Just occasionally there are mornings when I wonder what to write. Most days several issues come straight to my attention, and I have no problem thinking of an angle to take on them. Then, off I go.
This morning the news has not done that for me. I have already discussed the local elections. I have addressed the denial of choice inherent in first past the post, and in new ID restrictions.
I have discussed Charles Windsor and his absurd coronation this weekend, with all the oppression implicit in it.
The Fed raised interest rates yesterday, meaning the Bank of England is bound to do so, again, and I have related the folly implicit in that policy many times.
War in Ukraine continues. Putin is making more false claims.
So too are our political parties, to the extent that neither of the main ones now say anything of any meaning.
I have an overwhelming sense of a system that is failing about which only so many words can be said. I suspect I am far from alone.
Most people will not vote today, although they are entitled to do so.
More people will worry about their economic fate as they face the private despair imposed on them by bankers who are ignorantly adamant that the excess spending capacity of UK households is the problem they must bear down on.
Young people wonder about a world stacked against them, always tinged by the nagging doubt that maybe it will not have the capacity to sustain them, whilst knowing older people will do nothing about that, so deep is their sense of entitlement.
The refugee knows, as they always have, that few really want them.
And the soldier most likely has just one question that they ask time and again, why is ‘why?'
It is an appropriate thing to ask. How we got to this point can always be disputed. Facts are limited in supply when it comes to understanding the human condition. Sentiments are plentiful. And resignation is the easy one. The presumption that it is our fate to live at this moment, suffering these conditions, thinking ourselves unable to address them is commonplace.
I do not accept that hypothesis. The one inalienable right that we have is to ask ‘why?' and to decide we do not accept the answer that is suggested to us.
We cannot, in other words, be forced to comply, although the price of non-compliance can be high.
We do have the right to disagree and to promote alternatives that appear to us to be better answers to the questions that we must face.
Earlier this week when being interviewed for the Scotonomics podcast I was asked what people can do to address the fact that the understanding of economics that I share with William Thomson and Kairin Van Sweeden, who run it, when that perception is not widespread? My answer was to suggest that we should simply talk about the different view that we have.
Right now, we have that option. In amongst the despair that it is all too easy to feel about the state of the political economy in which we live we should not ignore the fact that, as yet, we still seem to have that freedom. The creation of alternatives is still permitted.
What I added on that occasion, and when also discussing my motivations for writing this blog on ‘Steve Keen and Friends', was that repetition is not a problem. This morning I am unwilling to return to the dominant themes of today's news agenda as I feel I have addressed them all of late. But, in reality repetition is essential.
Without repetition we do not build narratives. As a result, we do not refine our stories. Nor do we reach enough people. Repetition is, then, key.
Knowing that, I have sometimes joked that I have written no more than ten or so blog posts in the last seventeen years of producing this blog, but have repeated each of them a couple of thousand times in various different ways.
There is an element of truth in that. And it is important. We build our beliefs by testing them. That is what I do when writing. I don't write because I know the answer. I always write to find out what I think. And it is only by thinking and then testing that thinking time and again that we can answer that question ‘why?'
Why is there no news that jumps out from the pages to grab my attention this morning? It is because the news agenda is being controlled to focus us on that which is not relevant - the coronation of a king - when there is so much more to really think about. All else has to be downplayed so that our required sense of awe will fulfil us, temporarily. That is today's agenda.
I do not accept that agenda. I will instead ask why we cannot do better. Why, instead of focussing on the falsehoods implicit in the supposed royal traditions, most of which are of remarkably recent creation, we cannot ask the more important questions in life.
Why can't we meet basic needs?
Why can't people be free from fear?
Why can't we live within the means of the planet?
How can we limit the capacity to abuse that humans apparently have?
Why can't we create the conditions in which everyone can flourish?
I believe we could do all those things.
Sometimes today's news agenda distracts us from the big questions.
By ignoring it today I have got closer to what the questions really are. And that's no bad thing.
But normal service will resume soon.
Thanks for reading this post.
You can share this post on social media of your choice by clicking these icons:
You can subscribe to this blog's daily email here.
And if you would like to support this blog you can, here:
I totally agree with your post. There was a letter in the Guardian recently about why there has been no rioting over this last 12-13 years.
The thing is, there has. There were demonstrations about tuition fees, parts of Croydon went up in smoke, but everything was done to steer us away from these events. When there were riots in Brixton and Toxteth under Thatcher in the early 80’s we actually got a bit of result in the Single Regeneration Budget and Urban Development Corporations which were if I recall correctly were given to Tory whet Michael Heseltine to run. And Thatcher secretly dropped monetarism. This got mixed results and we also got gentrification but it was something and the idiots in power were made to stop and think.
This last 12-13 years though we’ve had nothing but lies and promise (levelling up my arse) – especially if you are not a Tory council. One of the clues as to why this is so is what people are talking about on a Monday morning at work over the years – from the front desk to the directors.
And what are they talking about? ‘Strictly Come Dancing’. ‘Big Bother’. ‘Naked Attraction’. Soap operas. Not government policy.
The key is the media of course – it’s now a method of mass distraction and also containment.
