FSTDT Forums
Community => Politics and Government => Topic started by: armandtanzarian on April 26, 2012, 11:14:05 am
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(http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/4f97e829ecad04bd7f000035/chart.jpg)
Its official now; With the UK's economy contracted by 0.2% in Q1 2012, the 2nd straight quarter to do so, the UK has returned to the dictionary definition of a recession. And for the large part of the blame is on the Conservative party and its singular focus on austerity since coming into power.
Numerous British economists had warned against the deep budget cutting, arguing that the government was heading down a dangerous path with potentially severe consequences. Steve Benen over at Maddowblog cites the advice of London Business School economist Richard Portes who warned one year ago, “My view is that we are in serious danger of a double-dip recession. This is going to be a cautionary tale.”
Unlike the United States or Germany, UK economic output has yet to return to the levels before the recession began four years ago. Activity is still more than 4% lower than it was at its peak in early 2008 and has recovered more slowly than it did after the Great Depression of the 1930s.
Trevor Greetham, director of asset allocation at Fidelity Worldwide Investment, said: "Since the last general election, the UK has been bumping along the bottom with growth sometimes a bit above, sometimes a bit below zero. The Bank of England's quantitative easing has failed to offset the negative impact of government spending cuts in the way cuts in interest rates would have.
"In the US, where austerity exists only in rhetorical form and not in reality, the recovery from the 2008 slump continues to gather momentum and unemployment is falling. Growing your way out of debt looks like the better strategy."
The TUC general secretary, Brendan Barber, said: "Austerity isn't working. The government should look across the Atlantic and follow President Obama's alternative that has reduced unemployment and brought growth back to the USA."
http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/04/25/british-economic-austerity-bombs-as-england-double-dips-into-recession/
http://www.businessinsider.com/david-camerons-idiotic-statement-2012-4
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/apr/25/recession-figures-bad-day-osborne?newsfeed=true
Austerity makes no sense in economic downturn; this is probably one of the basic tenants of Keynesianism that government must step in when the market fears to tread. It is illogical and utterly destructive, and the UK is paying the price for it.
Forbes especially focuses on and shoots down the (US) Republican Party's worship of tax cuts and shrinking government, essentially saying "here's what your fucking small government with do". Doubt they'll listen though, not in that fact-free environment.
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(http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/210/119/+_2acc5a8841f8752904d37f90a8014829.png?1322693145)
It's a shame some people *cough* conservatives *cough* don't get it.
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(http://static1.fjcdn.com/thumbnails/comments/hahahaha+_46a1ae44_b584_4b3f.jpg)
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Image broken
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As a Brit I'm shocked, shocked I tell you.
Of course the government doesn't give a fuck anyway as they are so rich it doesn't matter to any of them
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Who were right the whole time? Who were wrong right from the start?
This needs to become a teaching moment for politics and economics. The 'Hippies' are right, the 'Serious People' are completely ignorant.
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The statistics on our unemployment are massaged to the point where they glow in the dark. The reality is very much something else.
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On a related note, the US has released numbers on economic growth (http://news.firedoglake.com/2012/04/27/mediocre-gdp-numbers-a-predictable-result-of-us-austerity-policies/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook) and they are mediocre at best, the cause being most likely being austerity.
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And now Osborne wants Iain Duncan-Smith (Work and Pensions secretary) to slash another £10 billion off welfare to cover his own ass, which even Duncan-Smith (who is every bit as big an elitist toff as the rest of the Cabinet) is calling unacceptable.