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Bickers

Listed below are comments made by Bickers between Monday, 27th October 2008 and Saturday, 14th February 2009.

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Lloyds and HBOS humbled 10:38am on 14 Feb 2009 If this debacle has shown us one thing it's that letting the Governemnt have too much of our money is very bad practice indeed.

The Great Leader has been profligate with tax payers' hard earned cash - he's wasted 100's billions on useless projects and public sector staff (their wages have risen dramatically with little increase, if any, in productivity i.e. tax payers have received very poor value for their 'investment' (the word that Gordon likes to use to makes taking our more credible).

I think we need a root and branch reform of Government and the Civil Service and the crazy costs now associated with running them; the City has been found out - it's just a Casino by any other name. The US, Europe Japan and China need to re-write the rules of capitalism
Rio, China and British investors 11:45am on 13 Feb 2009 In the 80's I worked in London for a Hollywood Studio. Their bonus system was generous but had the following safeguards:
1. you received 25% of your bonus 3 months after year end (in case any sales you created in the final months came back as returns)
2. 25% after another 3 months - same as above
3. 50% 12 months after year end to ensure the sales you had created were for real and you hadn't screwed the system for maximum bonus then flown the nest to leave the company to pick up the pieces.

There is simply no excuse on God's Earth why Boards and remuneration committees cannot adopt a version of the above. If employees don't like then fine let them go to a company that's free and easy with bonus payments - we've all seen how that story ends!!

Threatening taxpayers with the claim that talented staff will leave is a bluff - call it. Why don't the US, Europe, UK, Japan etc agree a deal whereby any banks they've bailed out with taxpayers money stops all bonuses till our money's returned - that'll also call the bluff of those who say they'll jump ship if that can't have bonuses.

The bottom line is this, bankers, institutional investment managers, the woefully incompetment FSA/SEC and Government have fleeced the ordinary tax payer - they've allowed our savings to be used in a casino style free for all.

There needs to be a radical overall of salaries etc throughout the sector - the majority of these people create no real lasting value so their inflated salaries/ego have to be culled. We need to pay proper salaries to people who create real value for society. Let's start by getting rid of this present disaster of a Government and voting in one that promises (in blood) to bring MP's into line with their allowances etc that are an out and out scam. If something radical doesn't happen there will be a backlash from the public that could spill over onto the streets.
Taxpayer support for big companies 2:13pm on 16 Jan 2009 #167

Brilliant analysis of the UK's problem
The cost of bringing banks home 1:51pm on 14 Jan 2009 #7

Very aptly put!

Labour have destroyed the UK economy and are desperately trying to lay all the blame at door of the US/World.

They have been profligate with tax payers money, feathering the pension nests of millions of public sector employees (who are now on better pay terms than their oppo's in the private sector), have job protection and in many cases are doing unproductive work, many times stifling the wealth creating part of the economy with red tape.

At some point the public sector has to cut back massively and the gold plated pension scheme brought into line with the private sector
Deflation or inflation? 1:15pm on 17 Dec 2008 #5 Peterbaldwin

It's a shame that such a well written piece was spoilt by trying to scare us with the Global Warming/climate change is all mankind's fault claim.

The environment and how we interact with it is very important and critical to our survival, especially at a local level, however Global Warming and Cooling are all part of a natural cycle that we have no power over.

There is no evidence that CO2 has any discernable impact on climate - sure, computer models say it does, but then computer models said the planet would keep warming with increased CO2 levels - in the last 10 years global temperatures have plateaued and in fact fallen slightly in the last two years.

Parts of the Northern Hemisphere have had some of their coldest weather for a 100 years in recent weeks.

Let's focus on the problems we can identify and fix rather than non-problems which play into the hands of advocacy groups, academics seeking ongoing funding, compnaies that want to exploit the non problem of CO2 and politicians (The UN especially) who see the claim of AGW as an excuse to raise more taxes and control the population
Election now? 5:31pm on 09 Dec 2008 Yes, let's get rid of the disasterous Government whose modus operandi is spend, spend, borrow, borrow, spend, spend.

All Labour Governments end up where we are now - if it hadn't been the credit crunch it would have been something else - they think they have a right to take hard earned tax payers money and squander it for little return - just look at how the public sector has ballooned but services have hardly improved.

Getting a job in the wealth creating private sector just doesn't compete with one in the public sector (they're bullet proof) - we're heading for banana republic status at this rate
Superman Obama 1:52pm on 08 Dec 2008 #48 Well said re the non problem that is so-called man made global warming.

Europe and North American ski resorts are experiencing some of their largets snow falls for 30-40 years - funny that when the World's getting warmer!!

Satellite readings have shown no global warming (more recently it's cooling) since 1998.

I wonder what the next 'scare' will be that the media, politicians, academia and special advocacy groups dream up
Serious questions to answer 6:32pm on 03 Dec 2008 Whoever's in Government will not want their civil servants leaking so called sensitive information, however if it's in the public interest then it has to be disclosed by whatever means especially if it's being 'hidden' from the Opposition, media and the public.

In the case of the Home Office they have been breaking their own laws by employing illegal immigrants (thousands of them!!!). A business caught doing that would be prosecuted - has the Home Office? Thought not!

Damien Green and the civil servant in question have done us all a favour by exposing this morally corrupt Government

We live in a democracy don't we?
Weep for Woolies 3:55pm on 27 Nov 2008 To #145 - alanfrench:
'...Im not sure a tory Chancellor would have been that honest. And for those of you blaming the current Govt for this, this started in the Thatcher/Greenspan era, along time before this Govt even took power. Tories conveniently like to forget this fact.'

I find this comment staggering, as what you're saying is that Nulabour couldn't change what previous Governments did - absolute cobblers - NuLabour have three massive majorities that enable them to more or less do what they wanted - they could have changed what previous Governments had done, however Blair and Brown were too busy fighting each other rather than keeping their eye on the economic ball - Brown wanted to prove he was 'The Man' - we now paying for his profligacy - why do you think the international money markets have hammered the £?
Why the record-breaking falls 1:09pm on 27 Oct 2008 With most of the private sector relying on money purchase pensions how long can the electorate/Government put up with/justify index linked final salary schemes for public sector workers?

It's unsustainable, however politicians and public sector policy makers have a vested interest in keeping the status quo.

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