can someone please explain to me the criteria used to choose who gets a knighthood?

[cylonbabe]

because i am really really confused.
what has salman rushdie done to merit one? sure he's a good writer, barring 'that book' but afaik he hasnt done anything for this country other than cause problems. safeguarding him after the fatwa cost a lot of money. since it was revoked, he swanned off to live in the us.
so what has he done exactly that merits such an award?
botham, sure, great cricketer for england etc etc. but

In the paper (ok it was probably the Daily Mail) it suggested it was Blair's way of sticking 2 fingers up to Iran as he'd know that it would infuriate the Moslem world.

the queen draws names out of a hat...

don't lots of people nominate them>?

prehaps we should all get together and nominate someone ridiculous

Yes, but it's not a voting system as such. A committee decides.

The knighthood thing does seem a bit odd. Bob Geldof - yep, understand that one, but Rushdie?! A political decision, surely. He's hardly the greatest living author.

It's all a bit silly. We're supposed to be a classless society. I can think of many better authors to honour (if we have to) but then Barbara Cartland was made a Dame wasn't she? Hardly a beacon of great writing herself.

I do see your point about Rushdie. Had he lived in the UK after writing that book, he might have garnered more respect.

In itself, writing a book that is going to inflame a particular religion is not, imo, a bad thing to do. People write inflammatory things about Christians every day. Rushdie tested the principle of freedom of speech to the very limits, and so he should be admired, if not necessarily liked.

Yes, I think it was two fingers up by Blair, but I don't feel particularly cynical about it.

I'm a bit pissed off that I wasn't selected, yet again [sigh] ... 'cos I'm a farking good cleaner!

sorry i had to go off and pretend to be a mom there.
why is tony blair being so juvenile then?

From my experience as well a lot of the best poele dont get nominated

the charities I worked for 9and volunteered fro) every nomination had to be screened by your district boss, who submitted a shortlist to HQ, who chose who to nominate

which menat we had peole who had dedicated their lives being missed off the lists, sometimes because of personal prejudice, often because toehrs were good as well

And then people who seem ratehr- well- odd choices shall we say get the honours instead

FWIW I dont get the Rushdie one- I dont have a problem with the book personally but writing a book that upset lots pf poele- why is that an honours thing? isn't that just a thing some people do?