No one cares

Having just arrived back from my walk to the Post Office I'v broken my Obsomov for the day.
The walk was pleasant with the air warm but the sunshine hidden behind a light covering of cloud and the suburbs as I have mentioned before interesting as one walks by the gardens and through the park. Apart from the occasional nod of the head I didn't speak to anyone until I got into the Post Office and the bureaucratic play began. What's in the package ? I need to know.

Having travelled around a bit and used the postal services in many countries there was never the need unless the package was going overseas and might attract customs duty to disclose what was inside. Now there is and it's just another officious niggle to remind us that we are in throe to powers which lie all around. The head of steam that the security regime have built up mean that not only do I suffer the ignominy of my trousers falling down as I shuffle forward in the airport departure process minus my belt, which for some reason has to be scanned but as I innocently send someone a CD or a book I have to describe the contents of my package. If I were a bomber it unlikely I would reveal the truth of my intentions but some jobs worth feels he/she has ticked a box by asking the what and the why. It's intrusive but never mind we have covered our posterior if something were to go off and the bomber didn't tell us.

And then there's the infernal letterbox gadget which determines the postage charged. As I said to the lass behind the counter. Once upon a time the postal service was a "service" but not now, within reason, they would accept some variance. Not these days. I know that particular test is to see if the package will fit through the letterbox (remember we have already weighed it to ascertain one criteria for cost) my package was soft but because it touched the letterbox it attracted a higher rate. With slight pressure the shape would change to go through but since everyone now is taught to tick boxes the cost of postage fell into a higher bracket. 

Now that Royal Mail been privatised and scandalously sold for a song by the Vince Cable, well under market valuation, even after the taxpayer was saddled with retaining the enormous deficit built up in the pension fund. Another scandal. Allowing business to take a "contribution holiday" whilst the people who were covered by the pension have to continue to contribute from  their wages, the company is allowed to lapse its payment thereby allowing huge deficits to grow vis a vis its liabilities.
Philip Green, the BHS owner was due to appear before another Parliamentary Committee because he did the same thing, avoiding his fiduciary duties whilst paying his wife massive dividends in Monti Carlo. All these "movers and shakers" walk free but heaven help the old lags who steal from the bank security boxes, their feet didn't  touch the grass as they were hauled away for stealing approximately the same amount.
The first thing the private owners of the Royal Mail did  after closing down about 50% of the Post Office outlets and spending an enormous sum of money on a re branding exercise, which once in place was scrapped, was to increase the postage and have been increasing it ever since. Strange since the reason the Post Office (established in 1516) Royal Mail was sold was it wasn't producing a profit. There was never any attempt,  prior to the sale, to increase the cost of postage since it was acknowledged, as a public service that the service was fundamental to society  and had a price ceiling in terms of its use and its target market. As soon as it was sold all those ideals were thrown out and now large swathes of society are priced out of using it.

Public service Old Peoples Homes are the same, only when sold for a song are they closed down and the ground turned into profitable real estate. The rape of Public Assets and no one can do anything to stop them.
I could go on but we seem pretty ambivalent about the way we are being put out to tender. No one seems to mind, no one cares either about the Government intervention in the BBC or the on going Privatisation of the National Health Service, no one cares, no one cares, no one cares !