The true 'Masters of the Universe'

In the crazy atmosphere of 1980s New York, so graphically depicted in the novel 'Bonfire of the Vanities', people made ludicrously huge sums of money gambling with money belonging to others on the financial markets. These individuals not only didn't realise that their rewards were higher than any  proper compensation for what they were doing, but they considered that they were taking risks and so deserved every penny. In those cocaine-fuelled days they regarded themselves as 'Masters of the Universe', important, deserving people.

Oh, how we laughed in the late eighties when their make-believe world crumbled along with their egos. As their clever but ultimately flawed schemes failed one after the other, some were fired and others demoted; a small number who had, even by the financial professions lax moral standards, behaved badly even went to prison for a while. And we naive people on the outside expected their world to cleanse itself and start again.

Ha! No sooner had the dust settled and they were at it again, different individuals perhaps but with the same exaggerated idea of their importance, equally dodgy 'investment' schemes and fresh sales patter. These snake oil salesmen of our times, clever admittedly and emboldened by the realisation that hardly anyone, themselves included, truly understood their schemes, went on the rampage again cloaked in the respectability provided by their 'Banking' habitat. Passionate evangelists of their schemes, they told everyone that they were not like the previous - failed - eighties mob, they were the real deal, the true 'Masters of the Universe'. Why, they worked so hard and risked so much just for a measly few dollars (millions were, perhaps, implied but not always mentioned), out to provide a much-needed service helping their fellow humans have a better life.

It all went bad again, of course, as reality caught up with the clever schemes and demolished them and all that went with them. Once again customers paid the ultimate price, though of course some of the 'wizards' also found themselves unneeded and, more importantly, unwanted. Yet there were tears and frustration at the unfairness of it all, how the world was unkind and refused to recognise their talents just because of a minor blip. Many of the those involved still saw themselves as 'Masters of the Universe', albeit unfairly and temporarily demoted.

Fast forward to today, when I read on the BBC website that the toddler son of an Australian firefighter, who lost his life trying to protect others in the current bushfires, was given his father's medal for bravery; another toddler is due to receive a similar award next week for his fallen father. Or go back to so many rescue crews who have lost their lives trying to save others or, indeed, imagine the unimaginably brave 9/11 emergency crews who raced to help their stricken city, with so many subsequently paying the price for their heroism. There are similar incidents everywhere in the world, every single day, of people risking everything to help others, sometimes paying the ultimate price. We reward these people with an everyday salary and a pat on the back (or a medal) for their bravery.

If we are in need we expect the emergency services to rush to our aid disregarding any peril in their way, seeing that as part of their job and not thinking much about what they do unless we live through their heroism ourselves. They risk their lives for us but we regard financial operators as more important and reward them accordingly, regarding them with awe and envy, the emergency services as just people doing their jobs.

We're crazy. The important people in this, the true 'Masters of the Universe' if we can ever give such a title to human beings, are the members of the emergency services willing to risk even their lives for the rest of us. We should revere, appreciate and honour them, not just posthumously, and strive to help make their jobs and lives easier by being considerate - they deserve as much.