Accountability 202 (Eric Berne)

http://www.ericberne.com/games-people-play

I have had a few months of people watching from a parent - adult - child mode perspective. I can now no longer stomach BBC news or newspapers. They seem to be in parent mode and whilst watching the news or reading newspapers I am attempting to stay in adult mode. Therefore communication is pointless.

It is the same with politicians. In the UK we jokingly call it the nanny state. However, it is a nanny state.

Controlling 60 million independent critical thinkers is like herding cats. It just is not possible. Therefore, we are not a nation of 60 million critical thinkers.

Recently, I had another conversation with a baby boomer about financial assets. He went from a productive adult member of society into a frightened little boy in minutes. A lifetimes hard work accumulating savings, self employed and owner of two houses to someone who needs to have a financial advisor for general advice.

The point here is that he should have a firm idea of what he wants to do with his savings and ask a financial advisor for specific advice on how to best realise his goal.

No, that isn't what happens. He gets the same advice from his financial advisor as other baby boomers get from theirs. These government accredited financial advisors peddle the same ideas as to do otherwise opens them up to being sued and losing their government approved financial advisor status. My favourite is that I am not allowed by law to proffer my opinion. So, tow the government approved line or get punished. Pure parent child nonsense.

We are individually accountable to ourselves. Instead of my baby boomer friend accepting responsibility and risk for his own savings he would rather trust a government that he knows lies.

I do understand why. Going against the herd is difficult. If you are wrong, they ridicule you. If you are right they feel cheated.

Anyway, the baby boomer is doing as he is told, if he loses then so will nearly all his associates, they will blame whoever the government tells them to. Bizarre doesn't begin to describe the world in which we live.

Anyway, the baby boomer is beginning to take responsibility for where he places his life savings but he struggles with managing risk. When his pension starts losing 'money' rather than flat lining, he might reassess the risk of not placing his wealth outside the reach of  the increasingly desperate financial sector.

Time reveals all.