When Miss McConnell Passes Will "Ding Dong" Top The Charts?

The British Establishment-- and the kind of American Tories who fought on the British side against the Patriots during the American Revolution-- are busy trying to make Margaret Thatcher a right-wing saint. Millions of ordinary Britons don't feel that's merited and responded by driving the 1939 classic "Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead," from The Wizard of Oz up the music charts. Tens of thousands of Brits rushed out to buy the single but Conservatives warned the BBC, which plays chart songs, not to dare play it. They played a 5-second version (once) with the network's new boss, Tony Hall, explaining, "I personally believe it is distasteful and inappropriate. However I do believe it would be wrong to ban the song outright as free speech is an important principle and a ban would only give it more publicity." It was the fastest rising top 10 song in the history of the British charts. The Establishment is, as always, on a very different page from the ordinary people they rule. All sorts of American reactionaries and even war criminals have flown over to London for the funeral.

Dick Cheney, former US vice-president and driving force behind the country's invasion of Iraq, is to attend the Thatcher funeral, No 10 has confirmed.

Other high-profile US guests include Henry Kissinger, the former US secretary of state and the maverick rightwinger Ross Perot. Barack Obama announced on this week that former US secretaries of state George Shultz and James Baker III would lead a US presidential delegation to the ceremony. Louise Susman, the recently departed US ambassador in London, would also attend.

Michelle Bachmann, the ultra-conservative former presidential candidate, will attend with two other Republicans from Congress.

Downing Street indicated on Tuesday that Cheney was attending in a personal capacity, not as an official US representative. Nonetheless, his presence is likely to enrage many. As George W Bush's number two between 2001-2009, Cheney was one of the chief architects of the war in Iraq.

Meanwhile, over in the always contentious U.S. Senate, the Patriots were once again fighting the Tories, as Miss McConnell insisted on an over-the-top tribute to Mrs. Thatcher that gratuitously and clumsily manages to insult Argentina and other U.S. allies across the globe. In the end Miss McConnell made such a fuss that the Democrats just allowed his silly resolution to pass by unanimous consent. Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Bob Menendez had originally struck 4 paragraphs from McConnell's paean to the Iron Lady:

Whereas Baroness Margaret Thatcher in 1984 survived an assassination attempt by the Irish Republican Army in Brighton, United Kingdom, and declared that "all attempts to destroy democracy by terrorism will fail"...

Whereas Baroness Margaret Thatcher in 1982 led United Kingdom efforts to liberate the Falkland Islands after they had been invaded and occupied by the Government of Argentina...

Whereas Baroness Margaret Thatcher in 1983 supported the deployment of United States nuclear cruise missiles at United Kingdom bases and the deployment by the United States of short-range nuclear missiles in Europe when there was stiff opposition to her doing so...

Whereas Baroness Margaret Thatcher defended United Kingdom sovereignty within the European Economic Community...