SORRY

I must start with a confession - I was a public servant.  As such, I now realise that I am responsible for all the financial woes the country now suffers.  Yes, I have a Local government pension and, yes, I also have a state pension. So there it is - I, and many others are solely to blame for all the cuts we are now facing, so all I can do, after nearly fifty years of working my socks off (it would have been a bit longer if a certain school hadn't decided that I was too old) is apologise.

All over the country there must be millions of people like me who have suddenly realised that we are personally to blame for all this.  There we were, working away and thinking that we were actually doing some good for the community but all the while we we were ruining the economy.  In our foolish, childlike way, we had assumed that the crisis had been caused by greedy bankers making highly dubious decisions while lining their own pockets.  How naive.

My wife has suggested that it was, in fact, the fault of those making money and bad decisions.  But that can't be right, after all, our Prime Minister has told us that the Public Sector has dragged the country down, and the newspapers have confirmed so it must be true, mustn't it?

I do begin to have my doubts, though.  The fact that our P.M. has advocated a no fly zone over Libya having slashed the R.A.F. to such an extent that it can't even defend our own airspace and the Royal Navy will soon be reduced to operating a couple of punts and a pedalo, leads me to suspect that he doesn't have a total grasp of the realities of government.

Our well-heeled cabinet my well be vindictive; they may well feel that the country is populated by benefits scroungers; they may truly believe that only the rich have a right to rule, but the impression they give is that they just don't care about the things that matter to most of us and, dare I say, they are beginning to appear less than competent at the art of government.  So, come on Dave, do something to prove me wrong, or, at the very least, make a decision while taking into account the law of unforeseen consequences.

EXCUSE, EXCUSES, EXCUSES

Now we know; the Chancellor really does think we will believe any old rubbish the Tories churn out to mask their contempt and incompetence.  Today, they seem to have stopped blaming the previous government for the economic mess.  Perhaps with the appointment of Ed Balls, they know their earlier excuses will be met with forceful and cogent arguments to the contrary so they turn to an agency which cannot respond; the weather. 

When we were suffering in the snow (in winter, who could have anticipated that?) where were the signs that the Government was leaping to spearhead the drive to get the country moving?  They didn't seem concerned then but as soon as bad economic news breaks - it's not my fault, it's the weather.  Come on George, we are not idiots, we can still sniff out male bovine ordure.  Are you treating us with contempt or are you just not doing a very good job?  Both  options are unlikely to prove election winners.  Remember, those of us who are not millionaires and rely on public services are not going to look kindly on those who take those services away.

IS THIS THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT?

It is to some.  To us they are anonymous statistics but to them it's a loss of income and a frightening change - the 2,000 City of Manchester workers who are to be cast aside in a devasting future.  This is the Tory way; blame the people who are least to blame for the the greed and mismanagement of the already rich.  And they don't even care; it's seen as an unfortunate necessity to solve the economic problems that they inherited.  What rubbish!  The types who created the mess are those who are in line for massive bonuses.  Where's the justice in that?

So what is going to happen to local services in Manchester, and the rest of the Country?  They will suffer becuase fewer staff will have to attempt to maintain an acceptable level of services with massively dwindling resources.

If the Goverment doesn't like ordinary people, they shouldn't even think about governing.  They clearly don't like us; from education to health, even to our national defence, they have proved that they really don't care.  The cabinet is a  bit like the English football team; they are all millionaires, they don't really care about the result and they are so insulated against normal life, the outcome won't affect them.  I am going to lie down in a darkened room.