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Both articles are ostensibly book reviews. The first:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/feb/11/saving-world-william-keegan-review?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487
Wherein Gordon Brown's reputation is analysed in relation to his actions during and after the financial crisis. And which rather rubbishes Cameron and Osborne's "it's all Gordon's fault" mantra.
Secondly this:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/apr/14/robert-peston-fix-mess-review?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fbooks%2Frss+%28Books%29
In which the Observer reviews Robert Peston's book for the second time: the first time being some seven months ago.
Both reviews, and the books being reviewed, should be required reading: especially for folk in the banking and financial industries. Nevertheless, I don't suppose that sort of person will read them. They tend to have too much riding on the present view promulgated by the propaganda dept of Osborne and Cameron's party of kitchen sink economics.
I mean, as a thought experiment, just imagine that some unnamed country was going through severe austerity measures because of a financial crisis brought about by its financial institutions. And even with the stringent austerity measures, and severe cuts in public spending, somehow or other the budget projections for borrowing for the last quarter made by the Finance Minister - let's call him John Butler - had been exceeded by some 13.8 Billion Groats. (Mr Butler said this had been unavoidable, and all the fault of the previous administration, of course.) What Mr Butler neglects to mention is that if he had cut his budget by 13.8 Billion Groats less, his borrowing would have remained the same, the economy would have been larger by 13.8B Groats, and he would also have had a significant tax take on the part of that 13.8B Groats that went on wages, salaries, goods and services, and the like. So for that quarter the economy would have been effectively 13.8B Groats + the taxes thereon larger than it is under his present (mis)management. And furthermore, that this austerity package masquerading as economic management had increased Mundania's (dammit, I said this country was going to be unnamed) national debt from 770B Groats, when Mr Butler took over from the previous administration, to the current amount of over 1 trillion Groats: and all the while claiming economic competence in comparison to the previous administration, which was obviously the cause of all our problems. And the population believed him, because…they know how household budgets work. And a country is only a household writ larger, after all, isn't it?
It's a good job it's only a thought experiment, hey children? I mean, it could never happen in real life.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/feb/11/saving-world-william-keegan-review?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487
Wherein Gordon Brown's reputation is analysed in relation to his actions during and after the financial crisis. And which rather rubbishes Cameron and Osborne's "it's all Gordon's fault" mantra.
Secondly this:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/apr/14/robert-peston-fix-mess-review?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fbooks%2Frss+%28Books%29
In which the Observer reviews Robert Peston's book for the second time: the first time being some seven months ago.
Both reviews, and the books being reviewed, should be required reading: especially for folk in the banking and financial industries. Nevertheless, I don't suppose that sort of person will read them. They tend to have too much riding on the present view promulgated by the propaganda dept of Osborne and Cameron's party of kitchen sink economics.
I mean, as a thought experiment, just imagine that some unnamed country was going through severe austerity measures because of a financial crisis brought about by its financial institutions. And even with the stringent austerity measures, and severe cuts in public spending, somehow or other the budget projections for borrowing for the last quarter made by the Finance Minister - let's call him John Butler - had been exceeded by some 13.8 Billion Groats. (Mr Butler said this had been unavoidable, and all the fault of the previous administration, of course.) What Mr Butler neglects to mention is that if he had cut his budget by 13.8 Billion Groats less, his borrowing would have remained the same, the economy would have been larger by 13.8B Groats, and he would also have had a significant tax take on the part of that 13.8B Groats that went on wages, salaries, goods and services, and the like. So for that quarter the economy would have been effectively 13.8B Groats + the taxes thereon larger than it is under his present (mis)management. And furthermore, that this austerity package masquerading as economic management had increased Mundania's (dammit, I said this country was going to be unnamed) national debt from 770B Groats, when Mr Butler took over from the previous administration, to the current amount of over 1 trillion Groats: and all the while claiming economic competence in comparison to the previous administration, which was obviously the cause of all our problems. And the population believed him, because…they know how household budgets work. And a country is only a household writ larger, after all, isn't it?
It's a good job it's only a thought experiment, hey children? I mean, it could never happen in real life.
