The things that bug me!

 Three things today have got up my goat,  here they are in order of hearing them

  Mr Hester about why bakers really do deserve their bonuses. When questioned he couldn't answer the question as to why someone paid over a million a year can't do his job properly without bonuses. It would be OK to pay someone a modest bonus for doing something exceptional but as  a matter of course it seems to me wrong. Perhaps there should be a new system of pay for academics, every time a paper is published they get a bonus, or perhaps every time they give a lecture. Perhaps school teachers should get a bonus if they actually teach a class. not just going into school but spending time with 25 kids.

  What is true is that for most people not doing their job properly means getting the sack doing their job properly means they are kept on. If these bankers and business men with their fat bonuses are so valuable why don't they let their workers decide on the bonus rather than their mates.

  Mr Hester also said in the interview on Radio $ that he wasn't a banker before he took on the job, does that mean anyone could do the job, if you don't need to be a banker to run a bank then it is clearly an unskilled job.  He also claims that you can't get top quality staff without paying bonuses, so presumably the heads of RBS were not getting bonuses before the crash!

  My other thought on this topic was the purchase of ABN was one of the causes of their problems. RBS were in a  bidding war with Barclays, it is not public how much  Barclay's were willing to pay but if they had won the auction would Barclays now be owned by the taxpayer and "Sir" Fred Goodwin would still be "Sir" and an hero?

  Leading on from bonuses to Harry Redknapp, how did the jury find him not guilty. It amazes me that he got a bonus for selling Peter Crouch, did the performance of the club improve as a result of that deal. Or, more likely, that knowing he would get a bonus for selling a player his own personal self-interest would come before the interests of the club. He also admitted he got the money and told a reporter that it was a bonus. He claims, presumably advised by a well-paid professional liar, called a barrister, to say he was lying to the reporter.

  It is quite clear that you can't believe a word Harry Redknapp says, followed by his claim that is was all his accountants work and he didn't know what was going on. It would be fun to know what went on in the jury room, oh he such a character we can't find him guilty,

  Then on to the third item which was all about phone hacking! All these people who just wanted justice done BUT have settled out of court so that NO criminal proceedings can take place. So the rich and powerful can avoid criminal proceedings by paying people off. The most shameful ones are the politicians, who seem to prefer to take money than see criminals prosecuted, doesn't this just make a mockery of their claim to be supporters of the law. So the shareholders of News International are a few hundred thousands worse off but I am sure it is all allowed as a business expense.

Education for the masses

  Michael Gove has just announced that lots of extra university places are going to Further Education colleges. Lets be clear this is because they are cheap, so the poor get cheap eduction.

How will these degree courses compare, I wonder how many will be in hard core academic subjects which Mr Gove and the Tories are so keen on or will they be "Mickey Mouse" degrees.  How much credibility will Mr Gove give to a degree in nail care or fish husbandry?  Given that Gove has just cut all those terrible diploma courses what will he do about the new degree level courses with the same subjects. Whilst the staff are colleges of Further Education colleges are very good that have not taught or been trained to deliver serious courses at higher education level.

I wonder whether students who take these courses will feel cheated when they realise they have been sold a an inferior course. Will this government refund them ther money.

Sir Fred Goodwin

  In Britain we have this old royalist honours system in which we have various orders and knighthoods and all sorts of daft old-fashioned things. We also have Lords and Ladies who sit in the House of Lords for ever despite what they do.

  So Fred Goodwin is now just plain Fred Goodwin  but in the past we had Sir Freddie Laker whose airline went bust but he was still Sir Freddie. But then we have various Lords who have done time in prison who still keep their titles, and their tight to vote, like Lord Archer, Lord Hanningfield and Lord Taylor. Interesting they are all Tory peers sent to prison BUT their have not had their honours taken away. What does a Lord have to do to be punished and go back to being plain Mr Archer!