Bury the tHatchet?

The very dreary drama on the BBC based on the rise of the New Right in Britain has coincided it appears with an anniversary of some kind, maybe 30 years since Maggie pushed into Number 10? It is difficult to get a feel for how the New Right changed Britain for better/worse without having known politics before and after. The lynchpin of her legacy was the monetarist doctrine of privatisation. This was not a creation of her own, oh no, the origins of this movement as a political tool can be traced back to Hitler’s Germany. Although all privatisations are unique, there are some interesting parallels to be drawn between the New Right and the Far Right. It was a mass selling-off of public utilities in Germany in the 1930s that is remarkably similar to Thatcher’s revolution in the 1980s, and the continuation under New Labour: the handling of public services became a private concern. It is important in analysis of the parallels to elucidate the intentions of Thatcher’s elites (companies) and those of Nazi Germany, but clearly there are benefits when channelling relations between business and government for greater state control of the economy: to increase savings in bank accounts. This demonstrates Hitler’s mastery of political economy. He knew that privatisation could lead to a very well defined politics of power, and a strong section of alliances with major industrialists.
In the same way, the centrality of private sales was core to the popularity of the Conservatives in the 1980s. The results of this movement have been highly criticised, particularly when pensions were reduced as they became inflation-indexed rather than wage-indexed. Railways have not improved since contracting out, and it is terrifying that Labour want to put the hands of the very efficient Royal Mail into private ownership. What is clear, is that Thatcher’s legacy is entrenched, but it is now being questioned for its quality more than ever. Whereas Hitler wanted politicised economic governance of instrumental hue, the New Right have given business their own special powers, of which the consumer has not seen consistent benefit or return.

Pass Fascism By Please...?

As I feared whilst thumbing Barrington Moore and old Trotsky classics, the notion of fascism is being flagged. I am hoping that our rapid political development can save us by focusing on collective federalism and multipolarity. I am looking forward to a more disciplined capitalist platform with a commitment to stability through disciplined macroeconomic planning.

Yikes: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/4571944/Ed-Balls-minister-fears-rise-of-fascism-amid-economic-gloom.html

Working Man's Not Dead

I like Johann Hari's blog. I read his entry on work experience and it was quite harsh. It is probably true that in some cases work experience is quite exploitative and involves a lot of tea making and grovelling, maybe in journalism?! Having recently done a bit myself I was surprised that I wasn't the one doing the tea making and I was thoroughly engaged shadowing some really great people and they really made it a pleasure. Am I the exception?!
Please, if you don't read another article this week look at this well written piece in the New Statesman, it is stunning:

http://www.newstatesman.com/economy/2009/02/housing-societies-essay

Equitable Life

The well documented and protracted Equitable Life fiasco appears to be drawing towards a close with the announcement that victims will be compensated after a deep investigation by the Treasury and Parliamentary Ombusman. It is good news for a few whom lost their savings but illustrates a prime example of the flimsy structure of private insurance companies who shun blame by focusing on regulatory agencies as the cause of economic collapse rather than shouldering responsiblity for their decisions. The next generation of savers and investors are being forced to redress planning for retirement by drawing conclusions from evidence pieced together from press clippings and hansard, for as we well know, it is best to invest in educating and caring for oneself- at least then you will get a straight answer!
It does not help that the FSA failed to thoroughly scrutinise Equity's handling of the Hyman case on its performance and assurances over adherence to regulatory frameworks designed to improve accountability and performance.

Looking Glass

Ramsay MacDonald's 1931 National Government, formed after the Great Depression of 1929 was designed to accommodate the economic and social tensions created by crisis. The current polls are showing a tension between Labour and the Conservatives that indicates potential for a hung Parliament- given the inability of the Conservatives to capitalise on their July-September gains. The current crisis shows little sign of improving and indicators from the Bank of England are hinting at increased tightening on lending.
Interesting to note that Phillip Snowden was the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Snowden published a pamphlet with Kier Hardie entitled "The Christ That is to be" (1903) detailing his vision of "Paradise on Earth" (Geoffrey Foote: 53) through a quasi-socialist fantasy. His assumption of Gladstonian orthodox economics in practice grated in an almost hypocritical paradox given his ideals, but his insistence resonated:
"We care not a rap about your political philosophy. It is enough for us to know that many who toil long and hard are in poverty, and the few never work at all". It is Snowden's socialist intellectualism that has led to the quasi-religious tone of much of Blair's protracted ideology, even if only in concessionary form by making private wages a "public concern" (Geoffrey Foote: 54) through the minimum wage. It is pleasant to think of this gentleman and indulge in one of the most fascinating periods of 20th Century British politics.

In Praise of Foucault

Young and educated as I am - I have been working my way through Michel Foucault's great works again. As with the great philosophers he is no easy read but his insights into the mechanics of the information age and the spread of modes of power 'everywhere' - alerts us to how this replicates itself in political economy of sexuality and its benefactors.

The Daily Telegraph has enlightened me today with http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/universityeducation/3998514/Universities-should-be-free-to-charge-US-style-20000-tuition-fees-report-says.html a cosy report on the greater expansion of private finance to support higher education in the form of a whopping super-sized top-up to compete with US elite institutions. I believe in a more focused role for state in shaping and funding UK institutions but I really can't see an end to this form of collateral and the damage it will do to the social fabric of the aspiring classes. I use the word class because money is the core transformative mechanism or enabler for the poor but able student. With these new fees, the concept of higher education is being completely redefined - the pressure on students to perform is crippling - and with the psychological misery associated with debt - the philosophy of learning has been imbued with the rationality of monetarist techniques of calculation.

Those who reject this profiteering to boost research endowments are- as Foucault defines- part of the power network - only as a 'exteriority'- a product of betrayal. I can only see this expansion as unpopular, a bloated opportunism already functioning on this level through the pooling of foreign nationals paying extortionate fees. I am amazed, given the current debt crisis that anyone would be so bold as to follow the dreadful US loans system and pray that the great system of UK education (one of the foremost) that has lifted disadvantaged from mediocrity- not be dragged into disrepute with these shoddy proposals.

Things are gonna' slide....

Leonard Cohen couldn't have put it better. The economic crisis is a multilayered monster walled in a secretive world of biblical proportions. The relevancy of Christmas is omnipresent- given that this is the time that we all spend the most money- unneccessarily in most cases. At a time when a lot of us are revising our budgets - it may be interesting to note the true message of the season- a hsitorical perspective on humanity and reclaiming the simplicity of a pre-information age. Drawing comparisons between the great depression and the current crunch at least shows that we are aware of the complexities of unbridled capitalism and the rise of fascism in the 1930s. The collective memory of the suffering of these times and the onset of obscene political notions - tyrannical control - derived from what Barrington Moore defines as a distinct culture in landlocked Europe - at least allows some anxiety about the moral message of regulated capitalism preventing the onset of such cultural conditions. The message of Christmas is of one of taking stock - for me- to reevaluate the structures that bind us together and not be afraid to challenge the forces that threaten to compromise our very existence- and the continuance of humanity. Let us not forget that Jesus was a great revolutionary force- and the message is - that from beyond the grave - good triumphed.