The real trouble? The utterly parasitic have taken over. Note that the class does not only include the underclass; it includes those whose sole job is to shuffle paper, or to shuffle bits in a database, and who neither produce nor distribute anything of real worth.

Who are these people? Not just government bureaucrats, although they are an easy target – but bankers (particularly those who manage risk for the banks themselves), lawyers and accountants. All these groups work less and are compensated better than anyone in industry or retail below the very top of the tree – and have better security and more generous pension arrangements to boot.

Some solutions? (Reference the UK.) Freeze civil service recruitment indefinitely, or at least until the numbers are reduced by at least a third. Repeal most employment and human rights legislation, thus making it possible to fire someone who refuses to work. Make it illegal to give union organisers paid time off for union business. Gradually increase civil service working hours and decrease their holiday entitlement, and at the same time freeze their pay until it reaches a point lower than average – to account for the aforementioned generous pensions. And make the trading of derivatives, and hedge funds, unlawful. (Part of the point of interest on loans is to compensate for risk – currently, they are getting all the interest and none of the risk.)

In the UK at least, at the moment far and away the best option for someone starting up is to get a nice safe job in government or a bank – never have any employment or pension worries again, be generously paid and be required to be in your place of employment for maybe a third of your waking hours. This situation is insane, unsustainable and has to stop.

If something along these lines is not done, then large numbers of paper-pushers are going to end up being introduced to Mr. Hemp and Mr. Lamppost.

Shakespeare in Henry VI had it right. I wonder what he would have said about the current crop of “civil servants”?