How has the budget affected you? If you’re a rich person you’ve done well; if you’re a very rich person you done bloody well. But if you are of average or low means you’re probably licking your wounds. Maybe the government has given you a few scraps to keep you happy or you may feel you’ve lost out.
What interests me about rich people and particularly very rich people is how they got their money in the first place and how they are getting it now. Your worth is not reckoned in what you do for the community but rather on your job title. If you are a dinner lady or a refuse collector your wage packet will be light although your absence would reflect more on the community than, say, a solicitor.
There are many rich entrepreneurs in the UK who started from humble beginnings. By working hard, taking risks and making brave decisions they are now rich people. I don’t begrudge them this; in the process they have provided work and sustenance for many families. Some are now billionaires.
What is causing the International financial crisis?
But what I am concerned about is what is happening to their money now. With no effort on their part and maybe a nudge or two from their financial advisers their money is now gaining interest at an alarming rate. You may wonder why many countries are in financial difficulties and have large debts. To whom is the money owed? To these very rich people who are amassing vast fortunes while they sleep.
So at the end of the day, who is footing the bill for this unearned interest? You are! Whether you are a plumber, a nurse, a solicitor or any other person who is working daily for a salary, you are paying. Although it may not be evident, the payment of this interest filters down from top to bottom of society and this surely can’t be right.
I don’t pretend to know how this situation can be changed; that’s for politicians to decide. But we see that the payment of these huge debts is causing problems including civil disobedience and riots in many countries. What do you think?