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October 07, 2014

Comments

pablopatito

It's quite interesting to compare current opinion with that of early 90s where we had a similarly large budget deficit (although that one couldn't be blamed on Labour), which I struggle to remember. See here http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/politics97/budget97/background/bud1993_95.shtml
I suppose the fact that the last one couldn't be blamed on Labour meant the Tories kept their heads down a little bit. But I don't remember the budget deficit being a major talking point at the time. It came down pretty quickly.

Blissex

«the fake machismo of "tough choices." Not only are these tough only for other people - mostly the most vulnerable»

Those are the politics of the situation, after all.

Current politics are based on a coalition of the "deserving, hard working" property owning middle income classes with the property owning high income classes against the "lazy, welfare addicted" working and temp working low income people.

Therefore the media strategy iseca to remind often the property owning middle income classes that the poor live in stunning luxury on benefits and that this causes a state budget deficit that threatens those low interest rates that boost asset prices.

"Essex man" and "Worcester woman" just love that message.

While the media also deliver what their sponsors want to say, they deliver mostly what their readers want to hear, because their readers are effectively only interested in buying mostly-free entertainment.

Ralph Musgrave

Chris,

I’d stop worrying about the Westminster fruitcakes’ obsession with the deficit if I were you. The fashion will soon change. Next year they’ll be vying with each other to see who can burn the most witches, or who promises to build the most pyramids to bury dead members of the royal family in.

Dinero

Current fads aside, the deficit is an issue because it suggests that the government is spending unwisely. If its spending decisions are beneficial to the economy then the tax base grows and creates the source of the funding, the books balance. ie they would pay for themselves. The deficit represent the shortfal in this equation of merit.

David Kent

Hello Chris,

I seem to remember that all of "this" .... the bubble, media involvement (intellectualising an agenda), hammering the deficit and real wages....... was laid out as a neo-liberal "plan" in Le Monde Diplomatique only a few years before the current "crisis" was announced. If I can find a link I will post it.
Using the same tools as Gramsci for an opposite agenda...! It took them a while to catch on, but the result is a waterfall of mis-information once their media friends have bitten the apple.

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