Originally Posted by
langleybaston
Other than being little more than a burden upon taxpayers.
Says it all.
Ok, I'll play this game then, as it seems you're intent on being offended for absolutely no reason. Hypothetical question. Let's say that 50% of the working population of NI were Met Office staff. Would that be, in your view, a valid indicator of the success or prosperity of that region?
I say that it would not, any more than if 50% of the population were civilian ROs, or 50% of the population worked for HMRC, or 50% of the population worked in Stormont.
It's a silly point to try and make, whichever way you choose to look at it. Any successful population needs the minimum amount of government, and civil servants, commensurate with a high standard of living and decent public services. An imbalance, such that their is a surfeit of people being paid by the taxpayer, just increases the burden of taxation beyond that which the population can sustain and still have a reasonable quality of life.
Edited to add: I have the utmost respect for Met Office staff. More than once my life depended on their skills and expertise. At the same time, I would not have wished to have had 100 of them giving me a met brief at the same time.