The cost of living crises though might be the key moment. This is where the new laissez-faire Toryism might have over reached itself. The rich dicks above me – on personal incomes of £60K + a year and not moaning about gas bills – are the only ones still talking about shit TV. The rest of us are talking about how we are struggling, how unfair it is for our kids to be saddled with debt, an insensitive coronation of an unfaithful prince who has a dodgy brother and their 36 year old kids still living at home as we head to an overcrowding crises in housing (we’re well on the way to that BTW).
So the tales you tell are always worth repeating.
My brother is naturalised French and has lived there for 40 years or more. I had forwarded him a recent article from the Guardian about how whilst the French were busy rioting, in practice they had far less to complain about. It’s a fine French tradition. Meanwhile the British grumble and complain but mostly acquiesce when they really should be out on the streets, given the state of the country and its dreadful government.
Which is partly I why I feel we have to vote, however limited the the choice. It’s the least we can do.
I am on Facebook and somehow I got on both Labour and Lib Dem local websites. I have been taking the opportunity to comment on the real cost of the NHS salary claims -and that 40% would come back as tax; the multiplier, that QE is a debt owed by the govt to itself and various other things familiar to readers here. Sometimes I get an invite to read their polices !! but a few councillors have commented, usually in agreement. I assume most readers of these sites are party members or supporters and even if they don’t comment , at least, hear a different view. I referred a Green Councillor to this blog and he came back to say it was ‘very interesting’.
New ideas are often ignored or dismissed as they are not known but if they keep cropping up, they become more familiar. As the crises worsen, so people look more widely. My hope is that the party member/supporters will start having conversations, try to find out more and maybe start a process of change.
A Labour neighbour who was a councillor until this year now tells me he has read Stephanie Kelton and implied a few others are interested at local level. When party leaders see a groundswell of interest, they will have to respond. Rachel Reeves may find herself challenged by people who have an argument.
Maybe change will come from the bottom. At least we are talking solutions not just moaning.
We must hope.
Indeed, we must
Even amongst what I suspect is a majority of people who recognise that we need to spend massively to tackle climate change, rebuild public services and build a sustainable economy, there is a mental block over ‘tax and spend’. Thatchers handbag metaphor is deeply embedded so people effectively give up and are resigned to a state of decay – ‘we just can’t afford it’.
If economics is poorly understood then macroeconomics is a mystery to 99.99% of the population. Where money comes from and how the government funds its spending. So getting the message out is as if not more important than anything else. Unless this changes, not much else can change.
When it comes to existential issues such as climate change, my retort to the “can we afford it?” question is “can we afford NOT to do it?”. I doubt that, in the midst of climate breakdown 100 years or so hence, any of our descendents will be comforting themselves with a warm feeling that they at least balanced the government’s budget (assuming by then that there are still functioning governments of course).
You are right
Why? Why? Why?
I wrote this years ago about the questions children ask when growing up, it would be interesting to re-write it from an adults point of view about how we now live, might give it a go…
A QUESTION OF GROWING UP
Why doesn’t money grow on trees?
Why do I always graze my knees?
Why can’t I do as I please?
Why won’t my goldfish eat this cheese?
Why does the sun not shine all day?
Why go to bed when I want to play?
Why are rain clouds always grey?
Why won’t my gerbil eat this clay?
Why are my eyes wet when I cry?
Why don’t birds fall from the sky?
Why do they call it shepherds pie?
Why did my goldfish have to die?
Why don’t grown-ups eat their greens?
Why do they always miss their teens?
Why must I sleep to see my dreams?
Why not give my rabbit beans?
Why is it hot when the fire is on?
Why is it cold when the sun has gone?
Why is an elephants’ nose so long?
Why won’t my budgie eat this scone?
Why does my mummy paint her face?
Why must I tie my own shoelace?
Why doesn’t the moon stay in one place?
Why does my cat have fur on his face?
Why does my body grow so fast?
Why can’t I stay in the juniors’ class?
Why do childhood days not last?
Why must memories stay in the past?
PS… I have a friend who randomly sends out jokes via email, when I asked why they do it so often they said it was their way of keeping in touch when they had nothing in particular to talk about in order to let people know they were still thinking of them. I looked forward to their jokes all the more after that. Why not try a ‘weekend fun’ addition to your blog, something a bit random, humorous or out of the box? A change is a good as a rest so they say 🙂
Now there’s an idea
Anybody who opposes the rich needs to be careful with jokes.
Sometime in the 1980s or 1990s Murdoch and the Mail discovered that they could get away with lying that the jokes of their political opponents was what they truly believed.
It could then become a very damaging campaign, repeated endlessly until a surprisingly high number of people believed it.
The most recent example being Labour minister, Liam Byrnes mindless copy in 2010 of 1964 Tory chancellor, Reginald Maudling’s joke to his Labour successor that there was no money left.
As the Tories were lying that the Labour party caused the 2008 Banking collapse, this became their only evidence to support their lies and was not only used by the Far-right media and David Cameron in two General elections but is also still being used by Sunak 13 years later.
