A good article on austerity based on Ireland and an idea.

Mercutio

Mercutio

Mercutio

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/busin...62304c-0460-11e3-a07f-49ddc7417125_story.html

So the article covers a lot of the finer ends of why austerity is simply a bad plan.

The English government doesn't seem to have the balls to accept it is wrong. The Irish however are generally a prouder, fiercer nation. As English we could help ourselves by supporting them. Get policies changed there and let it show it's accuracy (if they ditch austerity and recover) and our own government will almost certainly have to ditch it too or be seen to "suck".

Thoughts?
 
Just like quantative easing its economics made up on the sum total of nothing and we have been lead down a dark rapey ally way because there's no fun trying to get out of a raping....

I'd do annoying for both policies to be abandoned and proper e comic building from the government to be implemented
 
Firestar_3x said:
So if spending cuts don't work, explain the recovering economy.
Click to expand...

I haven't yet read the article but as a general point it is possible that an economy would recover more or less independently of cuts i.e. we need to be careful not to confuse causation and correlation. Whether that would be the case in the UK is up for debate and no doubt you could make arguments to support the view that it has both helped or hindered the recovery in the UK so while it might appear to be a simple question the answer is perhaps less easy to arrive at.
 
Ireland is buggered and will continue so for some time to come. Ireland has lost its sovereignty to the European Central Bank & the IMF.

The Irish taxpayer now has to pay increases on:
  • PAYE (Income Tax)
  • PRSI (Same as NI)
  • Universal Service Charge aka "Bailout Tax"
  • Property Tax aka More Bailout Tax which won't be used as it is in the UK as Council Tax to fund local services
  • Water rates again to go to the EU/IMF

The effective tax rate in Ireland is 55% due to all the above and stealth tax. So with unemployment running at 15% people are emigrating in their droves. In case there is any doubt that Austerity is not working the number of tax exiles has increased by 27% in two years. Source: Irish Times

Long story short the Irish people will be stuck paying for this mess for the next 20-30 years all thanks to the Banks both foreign and domestic.

Solution to problem? Don't be an Irish tax payer and leave the political "elite" to screw up the country for another 30 years. (Glad I got out)
 
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Mercutio said:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/busin...62304c-0460-11e3-a07f-49ddc7417125_story.html

So the article covers a lot of the finer ends of why austerity is simply a bad plan.

The English government doesn't seem to have the balls to accept it is wrong. The Irish however are generally a prouder, fiercer nation. As English we could help ourselves by supporting them. Get policies changed there and let it show it's accuracy (if they ditch austerity and recover) and our own government will almost certainly have to ditch it too or be seen to "suck".

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Are prouder and fiercer euphemisms for more dishonest and bankrupt?
 
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So the way out of a mountain of debt is to borrow more money and spend like mad, seems to make perfect sense to me......

Austerity here has been nothing but a token gesture at best and until we have a government in place that has the balls to tackle the huge spiraling cost of pensions then not much else will likely make a dent.

But that would risk alienating the people most likely to vote so I guess we should forget that as an option and continue to keep upping the state pension while the working population get less and less.
 
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Thats the way capitalism tends to work. Borrow and spend to sustain the growth which you need to cover the huge debts you have incurred. It kinda falls down when it gets to its peak and everyone realises that absurd valuations have allowed the system to survive for longer than it ever should.

This will happen forever till we have serious change to the mentality of the first world. When you have a system that allows people to profit from failure and to isolate themselves from the failures of their institutions you have a big problem. Who cares if the bank you work for goes bust or loses 90% of its value when you have been paid hundreds of thousands (or millions) for years. Personal accountability has removed any reason for people to abide by morals or common sense.

The whole financial system is a mess still and will lead to exactly the same situation as we were in a few years ago. We will ease the measures put in place to protect us and allow rampant speculating, borrowing and trading to resume.
 
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