures/?

...but possibly more capable of listening to others, accepting views other than their own and with a lower ego?

Paul, whilst I believe Bell is actually far more dangerous for the future of the Island than even his predecessor was (the difference between stupid and devious etc...) before going further the obvious question comes up that replacing the current incumbent requires someone to succeed him who could do better in the job and have the capability of building a stronger team with a more strategic focus. Do you have someone in mind? IMO it would be very positive for the Island's future to seem him ousted if there is someone to replace him - what is your thinking on that?

Were you and your partner doing anything when you felt the earth move?

All of this does remind me a little of the painting by Caravaggio "The Coversion Of Bill Henderson On The Road To Tynwald": However cynical one may be about the reasons behind BH's move, it is a reflection on the ethics of Manx politics that a politician is sacked for reverting, however late in the day, to standing by the commitments he made to his constituents.

Can the back bit be disconnected to make it into a 'normal' bus and a nice piece of cardboard used to fill the hole to stop the snow blowing in and the passengers falling out?

This person is responsible for change. They will report to a manager who is responsibe for change. This manager reports to a Departmental Manager who is responsible for change. I love the bit that says "The role will also develop the understanding within the Department of the importance of managing change" - so that says that currently they do not understand this...What has the Departmental Manger/Director (ho ho) been doing if his team do not understand the need for managing change?

I am sure that the Argentinians can also find people who can demonstrate that their claim to the Malvinas is stronger in law than the British one. The fundamental point is that the Senkaku Islands have economic value and the only way of sensibly resolving the situation is for the parties to negotiate. Neither the Chinese nor the Japanese seem at present to be willing to do so in ways that will concede any rights to the other party. Until they can be more accommodating of each other the situation will remain fraught with danger. Unfortunately it is not the only point of potential conflict between China and its neighbours around the China Sea and China is in the process of significantly building up its maritime strength to back up its position with force or threats of force. I wonder if this also plays well as a distraction for the Chinese and Japanese Governments away from domestic issues just as the Malvinas seem to play that role in Argentina.