Why are people trying to obscure A Vagabond's point?
A group of people were given millions of dollars/pounds of welfare (although it isn't called that), and the requirement for this welfare was, in essence, that you be very rich, instead of very poor.

The government made a decision that the community would pay welfare to maintain a group of people in privilege.
(apeloverage committed the vile act of onanism on, Mon 14 Jun 2010, 15:12, 2 replies)

And in case you ask "well what would you have done"?
It might have been the best decision to bail out the banks. I don't pretend to be an economist (although I suspect that many economists are, in fact, pretending to be economists).

However they had the ability to structure the banks however they wanted in return for bailing them out. They made the decision that people in positions of privilege should stay in those positions, and that public money should fund this.
(apeloverage committed the vile act of onanism on, Mon 14 Jun 2010, 15:15, closed)

The banks are in the process of being restructured - please see the link(s) above.
Also, the vast majority of the senior management in the bailed-out banks have indeed lost their jobs as a result. Stephen Hester at RBS was very much a political appointment.
( The Teviot Moose major 5th., Mon 14 Jun 2010, 15:17, closed)

What sort of "welfare" are you talking about?
All of the above addresses the bank bailouts that you seem to be calling welfare payments, even though they were nothing of the sort, the certainly weren't freebies for rich peope, as you seem to be indicating.
( The Teviot Moose major 5th., Mon 14 Jun 2010, 15:15, closed)

"they weren't freebies for rich people"
There are people who

i) were rich.
ii) are still rich.
ii) are currently working at a bank that was bailed out.
iv) wouldn't be doing so if the bank hadn't been bailed out (if only because the bank wouldn't exist)

Thus, those people were given freebies which have enabled them to stay rich.
(apeloverage committed the vile act of onanism on, Mon 14 Jun 2010, 15:18, closed)

There are a large number of people that work at banks who
i)are not rich.
ii) are still not rich.
iii) are currently working at a bank that was bailed out.
iv) wouldn't be doing so if the bank hadn't been bailed out (if only because the bank wouldn't exist)

I suspect if you walked into your local HBOS or RBS branch, and suggested to the teller that he/she was rich, they'd probably laugh at you.

As noted above, the money was, by no means, a freebie. The government can sell their holding at any time, and stand to make money on the deal (subject to the shareprice rising).
( The Teviot Moose major 5th., Mon 14 Jun 2010, 15:23, closed)

the rich bankers that fucked up or can be held responsible (mostly) all lost their jobs.
Banks are companies. Companies generally sack people that are shit at their jobs because, unlike the public sector, they can.

The bank "bailout" (which in itself is a ridiculous term as the government stands to make one point seven metric fucktons of profit out of it, rather spoiling the press calling it a bailout) merely meant that the tens of thousands of people that (say) RBS employ in general kept their jobs. And anyone with an RBS mortgage/account kept their house/savings. and the economy didn't completely collapse leaving us all cooking rats over wood fires in caves.

But, hey, if you want to see it as the government handing money to rich people, by all means carry on, don't let anything approaching actual fact cloud your judgment.
( the mighty badger Aphrodite, on a bar stool, by your side, Mon 14 Jun 2010, 17:26, closed)

It has to be said A. Vagabond looks a bit silly.
He's sitting there, one of the worlds richest people, complaining about people being richer than him.

I'm sure you do work fair and square for your money, but your standard of living is hardly fair and square is it. It's achieved by the hard work and early deaths of millions of people around the world. Yet there you are attacking the system that has brought about this sate of affairs.

So keep sitting there in your nice house, with your boiler, with your health care, education and luxuries. Wiping your arse with paper, PAPER! no less. Most of the worlds population would use that to write on. Flick the V to the poor, and stop whining.
( The Awful Puppy Bakery is still bored, Mon 14 Jun 2010, 18:16, closed)

speak for yourself
I wipe my arse with pedigree puppies.
( the mighty badger Aphrodite, on a bar stool, by your side, Mon 14 Jun 2010, 18:27, closed)

I wipe mine with my squirty bum hose and my hand.
I'm not a hippy; I just live in Indonesia.

I wipe my cock on the curtains.
( The Awful Puppy Bakery is still bored, Mon 14 Jun 2010, 18:41, closed)