Big number - small number; and the worlds local bank.

Ah a morning dose of statistics from GMTV. "...wholesale prices increased by I think 130%, but consumer prices only went up by 15% for the same period" Talking about gas prices and why despite wholesale prices dropping by half, consumers have seen no benefit. Andrew Castle falling for the ploy responded with "So they lost money!". "Well quite obviously they have to absorb some loss" A master a work note the lack of a definitive yes answer. Why not? Watch carefully, nothing up my sleeves and my hands never leave my wrists.

Plucking figures from thin air let's assume that the wholesale price of gas is 1p per unit and that after processing etc. the consumer pays 10p per unit. 1p+130%=2.3p an increase of 1.3p, 10p+15%=11.5p an increase of 1.5p. But but it's a big number and a small number the big number is always larger increase then the small one. Not when it's percentages, you need the starting figure too, and oh look those weren't mentioned by the nice man.


So my favourite bank has decided that counter service for their branch in Poole will be free only for those with £50k in their account, a £200k mortgage, or £100k mortgage with a £75k annual income. Poor people will have to pay £20 per year for the same privilege or stick to using the ATMs. Scarily understandable after all the staff have to be paid and it's really those with large debts or fat accounts that are paying for them, they're subsidising the poor folk. Unfortunately handled in a blatantly stupid fashion though and I wonder how long it will take for someone to sue them for discrimination.


Addendum - a minor sniffle is causing poor nights and nightmares. Oddly different though, normally they're what I call "scuttling things" creatures scuttling around the walls and hiding in the shadows vanishing in the light (another reason I keep a torch next to the bed) so I 'wake' up grab the light and shine it where it was before really waking up, feeling foolish, and going back to sleep.

The last few nights and last night in particular though it's been "shifting worlds" which is a new one to me. Basically there's a world just 'behind' this one and it's trying to come 'forward'. The manifestation is twinkling (not the twinkle in an eye, twinkle of a star; this is cold and malevolent) lights behind a normal object, such as a shelf of books or a wardrobe, where the normal object is becoming slowly transparent. Again it's banishable by light. Like the scuttling things it all makes sense when it happens, but it's a little creepy. Maybe I'm being contacted :-P