Horner's Corner

A Load of Bankers.

by on Mar.05, 2009, under politics

'Sir' Fred Goodwin: does he look bothered?
‘Sir’ Fred Goodwin: does he look bothered?

So ‘Sir Fred’ Goodwin, aged 50 and 3/4  is to walk away from the RBS banking catastrophe he caused with a 700,000 +  per year pension for life, funded by the tax payer (us). What kind of government is it that let’s this happen? This New Labour Government is the kind, apparently. More seriously, why have they only just noticed the revolting injustice and lack of general proportion in the remuneration of Britain’s ‘Top’ CEOs (I use the adjective purely in a quantitative sense, to describe fat payouts)? Why are we the most unequal country in Europe?

Sir Fred is the target because of the gargantuan losses he has foisted on to the taxpayer. But a £700,000-a-year pension is by no means tops: at least 12 other CEOs are well ahead of him, and most bosses enjoy lavish schemes denied to their staff. Remember, top CEO pay has multiplied from 17 times that of their average workers to 75 times in just 20 years. (Polly Toynbee, The Guardian  28/02/09 – my emphasis)

It’s not just the UK of course, there’s always US reptiles like  Dick Fuld, the ex head of the ex Lehman Bros, with his multiple mansions and his general failure to grasp why all those ordinary folks out there like us can’t see he isn’t part of the problem. The big difference here is that he said he was honestly very sorry at all the job losses and and misery and so forth he’s been instrumental in causing. So that’s OK, then. At least he’s prepared to act a bit. Don’t expect that from “Sir” Fred and his chums .  Apologies from the likes of them are as scarce as rocking horse droppings. They intend to look dignified, keep quiet and keep the money.

Dick Fuld
Dick Fuld: he knows when to look serious

Gordon, here’s what you do, man: you take the damn money back off them, you know, the way you take money off the poor when you miscalculate their tax credits. Oh, and another thing: nationalise the banks and don’t ask, make them give money to people who can make stuff. Remember making stuff? it’s what we did a lot of before we decided everybody on Airstrip One (a.k.a. the UK plc) was going to work in call centres and, er, banking.

And while we’re on the subject of the bold Sir Fred, why the knighthood? What’s he done for it? saved orphan children? worked weekends in an old people’s home? nope. It was for ‘services to banking’ apparently. What would these services be, exactly? Making hay while the sun shone? being extra creative with the tax avoidance schemes? It’s the mark of a decrepit regime like ours that a certain class of people get knighthoods for just doing the job they are paid handsomely for anyway. Any knighthoods for, say, teachers and social workers? apparently not.

Face it: it’s not a few bad apples we’re on about here. It’s a system that doesn’t deserve anyone’s loyalty, based on a radically unfair distribution of life’s goods (ie, 90 % of the wealth to 5% of the population); one that robs the poor of the world in the name of free trade (aka globalisation) and then asks the plebs to dig deep for charity (go on: do something funny for money while we get on with making sure the poor of Africa stay poor). What’s the name of this set up? oh yes: capitalism.

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3 Comments for this entry

  • Emrys
    March 7th, 2009 on 3:09 pm

    Good stuff Comrade. Most of what you say applies to the US too, obviously. My view on all these bail out is: nay company that wants tax payer money should have to do what the gov’t tells them to do (e.g slash top salaries, get lending again, get greener, etc). If they don’t agree with that then srew ‘em. NOT ONE RED CENT!

    Re the knighthood. Here, when Tom Daschle had o bow out of Obama’s cabinet because he’d tax evaded there was much about his years of “public service.” but you know, mail carriers, garbage collectors, teachers, etc. all put in years of public service. The difference is that they can’t cash in their chips at any oint to make about five million a year; and if ey’re caught tax evading they go to prison. Don’t get me started.

  • Chris
    Chris
    March 7th, 2009 on 8:42 pm

    I could rant on this for hours. Probably will.

  • Josh
    March 10th, 2009 on 6:33 pm

    Two words come to mind when I look at Fred Goodwin: Yuppie Mephistopheles.

    I agree with the article completely. Hopefully, the disgusting avarice of the ‘Top’ CEOs will wake up my generation – to the facts about capitalism – at least then some good might come out of this pointless decade.

    “Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV. And you think your so clever and classless and free, but your still fucking peasants as far as I can see.”-John Lennon

    Men like Goodwin and Fuld don’t seem to understand what society expects of them and that they are obligated to fulfill such expectations. When they take these positions, they accept these obligations. If they don’t understand that, then they are not entitled to their positions, let alone not to reap the rewards. The government needs to demonstrate clearly to these individuals that their actions have consequences; that their actions have betrayed not just their companies, but the people.

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