It has worn thin
I have always believed that the most important news is not necessarily on the front page. Consider, eg, what was reported on the day the structure of DNA was published. A great deal of news is inconsequential in the longer term.
Today I sent these to a friend
https://theconversation.com/ai-is-helping-astronomers-make-new-discoveries-and-learn-about-the-universe-faster-than-ever-before-204351
https://conversationalist.org/2020/03/05/the-prodigal-techbro/
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/may/04/bernie-sanders-elon-musk-and-white-house-seeking-my-help-says-godfather-of-ai
The impact of AI is suddenly the new, new thing. Much of the commentary on it is alarmist with respect to employment or even, like nuclear weapons, to the continued existence of humanity.
However, as the first article above shows, the impact on the productivity of all data intensive science will be profound, and fairly quickly.
In parallel, as with all technology, there is a downside: the use of AI to spread misinformation and subvert democracy.
By default, I would share the cynicism of Maria Farrell, author of the 2nd piece, about “Prodigal Techbro” types and their urges to “give back” after their stock options have vested.
However, I find it impossible to dismiss the last piece and am reflecting on what we should do.
Western news media exist for profit and are, if I can paraphrase Orwell, like a family with the wrong algorithms in charge (ones that take little or no account of breathable air, living rivers etc).
We have no choice but to try to ensure that good faith drives out, or at least constrains, the bad. Using Mastodon instead of Twitter or any other billionaire-owned and controlled media seems worthwhile to me. If I were still in in the UK I would be pressing non-Tory parties to put in place constitutional protection for the BBC with a view to it never again being suborned by the forces of right wing manipulation, and becoming as much of a so-called national religion as the NHS was at the time of the London Olympics.
The UK now ranks only 26th in the world for press freedom. Meanwhile, the Tory-free former part of the UK on the island of Ireland ranks 2nd. Much of the improvement in Ireland’s rank arises from divestment by business oligarchs rather than regulation, but regulation would work too. Hopefully, the next UK govt will revive Leveson II and address issues around ownership and control by offshore capital (and malicious use of AI).
That’s assuming the UK continues as a going concern.
Only partially relevant – but on recent bank news -maybe the Glossary might want to cover ‘Shadow Banking’ in all its ramifications?
I agree – when I get time to get back to the glossary, which time is in short supply right now as two new Corporate Accountability Network projects are well underway
I see this as hopeful about the NHS, even though it’s weeks-old news. It’s cross-party PAC, which is another good sign, I hope. A shame anything in parliament takes so long to get known about.
https://lowdownnhs.info/comment/mps-question-private-sector-contribution-to-nhs-elective-recovery/
Unfortunately I can’t recall seeing anything about it in MSM, which is a shame.
Yes. We must keep talking.
The narrative of unaffordability is a myth.
The more conversations that are had that come from a place that doesn’t buy into this myth and lay out an alternative based in reality, the better.
You are right, Richard.
Repetition is the key – it worked for the neoclassical tripe, it will work for a reality based alternative.
Glad we agree
A few days ago I commented on a local site about the outsourcing of operations to private hospitals to the effect that this would reduce opportunities for new surgeons training and that private hospitals had the majority of their staff trained in the NHS so how are these circles being squared. Facebook declined to allow my post because it went against their “Community Standards” and if I did it again I would be banned.
So not only media policing what people hear
Wow….
Now that is really disturbing. I’m guessing that a complaint was raised by the Tufton St mob. You should challenge the ruling.
A
The problem that everybody passes over too easily, including the comments here, is obvious but endlessly overlooked. Politics in Britain is driven by the News Agenda (not the other way round). The News Agenda for the terrestrial broadcasters who provide the widest coverage is not set by the broadcasters (they have a responsibility to ‘impartiality’ that is weak, but they have be able to show they simply do not make up their own headlines; so the older Press Media effectively sets the daily news and political agenda).
Therefore the press media, out of date and in many respects socially redundant, effectively set the News Agenda. Hence Billionaires buy up the biggest selling newspapers (ironically with shrinking readership because they are completely irrelevant in the real world, rather than the fantasy they write about). The press are bought up by right-wing Billionaires quite simply so the press can serve their chosen right-wing political party – the Conservative Party (he who pays the piper calls the tune). The Broadcasters follow the Agenda set by the press (ah, ‘impartiality’ – which turns out to be exculpation: ‘not me Guv’). You are being drowned in neoliberal guff mired in the politics someone else has decided it is appropriate to debate.
Whatever you complain about, whatever small effect you think you can have briefly; within a few days in the press the normal Agenda will resume, like a daily tidal wave washing away whatever you have achieved. This is the reality. Labour? They want the right headlines; and the ‘right’ headlines will always by Neoliberal; the neoliberal policies will follow. The real world does not matter in politics. The News Agenda is reality, and when you think about it, that was Orwell’s great insight; and now we have technology Orwell could not even dream of: so if you think this is as bad as it can ever be, AI is still to fully develop, thus – “you ain’t seen nuthin’ yet”.
About 100 years ago, when newspapers in their modern form were coming into existence, the writer GK Chesterton said ‘newspapers will be a kind of plaything for rich men. They will not need to censored, they will censor themselves’. That is exactly what has happened.