A millenium of the bourgeoisie

Since the 11th century, the bourgeoisie have been described. They first came to dominate commerce in Western and Central Europe. By the 17th and 18th centuries, they were represented by the financial forces which deposed the old feudal system. Its power was enough to initiate the English Civil War, the American War of Independence and the French Revolution. Favouring a more liberal approach, they espoused property ownership and the accrual of personal wealth. Even today, la petite bourgeoisie aspire to ascend to the heights of the upper classes which their predecessors sought to destroy. These nouveax riches now predominate the higher eschelons of public life in this country. On recent evidence they are certainly remaining true to the aspirations of their more illustrious forebears. This week it is revealed that the BBC has paid £25 million in severance pay to 150 executives between 2009 and 2012. You can rest assured that this figure is only in the public domain becuase Parliament demands it. Speaking of which, our democratically elected MPs are themselves reported to have claimed £23 million pounds in the year to April. It only seems like yesterday that the Daily Telegraph was drip feeding us with revelations of MP expense scandals which we were assured - all together now - would never happen again. "Root and branch inquiry" and other such tired expressions were dutifully trotted out to try and placate a semi irate Britich public. Of course the big difference between the BBC and the MPs is that the BBC executives are unelected by the public - we just do them the service of paying the TV license and by inference, their salaries and pay-offs. The MPs are elected and so you could be forgiven for thinking that they would have a modicum of accountability to their electorate. Not on this evidence. The current Chairman of the BBC Trust is Chris Patten. Sorry, Lord Patten. Having previously been Tory party Chairman and Governor of Hong Kong, this man is the Civil Servant extraordinaire. If ever a shining example of the bourgeoisie was needed, this man would tick all the boxes. His sherpa-like social climbing has been breathtaking. Few others could have lost their seat as an MP only to be given the role of Governor of Hong Kong and then proceed to lead the BBC. If there was any sense of decency or shame in British public life, I'm afraid it is long gone as money continues to dominate morals. There are those who say, "You'd do the same in their shoes wouldn't you?". Speaking for myself, no. The basic salaries of these people are beyond the imagination of everyone else so the paying of severance and claiming of expenses is frankly obscene. If la petite bourgeoisie are on the rise, la grande bourgeoisie are defending their territory too. Over two thirds of the present cabinet went to Oxford or Cambridge and many of those also went to the top public schools. It was therefore with great mirth that I listened to the current health secretary earlier this week. As previous head boy of Charterhouse, Jeremy Hunt claimed that he would "want to go and see his GP instead of having to go to the local A and E department". Sounds good but somewhat unlikely. I rather fancy his physician might reside in Harley Street. It svery difficult to achieve change in our institutions if we continue to have people incharge who have so little experience of the real life faced by the millions every day. One thing is certain. After a thousand years of the bourgeoisie in its various incarnations, little has changed and the need to climb the social ladder seems as compelling as ever. The English Civil War, the American War of Independence and the French Revolution have all borne the very people they sought to eliminate. Which only goes to illustrate the futility of war and the weakness of human nature.