On His Merits

When times are hard and money's short,
And ministers not cheaply bought,
We put our noses to the wheel
And grind away our lives for real.
Your Briton's a meritocrat:
The race is to the swiftest rat.
We bring our children up to be
Small globs of self-sufficiency;
So, slogging through your daily fun,
Just think how well you might have done
If you had been more wise, and had
A tax avoider for your Dad.